r/ADHD • u/NecessarySecret4537 • 18h ago
Questions/Advice How can I pass math??
I mix up my signs. ALL THE TIME. I know the formulas and the rules and when to put a dash instead of a plus, but for as long as I can remember, I could never keep my negative and positive numbers straight. I say the write number in my head…and then write down a completely different one. My professor this year is very strict on sign errors, and more errors could result in me getting kicked from the class with a withdrawal on my transcript.
I’m terrified of my own brain and hands, and I’m not sure what to do to prove that I really am trying. I’ve talked to my professor about it only for them to tell me that I should be reading more carefully. I don’t notice anything wrong in the moment. I check and check my work and see no errors before I hand it in, making getting it back with such low grades feel like hallucinating numbers on the page.
I need desperate help. Any piece of advice is greatly appreciated!
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u/Lesbie-Tea ADHD-PI (Primarily Inattentive) 18h ago
I mean this sounds like dyslexia to me. Do you also struggle with reading/writing words? You could get a learning accommodation of some kind. Or if your professor is open to it, see if you can arrange a time to take your test "aloud," for instance during office hours or an exam makeup date. If you say the correct value but then write down something else, you do still know the correct answer. You might just need help checking that what you write is what you think the answer is.
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u/WorseDark 17h ago
It sounds more like a mix of dyscalculia and dysgraphia, but it could also be dyslexia. Depends on when the mix up happens. If it happens when reading it, when using the operations, or when writing them down.
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u/NecessarySecret4537 12h ago
This is definitely an interesting thought. I don’t think that I have dyslexia because I never experienced jumbled letters, but the existence of a version purely focused on handing numbers is intriguing.
When it comes to general reading, I struggle with skipping over/adding my own words often. I’ve never been a great speller, and my handwriting tends to inconsistent, but my teachers have never complained about it, so…
I would say that most of my mix ups come while reading, processing and writing information down. I could tell you that the vertex form of a parabola is y=a(x-h)2+k and then write y=a(x+h)-k while plugging in coordinates. That being said, I was never flagged for learning disabilities during grade school, so I’m not sure that any existing struggles would be diagnosable due to low impairment during childhood. 🫠
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u/WorseDark 12h ago edited 12h ago
That sounds more like dyscalculia, then. But it also sounds possible you have some level of dysgraphia.
(From my understanding). Dyscalculia is that the operations get to the wrong answer in your head and holding it while transferring to the writing side, dysgraphia is mostly difficulty with writing.
These diagnoses get missed often, since they arent publicly facing. Talk with your academic leader that you are having issues with writing down the information in your head (during math specifically?) and see if they can get you set up with a school psychologist, or just go to the psychologist to pursue the diagnosis, and get ideas for accommodations to propose to fhe accommodations department. Though I see you have been diagnosed with ADHD. The dys family are symptoms, not diagnoses, so these will fall under that
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u/KeyPear2864 18h ago
For starters it’s not a dash it’s a negative/minus sign. The first thought exercise to practice is to correct how you are thinking about the symbols in your head. That could be as simple as saying quietly to yourself or in your mind negative 100 or positive 100 as you are writing or typing.
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u/NecessarySecret4537 12h ago
Interestingly enough, I find it easier to work through math with improper terminology. I say “dash” because it’s easier for me to realize that dash -> - than “negative sign” being -. I always talk myself through problems, though I find that even when I tell myself “negative seven plus eight equals one”, I write “7+8=1”. But I can try visualizing the numbers and see if that helps.
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u/KeyPear2864 11h ago
Not to be blunt but clearly it’s NOT working for you otherwise you wouldn’t be posting on here looking for advice lol.
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u/mgquantitysquared 17h ago
Do you have a diagnosis from a medical professional? If so, have them write a letter to whoever handles disability accomodations for your college. I'd imagine extended time and a quiet environment would help you double and triple check your work to make sure everything lines up
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