Adult ADD and Money

ADD Medication and Financial Success

In the Introduction of the book ADD and your Money there is a section titled " The Link between ADD Medication and Financial Success". The main point of the section is to point out the benefit that medication used for ADHD should help people with organization and managing priorities. This should lead to better financial choices and improved financial management. This seems like a very reasonable premise.

What really intrigued me was that this section also cites a study titled: Effects of methylphenidate on impulsive choice in adult humans by Cynthia J. Pietras, Don R. Cherek, Scott D. Lane, Oleg V. Tcheremissine and Joel L. Steinberg. In this study "Eleven adult males with a history of criminal behavior but no history of attention–deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) participated." The men who were given a stimulant medication were more likely to choose to wait longer for a larger sum of money rather than a shorter wait for a smaller sum of money.  Curbing impulsive behavior should also lead to increased financial success.

When I read this section I had mixed feelings about whether there was truly a link between ADD Medication and Financial Success. I know people who take medication for their ADD and have improved their ability to organize and make better financial choices. I also know people who are financially successful who are not on medication for their ADD. Some people I have talked with have felt that they were less inspired and productive when taking medication for their ADD, for these people it is a reasonable argument that taking medication hampered their financial success.

What I really want to know is whether you think there is a positive impact on finances after taking medication for ADD. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think.

 

One Key Focus Update

This is an update of my November 2009 post One Key Focus. In November I made it a goal to pay off my credit card debt within 18 months. I am happy to say that I have paid down my card by over 20% and I am on pace with my goal. It has not been easy to keep on track with this goal and I have still room for improvement when it comes to managing my financial goals. I have stayed on track despite dealing with the holidays and unplanned expenses. In the past when I had to deal with unplanned expenses it was difficult because I would feel like a failure when I could not accomplish one or more of my smaller financial goals on schedule.