Fast Minds: How to Thrive If You Have ADHD (Or Think You Might)

by Craig Surman, Tim Bilkey, Karen Weintraub

Overview

FAST MINDS is an acronym for common symptoms that are often seen in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Millions of adults have ADHD or some of its traits, but they are under-recognized, under-treated, and often under-supported. 

This book empowers people with ADHD, or some of its characteristics, to adapt and thrive. By working through the program in this book, you will develop personalized strategies to take control of your life.

Forgetful. Achieving below potential. Stuck in a rut. Time challenged.

Motivationally challenged. Impulsive. Novelty seeking. Distractible. Scattered.

 

If any or all of these symptoms are making it difficult for you—or someone you know—to live life to the fullest, then the clinically proven, cutting-edge program in this book will help you understand your struggles and challenges. Whether you have been diagnosed with ADHD, think you may have it, or just exhibit many of these traits, FAST MINDS will help you:

• Figure out what isn’t working in your life, and the keys to fixing it.
• Build personalized strategies for managing your time, tasks, and relationships.
• Learn organizational habits that work for you.
• Stop communicating poorly, making impulsive choices and taking pointless risks.
• Eliminate negative thinking patterns that waste your mental energy.
• Create environments that support your challenges.
• Make the most of both medical and nonmedical resources (medication, coaching, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, mindfulness, support groups, lifestyle change).

With inspiring stories of real people who have adapted and thrived using the methods in this book, FAST MINDS will help you create the kind of life you want to live.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780425274064
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	06/03/2014
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	133,599
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Craig Surman, M.D., is an expert on ADHD in adulthood.  He is an assistant professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and scientific coordinator for the internationally recognized Adult ADHD Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital.
 
Tim Bilkey, M.D., is a physician specializing in adult ADHD, having completed more than thirty-four hundred assessments. He is an international presenter and has produced two films on ADHD. He started one of the world’s first ADHD clinics for women. In 2009, he developed a nationally accredited educational program for the rapid recognition of ADHD in adults called FAST MINDS.
 
Karen Weintraub is an award-winning journalist and a freelance health writer for the Boston Globe, USA Today, and other publications. Ms. Weintraub also teaches journalism at the Harvard Extension School and Boston University. Her first book, The Autism Revolution, was also published by Harvard Health Publications.

Table of Contents

Foreword Howie Mandel xi

Introduction xiii

Part I Understanding Fast Minds

1 What Are FAST MINDS? 3

2 Tune In to Your FAST MIND 21

3 FAST MIND'S Made Me Do It 41

Part II A Fast Minds Operating Manual

4 Use the Prefrontal Checklist 61

5 Be Your Own Chief Executive 87

6 Don't Just Do It-Think About It! 113

7 Find Where and How You Thrive 139

8 Feel Well, Function Well 162

9 Help Other People "Get It" 190

Part III Building the Life You Want

10 Make the Most out of Medication 213

11 What Else Works 237

12 Thriving on the Journey 256

Appendices

Appendix A Summary and Workbook 273

Appendix B Thought Record 287

Appendix C FAST MINDS Trait Tracker 291

Appendix D FAST MINDS Twenty-Four-Hour Cycle Review 293

Appendix E FAST MINDS Critical Moments Planner 295

Appendix F Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale 297

Appendix G For Further Exploration 301

Endnotes 305

Index 319

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Finally, somebody gets ADHD!”—Patricia Quinn, M.D., director, Center for Girls and Women with ADHD

“[An] easy-to-read, yet sophisticated guide to what will help you most if you have ADHD… A superb book.”—Edward Hallowell, coauthor of Driven to Distraction

“A great resource for adults with ADHD and their loved ones. This book offers clear, effective, solution-focused strategies for dealing with the challenges of ADHD.”—Kathleen Nadeau, Ph.D., coauthor of ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life

Editorial Reviews

Finally, somebody gets ADHD!”—Patricia Quinn, M.D., director, Center for Girls and Women with ADHD

“[An] easy-to-read, yet sophisticated guide to what will help you most if you have ADHD… A superb book.”—Edward Hallowell, coauthor of Driven to Distraction

“A great resource for adults with ADHD and their loved ones. This book offers clear, effective, solution-focused strategies for dealing with the challenges of ADHD.”—Kathleen Nadeau, Ph.D., coauthor of ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life

From the Publisher