I {too} have a dream.

I have been complaining about the general public's ignorance when it comes to ADHD since I learned the facts about the disorder just after my son's diagnosis in late 2008. The more I read about ADHD, especially online, the more I kept running into misinformation, and a lot of it -- ADHD is a result of bad parenting, too much TV and video games, pharmaceutical greed, blah, blah, blah. After seeing it over and over again you'd think I would be immune to it, brushing it off knowing those people just don't have the facts, but I am actually more riled up about it than ever before. Their ignorance affects my child's ability to live a life full of happiness and success, and that just makes me downright angry.

In some regards I feel entirely powerless to change it. I feel like the problem is bigger than me. And it is. But it's not bigger than the community of individuals whose lives are affected by ADHD: parents of children with ADHD, adults with ADHD, siblings of individuals with ADHD, spouses of individuals with ADHD, teachers, coaches, doctors, psychiatrists, therapists, etc. If we all band together and spread the facts about ADHD, we can greatly reduce the contagious spread of misinformation.

Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech always comes to mind when I think about the struggle of those with ADHD, because so much of that struggle comes from an ill fit in society, a misunderstanding of superficial differences.

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."" -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. King may have spoken these words nearly 50 years ago in reference to racial equality, but the same phrase can apply to those with difference, those with special needs -- all are created equal.

I {too} have a dream.


"I have a dream that one day [children of all abilities and disabilities] will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.


I have a dream that one day even the [public school system], an [entity] sweltering with the heat of [inequality], sweltering with the heat of [a lack of understanding], will be transformed into an oasis of [individuality and empathy].


I have a dream that my [child] will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by [their neurological differences and academic difficulties] but by the content of their character.


I have a dream today!" 


A dream that my son will  one day soon be happy and successful at school. 


A dream that my son will be accepted by his peers, despite often behaving differently. 


A dream that my son's teachers will understand him. 


A dream that we will finally discover a successful ADHD treatment for him. 


A dream that he find his bliss and follow it voraciously. 

I {too} have a dream. 

And the first step to realizing this dream is to educate those around me about ADHD. Clarity of fact, understanding, and a focus on similarities and strengths is a great start. Won't you help me? Share this with everyone you know this week in the spirit of ADHD Awareness Week. Then keep it going...

*****

{Editor's Note: I copied and modified a portion of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famous "I have a dream" speech in this post. Please note this did not come from a place of disrespect to this amazing man or his cause, but rather from a place of inspiration. His messages translate to all of humanity, far beyond his primary message of racial equality. Penny}

*****

Penny Williams is the creator and editor of {a mom's view of ADHD}. She is also a freelance writer, real estate broker, wife, and mother of two living in Asheville, N.C. She has published several pieces in ADDitude Magazine, the #1 national publication dedicated to ADHD, and has also been quoted in Parenting.com's Family Health Guide on ADHD and The High Desert Pulse article, When Ritalin Works.  When not writing, she can usually be found behind a camera.