RYAI, I have ADD/ADHD and went through a similar thing though I was 34 at the time. I got hurt at work and had to retrain and chose network engineering as my new career. I had 9 months to complete what would amount to an AA degree and pass the Novell Certified Network Engineer tests. I did pass and was one of 3 (out of 15) that got my Engineer certification before school was finsihed. What I needed to do was spend a whole lot of time with some of my classmates going over the information, talking about it with them and actually doing hands on with some of it to visually understand the process. I spent hours memorizing data, I'd highlight sections, read them, write them and then do it all over again. Break up the data into smaller more manageable sections and then learn those first, it will be easier. I don't know your age but if your younger my advice would be to resist the urge to let your mind roam around. I found that after a short time my attention would start to drift or I'd get bored but I learned that I could sense when this was starting to happen and I'd tell myself, "just go another 15 minutes and then take a break" I found if I did this an hour or two would go by without me noticing. I did make sure that I took a break at least every two hours though. Also, you need to figure out when you're most alert. Is it in the morning when you first get up or, is it in the afternoon? That is when you want to study and take your tests. One of my favorite things was to go to the gym with my notebook or testbook on the day of the test and walk the treadmill while reading just before I'd go take the test. It seemed to reinforce the data and kind of relaxed me, Oh, by the way I am not fond of excersise by any means, I just found this cleared my head. We tested via computerized tests which made things a little better for me and might help you. Practice tests are also a big help. Don't give up! If I can do it after being a truck driver for 15 years so can you!!!!!!

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