Michael Jordon and ADD

I had never heard before that Michael has ADD. It was a bit of a surprise actually, not that he could be ADD and play hoop as well as he does, but that he has kept it so very quiet. Having been a huge Jordan fan over the years, I was amazed I had never heard that he is ADD prior to this. Has he “come out of the closet”? Or is this another case of speculation based upon a couple personality traights and a poor grammar school record?

I googled ADD (66 million hits+), then ADHD (got it down to 3 million hits+), then Michael Jordan (22K hits+). I found many sites which offered lists of famous people with ADD and dyslexia, but none seem to have any kind of biographical info to back up the assertions. I know that some celebrities have acknowledged the challenges they overcame (or perhaps sidestepped) as they achieved their niche in the world. Others however, are pure specualtion, and I truly have trouble believing that they are accurate (da Vinci as ADD? JFK?? come on!)

This was the most interesting one I found:

http://www.knowit.com/knowitarticle.asp_Q_nID_E_277520_A_search_E__A_bRelate_E_1

The rest of these are more typical of what I found. I also went to the “Official MJ Websight” (no mention), and several other MJ fansites (no mention). Is it really true that Michael is ADD?

http://www.lessontutor.com/kw6.html

http://www.resultsproject.net/The_positives_of_ADD.html

http://talentdevelop.com/learndisord.html

http://www.birdville.k12.tx.us/gc/FAMOUSPEOPLE.html

http://www.adhdrelief.com/famous.html

http://va.essortment.com/informationona_rcqu.htm

It’s an attitude that says ‘if it makes somebody feel good, it doesn’t matter whether it’s true.” Hey, whole language teachers have been doing it for quite a while…

Michael Jordan is one of the most focused intense competitors ever born. Whoever diagnosed him as ADD perhaps needs their license lifted. Slapping labels on every imperfection is a bit much. I don’t believe for a moment that Michael Jordan would qualify as ADD. Ken

I have ADHD myself, as does my son and several other people I have known through the years. If something is of great interest, a person with ADHD can focus very intently.

I know a 10 year old boy who wets his pants when he plays video games because he is so focused on the game that he ignores all else, even body cues.

My son is no Michael Jordan by any stretch, but he loves participating in team sports. He is unmedicated during practice and games, and he never has the attention issues and behavior issues that he exhibits during school.

This is not to say Michael Jordan is or is not ADHD. Who knows? However, given his problems with gambling and womanizing, I think it is fair to say that he may well have some impulse control issues that he needs to deal with.

Has nothing to do with getting away with all kinds of things from the word go…

Gambling and womanizing are personal choices - there is not a chance in hell his maker would excuse such choices because of a “momentary” lack of judgement caused by a neurological deficit. If such becomes are labelling, we can kiss responsiblility good-bye. Such behavior is not ADD it is simply
BADD. Ken

because of OCD, which is a whole different can of worms. It could be because of other problems. Sometimes problem behaviors can be beyond one’s ability to control without the help of medications, counseling, or support mechanisms. I am not saying that in Michael’s case this is true.

However ADD like some of the other cognitive impairments is not easily determined. There are as yet no concvrete tests to determine it is present, no scans like MRI, EEG, PET, etc. It is determined by subjective observation, often on the part of ill-trained drs. or psyches.

And too often the comorbid problems of OCD, ODD, depression, etc. are mistaken for ADD. The potential for misdiagnosis and consequently inappropriate treatments.

I believe absolutely that ADD/ADHD does exist, but I do not believe that 10% of our children are such (like the recent NC study claimed) and I certainly do not believe that up to 30% of our children are (as some “experts” are now suggesting).

If it is true that 10% or greater of our children have ADD/ADHD, we had better identify the environmental factors ASAP and correct them, because in that scenario the human gene pool is quickly unraveling.

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