Strawberry girl: The first problem is lawyers are one sided. I do not have a problem with law, but the motives are impure, if you will.

The ADHD mind is such an analytical thing that you probably found the one career best suited to us. there are a few questions I have for you. Are you treating your ADD? Is your husband supportive? Is your position in the law firm one where you can pioneer new territory.

These are some of the less person-specific questions. The harder questions to ask yourself, Is this my calling, where I belong?. This is especially hard because people with ADHD cannot remove their own emotional involvement. Now if you're the type of person who cares about everything and everyone,then your conflict is internal. If you only care about progressing your career, and the ways and means to achieve that are not your concern, then stay where you are, and fight.

Law is useful in many areas of life. What you have to offer is defined by your capacity and motive. Did you botch the big account because it was boring and mundane, or because of missing/incomplete paperwork? These are things that can be worked out with your doctor. If you botched it because of personal feelings of right and wrong, then I would say there is nothing to do at this company anymore, and you need to define what primary feelings motivate your work's inspiration in you. If it is an overwhelming feeling to help those who suffer injustices, there are many ways to do that.

Quote

Check out Professionals with Learning Disabilities: www.pwld.ca

Quote

Wow, thank you so much to everyone for their responses, the professionals with learning disorders site looks really helpful and informative!

It's amazing how you can go from day to day feeling put together one day and completely lost the next. While mental health and ADHD affect many professionals, it's my experience that the topic is still somewhat 'hush hush' and it's nice to know that there are others out there with similar experiences. SLG

Quote

I'm in a similar boat, with a specialized doctorate and I have additional psychiatric problems, keeping me out of work for a few years. FIRST: Meds can help with time-tracking; if you're not on meds, see a psychiatrist who specializes in ADD.

SECOND: Software can help! You need a CONTACT MANAGEMENT system like ACT which log time, calls, appts, etc. A Project MANAGEMENT software program could also help you track details. The learning curve will be worth it, in any profession.

THIRD: There's probably a legal specialty that will fit your skill set. As a student (or graduate), you qualify for career counseling at your school, and it can help immensely.

Let's say vocational testing rates you high for social work. That means that you share similar values with social workers and can get along with them. THEY NEED LAWYERS, and non-profits are supportive of disabled employees, especially since they pay less.

Your post wasn't that clear, but it suggested that maybe you're conflicted about values at your present employment. If you are excited about the mission of your employer, you'd be a better employee.

Quote

Just a follow-up. A year after articling, I was never able to find a job in law and am now working in policy. It is unlikely that I will work in law again as a result of my law school marks.

I was taking a combined degree at the time and was only diagnosed in the last month of my degree, too late to do anything about it really. I still feel a profound sadness that I am not able to work in my profession.

There appear to be so many barriers for lawyers with ADHD, and while I am determined, I haven't been able to overcome them yet. I hope that others are faring better!

Quote

Hang in there Strawberrylawgrl... !

It's refreshing to find another who has taken a similar journey. It's very sad that you weren't diagnosed until you were so far into your degree(s). I was diagnosed ADHD at the completion of my 1L year (about a year ago.) While my marks aren't that great either, I managed to survive academic probation last year... and have hope for increased performance during the 1.5 years I have left before I complete my JD.

I don't know how marks influence the job market where you are, but down here there are still opportunities in the law for those who have a passion for justice (although mine is a bit beat up right now.)

And remember, a law degree is useful in a lot of other professions too! Hang in there!

Lizzyq

Quote

It's interesting, I've been reading about 'twice exceptional' children lately - those who are both gifted and have some kind of learning disability as well.

Some articles mention that 1/6 gifted children also have a learning disability that is often not diagnosed because it is masked or compensated for by the child's other intellectual abilities. This is especially true for girls.

What a loss of potential - it is such a shame! I would do anything to spare even one bright little girl the pain that I went through in the course of my education. I can't count the number of times I heard a teacher or professor say 'Why can't you just get your act together? You're so smart, you're just not living up to your potential.'

Please keep an eye on your gifted daughters and give them the help they need to succeed. Remember, if they do have ADHD it may be hidden, and not recognized until it's almost too late. SGL

Quote

I hope u guys don't mind a question from a non-lawyer.

I'm a paralegal considering law school & I have add. It seems to me that a lot of lawyers, at least in criminal & civil, (at the courthouse a lot) have a lot of add symptoms, but they also have secretaries following them around with notes, "you forgot this" etc.

aside from the fact I'm in my 40's and trying to decide if I'm too old to start (& incur a high debt) I wonder--does every lawyer get their own secretary?? Or should I just 4get the whole idea of law school-in case I really screw up AND have alot of debt when I'm done. (sorry this is so long.)

Quote

Hi there hyperspd,

I definitely wouldn't preclude law school because you have ADHD. There are certainly lawyers who have ADHD. I have read that they are often more creative and can perform very well in the courtroom. So saying, there may be areas of law that are better choices for lawyers with ADHD than others - such as those that have fewer deadlines.

If you decide to go to law school, I would likely try to make sure that your ADHD is under control with adequate treatment before you start.

After admission, I would also make contact with the centre for students with disabilities at your university. They may be able to help you find appropriate accommodations, such as longer time limits on exams.

Not all lawyers get their own admin assistant, but if you don't end up having one, there are other accommodations that your employer may be willing to conider, such as a quiet office. I would also recommend taking advantage of mentoring opportunities and lawyer assistance programs.

Law school isn't easy, but I certainly don't regret my decision to attend and value the training I received. In the end, it's a very personal decision that requires weighing a variety of factors, but don't let ADHD stop you from following your dreams.

Best of luck, SLG.

Quote

I think the PWLD site is no longer active - it's too bad, it was a good site, and there really aren't many other resources out there for professionals with disabilities. As an update, I'm still working in policy and loving it, but my search for a law job continues. While I'm greatful to my supervisor for the wonderful opportunity that he has given me, I miss the challenge of legal research, the scope of issues and the excitement of negotiating!

I was at a mentoring dinner last year, and I overheard a partner saying that if a resume gets circulated around enough in the legal community, it gets dismissed off-hand because there must be something 'wrong' with the person.

It's attitudes like this that make it difficult for individuals with ADHD to get their foot in the door. I truly believe that the whole articling process is intended to weed out individuals with learning disabilities and mental illness who are not deemed to be 'acceptable' candidates for the legal profession.

Well, there's nothing wrong with me, or anyone else with ADHD! I truly believe that I am a strong legal reseacher with good inter-personal skills. I just wasn't diagnosed with ADHD until after law school so my marks suffered, and I now need a little bit more help organizing my time than other people! That doesn't mean that I don't have skills to offer, or that I don't deserve a second chance!

As I said, my search continues..

Quote

http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/825.html

Pages 4 & 8 of http://www.palawweekly.com/plw_net/supplements/pdfs/yl_0905_web.pdf

Best wishes on all your endeavors.

Quote

Dear Strawberrylawgrl,

I'm a 42 y.o. lawyer diagnosed seven months ago, and I'll tell you that, yes, you absolutely CAN be a lawyer with ADD. In fact you can even thrive, though there will be extra challenges that you'll have to overcome. (I would be interested in hearing about what has specifically worked for other late-diagnosed lawyers because I am struggling with my one big bugaboo, which is deadlines.)

Just to give you encouragement, Strawberrylawgrl, here's what I was able to accomplish before I was ever diagnosed. I was on a law journal, clerked for a state supreme court justice (actually the chief justice), accomplished many things as a public interest lawyer before joining a private law firm, at which I stayed, and thrived, becoming a partner while still in my 30s. I've also had public "recognition," if you will, such as being voted a "Superlawyer" and among the top 25 lawyers in my state in my practice area. So it can happen, even when you have "issues" (as I always have) with some things, in my case, timeliness.

Here are a few tips. First, make sure that whatever area of practice you go into is one that inherently draws your attention. That doesn't mean that every aspect of what you do floats your boat, but it means that more than 50% of the time you're actually thrilled to be doing what you're doing. As a mentor of mine told me, once: when he was made a partner in his firm, he told all of his new partners that the joke was on them, because he would have done what he got to do there for free. You have to feel that way or it won't work for you.

Second, your spouse/significant other and assistants need to be on board, particularly your spouse/significant other. If you're still unattached, I'd hunt down a partner that will accept the diagnosis and educate himself or herself about it. I struggled for many years because my hubby could not understand why I needed to have the house immaculate all the time (it's too distracting for me when it isn't). Accepting the diagnosis and working with it has made a huge difference for us. Your assistant also has to be on board because he or she will have to accept a certain level of chaos with you. I've found that my assistant is very motivated to "help" me, because I'm kind and supportive with her, and she actually seems to kind of enjoy having the extra responsibility, although the chaotic parts (particularly last-minute rushes) wear her down at times. She watches for early meetings, teleconferences, or hearings and calls me to remind me about them, even sometimes from her home at 7:00 am. She also double checks letters or other things for stupid errors, like naming the wrong client. You need another pair of eyes on these kinds of things, so find an assistant who is willing and able to do that, and treat him or her like the fabulous professional asset that he or she is. Remember birthdays, buy gifts at appropriate times, give thank yous for beyond-the-call-of-duty work, and always support him or her with his or her supervisor. You'll reap an enormous benefit from doing that.

The third thing is that you'll need to be honest with yourself about what you're good at, and what you're not. And what you're good at will coincide with what most floats your boat. If you can't juggle assignments and multitask, you're not likely to make it as a trial lawyer. If, on the other hand, you'd rather cut off your arm than sit and read caselaw all day, then you're not likely to make a good appellate lawyer. Go with your strengths. If you're talented, your colleagues and/or superiors may encourage you to branch out, thinking that you'd probably be good at other things, but as soon as you find yourself becoming disinterested, recognize that as a red flag and avoid that kind of practice. Being bored will tube your career. You have to love it more than most people do to sustain it. "The law is a jealous mistress," and all that.

The last bit of advice that I would give is that you should try medication if you have not already. It's not a panacea. For me, it helps, but it isn't a cure-all. I still have timeliness issues. I need to develop a routine that works. Had I started this back in elementary school, I'm sure I'd be fine now. As it is, I'm starting rather late in life, after having developed several coping skills on my own, some good, some not as good.

Ok, so here's my question for any other lawyers further down this path than me: do you use hyperfocus to write? I do, and I can't really write without it. Writing is my "thing" if you will, and I use the hyperfocus to "see" a brief, then I write in a stretch (as long as 60 hours with only a couple hours of sleep and very little food). Do any of you do the same thing, and if so, have you discovered a way to turn on a hyperfocus early enough to get drafts done in advance of a deadline?

Hyperfocusqueen

Quote

That is a very encouraging story. I wish mine were the same.

I am an experienced attorney in my early forties and have had a number of ups and downs in my career as a result of my ADD I am still searching for ways to compensate. I tend to wait until the last minute to turn out briefs or prepare for depositions etc. It takes a filing date or some other uber-deadline to force me to lock in and turn out the work product. When I do, the product is top notch but getting to that point and keeping my focus is a killer.

I find I am at my best when under a time crunch. In fact, I thrive under that pressure but it tends to drive the people around me crazy. It can also be pretty exhausting. Without the impending doom of a court-deadline, I tend to flounder and slip up on the simple things (time entry, reports, and the other mundane tasks). In the end, I am either hyper-focused or comatose, I either work 13 hours a day for two weeks on a project and churn out stellar work-product or I accomplish very little.

I love it when I am on and under the "gun" but there's an awful lot of down time in between. The inconsistencies drive me and my colleagues nuts. I would love to find a way to "even out" and am looking into hiring a coach and exploring the idea of an executive assistant to help me get organized.

I am going through a "down time" in my career and trying to find ways to reinvent myself. My ADD makes me outgoing, creative, personable and allows me to develop creative solutions. It makes me fantastic in a crisis but I'm tired of leaping from one crisis to another.

I'd love to hear stories from other lawyers out there on how they developed tools to compensate, stay focused and get organized.

Quote

I was a litigation attorney for many years until I retired last year, and although I don't have ADHD, I know a lot about it because my wife and our son both have ADHD. ADHD attorneys can be excellent trial lawyers, because they hyperfocus on their cases and really master them. But too many ADHD lawyers don't use checklists at trial, and I was able to disrupt their examinations by objecting at every opportunity, distracting them so they would forget to ask the questions they needed to ask. All trial lawyers -- and especially those with attention deficit problems -- should have a list of all the elements they need to prove to make their cases (such as duty, breach, cause, and damages), all the facts they need to prove each element, how they intend to prove each fact, and so, for each witness, a list of the facts they need to get on the record while examining that witness, crossing out each fact as it's supporting testimony is put on the record, and the same procedure for laying foundations for evidence and then putting evidence on the record. This is especially true for long trials and trials where witnesses testify out of order. ADHD lawyers in particular should never "wing it" in the courtroom; even a quick argument in motions practice deserves a 3 x 5 card with key points written down: 1, 2, 3, etc. ADHD lawyers also have problems with missing deadlines, messy offices, failing to keep time records for billing, losing documents, etc., and so need to work hard on organization and on using to-do lists; I recommend getting an assistant who is very organized! I also recommend scanning all incoming documents to the PDF format and saving them both locally and backed up to a remote site on the Internet, and of course using a file naming system that will allow the lawyer to quickly find the saved document. And it's good practice for any attorney to copy all documents to the client. Another practice tip is to file documents with the court, so, if you're in court and need a document you don't have in your briefcase, you can get it from the Clerk; this is also a great way to put inadmissible evidence in front of the judges who read the court file before trial!

Quote

Thank you for the suggestions, all. I've printed articles and will read them.

ADDLAWYER, you and I could be twins. I've just been lucky enough to have very supportive (if frustrated) partners, but I'm exhausting their patience. I'm also getting older and pulling all-nighters has become old, even for me. I've probably done at least one a month over my now-15 year career.

Here's my latest theory about how to induce the hyperfocus earlier and "even out," as you say. I've realized that I never have a problem once my interest in something has been piqued, and I'm always able to become interested in things because I'm spoiled. I'm an appellate lawyer and I get to write about cool stuff all the time. It occurs to me that I often put off starting something because the most natural starting point is something that I find ever so slightly intimidating (reading opposing counsel's brief, for example). The deadline forces me to do the ever-so-slightly-intimidating thing, and then I'm off to the races. So now I'm going to start with something that isn't so intimidating (re-reading the district court decision, for example) to try to develop the interest earlier on.

I'll let you know how it goes.

I welcome more tips from others who have mastered this. I feel like mastering it would make finally feel like an "adult," but maybe that's never going to happen... ;-)

Quote

Harder still is keeping on top of the daily grind. You are lucky to have supportive partners. That's rare.

Mine were up to a point but they never quite understood why I kept blowing off the simple, mundane things we all have to do - like putting in your billable time. I usually would wait a few weeks and then just before bills went out, there would be the mad dash to get it all in and I'd spend the better part of the day doing it.

In compressed situations, emergencies I was the "go to guy" but the long-term projects and the mundane things were what killed me. You knew they had to be done but something more interesting - some shiny new toy was just around the corner.

What I would love to know is how do you stay on top of the simple things? How do you stay on task without a crunch?I In essence, how do you manage yourself?

Quote

Electronic task lists, ADDLAWYER. I have about 150 recurring tasks in my task list on Outlook. Every weekday I have two that I have to check off before I can leave the office: 1) "add to tasks" (I keep a running list of things I need to add next to my computer, just little notes like, "check court orders on X case" or whatever, and I have to add them in as new tasks at the end of each day) and then 2) "enter and close time." I can't say that I'm able to check those two off every weekday, but most. You remember more about what you did then, too, and it helps you to avoid write offs.

The important thing that I learned from a time management CLE by Irwin Karp (he does them around the country, so look for him; he's very good, and he's a lawyer, which is nice), is that you have to keep not only work tasks, but also the mundane &%^ of life, like "Exercise," "Cook dinner," or "Fill car with gas," because you're going to spend time on those things, whether you budget for them or not, so you should have them in there and budget for them. And then I have time estimates for these things. That way, each morning I can look to see what I hoped to accomplish in the day, and group them by things that I can do at the same time, like "laundry" and "read record on the X case," or whatever. I can see how many other things I need to do, as well. Sometimes I move tasks around to other days. Sometimes I just blow them off. But at least then I'm not worrying about remembering them later.

I find this especially helpful for household chores like laundry and cleaning the bathroom, or whatever. Before I kept the task lists, these kinds of things would bug me. I'd walk by the laundry bin, see laundry in it, and think "Cripes, I have to do laundry," and then I'd be trying to fit things in all the time, which would eat up a lot of the day with stupid stuff. Now I have a recurring task that starts every Saturday, and is due every Sunday. It reads "2 hours, Laundry." When the laundry bin is empty and the laundry is put away, it gets checked off and then I forget about it until the next Saturday. Checking off a bunch of tasks feels good. Housework was an especially big problem for me (not that I didn't do it, but that I did it too much) until I added it all to my task list. Heh heh. My IT guys could darned near figure out anything personal that they needed to know about me if they cared to look... ;-)

Hope that that helps.

Quote

Strawberrygrl, ADDLAWYER makes a good point, too.

If you're like me (and probably him), you're probably highly motivated to jump in and help people in a crisis. It can be a liability in that you can get so into the "high" of having people thank you profusely for dropping everything and coming to the rescue that you don't get the other stuff done that doesn't give you that kind of psychological reward. But your ability to do that and to dig in and figure something out and then work like a madwoman until it's fixed is also likely unusual and can be used to your advantage if you're careful about it.

I once had a trial lawyer buddy who had an opponent do something odd in the middle of a trial. She objected to the evidence that he was introducing, but wasn't exactly sure what was wrong with the situation; she just knew that it was wrong. She called her partner at about 1:00 pm that day asking him what he thought. He then called me in (I was then an associate) and asked me if I could do a little research. I did. By 4:00 pm, I knew what the problem was, and I knew that, to fix it, she needed a memo. to be able to give the court and make the record. Doing the full research and writing the memo. took me all night, but by 7:00 am, she had a motion in limine on her chair. She left me a voice message saying that that was "exactly" what she needed and thanking me. The court probably never read the memo., but she submitted it to make the record for appeal, and argued the points orally. The court reversed itself and excluded the evidence. The trial lawyer NEVER forgot that incident. Years later, she helped to pitch me for partner, telling that story.

So, by all means, use that ability to your advantage and to gain loyalty from clients or your partners. Just remember that you're very vulnerable (because that's a big high) to blowing off the less "fun" things for that pyschological reward, and guard against it. One thing that I've taken to doing to guard against it is to tell my partners who are most likely to ask for last-minute help, that I'll be unable to do anything new (no matter how big an emergency it might be) for (say) the next two weeks. So I try to cut it off before it comes to me, and that helps a lot. It's VERY hard for me to say no otherwise. (That's a part of my deadline bugaboo, too.) I'm not sure that it would be that easy to do the same thing with a client, unfortunately. Maybe then the key is to screen calls a little and try to pass off things that you can't do right then to competent colleagues.

I guess that leads to another suggestion, Strawberrygrl. This is just a hunch, but I suspect that solo practice is a minefield for the ADD lawyer. I need the support of my mid-sized firm (and my government-lawyer colleagues when I was a public-interest lawyer). I would probably have had professional liability or responsibility issues without them. Either that, or I probably would have left the practice due to stress. And, again, I can't stress enough that you need to really learn to use your support staff to guard against the stupid mistakes, like forgetting the hearing (done it!), or forgetting to serve someone (guilty again!), etc.

Oh, all right (I need to shut up, don't I?), here's one more suggestion for you, Strawberrygrl. When you make the stupid mistakes, I find that the full out mea culpa usually works. People tend to forgive you if you own the mistake and beg for forgiveness. The time I forgot the hearing (because it was a Monday morning at 9:00 am and I didn't have an electronic calendar and task list that I checked every morning and evening back then), I actually remembered it at 8:30 as I was in the shower. I remember throwing open the shower curtain (water spraying all over the floor) and staring at the clock and thinking, "oh &^%!" (It was a hearing that I didn't need to do any more prepping for, so I just wasn't thinking about it.) So I momentarily panicked, then leapt out of the shower, threw on a suit, raced to my car (wet hair and everything), and just started dialing. I had my assistant call the court to explain that I was on my way. She also located the file and got it to our firm's messenger to deliver to me in the courtroom. I live in the city where the courthouse is located, so I managed to park in the building (lots of $$$) and race up the stairs, through the metal detectors, onto the elevators with the musac and everything (and people looking at my wet hair) and then into the courtroom at about 9:15. The judge, opposing counsel, court reporter, and the clerks and everyone else were there and waiting (thankfully NOT my client). I apologized profusely to the judge and counsel, saying that I should have known better than to schedule a 9:00 am Monday morning hearing. The judge was very kind and told me to catch my breath. I didn't have the file yet, but it was a relatively easy argument that I did from memory. The file arrived just as I was finishing. (To be honest, I think the judge was even a little impressed that I didn't need the notes.) I don't recall whether we won or lost the motion, but it worked out ok. Opposing counsel probably had a great time telling the story to his client, but whatever. I didn't commit malpractice, and that was what was important... And if I had..., well... if the judge had zinged my client and ruled against us because I wasn't there at 9:00 am, well, show me the person who's never made a mistake. It's what liability insurance is for. No sense trying to pass it off on anyone else (some lawyers will try to blame their assistants or lie about some sort of delay or whatever) because all that happens is that it makes you look worse. Just own it and beg for forgiveness. Most people will give it to you. Even opposing counsel will sometimes give you a break if you've been decent enough with them. They don't tell you that in law school, but it's the biggest reason that I can think of for being as collegial as possible with opposing counsel... There but for the grace of God, and all that....

Quote

http://www.abanet.org/genpractice/magazine/2006/oct-nov/adhd.html

Quote

adhd/add adults in school

I entered law school in 2005 as a "second career" student - the nice way they describe the old guys who aren't going to be as mold-able as our younger counterparts! I was 35 at the time, had lost a job (and left others after various periods of time) for what I realize now were performance issues related to not being able to sit at my desk and do my work. I could brainstorm and generate ideas, strategies, tactics, etc., with the best of them. But writing up a 100-page plan or following through on details was impossible for me (and very frustrating both for me and my employer and manager).

Upon returning to school, I realized that much of my academic and work-life were marred by these problems. Nothing I'm saying is terribly specific, but I'm sure it's familiar to those who experienced it too. I ended up having a very difficult time during my first 1.5 years of law school (first baby came along after the first year, too!). Talk about a challenge for undiagnosed ADHD. I basically didn't sleep, my grades suffered etc., I was useless to my wife and my time with the baby was hazy at best. So I sought help at the school's counseling service. After a surprisingly probing set of conversations with the psychologist there (and his attempts at making experimenting with exec order skills - pure failures!), he determined that mine was a textbook case of ADHD and he was shocked that I had been able to compensate and live the life I'd lived despite the failures I'd experienced!

So I'm using Adderall XR (after three hours I felt like a completely different and focused person, and nearly cried with regret and relief!) and trying to keep on top of things, but I'm really having a tough go of it. I'm essentially learning how to learn and retain, learning how to organize time, complete projects, job hunt, prepare for the bar exam, complete a required research paper (long-term project), etc. I'm having a tough time with retention and actually getting motivated, (not that I lack motivation, which is totally different that being motivated) and getting going with my school work.

I need to find some good study methods/techniques that are useful for adult students and are useful ASAP -- and if it can be transferred into productivity in the workplace, well great.

Also, any way to explain this issue to potential employers? I've done very well in clerking and volunteering - better than law school to be sure - but I know that it's a often a bottom line (GPA/class rank) process right out of law school...frustrating...

Thanks for any advice, materials, and experiences you could offer. Finally, thanks for sharing your experiences - very helpful and reassuring...and real. :)

Best, Felix.

Quote

You are an asset to the legal profession already! Your attitude and stick-to-it determination will help you get through this. Do what you can to get by. If the CL spouse does not respect you and your endeavor, the relationship might not be right for you. Maybe a higher power is trying to reveal to you that you need to make changes in your life. ABOVE ALL . . . you are brilliant! You will graduate with a law degree!

I know because I did!!!! I went through 5 years of law school and one failed marriage. I know I will pass the bar, eventually! I will never, never, never, never, never give up!!!! Why? Because I can.

Quote

Just came back to this thread after a few years and realized how helpful it was. Is it still active? Any other resources since 08? Let's keep it going!

Quote

Hello,

I am a third year law student who has recently been diagnosed with ADD. When I received the initial diagnosis, I must say that I was not entirely surprised. Rather, everything started making so much sense to me. I've always known that my brain wasn't wired like everyone else's. I was always moving at the speed of light mentally, but in someways wasn't going anywhere. I would tell my sister I felt like a bicycle that was tipped over with its wheels racing fast as possible, but never moving from that stationary spot. Of course, I've learned some coping skills to help me get by over the years, but I am still struggling to stay afloat. I've always felt like I had to work twice as hard to listen in class, twice as hard to study, twice as hard to understand basic concepts others seem to pick right up on. Creative outlets like writing short stories ( I don't have the attention span for anything longer) or painting, jewelry making were my saviors. So, when I received the ADD diagnosis, it was like a breath of fresh air. I finally understood what the issue was.

Now that I am 2 weeks past that initial diagnosis, I trying to figure out how to truly cope with all the symptoms of ADD. While, I am not blaming myself as much for my inability to stay focused in class, or during conversations; I struggle to stay organized, on time, not procrastinate, and stay focused. I've read as much as I possibly can about being a lawyer with ADD on this thread and this website. But I'm left wondering how can I really make this work? How do I fix myself? Is that even possible?

I've started taking adderall, at least when I remember too. I've tried the electronic list thing, but I often forget to add to the list, or sync my electronic lists to my blackberry. I'm getting better with making sure I have dates in my calendar, but adding period deadlines has been a failure. The deadlines come and go and when the final project is due, I'm left scrambling. I constantly worry about whether I'll be able to find a job as an attorney when I graduate and honestly I get so distracted doing a job search I never complete the process. Then I blame myself for self-sabotaging my career before it even gets off the ground.

Luckily, I have a fiancee who is extremely supportive, but reluctant to believe I have ADD. His theory is that I'm just not passionate about law school and bored with its tedious methods, or that I'm just afraid of not being in school in anymore. He has a difficult time understanding that I've struggled with this my whole life, because he says I'm so accomplished in other areas, this must be just a phase because of law school. Some days I feel all alone, because I feel like I can't share this with anyone else. I grew up in one of those "nothing is wrong with You, you just have to work harder or do X and everything will be fine" kind of families. I tried sharing with my sister that I was going to get evaluated for ADD and she balked at the idea as did my mother and father. They all suggested that I cut back on work, or stop being involved in so many organizations and then I'll be able to focus more. They don't understand that I get restless when I'm not constantly moving, thinking or doing something or being involved somewhere.

I guess I can't expect any miracles after only being diagnosed 2 weeks ago. But where do I begin to pick up the pieces on my life and figure out how to not lose my law license before I earn it? Thanks for any and all help!

Quote

hey, i just read your post...i've just been perusing adhd websites all afternoon, and this thread/your post compelled me to sign up and register.

i don't have any great advice for you, but just wanted to reach out and say hi...we are in the same boat; when i read your post, i almost felt as though i had written it. i'm a 1L and got diagnosed mid-semester last fall, which is when i started taking meds, something i'd resisted (just like i'd resisted getting professional help) for so long--because it would seem like an admission of failure, or weakness, or defectiveness--and am still figuring out how medication changes the way i work, affects all my ingrained coping mechanisms, etc (just tanked a class for this spring too--first time i had medication, high stress, hyperfocus, specific deadlines, and a topic with unspecific boundaries all mixed together...at a time when my doc and i were still trying to find appropriate dosages...i basically stopped eating and sleeping almost completely, then got neurotic, paranoid, overly sensitive, depressed...and didn't even realize it!)

but anyway i wanted to offer a word of encouragement...especially if you are at all interested in corporate transactional work at a large law firm--i worked as a paralegal in a very high-pressure practice at a large law firm before starting law school, and i realized that the firm environment is PERFECT for my ADHD-ness. The organizational system is already in place for you...client-matter numbers, clear team hierarchy, support staff teams w clear functions and labels etc. You have paralegals AND secretaries, who you can ask to remind you of meetings etc., you work in teams so the personal accountability element is always present, and you're always getting up to talk to your secretary or get more coffee, or someone's always coming by your office to ask you a question etc., providing you with the little biobreaks or distractions you need to break up tasks into little spurts. You don't write up your own contracts from scratch, but you follow FORMS and edit them as necessary. The repetition can be cathartic. I'll admit that every so often if a lawyer dropped off a project at my desk simply so he wouldn't have to deal with it, and he didn't pressure me or follow up with me on it, it would slip through the cracks, but on the whole, I was highly regarded, alert, on-the-go, trusted, and known for having a keen eye for detail.

...but law school has been just awful! Law school is famous for its rigor, and i mistakenly assumed that such "rigor" would connote some sort of external structure that i could pour myself into, and basically beat the ADHD the hell out of myself...but that's totally not the case, since the "structural" element is actually supposed to be self-generated...you are supposed to invent and implement your own technologies for staying organized, managing your time, taking effective/intelligible class notes when you're not sure what the point is, or how it [won't] relate to the exam, outlining, etc.

I'm kind of sad when i think that my train wreck of a 1L transcript might preclude me from those high pressure, highly structured, team-oriented work environments in which i do so well and feel stimulated. ...but life is long, and it's good to know that lawyering is nothing like law school.

Quote

I have a question for all of the practicing ADHD Lawyers out there, and would greatly appreciate your advice and input: how do you think ADHD people should study for the bar???

I definitely took the LSAT multiple times until I reached a personal minimum that I set for myself as a pre-requisite to applying for law school (a score I felt aligned better with my non-ADHD peers' scores and my perception of their intelligence), but I spent a very long time preparing for it.

My lovely school psychiatrist opined that law (or at least his very narrow conception of the day-to-day life of a lawyer) is ill-suited to ADHD people and that I should cut my losses while I'm ahead, before I've invested countless thousand more dollars and failed the bar exam multiple times (his words, not mine). I think he would have told Roosevelt not to bother running for president, or told Lance to stop cycling, but I do think he has a point that the bar exam may be especially challenging for people with ADHD.

Did any of y'all go off the beaten path with the way you studied for the bar? What worked/didn't work? Any first-time passers?

Any thoughts, comments, would be greatly appreciated...thanks for reading!

Quote