So who's got ADD/ADHD?

Chees said:

I still think ADHD is a marketing trick to sell those pills. Its not a real disease. 50% of Earth's population has those symptoms.

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See its shit like this...

Countless lives have been improved by proper diagnosis and the correct medicine. Sure has it been over diagnosed and the meds over prescribed in children, but a lot of has to do with parents not knowing how to raise their kids and some just plain lazy, unmotivated individuals that just want a magic pill to fix things.

But for those, including myself who have tried everything and have gone to multiple doctors and finally found a doctor who understood and started taking a medicine that made our ability to work, focus and to have our lives turn a complete 180, I think we say a collective fuck you.

DamageX said:

10mins vid? You gotta be kidding me... No way I'll be able to sit through all that!

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No need to watch all at once.

absinth said:

I didn't even read the rest of what you had to say.

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That 's ok. Information is a privilege and you can always choose to be lacking.

I really didn't say that much in my post, maybe you should go have your brain scanned.

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I 'd really need to if I was so fool as to take seriously the advice of anyone who can't read

a little older than most here but what the f did they call this shit back when I was kid?

I read lots of biz mags and you guys that have this are destined for greatness. All those tech geniuses have ADHD or OCD ... and I feel for you though I read there are lots of bad stuff that can come with it too.

JQ

Thom Hartmann is the shit, been listening to him for awhile.

PinguSpy said:

cool...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdwjUwnBb6c

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ok so people started to read all comment post to show that they don't have ADD

I think I have ADD, in my youth people weren't talking about adhd or add, it's something from the last 10 years or so.

smokin herb makes it better lol

biosclan said:

See its shit like this...

Countless lives have been improved by proper diagnosis and the correct medicine. Sure has it been over diagnosed and the meds over prescribed in children, but a lot of has to do with parents not knowing how to raise their kids and some just plain lazy, unmotivated individuals that just want a magic pill to fix things.

But for those, including myself who have tried everything and have gone to multiple doctors and finally found a doctor who understood and started taking a medicine that made our ability to work, focus and to have our lives turn a complete 180, I think we say a collective fuck you.

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fuck you too

Chees said:

fuck you too

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I'll be the one doing the fucking here.

/banhammer.


Keep this civil guys - if you choose not believe in whats commonly accepted as a medical condition - that's your business, no need to get rude to others.

I'm an ADD'er. Used to self medicate with alcohol but gave it all up. I try to keep organised, but find self employment really difficult. I don't have unfinished projects, I have work in progress lol, I know they will be done in time. It also makes it especially hard for doing IM as there are so many shiny things. I also find I can be really anal with things too, which wastes a lot of time. I find myself procrastinating and have to kick myself up the arse. I try to write lists and notes but lose them, or have so many that I don't know what is what. I need procedure and uniformity to get things done, mundane is fine too, as my mind can wander freely. Drives my missus mad as she has it but is more organised, to the point of obsession. I also love it when someone asks me "Tell me what s on your mind?" and after ten minutes they wished they never asked lol. Oh crap, here I go again, what was I supposed to be doing????

Gamboloyd said:

I'm an ADD'er. Used to self medicate with alcohol but gave it all up. I try to keep organised, but find self employment really difficult. I don't have unfinished projects, I have work in progress lol, I know they will be done in time. It also makes it especially hard for doing IM as there are so many shiny things. I also find I can be really anal with things too, which wastes a lot of time. I find myself procrastinating and have to kick myself up the arse. I try to write lists and notes but lose them, or have so many that I don't know what is what. I need procedure and uniformity to get things done, mundane is fine too, as my mind can wander freely. Drives my missus mad as she has it but is more organised, to the point of obsession. I also love it when someone asks me "Tell me what s on your mind?" and after ten minutes they wished they never asked lol. Oh crap, here I go again, what was I supposed to be doing????

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Haha, I betcha most of the people in this thread can relate to at least half of what you posted.

I have multiple cases of schizophrenia

My desktop looks like a nuke hit it, I have 15 windows open and am toggling between 2 different computers, one making music, the other working on 2 websites. I think I have a slight touch of it. I was on pills for it for years but now I just drink tea.

I'm curious about something for the people who have ADHD. I have it as well, combined type. Often I find myself hyper-focused on something. I also have OCD, 2 subtypes of it, and I have had bouts of major depression in the past.

I'm just wondering how many of you actually took a neuro-psychological evaluation to diagnose your disease. I actually was not diagnosed until my Junior year of college, and at the suggestion of my dean took such an evaluation. Altogether, it was around 15 hours of appointments, interviews, and intensive testing. I actually had a 14 page document written up about my symptoms, personality, and overall intelligence.

Quite interesting to read such an in-depth report on yourself I might say. What I always found was funny, is how people who think they have something often don't, and people who never think something is even wrong are often the most troubled. I fall into the latter category.

Even after I finished all the testing, I remember thinking I did too well and wouldn't be diagnosed with ADHD. Turned out I had several markers for ADHD, OCD, as well as initial symptoms of schizophrenia(which is terrifying to think about). My overall intelligence based on 3 different tests, put me in the superior intelligence category. In fact my working memory was only a couple points from "genius" levels. However, my processing speed was barely above average. More than the needed standard deviation needed to prove ADHD. That was the biggest thing for me, being told I wasn't processing information fast enough.

Adderall has greatly improved everything though, and I honestly feel incredible nowadays. It's like a lightbulb turned on inside my head, and everything is much more clear now.

Anyways I know this won't convince people who don't believe in these mental illnesses. The stigma still surrounds such diseases, and I even hesitate to tell friends or family. What's sad is that the research is there, trust me I know. My majors in college? Double majored in Molecular and Cellular Biology/Business, minored in Neurology.

smallgiant said:

I'm just wondering how many of you actually took a neuro-psychological evaluation to diagnose your disease. I actually was not diagnosed until my Junior year of college, and at the suggestion of my dean took such an evaluation. Altogether, it was around 15 hours of appointments, interviews, and intensive testing. I actually had a 14 page document written up about my symptoms, personality, and overall intelligence.

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Yep, I did. At 35.

Test procedures and reports were very similar to yours.

I have ADD and I can say that it is both a blessing and a curse, which i think most people with it who work in a creative industry will tell you as well. It is a gift when it comes to creative, outside of the box thinking, or creating something entirely new. It helps you to connect disconnected thoughts and come to conclusions that others without it would be less likely to make. I also find that myself and many other Adders that I have met are generally interested in just about ANYTHING, literally almost any topic, which makes them exceptional generalists.

It can be a curse when you are working for other people or in an industry with rigid schedules and deadlines. It can be very hard without medication to follow through on tasks or complete them on someone else's timeline. It's not that I am not a hard worker, because I am, but I have learned that I can only do tasks when I am completely focused and that can shift throughout the day. It was easier for me to get through college on my own schedule than a regular 9-5 job.

This is why I think many ADDers eventually end up working for themselves to accommodate their needs and style.

Also, I am glad to see that schools are now realizing that there are other learning styles and beginning to teach in a multitude of ways. I found it very hard growing up to be tested in a reciting the facts, one answer is correct fashion. For me it was much easier to explain the answer in essay form or short answers.

I often take medication to help me stay on task, but I am careful to not take it all of the time and to give myself opportunities to sit there and space out and make those connections. Many people think that ADDers are just staring out in the middle of nowhere when they aren't paying attention, which couldn't be further from the truth. They are making new connections and processing things differently.

For those of you out there looking to actually educate yourself on ADD or learn how to maximize your strengths I recommend reading all of the books by Dr. Hallowell and checking a few other titles that have helped me -- "The Disorganized Mind" and "You mean I am not lazy, crazy or stupid."

The owner of the store I work (just small shop, no franchise or something) has got ADHD too.