As Michael Phelps smashes swimming record after record, he's had to overcome challenges beyond the constant, grueling training and the need to eat 12,000 calories a day: Phelps also had to beat attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity (ADHD).
Diagnoses of ADD or ADHD generate a lot of controversy, no doubt in part because today being a "normal kid" can be considered problem behavior. But along the spectrum of learning styles and abilities, there are certainly kids who don't respond well to conventional teaching methods. In Michael's case, he had the good fortune to have a mom, Debbie Phelps, who recognized this. Here's an interview with Debbie from the May/June 2007 issue of ADDitude:
Michael might not have loved swimming at all, were it not for the ingenuity of his mother, Debbie Phelps. “At age seven, he hated getting his face wet,” says Debbie. “We flipped him over and taught him the backstroke.”
Michael showed swimming prowess on his back, then on his front, side, and every way in between. But in the classroom, he floundered. An inability to concentrate was his biggest problem.
“I was told by one of his teachers that he couldn’t focus on anything,” says Debbie. She consulted a doctor, and nine-year-old Michael was diagnosed with ADHD.
“That just hit my heart,” says Debbie. “It made me want to prove everyone wrong. I knew that, if I collaborated with Michael, he could achieve anything he set his mind to.”
Debbie, who had taught middle school for more than two decades, began working closely with Michael’s school to get him the extra attention he needed. “Whenever a teacher would say, ‘Michael can’t do this,’ I’d counter with, ‘Well, what are you doing to help him?’” she recalls.
The article goes on to describe some of the novel techniques they used to help Michael learn to focus and to attack difficult subjects (like math). Interestingly, as their efforts bore fruit, Michael himself decided he wanted off his Ritalin. While the article doesn't make the claim, I got the impression from reading it that the swimming and teaching style changes were the keys to Michael's success, not the stimulant medication. This is a helpful, hopeful sign for parents of kids with learning challenges who are trying to avoid putting their kids on ADD medication.
Go Michael!
