My Personal Story

Words: 821
Pages: 4

Rory J Matthews, My Personal Story

Life can be hard with many battles; I have not won every battle, however I will not lose this war. My first major battle started when I was five years old and diagnosed with ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The dictionary website defines ADHD; “Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurobiological disorder. Typically children with ADHD have developmentally inappropriate behavior, including poor attention skills, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. These characteristics arise in early childhood, typically before age 7, are chronic, last at least 6 months, and sometimes throughout life. Children with AD/HD may also experience problems in the areas of social skills and self-esteem.”
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My struggle to consistently concentrate and my inability to recall the information being taught in classes have been tough. Working with my doctors, teachers, and family I have developed skills and exercises that help me to overcome these problems. Some teachers and administrators at school feel that ADHD is an excuse and use my disability to actually harass and intimidate me, but they will not keep me down. My father is my best advocate and he also has ADHD, he runs interference with these teachers and administrators, he educates them at every opportunity. Being diagnosed with ADHD has led me to develop a deep interest in Biology and Forensics, and I would like to go on and study Biology and Forensics in college. My passion, of wanting to learn more about ADHD in college, is a way I could help other ADHD students through tough times. Facing these difficulties in my education head on has made me a stronger and more determined …show more content…
Encouraged to become a stronger student from a young age I was held back because of the effects of ADHD. ADHD gave me much more energy compared to someone without ADHD but robbed me of the ability to concentrate. ADHD has challenged me by limiting the amount of time that I can take part in an activity and the amount of effort I can put into it. This just made me more determined to control the ADHD so I could become stronger and concentrate more. My family’s love of learning made me realize that someday I would be as competitive as them in academics. Mastering the ability to focus my thoughts and actions will enable me to become a scholar and I will make that happen.

Boy Scouts is a structured environment and was a place I could excel one badge at a time. There were other boys with ADHD and one is an Eagle Scout now. Most of the leadership understands ADHD and encouraged my progression. I aged out (18) but achieved Life Scout the rank before Eagle. With my parents encouragement and my Scout Master taking charge to give me every chance to make this prestigious