What is the connection between sailboats and ADHD? Surprisingly, they are closely related. But first we have to explain what ADHD is, and then the connection will become quite clear. Usually, people ask a different question: Is ADHD real? Yes, it is definitely real, but it is greatly misunderstood. This article will attempt to clarify this intriguing condition that has been termed Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
Attention Deficit
As the term indicates, one of the primary traits of ADHD is an attention deficit. This would imply that people with ADHD have a hard time paying attention. This is partially true.

She rises in the middle of the night to provide food for her family… She plants a vineyard from her earnings… She girds her loins with strength and energizes her arms… Her children rise and commend her; her husband praises her, “Many daughters have performed valiantly, but you surpass them all!” (Mishlei 31)

Whenever Shoshana* hears her husband sing Eishes Chayil, the Woman of Valor, on Friday night before Kiddush, she fervently hopes that he will not think about the English translation of Shlomo Hamelech’s vivid words. That is because Shoshana rarely feels “energy in her arms” or “strength in her loins.” Shoshana has ADHD, and perhaps her story (a composite of several true stories) can shed some light on this often misunderstood condition.

Shoshana is a woman in her mid-30s who tends to misplace her belongings. When facing a deadline at work, she waits until the last minute. She is often late for appointments. Shoshana’s behaviors did not begin as an adult. As a child and teenager, her locker in school was a mess, her notes were jumbled, and even if she did her homework she would often forget it at home. The one thing she had going for her was that she was extremely bright. She was therefore able to maintain adequate grades in spite of her disorganization. She became accustomed to last-minute cramming, since she could not bring herself to study in an organized manner.

Reuven was a frum teenager who tried to follow the halacha correctly. Whenever he recited the Shema, he got nervous that he might not have pronounced every single letter properly. In order to alleviate his concerns, he repeated words numerous times until he felt confident that he pronounced it just right. As time went on, it took longer and longer to complete the Shema, until it reached the point that Reuven could not get through the Shema in less than one hour, and due to his frustration, he stopped reciting the Shema. Reuven then felt very depressed, because he was not fulfilling the mitzva of Shema. Reuven has obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Did Reuven’s religion give him a mental illness?

Depression is a well known mental health disorder. Still, it is a disorder subject to some confusion, because everyone feels down or sad now and then. Clinical depression is much more than that; it is a serious illness. When someone has depression, it hinders his daily life and causes pain to the depressed individual and to those who care about him.

Most people cannot fathom the pain of depressed individuals. As the British poet Giles Andreae once said, “Here is the tragedy. When you are the victim of depression, not only do you feel utterly helpless and abandoned by the world, you also know that very few people can understand, or even begin to believe, that life can be this painful.”