Next year I will be going back to college as a soph. I found out about my LD and ADD when I was a freshmen in High School. Things have been hard but I have made it. College has not been easy but my problem is that I really don’t know what I want anymore. I have been taking Ritlin since my Jr. yr of High School. Truthfully it has helped a lot but now I am starting to question things again. I am not sure that I still want to take it or if I should try something else. Its hard to because I don’t know what I want to do in life as a job. For a while I wanted to work in the LD field and help other people but right now I don’t see doing that cause I am questioning to many things myself. Please help, give me your honest opinion.
Thanks,
Re: Need some encouragement...
Well, I don’t know where to start on this issue. I have gone back after twenty-two years. It has not been easy, many of these so called educators don’t have a clue. They arenot good teachers to begin with, and the fact that they have shut down any adfvancement of their own learning of teaching strategies leaves me speechless. When I identify myself as having ADHD, and get a confused look and asked “whats that”….what can I say—where have you been hidding your head?—and I’m paying a lot of good money for this ineptitude. Right now, I am in the middle of an Executive Function meltdown. Icaught one of those nasty bugs this winter, and it hinddered me for two months, two weeks of which I was absolutely out. So, getting back on track and getting caught up has left me at the very end of the semester trying to finish all this stuff—papers grande. The irony is that understanding my propensity towards this with ADD, I workrd hard at trying to get ahead on stuff—to no avail. So, I am spinning around trying to focus and organize enough to complete a project at a time, but I am pretty overwhelmed at this point. Oh, did i mention that one of these paragons of knowledge threw a paper down on the desk with the remark that this was terrible? Well first it was in the early stages of writing, and second why did he think i went to him in the first place with the problem I was having with the project? So, not sure the moral to the story here, but it is demoralizing how poor the quality of teaching is at the colleges that I have attended scince going back. (in an External program so I can have more choice of location). I know teaching as I have been teaching for over 20 yrs (skiing), but teaching is teaching no matter the subject. Unfortunatley for some teaching is not part of their repertoire. Teachers if you read this—harp on your peers to keep up with teaching —teachers need to get on the bus or get off the bus—no half way!!!!!
Re: Need some encouragement...
The first year of college is the hardest and you have made it through that. Congratulations! Now you will be entering the second year where you still don’t have to make a career choice and you have some leeway to in courses and you should explore your options. I tayght school for six years left Education and went into the private sector and 25 years later am back teaching. I teach interrelated classes of LD and EBD students history. Wendy, currently without a college education it’s getting harder and harder to find good jobs. Stick with school now, it’s tough once you stop to get started again.
As for the medication issue, talk to your doctor and express your feelings and concerns. He may be the single most important person you need to talk with, who knows you better?
I hope this helps you to do something, sitting idle can be devastating to your mind and ego. Don’t let it happen ,you have come to far to quit now. Let me know if there is anything else you need to discuss my e-mailaddress is attached.
Jerry
Your post is an interesting one and hard to respond to with the information you’ve given. You seem discouraged with college and with your medication.
The reality is college isn’t for everybody but a lot of people are going to college these days. I enjoyed college and it says a lot to me when someone doesn’t enjoy it. It also costs a lot of money and I’d certainly think twice about staying if it wasn’t working for me.
You tell us that you don’t want to work with LD people anymore but you don’t suggest what else you might do. People do take time off from college and get jobs to see what kind of work they like and you could certainly do that. College is wonderful in that it offers options unlike high school. You can go to college full-time, part time or not at all. You can switch colleges and these days you can go to college on-line from the comfort of your home!
The medication issue is a very separate thing. It isn’t uncommon for people to stop taking medication as they get older. If you feel your medication isn’t helping you, why take it? If you’d like to see what it’s like without your medication, unlike a diabetic, you have that option. If you decide you want to go back on medication, it’s easily done.
You’re much more in the driver’s seat than you know.
Good luck.