EX-CHIPPEWA: Clippers' Chris Kaman gets mind right after anxiety diagnosis
Ever since he was 2 1/2 years old, Los Angeles Clippers center Chris Kaman thought he had attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Then he found out in July that he has an anxiety disorder, which causes him to overanalyze situations, and the medications he had been taking for ADHD were making him worse.
"I can't take back time," Kaman, 25, told the Los Angeles Times. "I wish I could."
Kaman, who grew up in Wyoming, Mich., and attended Central Michigan, said he'd come home from school and cry because he had to take his pills. He stopped taking medication at CMU because he didn't have to sit still for more than a couple of hours, but his concentration was never up to snuff. Same with the Clippers.
"I would come out of a huddle (in which coach) Mike (Dunleavy) just drew two plays, and I would literally forget both those plays in a matter of 10 seconds or less," Kaman told the Times.
A brain specialist in Grandville discovered Kaman's true affliction last summer. Now he's playing the best ball of his career, averaging 17.9 points and 13.7 rebounds entering Tuesday, ahead of his 10.1 and 8.1 career averages.
And the former Chippewa wants to shine light on kids who are similarly misdiagnosed. "I'm on a platform being in the NBA where I can help people," he said.
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