Winnie the Pooh and ADD Primarily Inattentive

Some people claim that Winnie the Pooh is the classic picture of the Inattentive type of ADHD. He is inattentive, sluggish, slow-moving, and unmotivated. He is also daft. I take issue with Winnie the Pooh being used as the poster child for Inattentive ADHD.

Inattentives may have trouble paying attention, finishing tasks, or following directions. They may also tend to be rather sluggish and slow to process information but they are not daft.

There are, in fact, many internet groups devoted to arguing that ADHD children are not ADHD at all, but rather they are 'gifted'. I will not debate the 'gifted' versus not 'gifted' debate at this point but I can say categorically that most people with Inattentive ADHD are not of low IQ.

I love the Winnie the Pooh books. I had a beloved box set of the House of Pooh Corner books when I was a child. The exchange below is a classic one between Christopher Robin and Pooh.

"What's twice eleven? I said to pooh." "Twice what?? Said Pooh to me." "I think it ought to be twenty-two." "Just what I think myself said Pooh. That wasn't an easy sum to do, but that's what it is says Pooh, says he. That's what it is says Pooh."

Winnie was simply not very smart. He was kind, sweet, lovable, spacey and as dumb as a six year old boy might have imagined him to be. What about Christopher Robin? This wildly imaginative child has conjured up and entire world made of stuffed animals and he spends much of his thinking time there!! He is also a bit spacey. Christopher laments: "And I've wondered much further today than I should and I can't seem to find my way back to the woods."

Christopher Robin is easily distracted but he is also clearly a smart boy who spends an inordinate amount of time attending to his imaginary world. He is, in my opinion, a more representative picture of the person with Inattentive ADHD.