 "Photo: Steph Stough")
Michelle Jacobcik, STLCC-Meramec student said that staying on task was like a Super Ball bouncing from one wall to the other and never stopping.
Jacobcik, 44, was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) as an adult.
“It was like I was always moving from one thing to the next and never finishing anything. It was very frustrating,” she said.
While growing up, Jacobcik said it was difficult for her to find consistency in life. Her father, a member of the Air Force, relocated to different military bases in the United States for most of her childhood. “It was hard to make friends, and moving around didn’t help,” Jacobcik said.
Jacobcik said that as she grew older her inability to keep friends became increasingly difficult and that she constantly compared herself to the accomplishments and successes of others, saying, “If they can, why can’t I?” Besides retaining relationships, Jacobcik said she had difficulty carrying out the basic duties of adulthood. “Keeping my apartment organized was hard to do. I’d get distracted,” she said. “It was the same way with school when it came to writing papers and keeping up with my schedule.”
Jacobcik realized she had ADD shortly after the death of her father when she was 38. “My father’s death was the triggering point that something was wrong,” she said. “It was like hitting rock bottom for someone on drugs or alcohol.”Jacobcik said she sought refuge in her church where her pastor recommended that she read the book “Driven to Distraction: Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood through Adulthood” by Edward Hallowell, M.D.
“As I was flipping through the pages I kept saying, ‘This sounds like me, and this sounds like me, and this sounds like me,’” Jacobcik said. “Maybe something isn’t right.” She saw a therapist and was diagnosed with inattentive ADD. Rather than hyperactive, Jacobcik said this diagnosis was the result of her tendency to be distracted easily and stray from tasks.
Jacobcik is one of 118 students with ADD at Meramec who seek assistance through campus resources this semester. As the year progresses, the number of students diagnosed with ADD is expected to grow, said Linda Nissenbaum, manager of the Access Office.
Jacobcik said the resources, which allow for increased time when taking tests, assistance with note-taking and devices to record lectures, has helped her accomplish the schedule of a college student.
“I can now make plans. If you asked me before what I was doing in five years, I wouldn’t know,” said Jacobcik, who is studying for an Associate’s degree in human services. Jacobcik plans to transfer to University of Missouri-St. Louis to study social work and mental health services.
“I would like to work in a church setting,” Jacobcik said. “A faith community can be a place of healing and hope.” Jacobcik said she grew in her faith when she began attending Kirkwood United Methodist Church approximately three years ago.
Jacobcik’s family had demonstrated little support for her diagnosis. “There are many people who don’t believe ADD is a real disorder,” she said, adding that since her diagnosis she has lost contact with friends and family members.
Despite finding encouragement in her church, therapist, education counselor and the campus accommodations, Jacobcik says ADD still disrupts the tasks of her adult life and that maintaining the right support has not been easy.
Although she has previously been prescribed to the pharmaceuticals Adderall and Vivance, Jacobcik said she is exploring alternative methods of treatment, like Eastern medicine and herbal healing.
“I’m not a fan of synthetic medicine because it is a stimulant and my family has a history of heart disease,” Jacobcik said. “An adult support group would be helpful to me because I’m sure other people struggle with the same medical issues.”
While St. Louis offers support groups for children with ADD, Jacobcik said she discovered that there are no support groups for adults in the area when completing a project for Policy and Politics, a class offered through the human services department which examines federal and local welfare policies and programs.
Although she considered joining an online support group for questions about product recommendations and suggestions, she said she prefers face-to-face interaction. “I do better interacting with people,” she said, but has not met other adults with ADD with whom to interact.
Jacobcik said she believes some adults may have ADD and are not aware of it. “Parents may not realize it until their children are diagnosed with it,” she said. “They will look at their children and say, ‘I did that as a child.’”
According to the Attention Deficit Disorder Help Center, one percent of adults are diagnosed with ADD in the United States.
After researching, Jacobcik said she found that the closest adult support group to St. Louis is more than five hours away in Trenton, Mo. She said that there may be adults with ADD in St. Louis trying to organize a group but that she was not aware of it.
Jacobcik is attempting to start a support group on the Meramec campus.
“I know I cannot be the only adult diagnosed with ADD,” Jacobcik said.
5 comments
Best of luck with starting your support group - it's a great idea.
Wayne McFarlane