Symptoms of a lack of attention can sometimes be confounding

Children will be over-active or act impulsively sometimes, especially when they are not interested in something.

However, such symptoms can be present over a long time in children with ADHD, and happen in different settings, whereas with healthy children they appear only under certain circumstances, such as when the child is excited or anxious.

Children with ADHD can sometimes focus on things they are interested in and become engaged for a relatively long time, even for hours.

Recommended reading

- The following two books are by Edward M. Hallowell and John J. Ratey, who are both physicians: Driven to Distraction (Revised): Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder and Delivered from Distraction: Getting the Most out of Life with Attention Deficit Disorder

- The following three books are by Thomas E. Brown, a specialist in assessing and treating ADHD: Attention Deficit Disorder: The Unfocused Mind in Children and Adults; Smart But Stuck: Emotions in Teens and Adults with ADHD; A New Understanding of ADHD in Children and Adults: Executive Function Impairments