I was luckily born with a condition known as ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder). I prefer to say condition, rather than a disease. Sadly, it cannot be cured but who is complaining. It can be treated with medication though, and it can last for years or a lifetime. Most cases are in Male kids, in between six and nineteen years of age. The symptoms usually consist of hyperactivity, difficulty controlling behavior and the difficulty of paying attention and staying focused. ”ADHD is a common behavioral disorder that affects about 10% of school-age children. Boys are about three times more likely than girls to be diagnosed with it, though it's not yet understood why. Kids with ADHD act without thinking, are hyperactive, and have trouble focusing. They may understand what's expected of them but have trouble following through because they can't sit still, pay attention, or focus on details.”

When I was five years old, my mom decided to put me in baseball. It helped a bit, getting me to work out and get some energy out of my system, but whenever I got to middle school around the age of eleven or twelve, that’s whenever the ADHD really kicked in. In school, I have struggled with turning work in, doing homework, projects, and pretty bad grades. There were kids that would call me stupid, dumb, retarded, and any other name you could think of. Plenty of things would get to me and there were days that I couldn’t take it. I would zone everyone out, not listen to people and not pay attention. “Many ADHD minds are brilliant, but are not presented information in a way that is conducting for them to learn/remember it. You are demonstrating critical thinking in your post and I would guess that you are an intelligent person, you'd be surprised how limited many people are in their insight. Put in the right context, I think you would surprise yourself with the amazing things you and your brain are capable of. Don't fight your intellectual nature by trying to conform to traditional learning methods, find something that works for you and try not to get discouraged!”

I know I am a pretty smart kid, I know that I can get good grades, but the idea of having to take medication just so I could be normal, just so I can focus like everyone else in my classes, just so I can act appropriate and not get in trouble, just so I can do my chores and not get yelled at. Soon, I realized that taking medication wouldn’t make me different than anyone else. There are people that have to take medication for diabetes, and many more conditions. Medication would be the thing that would help me be me.
I go to the Grand Prairie Fine Arts Academy. We have all AP/Pre-Ap classes, meaning that there is a lot of work and a lot of smart kids. So I obviously struggle if im not taking medication. I play the violin for my high school and play baseball for the high school next door. Playing the violin will give me something to do that I enjoy, as well as the physical exercise while playing baseball. “This morning the medical journal Pediatrics published research that found kids who took part in a regular physical activity program showed important enhancement of cognitive performance and brain function.”  I have an opportunity to be the only person in my family to go to college. Whether it is because of my grades, my violin playing, or because of baseball. I don’t want to throw away all my opportunities away because I cannot focus. I understand that ADHD can be temporarily or lifetime and I am okay with the fact that I have this condition. I am aware that I need to get my stuff done in the classroom, if I want to succeed at life.

My mom has tried to give me everything I have ever needed to, to do the best I can at what I do, and I cannot thank her enough for all that she has done. She’s been through thick and thin with me and my older brother. My real dad had left whenever my mom was pregnant with me, so it was us three in a tiny apartment. She had provided the medication for me to focus so I can get far in life and make something of myself.

What do you give to someone that gives you everything? When I was just nine years old, I had promised my mom that one day, she wouldn’t have to work another day in her life. Yes, we but heads but I love her to death and I want to give back everything that she has given me and my family. I learned to not take anything for granted, knowing that I had to take a break from medication because we couldn’t afford it, and spending four nights in the hospital with my mom because the surgery didn’t go that well. There are points in life where you just have say okay and move on. You have to live for what is going on that day and what comes next. You cannot live in the past. You have to just let it go and continue to work hard at what you do.

Last year I had qualified to go to state for my violin solo earning a superior rating. Little did I know that the judges at the state level completion are all college professors around the state that have many degrees and I am only a fifteen year old kid in the ninth grade. So when I showed up and played pretty well, I came home discouraged with a rating of a three. It was an experience I will never forget but it just made me want to work even harder next year. This current year I have qualified for state once again and awaiting for the state completion at the end of May. Baseball is my life, and I love playing it, and I want to succeed. I am able to focus, work hard, play my best, and never give up. We recently made the playoffs and got eliminated the very first round. Which of course is upsetting but it won’t stop us from practicing and getting better.

I am able to focus, get things done, get decent grades and still have a great time. I am not ashamed to take my medication, no matter what people say. I am lucky to be taking it, and being gifted and skilled in activities. There is nothing wrong with ADHD and there is nothing to be ashamed and/or afraid of. I am proud of having this condition.