Introduction

It is estimated that between 1% and 6% of the adult population has AD/HD. (Wender) Forty percent of children who have AD/HD have at least one parent who also meets the criteria for diagnosis. (Zeigler) AD/HD affects up to 7.5% of school-aged children, or between one to three students in every classroom. (Barbaresi, et al) For various reasons, AD/HD in adults often goes undiagnosed. Thus, these parents are trying to carry out adult responsibilities without the benefit of appropriate treatment for their own AD/HD. Undiagnosed AD/HD in parents affects the entire family. These adults typically exhibit emotional labiality and tend to have higher rates of depression, substance abuse disorders, and other co-morbidities.

Adults with AD/HD are less likely to graduate from college and even less likely to obtain advanced educational degrees. Like most adults with AD/HD, these parents face uncertain career prospects. Although they may be intelligent and enthusiastic workers, they often have difficulties keeping a job. (Pary) Social skills deficits are common among this population. AD/HD can interfere with the ability to establish and maintain close relationships and may contribute to an unstable home environment.

Parents of a child who has AD/HD are three times as likely to separate or divorce as parents of non-AD/HD children. (Barkley 1995) Simply put, the parent may not have the emotional tools needed to effectively support the special needs of the AD/HD child. Parents who do not have AD/HD report that these children are often far more challenging to parent than their non-AD/HD siblings. The adult with AD/HD faces the already formidable task of raising a difficult child while at the same time trying to cope as best they can with their own AD/HD. If the parents