Taking Charge of Adult ADHD Proven Strategies to Succeed at Work, at Home, and in Relationships

Many tens of thousands of readers have found needed information and support in this authoritative guide, now in a revised and updated second edition. Preeminent expert Russell A. Barkley explains what ADHD looks like in adults, how to get an accurate evaluation, and how sufferers can manage symptoms and build the life they want. Readers get hands-on skill-building exercises plus clear answers to frequently asked questions about medications and other treatments. Dr. Barkley offers step-by-step strategies for overcoming challenges in specific areas, such as relationships, parenting, work, money management, and driving. Featuring the latest resources and medication facts, the second edition includes new or expanded discussions of mindfulness, emotional self-control, time management, building a successful career, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and more.
 

Russell A. Barkley, PhD, ABPP, ABCN, is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine. Dr. Barkley has worked with children, adolescents, and families since the 1970s and is the author of numerous bestselling books for both professionals and the public, including Taking Charge of ADHD and Your Defiant Child. He has also published six assessment scales and more than 280 scientific articles and book chapters on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, executive functioning, and childhood defiance, and is editor of the newsletter The ADHD Report. A frequent conference presenter and speaker who is widely cited in the national media, Dr. Barkley is past president of the Section on Clinical Child Psychology (the former Division 12) of the American Psychological Association (APA), and of the International Society for Research in Child and Adolescent Psychopathology. He is a recipient of awards from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the APA, among other honors. His website is www.russellbarkley.org.

Christine M. Benton is a Chicago-based writer and editor.

Introduction
Step One. To Get Started, Get Evaluated
1. Is It Possible That You Have ADHD?
2. Can You Handle the Problem on Your Own?
3. Where Can You Go to Get Help?
4. What Do You Need for the Evaluation?
5. What Will the Evaluation Tell You?
Step Two. Change Your Mindset: Know and Own Your ADHD
6. Know Your ADHD
7. Resisting Impulses: The First Step in Self-Control
8. Self-Control: How to Get What You Want
9. Executive Functions: The Abilities That Make Up Self-Control…and More
10. The Nature of ADHD and How You Can Master It
11. Own Your ADHD
Step Three. Change Your Brain: Medications for Mastering ADHD
12. Why It Makes Sense to Try Medication
13. The Stimulants
14. The Nonstimulants
15. What to Expect from Treatment
Step Four. Change Your Life: Everyday Rules for Success
16. Rule 1: Stop the Action!
17. Rule 2: See the Past…and Then the Future
18. Rule 3: Say the Past…and Then the Future
19. Rule 4: Externalize Key Information
20. Rule 5: Feel the Future
21. Rule 6: Break It Down…and Make It Matter
22. Rule 7: Make Problems External, Physical, and Manual
23. Rule 8: Have a Sense of Humor!
Step Five. Change Your Situation: Mastering ADHD in Specific Areas of Your Life
24. Education
25. Work
26. Money
27. Relationships
28. Driving, Health, and Lifestyle Risks
29. Other Mental and Emotional Problems
30. Drugs and Crime
Appendix: A Closer Look at ADHD Symptoms
Resources
Index