ADD and College

[dshroyer2001]

My daughter was diagnosed with ADD (depression and anxiety) at the age of 21. She has always worked during school. I am starting to think this is not a good idea and it is added stress. What are others thoughts on this topic? Does she need to learn to balance school and work or is this a unreasonable exception. Would love some feed back from others in this same situation.

[Penny Williams]

My daughter is in her sophomore year of college. She doesn’t have an ADHD diagnosis but does have anxiety and struggles with planning/organization. Our intention all along was for her to work — financially we desperately need her to work. But, the load they are required to keep up with in college is much more rigorous and time-consuming than when I was in college. She literally doesn’t have the spare time. She gets super stressed and anxious just thinking about the possibility of adding a job.

Penny
ADDitude Community Moderator, Parenting ADHD Trainer & Author, Mom to teen w/ ADHD, LDs, and autism

[strwbry]

Working at a nice restaurant might work. She could only work Fridays and Saturdays and still make a pretty good living without taking any work home. Balancing school and work can be very difficult, but if she can work with a therapist to help with time management, it may be doable.

I too was diagnosed with ADHD, anxiety, and depression at 21! It’s such an empowering realization. It takes some time, but things do get better from here! 🙂

[Author]

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