What is ADHD?

Abstract

I need freedom, but not too much freedom. When I met Holly she was a failing research student. The difficulties she was encountering surprised both Holly and her supervisors. Before starting her three-year independent research programme she had been a straight A student throughout the first four years of her medical degree. Because she was judged to be very academically able she was invited to complete her medical degree by becoming a research student. Her first research task was to read all the relevant journal papers, write them up as a summary, and identify the theme she wished to research in depth. She failed badly in this task. When I met Holly she said her major problem with undertaking the necessary reading and writing was procrastination: 'I invented procrastination.' Holly described how, when she sat down in front of her computer to start writing, she would inevitably start engaging in other activities: 'I might suddenly realise I hadn't checked my text messages recently so I would get my mobile phone out. I might then wonder why I