It's ADHD Awareness Week! Celebrities speak out about their ADHD

In case you were not aware, ADHD Awareness Week (September 14-20) is happening right now as we speak.  One purpose of such a promotional campaign is to let the public know more about this disorder in hopes that more children might be diagnosed and treated at an earlier age. The other hope is that as more people find out about ADHD, the less this disorder will be stigmatized by the general population. Through such efforts towards awareness, people with ADHD may come to realize that there is hope and that they are certainly not alone in dealing with this disorder. 

In fact there are many more children being diagnosed with ADHD than ever before. ADDitude Magazine cites a statistic from the March issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine saying that: "...  AD/HD affects up to 7.5 percent of school-aged children. The National Institute of Health, using information from previous studies, had estimated the number of children with AD/HD to be between 3% - 5% of the population."

These children will grow up to be adults, many of whom will still be dealing with the issues of ADHD.  Although ADHD is often considered a child's disorder it affects many adults as well.  And some of these adults are well known celebrities.  Our Eileen Bailey has provided us with a list of some of the famous folk who have ADHD including the likes of former Pittsburgh Steeler Terry Bradshaw, Ty Pennington from the show, "Extreme Makeover, Home Edition", and Woody Harrelson from the TV show Cheers.

Other celebrities to openly discuss their ADHD include Karina Smirnoff, who you probably know from ABC's "Dancing with the Stars."  Smirnoff shares her story of finding out about her ADHD on the official site for Vyvanse (an ADHD medication). 

Smirnoff tells how she discovered she had ADHD:  "I'm an adult with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). I learned that the inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that affected me as a child and into adulthood were, in fact, symptoms of ADHD."

Howie Mandell is another famous person who speaks candidly about having ADHD.  You probably know Howie Mandell from the popular game show, "Deal or No Deal" or when he was a standup comedian sporting a purse which looked like a hand because it was a "handbag."  Last year Howie Mandell was part of a national campaign to give hope to other ADHDers.  This was his message:

"When I was in high school, my impulsivity led me to all kinds of acts
and pranks. I had trouble sitting still and could hardly focus or pay
attention in class. It wasn't until I was an adult that I was diagnosed
with ADHD," said Howie. "I'm involved in the Adult ADHD Is Real campaign
because I want adults to know that it's never too late to seek help for
ADHD. I hope that sharing my story encourages people to seek help. I didn't
let ADHD prevent me from achieving my goals and neither should anyone
else."