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DESR: Why Deficient Emotional Self-Regulation is Central to ADHD (and Largely Overlooked)

DESR, or deficient emotional self-regulation, is a core facet of ADHD that carries significant consequences. However, it is not included the disorder’s diagnostic criteria. As new research confirms the prominent role emotional dysregulation plays in ADHD’s appearance and individual patient outcomes , that may be changing. Here, learn about DESR, its central role in ADHD, along with implications for diagnosis and treatment.

5 Comments: DESR: Why Deficient Emotional Self-Regulation is Central to ADHD (and Largely Overlooked)

  1. I am so relieved to have found this article. This truly is a critical and ignored issue of adult ADHD/ODD and I hope you work hard at presenting more information to help adult individuals and families with this debilitating issue. Too many lives have been ruined by mis-information, lack of proper training, lack of healthy treatment options, and ignorance in the medical field. Also, a better physical health and mental health solution needs to be researched and developed! This is a true epidemic that must finally be prioritized and it deserves to have the attention deficit against IT to be corrected.

  2. Awesome, Dr. Barkley. It’s great to have this kind of precision diagnostic language joining the lexicon of RSD, ODD and all the other co-morbidities! Thank you for your continued pioneering work!

  3. I got: my ADHD, is gonna mess up my ADHD kids life… I’m not sure if I proved the authors point, but I know I’m right! 😜

  4. I thank you guys for this webinar and article. I was earlier misdiagnosed with bi-polar in Ontario, but the doctors at the bi-polar clinic at the Douglas Mental Health hospital in Montreal correctly identified that I wasn’t bi-polar but diagnosed me with “ADHD with Mood symptoms” and retroactive ODD. They got it right. The problem for me is that the standard medication doesn’t work well for me, Vyvanze gave me psychotic breaks and on Concerta I was paranoid and hypersexual. I had some success in the past with taking Adrafinil supplements even though interestingly when I tried Modafinil which technically should be the same thing, they didn’t recreate the effects of the Adrafinil. Adrafinil might not be best for the liver in the quantities I was taking it in. Do you suggest any alternative ?

  5. At age 10, my son was sent for an emergency psychological evaluation after having an extremely reaction to a severe punishment in school. He was held overnight (involuntary hold) at Bellevue Hospital’s Child Psychiatric Ward, which then caused a two month long school refusal. The follow up care at the hospital resulted in him recieving a prescription for Prozac. We argued for treating his ADHD (underlying condition) with a stimulant. The hospital team obliged although it took them several weeks to begin the stimulant treatment. When he was given the appropriate dose, he turned around and was able to go back to school.

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