"I wish I could control my hyperfocus"

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This was my 15 y/o son's statement to me last night. He got his report card and many of his teachers commented that he is capable of getting in the high 90's. He gets in the 90's for classes he likes, but mid-70's to 80's in the rest. He readily admits that his grades are NOT because the material is too hard or he doesn't understand it. He just can't muster up the attention to study the way he needs to to raise his grades.

I think he was asking for help or tips, but I don't know how to control my hyperfocus, either. I think he was also asking about how to simply focus his attention. He is the epitome of the saying "ADHD is not about an inability to pay attention. It is about an inability to control what you pay attention to."

Is it possible to control hyperfocus? If so, how?

And he is absolutely correct. ADHD isn't a deficit in attention (such as the name would imply) but a deficit over how to control it. So a person with ADHD can focus on things when it captures their attention. Sometimes for hours on end, like a driven obsession.

It's like laying out a list of tasks that you know you need to get done, but getting half way through the first or second task, only to spend hours shopping on Amazon, or watching your favourite program on TV, or playing your favourite video game..... etc, only to realize hours later than you havent even came close to completing your list.

Hyperfocus isn't something that is so much "controlled", but "harnessed". If you can find things that you know your son is interested in and will offer up strong career opportunities for him in the future, encourage him to focus on those things!

I tend to be very focused on my passions. However, I have been able to exert a form of control over them by using my passions to find social activities. I signed up for tennis lessons because I love watching tennis. (Denis Istomin was my inspiration). I used my interest in different cultures to sign up for a folk dancing class. Finally getting my driver's license at age 48 gave me the mobility I needed to seek out these activities and opportunities for socialization. I wouldn't give up my passions for anything, now that I have the opportunities to use them for socialization and self-improvement purposes.

I tend to be very focused on my passions. However, I have been able to exert a form of control over them by using my passions to find social activities. I signed up for tennis lessons because I love watching tennis. (Denis Istomin was my inspiration). I used my interest in different cultures to sign up for a folk dancing class. Finally getting my driver's license at age 48 gave me the mobility I needed to seek out these activities and opportunities for socialization. I wouldn't give up my passions for anything, now that I have the opportunities to use them for socialization and self-improvement purposes.