Lisa Ling is an award winning journalist who had experienced symptoms of ADHD since she was young, but she was never diagnosed of having one. While she was filming for her documentary show, she got checked with a specialist and it confirmed that she has ADHD. Let's see her story and how she dealt with having ADHD.
Lisa Ling is a living proof that adults can still be diagnosed with ADHD. She shared that ever since she was young, she always struggled with focusing in school. As a result, she had major deficiencies in her academic performance.
Regardless, she is now known as an award-winning American journalist. She is a journalist who is not afraid to tackle unforeseen and undocumented issues around the world. With this, let’s get to know her story and her battle with ADHD. The story is from her interview that she had with Doctor Hallowell in the Distraction Podcast.
It's Not Too Late
It was only after 30 years, while she was in her documentary show exploring kids with ADHD, was when she decided to get diagnosed as she had suspected to have been experiencing the symptoms of ADHD. In addition, she said that it was not fair of her to just watch the kids with ADHD. Lisa Ling shared on the Distraction Podcast that she felt compelled to get diagnosed as she had been suspecting of having ADHD for the longest time. Ling got diagnosed by a professional expert in ADHD, Dr. Craig Liden. Lisa shared that it was a relief to know about her ADHD because it somehow served as an explanation for the deficiencies and struggles she had, especially in high school.
During her high school days, a teacher of Ling has said that she has trouble focusing and it reflected on Lisa’s grades and it severely affected her self-confidence. When her parents got divorced, the only source of comfort she had was the television. This became her grounding in working in the Television and media industry later on in her career.
Taking Medications
On the topic of taking medications for ADHD, Ling shared that she was advised to take medications but she did not resume taking them after she got pregnant since she realized that she has gone this far without taking any medications. And so, she felt that she would do just fine even if she did not take any intervening medications for her ADHD.
Get Checked
"My recommendation to young people and adults is that if they ever suspected it about themselves, make sure you go to a doctor who really knows how to deal with ADD and ADHD. You can't just go to you pediatrician or to your GP. You have to go to someone who specializes in it because it is the only way on how you can properly deal and treat what you're experiencing."
— Lisa Ling
Ling goes on to encourage the listeners of the Distraction Podcast to get tested for ADHD no matter what their ages are because knowing it will allow you to understand yourself better. With this, it will help you how to handle others and how other people will handle you. Also, Ling highlights to go to a professional expert on ADHD instead of your family pediatrician or general physician. This is so that you can get real advice on how to deal with ADHD, because it is real.
Now that we know Lisa Ling’s ADHD story, let’s dive in on her personal life and how she became the award-winning journalist that she is today.
Lisa Ling's Biography
Birthdate | August 30, 1973 |
Hometown | Sacramento, California |
Parents | Doug Ling and Mary Ling |
Siblings | Laura Ling |
Spouse | Paul Song |
Children | Jett Ling Song and Ray Ling Song |
Education | Del Campo High School University of Southern California |
Career Journey | The first show that Lisa Ling got on was with Channel News One and it was called Scratch, a television show for teens. Later on, she became a war correspondent for Channel News One. She also became a freelance reporter and producer at ABC News then also became a co-host in a show from ABC News as well called The View. In 2002, Lisa became a National Geographic Ultimate Explorer. She also became a senior political correspondent for the College Television Network. Lisa Ling became well-known for being the host of the documentary show, Our America, wherein she shares unforeseen and untackled controversial issues that are present in America. With this she has been nominated with a number of awards. |
Awards and Recognitions
2000 | Best Host of a Talk or Service Show In the OFTA Television Award |
2014 | Best Episodic Series: Our America with Lisa Ling IDA Winner |
It is very commendable on how she is able to steel her resolve and not be affected by the things happening around her.