Partridge ADHD Clinic

24/12/2024

I’m really proud to share an article that I have co-authored and published today! Considering how much I struggled academically, this feels like Everest to me. It’s exciting to contribute something meaningful, work in a life-affirming field, and help many wonderful people who are mirrors of my own experience(s).

Proposing a quality framework for ADHD: the ADHD Assessment Quality Assurance Standard for Children and Teenagers[CAAQAS] to improve diagnosis assessment

18/04/2024

‘Do you often make careless errors and mistakes?’

One of the signs of inattention in people with ADHD is the tendency to make careless errors and mistakes. Apart from difficulty in paying attention, this may be due to rushing through tasks, feeling bored, becoming distracted by other thoughts or cognitive processes, getting distracted by other things, and avoiding checking. For school and working-age people, making errors in written work is a common activity where the difficulty is more evident. Although modern word processing programs and add-ons like Grammarly can help detect spelling and grammatical errors, they are not entirely accurate. Some people find that phonological attention is a useful addition to visual attention in checking for errors in written work. Word processing software that has a "read aloud" function (found in the review tab) can read the text back to you. This feature is beneficial in reviewing written work because hearing a spelling or grammatical mistake spoken aloud can make it easier to spot.

12/07/2023

Time blindness.

A neurotypically developing person will acquire an innate sense of passing time. What we know about how people measure time is complex; it is likely to involve multiple brain centres including the frontal lobe which is thought to control our executive functions. People who do not have a good sense of time may struggle with occupational performance, punctuality and not meeting financial commitments to name a few.
Having a playlist running from a specific time may help. For example, if you are a parent with ADHD and struggle to organise the children out the door in the morning, then selecting certain songs to start playing at key time points might help you to stay on track.

12/06/2023

Using the environment to treat ADHD.

Russell Barkley has said that ADHD is more of an ‘intention disorder’ than an inattention disorder. People with ADHD know what is required of them and have every intention to activate and sustain themselves, but they struggle to convert intentions into actions. What I think he was speaking to, in part, is that often people with ADHD concentrate well if they are engaged in something they are enjoying, are good at or are interested in. In fact, some people can ‘hyper-focus’. Taking time to learn about ADHD, about personal strengths and areas of difficulty offers an opportunity to develop in difficult areas, but arguably more importantly, to channel oneself into areas of strength. People with ADHD will find it much easier to study topics they are interested in and will prosper in an employment that lights them up.

New research from the University of Central Florida shows children with ADHD need to fidget only when using executive brain functions – like watching a math ...

06/06/2023

How ADHD can worsen before me**es, and how to help.

The medical model of ADHD says the condition is caused by a general reduction of specific neurotransmitters, namely dopamine and noradrenaline. Toward the later end of the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, estrogen levels are at their lowest. Estrogen increases dopamine synthesis and so when in shorter supply, it impacts already low dopamine stores. This can exacerbate memory difficulties, brain fog, organisation and emotion regulation even if ADHD medication is normally effective during the majority of the cycle. Temporarily increasing the dose of ADHD medication, as and when required, can bring great relief to women and girls who are most affected by the above.



Image attributed to: Isometrik - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0,

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02/06/2023

‘Emotional reasoning’ is one of many ‘cognitive distortions’. People with ADHD tend to over-use emotional reasoning compared to others. The consequences can include impulse buying, easily trusting strangers and creating self fulfilling prophecies, usually about low self worth. A Dialectic Behavioural Therapy (DBT) skill called ‘Wise Mind’ can help. Wise mind is where ‘Emotional Mind’ and ‘Rational Mind’ overlap. Rational Mind is logical and we use this mind state when we are engaged in familiar tasks. Emotional Mind is a mind state that is controlled by feelings. Wise Mind is a mix of the two and therefore helps with decision making by using emotion and logic. Having a picture of Wise Mind on the fridge, as a screen saver, or phone case can remind people to use Wise Mind when decision making.

Marsha Linehan, the developer of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), explains Emotion, Reasonable and Wise Mind.Find out more about DBT Online Courses at htt...

01/06/2023

Some people with ADHD have perfectionist traits. The trait might be learnt, a mask or a reaction to internal or external criticism. The combination of perfectionism and ADHD can be exhausting. Imagine trying to achieve perfection with a brain that easily slips off task, is more attracted to novelty, and works best immediately before a deadline. If this is problematic, think about sharing with your manager if you trust them. A solution might be a mix of recognising your strength as a ‘task initiator’ and pairing up with a colleague who is a ‘task completer’; asking for support to monitor progress to help keep you on track; and working to adjust your standards so that ‘good enough’ lands more comfortably with you. Regarding children, the above can be the role of a teaching assistant.

31/05/2023

Sometimes people explain they ‘crash’ in the afternoon or evening and attribute this to stimulant medication. While this can be the case for some people, for others there are alternative explanations and/or reasons that compound the problem.
1. Caffeine intake across the day can lead to slumping. While it can improve concentration and alertness shortly after consumption it can also lead to feeling washed out later on.
2. People have also told me ‘hyperfocus’ or riding the wave of increased attention has actually led to them to overlook eating and drinking and caused cognitive decline later in the day. A solution here for children is to have a teacher remind them to eat and drink while at school. For adults try keeping a water bottle by the work station as well as a ‘care package’ or bowl containing some fruit and healthy snacks that are in view and easy to access.

31/05/2023

ADHD rarely travels by itself. The American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention highlights this explaining that behaviour problems, anxiety and depression, increased risk taking, peer difficulties, autism, and specific learning difficulties (such as dyslexia, dyscalculia and dysgraphia) often co-occur. The environment can also play a part, either bringing ADHD related difficulties to the foreground - think of an adult who has organisational difficulties who starts a new job as a PA; or by complimenting a trait - think of a hyperactive youngster playing sport. So, over time, and with changing environments, ADHD and the co-occurring conditions can look like a symphony and cause confusion in identifying what is it that is going on. One month a person may present as more anxious and withdrawn, and the next gregarious and socially active. In many cases ‘both/and’ rather than ‘either/or’ is relevant. It may help to write down the difficulties and strengths and the environments in which they do and do not occur.