Welcome to the Attention Deficit Disorder Expert Podcast Series by Attitude magazine.

Good afternoon and welcome. I'm Wayne Callan and you're listening to

Attitude magazine's weekly ADHD expert audio broadcast. Today's webinar is

about managing and putting in perspective the myths, stigma and untrue statements that all ADHD

experience at home at the workplace and in the world. You've probably heard it all. ADHD is a made-up disorder or is an ADHD for little boys not adults and many more statements not grounded in fact.

Parents raising a child with ADHD and adults

diagnosed with the condition often write

into us telling us about their encounters with stigma.

It can come from acquaintances who don't know a thing

about attention deficit, as well as family members who think they are experts on the disorder

but really aren't. The problem is some of us take to heart all of those misstatements about ADHD,

and after a while mistake them for the truth. That's when the problems really start.

Today, Michelle Novodny will give us strategies and approaches for

confronting stigma in our lives so we can carry on and move forward.

Michelle is a best-selling author, coach, and the parent of a young adult with ADHD. She is the

former president and CEO of the National Attention Deficit Disorder Association or Atta.

So now let me turn it over to Michelle. Welcome. Thanks Wayne. All right so we're going to spend the next bit of time talking about stigma and the shame that often follows with stigma.

So again, as Wayne said, there are so many things out there people say about ADHD.

People talk about ADHD being made up, you know, they talk about it not existing, they talk about if you do med, you're making your kids zombie kids.

I've heard it all and unfortunately sometimes the information is even coming from doctors.

People go to their physician and sometimes finally, they're ready for treatment and people say,

oh, ADHD is just a bunch of poppycock.

...