giftedticcyhyper -
I have no idea on the percentage, but I will ditto the sentiment. DS saw a psychologist - he said that there would be no way to tell if DS was ADHD or just gifted because a bored gifted kid will act like a bored gifted kid with ADHD! He said that if we could get DS in a challenging environment and he still had the same signs, then ADHD would be more likely.
This seems totally reasonable to me, particularly in a kid who doesn't seem 'ADHD' at home.
Supposedly, you could always do a drug test (I don't think this is a good idea). A truly ADHD person is supposed to be depressed (read: calmed) by stimulants while others would be stimulated.
This has been suggested to us, and I find it of great concern. After all - Stimulants are said to be a popular 'recreational drug' amoung driven high school students and college students. This suggests to me that a stimulant could help anyone 'settle in and hyperfocus' on a topic that they have no emotional connection to.
One more thing to consider is 'Linear' v.'NonLinear' learning style. Although most schools teach to children with a 'linear' learnging style, slowly building up to complicated task by first teaching the simple tasks, many Gifties find it 'easier' to learn complicated systems, and are described as having a 'wholistic' learning style, or needing an emotional connection to a subject to really perform at their top level.
HTH
Grinity
