I understand well where this woman is coming from. Most people who succeed in school succeed because they can memorize. This means most of you on this comment board likely are in the roles you are because you can memorize. Success in school is like that. It rewards memorization more than understanding (yes, it really does...)
For me, I often struggled in school because try as I might I can't remember facts unconnected to other facts (I'm thinking of you particularly 6th grade Latin) but excelled in certain subjects where understanding (making connections between ideas) means more than memorization (FWIW I have a PhD in Physics.) I build up a web of understanding where I know fact A because it is supported by facts B, C & D that surround it. If I distrust my memory of A, I reconstruct that it has to be true because without it B, C and D would fall.
Early in life (45 yrs ago), I gravitated towards computers where the software I wrote became my long term memory. How do I understand XYZ? It's there in the code. What is the value of ABC? It's there in the code. Code is still my crutch.
That is somewhat concerning for myself, I do offload to my notes and to my code my memory, but I started having problems memorizing in high school, somewhat related to my complete rejection of somebody asking me to memorize something just because they said so, instead of being useful.
But then, I do remember programming language libraries that I use often, so it can't be ADD
> But then, I do remember programming language libraries that I use often, so it can't be ADD
Hahaha. But seriously - remembering some things does not disqualify you from the diagnosis, just like not remembering doesn't confirm the diagnosis. If you're actually concerned, maybe talk to a professional.
That's a good point. Maybe, but I'm also able to perform all the functions I need to in my life, so I'm not sure I would be open to take any medication (that could potentially affect my life negatively).
Just because you've gotten a diagnosis doesn't somehow obligate you to use medication. If your life is on track as-is you can skip the medication. Might be worth pondering if getting a diagnosis is even relevant, What will you do differently if it turns out you have ADD? What if you don't?
It would have helped in school, at this stage in life I'm good. I'm successful and happy (by my standards), I don't see a reason for changing anything.
I could probably go higher in the career ladder, but that could affect happiness negatively
I built up an association graph kind of like you. If I remembered about A it reminded me of B, C, and D (or vice versa). One of the tricks I learned was too condense the beginnings of these graphs into their own set of keywords that were relatively short.
Then I kept repeating these keywords in my head over and over until we were handed our test papers. First thing I did was too scribble out the beginnings of each graph. That way if I do forget something I can refer to it. Usually that was enough to remember the details that I forgot.
I believe most memorization in school comes from using a concept so often you end up just knowing. Memorization for the sake of memorization does not work in my opinion.
