Several parents share this opinion about their ADHD kids. Here are a few responses (verbatim) that depict the dilemma they face.
- Smart but no “common sense”!
- My 20 year old takes everything “literally”.
- Absolutely, amazing, but impulsive.
- No common sense but super procrastination and super poor executive functioning skills.
- Mine has 100% common sense. Very smart but not academic.
- They excel academically but struggle with friendships 😕.
- It seems it is something they all have… and problems with jokes or unable to recognize teasing.
- He can spout off awesome facts, but not change his underwear or look before crossing a street. 🤣🤦♀
- YES!! My kid can do crazy multiplication in his head but can’t find something right in front of him. 🤦🏽♀🤦🏽♀
- Mine is smart but lacks emotional regulation.
- Our 7 year old is very intelligent but lacks the street smartness.
- Yep!! I have to explain some very simple things to him, yet he can figure out math problems in his head in half the time I can.
- My 8 year old son, diagnosed with ADD, is brilliant. But he is careless and forgetful.
- And messy! He is in wrestling, he forgets something or the other during each practice. On Monday, I had to send him back in the building two three times!! And when he eats, you would think it was a baby eating and dropping everything on the floor. He makes more mess than his 4 year old brother.
- He sometimes says stuff that makes me scratch my head. For instance, he was curious why some people go get a new Christmas tree every year, so I explained that it’s because real trees die once they are cut down. He then proceeded to ask how we revive ours every year. I reminded him that ours was fake… he has seen the box, helped us put the tree together, yet asked “oh, this isn’t real!” I feel baffled how he can’t differentiate real from fake…or remember the sequence of events.
- My daughter has ADD, she is very smart… but logic!! She would not complete all the dishes in the sink… logic just escapes her!!
- I think it has to do with the impulsivity. 😂
- Lack of impulse control and inability to understand consequences.
- For mine I think the common sense is there but, having ZERO impulse control overpowers every single aspect of his daily life.
- ADHD impacts executive functions which in many cases reflects in lack of common sense and in my opinion logic as well.
- I hope they grow out of it before they reach teen stage at least ❤️
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Monica (Managing Editor) is the quintessential researcher - she thrives on showcasing overlooked aspects that form the foundation blocks of people, places and issues. She is a social scientist by profession with masters in Economics and loves to travel.