• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Discussion/Advice Thread
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[QUOTE=gtanoofa;39464647]I have both ADHD and Dyslexia, never took any medication but i have some paperwork that confirms that i have both, shit sucks since i feel like i am going to explode when i don't do something and i resort to think to stop being hyperactive, having really short memory and forgetting stuff i just heard and had my focus on, can't focus on anything even with a slight disturbance and short of lose my mind and can't think when i am anxious or nervous. I am actually better at being social than other people at my class who also have dyslexia or ADHD but i had to go through some shit to learn to behave like a normal person and not question random thoughts to everyone around me or just stupid shit no one cares about.[/QUOTE] i know what you mean. i'm usually really shy about talking in classroom settings etc because i have so many things to say but i always lose track of what i'm saying midsentence, or completely change the subject i'm talking about without even realizing it, or most often i forget the word i'm trying to use and end up wording things awkwardly because of it. it's incredibly frustrating trying to study pretty much anywhere because there's always some sort of distraction going on, even a fan going or something can drive me insane. any sort of ambient noise will make it impossible to focus.
i remember when i took ADHD pills for a few years in highschool god damn my mind felt so fresh
[QUOTE=Drakortha;39458267]ADHD is definitely over-diagnosed but it is a real condition. It's caused by a dopamine deficiency in the frontal lobes of the brain, which is the part of the brain that handles memory, problem solving, attention, and parts of the personality too I think.[/QUOTE] Ha, for a while I was doubting I really had ADHD, until I read this. This describes me perfectly. I can't hardly remember anything, sometimes I ask what we're going to have for dinner [I]a few minutes after I've already ate it[/I] and other such short term memory things I have severe problems coming up with ways to solve an issue within an timely or effective manner My attention span is that of a fly, and it's extremely hard to focus on anything without my mind wandering off onto something else entirely And I'm not sure about my personality. That one's more hard to pinpoint. The reason I doubted is because I went on two different ADHD meds (Ritalin and Strutera) and they didn't do a damn thing to me but lack of appetite and some weird ticks. My grades were also still shitty because I couldn't hardly pay attention in class and I blanked out on some of the simplest questions on school/home work. The only way I ever got better was going to online home schooling where I got one-on-one attention from teachers and I could work on anything I wanted to at my own pace. Grades went through the roof. So much so that when I graduated high school I got a.. Uhh... Gold... Presidential recognition of... Something something. (When I was called up to receive it, I shouted "WHAT!?" in disbelief because only one other person got it and everyone in the crowd laughed..) I still have plenty of problems though in day-to-day life. Makes me outwardly look like a very slow/dumb person. But give me enough time and I can come up with the smartest things.
While often over-diagnosed/misdiagnosed, it doesn't make ADD any less true than what it is. It is a proven deficiency but nonetheless, people who often refute it cite their own opinions of what they think rather than facts. However, medication is a different story. People with ADD shouldn't rely on medication for the purpose of hoping it improves their skills. Unfortunately, not many people share my opinion. I remember reading a post on some online forum where a user said he forces his kid to swallow whole pills even to get used to them to counteract ADD. As I keep browsing and reading similar shared thoughts, I tend to think more and more towards the opposite side of the balance. By having your kid diagnosed early on and giving him medication each day, you're giving him a crutch to help him walk instead of showing him how to stand upright. Yes, I agree that the child will be more forgetful and lose his focus, but by giving in, you're essentially teaching the child subconsciously that it's okay to crutch yourself and not take responsibility. This is wrong and by enabling this method, this is what the child will learn for life. The right way and the only right way is to sit down with your child and help him each day do more and more mental exercises. Will his "attention span bar" magically shoot up? No, but at least he will get used to it. The more and more he is exposed to exercises that forces him to keep up, he will be prepared for school and, ultimately, college.
[QUOTE=HighdefGE;39468257]While often over-diagnosed/misdiagnosed, it doesn't make ADD any less true than what it is. It is a proven deficiency but nonetheless, people who often refute it cite their own opinions of what they think rather than facts. However, medication is a different story. People with ADD shouldn't rely on medication for the purpose of hoping it improves their skills. Unfortunately, not many people share my opinion. I remember reading a post on some online forum where a user said he forces his kid to swallow whole pills even to get used to them to counteract ADD. As I keep browsing and reading similar shared thoughts, I tend to think more and more towards the opposite side of the balance. By having your kid diagnosed early on and giving him medication each day, you're giving him a crutch to help him walk instead of showing him how to stand upright. Yes, I agree that the child will be more forgetful and lose his focus, but by giving in, you're essentially teaching the child subconsciously that it's okay to crutch yourself and not take responsibility. This is wrong and by enabling this method, this is what the child will learn for life. The right way and the only right way is to sit down with your child and help him each day do more and more mental exercises. Will his "attention span bar" magically shoot up? No, but at least he will get used to it. The more and more he is exposed to exercises that forces him to keep up, he will be prepared for school and, ultimately, college.[/QUOTE] i both agree and disagree on your point. i think it's definitely true that mental disorders are over-medicated but a bigger issue with treating adhd as well as many other mental disorders lies in not providing therapy alongside medication. many people need medication to function normally and don't have any alternative to it. while you can learn ways to cope or get around some aspects of your disorder, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll be functioning like someone without the disorder would and (with dyslexia/adhd) performing the same functions normal people can easily could take more effort on your part. for instance, i'm dyslexic but as i said earlier i didn't know until i was 18. many people with dyslexia go their entire life without knowing they're dyslexic because they learn to adapt (i never did), but they use different mental processes than non-dyslexics do to solve problems. in some cases this can be a huge strength and advantage over others but in a lot of cases (especially academic settings) it can be a weakness. [editline]4th February 2013[/editline] furthermore, as someone with experience in this.. denying that someone has a mental disorder when they do is at least as bad, if not worse, than accepting they have a mental disorder and not pressuring them to adapt. between severe anxiety/panic disorder and dyslexia, both left untreated, i've spent my entire life feeling inadequate and not understanding why everyone else is so different from me. would you rather tell a kid that they're just not trying hard enough to fit in when they've been trying their whole life, or tell them that they're different and help them flourish in situations where that can be an advantage so they can appreciate that difference?
hi guys, ritalin inspector here, send it to me to be checked
[QUOTE=FreddiRox!;39392177]ADHD and I got all A and A* in my recent GCSE mocks. Autism and dyslexia are by far more trouble some then ADHD. Don't even try to deny[/QUOTE] Diagnosed ADHD, grades sucked shit . Started with ritalin, made me lose tons of weight made me focus and get good grades. I started working out as a replacement for the pills, and i still suffer some of the effects of ADHD like incredibly short attention span when reading or doing things. Hyperactive (not that it's negative at all really :v:) If any of y'all suffer from ADHD and want to get off the pills, start working out. It's incredibly effective, after the workout you're too tired to be hyperactive you can put all your energy by working out and you can focus easier.
This is a funny forum at times. Somebody posts a thread like this and people pile in saying they have it. Somebody posts a trans-gender thread up and in they pile again. I feel shockingly normal when I come on here, not that anybody different to me isn't normal but there seems to be a lot of conditions and subcultures on here that are rather disproportionate to the membership. Just an observation.
[QUOTE=Drakortha;39458267]ADHD is definitely over-diagnosed but it is a real condition. It's caused by a dopamine deficiency in the frontal lobes of the brain, which is the part of the brain that handles memory, problem solving, attention, and parts of the personality too I think. I know this because I was diagnosed with severe ADHD as a child (not misdiagnosed) and I know there is a clear difference in the way my brain functions when I have taken a dopamine supplement and when I have not. The difference in my ability to remember things, focus, and solve complicated problems is night and day. Frankly it pisses me off when I read about people calling ADHD a fake condition or just an excuse for laziness. To me it's the same as people who think depression is "just feeling a little sad" and that they should get over it. Unless you have been there yourself you can't understand what it is like. The least you could do is try to understand, and if not, just keep your mouth shut.[/QUOTE] Pretty much, people are very ignorant about the condition.
Ehh, Ive got ADD pretty bad, im on vivance, which I fucking hate. Im on 60mg right now, but im about to be seeing a psychiatrist to get my dosage upped to around 100 or a bit more. Vivance loves to fuck with you, I mean at first its amazing that 1-2 hour high where everything is super fun, be it math or biology. Things just BECOME interesting. Ive only been on it for 3 years before that I lived in Europe where they don't really treat ADD or ADHD with medication. The change at first was amazing for me, now every time I dose up its pretty good, but it starts to wear off around 1-2 months into that dose which blows, and the high ends way too fast, so im looking for something else to be added into the pill to make that high last longer and thus prolong my efficiency. Oh and to add onto this, I meant to add that I do have it bad. Ive been "tested" (no known test truly exists) but by test mean ive had my brainwaves measured, and several other things done. Like without it I literally had unpassable grades, which resulted in tons of problems at school, looking back i don't even know how i functioned with out it. Im just afraid that now im becoming too dependent on it which I dont want.
[QUOTE=Guy Mannly;39469225]i both agree and disagree on your point. i think it's definitely true that mental disorders are over-medicated but a bigger issue with treating adhd as well as many other mental disorders lies in not providing therapy alongside medication. many people need medication to function normally and don't have any alternative to it. while you can learn ways to cope or get around some aspects of your disorder, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll be functioning like someone without the disorder would and (with dyslexia/adhd) performing the same functions normal people can easily could take more effort on your part. for instance, i'm dyslexic but as i said earlier i didn't know until i was 18. many people with dyslexia go their entire life without knowing they're dyslexic because they learn to adapt (i never did), but they use different mental processes than non-dyslexics do to solve problems. in some cases this can be a huge strength and advantage over others but in a lot of cases (especially academic settings) it can be a weakness. [editline]4th February 2013[/editline] furthermore, as someone with experience in this.. denying that someone has a mental disorder when they do is at least as bad, if not worse, than accepting they have a mental disorder and not pressuring them to adapt. between severe anxiety/panic disorder and dyslexia, both left untreated, i've spent my entire life feeling inadequate and not understanding why everyone else is so different from me. would you rather tell a kid that they're just not trying hard enough to fit in when they've been trying their whole life, or tell them that they're different and help them flourish in situations where that can be an advantage so they can appreciate that difference?[/QUOTE] People over-exaggerate that 'difference'. I think of it as labeling a child in a way that gives him permission to blame his faults on his diagnosis. Though like I said in my previous post, I fully acknowledge ADD because it's a proven deficiency. Personally, I feel as though 'cope' is the wrong word. I feel coping with something means you accept it and forget it. What I want to explain is improvement. By solely relying on medication, a child will not improve himself. A child should not grow up to have to rely on them to excel. I think it's possible even a child may grow addicted to them as he develops. For a child, being sat down and worked with each day prepares him for so much more than throwing pills at him; I promise you. I can't relate to you but my uncle-in-law who is older than 50 recently found out he was dyslexic because there was no such condition back then (in Russia at least). He forced himself to improve to get through school and jobs (he's a teacher for a long time I think). I hope I explained my previous post better.
[QUOTE=HighdefGE;39475783]People over-exaggerate that 'difference'. I think of it as labeling a child in a way that gives him permission to blame his faults on his diagnosis. Though like I said in my previous post, I fully acknowledge ADD because it's a proven deficiency. Personally, I feel as though 'cope' is the wrong word. I feel coping with something means you accept it and forget it. What I want to explain is improvement. By solely relying on medication, a child will not improve himself. A child should not grow up to have to rely on them to excel. I think it's possible even a child may grow addicted to them as he develops. For a child, being sat down and worked with each day prepares him for so much more than throwing pills at him; I promise you. I can't relate to you but my uncle-in-law who is older than 50 recently found out he was dyslexic because there was no such condition back then (in Russia at least). He forced himself to improve to get through school and jobs (he's a teacher for a long time I think). I hope I explained my previous post better.[/QUOTE] and i'm saying that not everyone is capable of adapting like that. everyone has a different degree of severity to their mental disorders - some people can adapt and find ways to get around their weaknesses but others can't and just have their self esteem drained by people pressuring them to thrive in an environment where they can't. [editline]4th February 2013[/editline] as for improvement, as i already said, generally mental disorders are treated by a combination of medication and therapy. people with depression are given medication and then taught ways to cope while on the medication when they're more motivated and able to follow through with what they're learning.
I have ADHD but the ADD component is larger, I also have dyslexia and depression so my mind is constantly like adsdsadasd
[QUOTE=Zambiesv2;39477022]I have ADHD but the ADD component is larger, I also have dyslexia and depression so my mind is constantly like adsdsadasd[/QUOTE] dyslexia and severe anxiety/panic disorder are a very bad combination trying to study: "oh god i can't read everything is blurry i feel sick" "ok just calm down you can do this" "IT'S NOT WORKING"
I really want to get on with my life but I don't want to get doped up like before because the side effects were really bad. My diet changes and clock watching is helping but it isn't going to make my career or life go anywhere if I can't fully concentrate and get my work done. Anyone have any ideas?
One thing I've realized about my ADD is that it allows me to multi-task like a fucking boss. I'm also really good at strategy games. Truly applying my "strength" well to benefit my life, no?
I don't have any ADHD, but I'm a methylphenidate abuser. It's 4 AM and I can't sleep. In the whole day, I swallowed about more than 20 pills, so 200 mg. It produces a good dopamine boost, I don't feel I'm hungry (like all phenylethylamines), I'm not physically productive but I am intellectually, my heart pulses fast, but I can't still fucking sleep. Also, I don't believe it helps children who are found with ADHD. When I was a child, my psy told that I was hyperactive, and so, what's the matter? Okay, I was disturbing, I always had to do something or else I got very bored but I usually found a way to do something. ADHD is a business reason: Novartis, who sells Ritalin, gets a huge loads of money. Look at all the prescriptions given to children. We don't find ADHD like that on someone, it's very subjective... Our psys should pay attention to their patients and not by giving a "miraculous pill"... To follow the same irony: imagine that now, doctors give hard-opiates prescriptions to anyone who complaints of a simple headache. He's not doing his job correctly, so, our psys should be carefull with ADHD 'stimulants' prescriptions. We should let children get their own personnality than giving them drugs who have the same pharmacological similarities to cocaine (for methylphenidate). Concerta, Ritalin; Adderall and all the other shit, are phenylethylamines. It's a class of drugs, you can also find in this family: methamphetamine, ephedrine, methylène-dioxy-methylamphetamine, etc... Ok, I know I'm not a good exemple because I act like a moralfag and I consumed a lot of Ritalin in a day. Don't worry pals, next time it's gonna be some benzos or opiates. (junkie here)
Just putting this here because it seems relevant. I've got ADHD and I was put on meds. This helped me concentrate in school but this also made me into a ticking timebomb. Basically, just take all that hyper and stuff and just postpone it until 9 PM at the evening, here all my anger/irritations and everything would just get increased tenfold. I would yell at people for just tapping their fingers or such petty things. So yeah, meds didn't work on me :v: (Still graduated though, woo)
My doctors say it's very possible I have currently undiagnosed ADD :v: Due to my Mum refusing, when I was younger, to let me see doctors and school psychologists and stuff I have a lot of things I "might/probably have but have yet to be diagnosed with" (I have quite bad dyslexia, and she was scared if I was diagnosed with other things it'd affect school stuff and my life and stuff which would have been a lot easier for me if I -had- been diagnosed). I'm seeing my doctor on Wednesday to talk about it and a few other mental health problems I have. If I do have it I don't think I have it too severe, but who knows.
one of my friends said ADHD is a gift :D
[QUOTE=Shadaez;39396158]Maybe you two were falsely diagnosed? [editline]28th January 2013[/editline] like what led to you even being diagnosed[/QUOTE] I do think I have it, I just think that it's not nearly a bad enough case to actually warrant taking pills for it. Especially when you read all the side effects. Well my kindergarten teacher said I would have trouble all through school and recommended my parents put me in a special needs school (they didn't). In last year of middleschool my grades were dipping and my mom thought it was possible that I was depressed, so I visited a psychologist. After some amount of time he diagnosed me with ADHD and gave me pills for it. Took them throughout the beginning of highschool, but got really pissed that everyone always attributed my successes to the pills instead of me, so I stopped taking them. Grades didn't really get affected at all, and I haven't taken them since.
I think it's environment as well. Some people live in a good place where they can concentrate. I live in a place with a lot of constant noise, people shouting, dogs barking, birds chirping and all sorts of very loud distractions that kills concentration. It's very bad for studies and doing real work. Wish something can be done.
[QUOTE=HeatPipe;39515658]one of my friends said ADHD is a gift :D[/QUOTE] For some people with it (like me) it's a horrible curse that makes you lose all motivation and focus when not medicated.
I was diagnosed with ADHD as a kid and had to take riddlin. But I grew out of it for the most part, I can control myself in public but sometimes I just get that energy spike and I have to do something, it can be hard to occupy myself.
I was diagnosed with ADHD in 6th grade because my mom was worried about my grades. 6 years later I'm doing fine and fuck medicine. This shit is over-diagnosed.
Went to counseling for ADHD back in high school. My brain processes things way too fast for myself to keep up with. So when I'm doing multiple things at once, and I plan on going to the store in a minute or two, I'll remind myself to get my wallet. And then I get up to go to the store and by the time I'm out the door, I remember that I forgot my wallet...
[QUOTE=CapLaPorte;39384359]Well, I have ADD, which basically makes it hard for me to concentrate on things that don't interest me, as it doesn't feel rewarding to do them. I don't get hyper when I'm not medicated, just super non-attentive. Anyway, I take my pills and get on with my life.[/QUOTE] That sounds somewhat like me. It's difficult to concentrate and get stuff that I don't care about and I end up drifting into my thoughts.
[QUOTE=Mysterious Mr.E;39375268]I just double dosed on vyvance thinking it was my cold medication.[/QUOTE] Lie
Was diagnosed with ADHD in 8th grade. Refused medication even though my parents wanted me too. I just want to be myself, still doing fine though. :v:
I used to have ADHD. Needless to say, I was a little shit when I was a kid. If I saw my younger self doing the things I did right in front of me now, I would slap my shit senseless.
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