Book Review: The Queen of Distraction: How Women with ADHD Can Conquer Chaos, Find Focus, and Get More Done

By Teri Matlen
Rating:  4/5 stars

Overall, this book is worth the money you pay to purchase it.  It has lots of tips and just the right amount of storytelling to keep the reader engaged.

Positives: 

• Focuses on behavioral techniques for managing problems caused by ADHD symptoms.  A welcome change from many discussions of ADHD which pretty much stop at medication.
• Light tone.
• Lots of practical tips for how to manage some of the most pressing issues women with ADHD face, such as paperwork, kitchen organization and meal planning, hormonal influences, parenting, clothing, work, and intimate relationships.

Negatives:

• This book has so many tips it could be overwhelming.  It would be best read and applied one chapter at time.  It would go nicely with a workbook or a course.  The author of the book hosts a Facebook group that you have to pay to join.  It is a lot more pricey than the book, but considering that it is a lot like paying a coach, the fee is reasonable.
• There isn't any real mention of medication.  Maybe that's good for some women, but others find medication helpful and its nice to affirm that people make different decisions.
• The book covers a lot of topics, but there are more tips in some sections than others.  For example, while the book talks about pregnancy there aren't the bulleted lists of tips that there are in the section on paperwork.  There isn't any mention of nursing at all.  It would be an easier read if it didn't try to cover so many topics and try to be a reference for all things female with regard to ADHD.

Bottom line:
This book has a lot of practical tips on behavioral ways to manage ADHD, and should be helpful as a reference or for group reading.  It definitely isn't comprehensive, but it is a great start toward an easier life with ADHD.