FAQ Archive

FAQ8: Do girls have ADHD, too?

For some, ADD is characterized by withdrawal
Q: My daughter has some of the symptoms commonly associated with attention deficit disorder, but she is a very quiet child. Are some ADD kids withdrawn and sedate?

A: Yes. ADD is not always associated with hyperactivity, especially in girls. Some of them are "dreamy" and detached. Regrettably, they are sometimes called "airheads" or "space cadets." Such a child can sit looking at a book for 45 minutes without reading a word. One teacher told me about a girl in her class who would lose every article of clothing that wasn't hooked to her body. Nearly every day, the teacher would send this child back to the playground to retrieve her sweater or coat, only to have her return 15 minutes later without it. She had forgotten what she went after. A boy or girl with that kind of distractibility would find it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to get home night after night with books and assignments written down, and then to complete the work and turn it in the next morning.

Frankly, the "far away" child worries me more than the one who is excessively active. She may be seen as a good little girl who just isn't very bright, while the trouble-maker is more likely to get the help he needs. He's too irritating to ignore.

Those who are hyperactive and those who are not have one characteristic in common. It is distractibility. Even though they flit from one thing to another, the name "attention deficit disorder" is not quite on target. It's better than the old term, "minimal brain damage," but there is also misinformation in the current designation. The problem is not that these children have a short attention span. At times, they can become lost in something that greatly interests them to the point they aren't aware of anything going on around them. Instead, they have an insatiable need for mental stimulation during every waking moment. The moment they become bored with what they are doing, they dash off in search of the next exciting possibility.

One father told me about his 4-year-old son with ADD. He said, "If you let that kid get bored, you deserve what he's going to do to you." That applies to millions of children.

http://www.sunherald.com/160/story/93605.html (09 July 07)

Girls with ADHD: Overlooked, Underdiagnosed, and Underserved, Anita Gurian PhD (7/18/07)

Boys with ADHD are usually easy to spot because of their behavior. Boys are more likely to have the combined type of ADHD: hyperactive impulsive behaviors, inattentive behaviors, and a combination, so they're more apt to be noticed. Girls are more likely to have the attentional type of ADHD, which can lead to difficulty in attending and focusing rather than in disruptive behavior.

What happens to the girls? Because they don't disrupt the rest of the class, it may take longer for girls to get a diagnosis of ADHD and to get the help they need. Most of the research has been done with boys, and as many as 50 to 75% of girls with ADHD are missed. Those girls who do get identified are diagnosed on average five years later than boys (boys generally diagnosed at age 7 and girls at age 12). Thus, they lose five critical years during which they could have been getting help.

ADHD Ignores Gender: Researchers believe just as many girls have ADHD as boys, but because their symptoms are not as "hyper" or aggressive, they are not diagnosed or diagnosed much later after damage has been done to their academic progress and self-esteem. Undiagnosed and untreated, girls with ADHD are more prone to eating disorders, depression, and suicide attempts. (10/06)

New research on girls with ADHD states that while the hyperactivity may lessen in adolescence, adolescent girls struggle with delinquent and depressed behaviors, risk for substance abuse, symptoms of eating disorders, difficulty with peers, and a high need for services.

While more boys have been diagnosed with attention problems in school, some girls have some attentional differences, too. While boys may be more physically active, girls are chattier, fidget with their nails or hair, write more notes, and daydream more in class. (06/06)

Study: ADHD affects girls as well as boys
A new University of California at Berkeley study of six- to 12-year-old girls in day camps found that females with ADHD tend to use "relational aggression," such as excluding others from social groups or spreading rumors, rather than the physical aggression seen in boys with the disorder. Study co-author Stephen Hinshaw says ADHD drugs seem to be as effective for girls as they are for boys. Health24.com (South Africa) (5/19)

Patricia Quinn, M.D. and Kathleen Nadeau, Ph.D. are both internationally recognized authorities on ADD (ADHD) and authors of many books for children, teens, and adults. Initially, ADDvance.com focused only on the long-overlooked needs of women and girls with ADD (ADHD). Now this new and expanded site has been developed to address the varied needs of all people with ADD (ADHD) across the lifespan. Visit the Addvance.com site to get more information about girls with ADD.