There is a young girl in Michigan (age 9) who I am truly inspired by. She did something we all need to do; she spoke out publically at her school about her “differences”. She has ADHD and was experiencing social issues with peers and decided to take control of the situation by educating her classmates. She asked her teacher if she could do a presentation to her class about what it is like to have ADHD. Can you even imagine? I mean, how awesome is that? This young girl had the courage and fortitude to stand up in front of her peers and educate them! The presentation shared her experiences and challenges with the condition as well as some positive facts. The presentation also showed all of the amazing things popular (famous) people who have this condition are doing and have done and who are extremely successful.
This is what we need, what ADHD needs! We need people, children, young people and adults to not be afraid of ridicule, we need people to stand up and say “I have ADHD” and I am awesome!
Living with ADHD can be challenging. But really, what in life is not challenging? Everything is challenging, if it’s not one thing then it’s another. There is a lot of science behind why we are the way we are, why we do what we do and why we don’t “fit” into the mold of what society thinks about how we should think. At the end of the day though it really doesn’t matter, we all are who we are and we all think how we think. What we ADHDers need to focus on is teaching ourselves (first and foremost) and then teaching the rest of the world that we have something truly amazing to offer. We ADHDers have a very special and unique way of looking at the world. We see things differently and therefore are able to have a truly unique vantage point. We are creative, we are imaginative, we are out of the box thinkers. If it were not for ADHD type thinking, we would not have half of the things, gadgets and inventions that we all enjoy every day. Objects we can’t live without in many cases. That type of out of the box, big picture thinking is what drives our society. It is what keeps us moving forward. That type of thinking needs to be celebrated not ridiculed. We need ambassadors to spread the word and shed a positive light on “being shiny”.
Within the ADHD community many of us call ourselves "Shiny". I LOVE this word! It describes an ADHD brain and personality perfectly. Shiny describes how people with ADHD see and feel about the world. How we express ourselves. The term "Shiny" takes the stigma and negativity away from this condition and gives it a positive and uplifting spirit. We need to get rid of the negativity associated with this condition. Too many adults and children see ADHD as life sentence, but it doesn't have to be that way. Shiny is a wonderful way to be and I for one a proud to be shiny!
In an effort to stand strong together, we have started an “I Am Shiny” awareness campaign. The campaigns single goal is to shed a positive light on ADHD and therefore raise awareness. To get rid of the stigma that is associated with this condition. Every day, people are afraid to say anything at their jobs, in school, in job interviews or to friends and family for fear of being pigeon held in this “false idea” of what we ADHDers must be like.
Let’s educate about all the amazing things we ADHDers can do. Let’s all stand up together and say “I Am Shiny” and I Am Awesome! Visit our “I Am Shiny” facebook page to pledge your support and keep up to date with all things “Shiny”. Visit www.iamshiny.org
