ADHA - Real or just an excuse?

[SofaEater]

I take about 6 pills a day to keep myself stable. Now I believe that kids, below the age of 17, shouldn't be given ADD/ADHD meds or any other prescribed mind altering medication unless absolutely necessary. their body and brains are still developing and strong medications like that will fuck 'em over. Parents just gotta take away distractions, and set up a study schedule, and they'll learn by repetition.

Now I take pills for my depression, which is both genetic and cause by traumatizing incidents as a child. And I take pills for ADD, it started about sophomore year of high school. And I tried all that crap, but now, at 18 I've started on the meds after I got .7 GPA at college and it helps. I couldn't concentration on anything, 'cept when I was hyper-focusing. Now I don't hyper-focus as much. I can do work, and I can write again.

but this was my last resort, I always thought having ADD/ADHD was a weakness but after trying everything else to help it, I guess its just a problem I can't fix with my chemically fucked up brain. But a lot of the people who say they have ADD and ADHD, are just looking for a quick fix. And thats the problem with a lot of things these days. The damage that these medications cause is stomach turning scary. I probability wont have a working liver but 60. But not taking them is actually so much worse.

try to understand that no matter the medication, or service, or anything for that matter. Some people will abuse it, and others will too if its a quick fix. But, the few who do, actually need it are criticized and punished because of the afore mentioned groups.

props to the topic btw. needed a good mini rant

 

[WolfThomas]

Real but very very overdiagnosed and self-diagnosed. I was almost put on ritalin as a child because of my behaviour (I was a real little bastard) but I outgrew it and I'm glad I didn't have to deal with all it's side effects, especially growth stuntage.

 

[Chibz]

Super Snip Attack!

You're right. Parents of kids with ASD should CLEARLY just beat their kids until their brains work properly. Clearly spanking a kid enough will change how their brains work!

But don't waste your time (and significant cure anything through spankings talent) here! Take your message to doctors, and other health care professionals![footnote]You just don't get it, do you?[/footnote]

 

[Azure-Supernova]

I recognise ADD and ADHD (and all other abbreviated conditions)as genuine conditions but I've seen first hand how people diagnosed with them abuse it. My cousin has ADHD and whenever he starts going batshit insane he just blames everything on his ADHD so he doesn't take a thrashing off my uncle for it. The funny thing is that he can behave himself perfectly whenever there's something in it for him.

It's like many 'conditions' that are diagnosed, they end up defining the person that has them.

 

[Dys]

Spoiler

I can't even express how much I hate ignorant fucks like you. Please consider fellating a shotgun, both of you.[footnote]Moderator edit: Tone it down, this sort of reaction is unacceptable. Don't insult users or bother posting if you have nothing to contribute to the discussion.[/footnote]

That's a bit extreme, I mean ADD or ADHD aren't as diagnosable as other psychological disorders, and given the huge push by pharmaceutical companies to sell ritalin. I mean, I'm not usually one to call foul on this kind of thing, but it literally seems that everytime a kid misbehaves in class (provided he's/her parents don't discipline the child) they get a handful of drugs and a diagnosis. What's more, further detracting from the main credibility of the disorder is that symptoms have been directly linked to the consumption of certain preservatives....How many diagnoses cases of ADHD are, in face, ADHD and not lazy parents or a poor diet?

 

[spartan231490]

My younger brother has ?ADHA? I personally think that this is just and excuse my mum uses when he is out of control. He can get what he wants and act how he wants no matter what she or anybody says. (I have some pretty mind-boggling stories about his ridiculous behaviour if anyone?s interested.) I?ve spoken to several people about ADHD, including Doctors who don?t believe it exists.
So I was wondering what you guys think. I?d love to hear your thoughts on this and any experiences you may have had.

Good mix. I think that almost no cases of ADHD/ADD are anything more than poor parenting combined with a hyper child, but does it matter? it's accepted as an medical problem now, too many people are enjoying it to ever let it stop being an excuse. I remember back in my day,(lol, 20 years is way to young to say that) when me or any of my cousins got hopped up on sugar or adrenaline, we got either spanked or put in time-out, depending on how badly we were freaking out, and it actually worked. Surprise surprise, disciplining your kid is usually more than enough to bring them back under control, even when they are diagnosed with ADD/ADHD by a psychologist. There are some cases where the kid needs meds, god knows my friend Erik is friggin psycho even on his medication, but these cases are very rare, much rarer than the diagnosis. That's my opinion, backed by all 2 semesters of basic psych classes and my world-weary cynicism, so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[Dastardly]

My younger brother has ?ADHA? I personally think that this is just and excuse my mum uses when he is out of control. He can get what he wants and act how he wants no matter what she or anybody says. (I have some pretty mind-boggling stories about his ridiculous behaviour if anyone?s interested.) I?ve spoken to several people about ADHD, including Doctors who don?t believe it exists.
So I was wondering what you guys think. I?d love to hear your thoughts on this and any experiences you may have had.

The hard answer: Both.

Some people really have it. Others get an armchair diagnosis and run with it. And officially telling the difference is next to impossible because of how vague the symptoms and testing are. So, to my mind, treat everyone the same.

If a person has a bum leg, we make certain concessions for them (like ramps and elevators). But we still expect them to move around on their own, just like we expect from everyone else. They have a harder time of it, but that's for them to adjust to. We don't carry the world to them on a platter because they had some hard luck.

Same goes for this. Some are real, many are fakes, treat them all the same.

 

[Cavouku]

I have a buddy who once told me he has ADD, so he couldn't do the work we had to do in the group, because he wasn't on his medication.

Turns out all he needed was some coercion and a simplified explanation of the task at hand, he really had no problem actually doing the work. He was a case of wrongly diagnosed, this is for certain, but the problem is he was trying to use it as an excuse.

Another kid I know, younger than me, claims to have ADHD, and even wrote a song about it;

"The squares on the bus go square square square
Square square square, square square square,
The squares on the bus go square square square
'Cause I have ADHD!"

I wish I was making that up (and also wish "square" wasn't such an uncomfortable word to type).

But the thing is he can sit down and stop being ridiculous for at least a few hours, and isn't on medication, either. I believe he's just an example of a kid with energy. A lot of the time we forget that kids are naturally energetic.

It exists, certainly, but if I were to go into a clinic, I'm afraid they would tell me I have it if I acted convincingly, and I most certainly do not. There needs to be stricter methods of classification, because its like Chef said "For every kid that actually has ADD, you're giving Ritalin to a hundred kids that don't." (Paraphrased)

Let those with the actual condition get the treatment, please.

 

[Irony's Acolyte]

I'm sure there are people out there with ADD and ADHD, but I'm sure that most of the people who claim or were "diagnosed" (probably by a psychiatrist rather than a psychologist) really don't have it. People will go slightly off-topic in a conversation and go "Oh sorry, its my ADD" and all I can think is "You don't have ADD, you made a clear connection between two subjects then switched. If you had ADD you wouldn't be able to have a conversation with me with medication or something similar." It's probably the "in" mental disorder to have right now (along with depression) so if you act like anything slightly off from a "normal" human you have something wrong with you. And then there are all those kids who are told that they have ADD when really there just being kids. I mean kids have always been pretty active and odd times. Just wait for them to crash, they will.

Shame is that there are people out there who really do have it, but they don't get treated the way they should because everyone "has" it.

 

[SofaEater]

"The squares on the bus go square square square
Square square square, square square square,
The squares on the bus go square square square
'Cause I have ADHD!"

I wish I was making that up (and also wish "square" wasn't such an uncomfortable word to type).

HOLY SHIT, square is awkward to type work to type.

But y'all should remember that companies that make the medication give physiologist all this stuff to promote there new drug. Money is money, and if you can trick a couple hundred thousand kids to take medication when it isn't cause they have lazy parents. Why would they care.

I forgot to add that my friend is one of those falsely ADD people, cause his parents over bearing freaks who control his life, (but nooo he wanted to take a year off, so hes stuck with them) but because he knows this he hasn't taken them in over 4 years, to prove his parents wrong.

 

[sibrenfetter]

As a psychologist I can tell you it is real. It has been proven repeatedly on a behavioral and genetic level. Also, for some years it is now included in the DSM4 and 5, as a separate affliction. However, I agree with many comments here on the page that it is over diagnosed. Many parents use it as an excuse for an ill behaving child and drugs are administered way too easily (especially the USA is well known for this practice). I also have a friend with ADHD and there is no mistaking the difference between him taking his medication and not. At the same time, medication is not enough and each individual will have to learn (often with help) to cope with ADHD. I would also like to point out that your average doctor is often not very knowledgeable about these type of afflictions. I strongly suggest you find an expert that has an actual degree in the field of psychopathology or psychotherapy. Good luck

 

[DTWolfwood]

i dont remember my parents generation having this problem. Curious y there is one now. Use to remember getting a serious whooping for going out of control.

Don't they usually just put these kids up on meds for having this "disease?"

 

[eljawa]

Over-diagnosed? Sure. Real? You bet your ass. It's a recognised brain defect.

I've found that there are almost no real cases of ADD or ADHD (not sure what ADHA is...) in the world. Most of the claims are bullshit, either students choking out an excuse for their laziness or parents looking to excuse their shitty parenting.

Source?

Experience.

I may come off rather strong, but I'm just so fucking fed up with how over-diagnosed these disorders are.

experience doing what?because unless you are a professional, your experience isnt worth shit, no offence.

ummm...i always thought i was likely add, but never bothered to get diagnosed because i could manage to some extent. i definatly have an attention deficit problem, if not disorder

I never claimed to have working experience with them. I just end up listening to them ***** and whine.

that doesnt make it not real

 

[Cursed Frogurt]

I bet 1 in every 10 kids that has been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD actually seriously need meds.

And personally, I think the same about autism. Sure, it exists and some people REALLY need help with social interaction, but isn't it funny how suddenly every other kid has autism? Yeah...

 

[Sandytimeman]

Anyway, yes, it does definitely exist. There have been studies done showing different brain activity patterns on fMRIs between "normal" people and people with ADD, and similar differences in their response to things like stimulants. Depending on how bad it is, it can really be a pain in the ass when trying to get things done.

That said, it's been overdiagnosed/overmedicated at times, and using it as an excuse for being a dick is pretty lame and makes it harder for the people who have a legitimate problem to be taken seriously.

This is pretty much my opinion on the matter.

It is over diagnosed however, vastly so. I remember seeing a Frontline documentary on the subject and I suggest everyone goes and finds/ watches that documentary if you have any questions about ADD / ADHD.

I know I was misdiagnosed with ADD when it was actually just a symptom of my Asperger's Syndrome.

I bet 1 in every 10 kids that has been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD actually seriously need meds.

And personally, I think the same about autism. Sure, it exists and some people REALLY need help with social interaction, but isn't it funny how suddenly every other kid has autism? Yeah...

Agree for the most part. Also about the social part of Autism (or high functioning autistic ie Asperger's Syndrome) Basically I have to agree as I have it, and while I did have quite a hard time adjusting and adapting to social situations I did eventually get the hang of it. It took me until my mid-20's till I started socializing in what I would consider normal means. It doesn't quite happen the way they show it on TV (for instance the Big Bang Theory)

 

[spartan231490]

i think it does exist but i doubt even half the people who claim they have it actually do.

alot of the time it does just seem its a annoying idiot that is acting out and is given this label as an excuse.

My bet is around 10%. I know about 10 people who were diagnosed, and only one of them has anything resembling a problem, and even he could deal with it sans medication if given proper motivation.

 

[rokkolpo]

Well it's real, and you can see it on an EEG test.

It's basically about having a short attention-span and often having to much energy (ADD-ADHD)
(Don't know what ADHA is)

 

[Trolldor]

My younger brother has ?ADHA? I personally think that this is just and excuse my mum uses when he is out of control. He can get what he wants and act how he wants no matter what she or anybody says. (I have some pretty mind-boggling stories about his ridiculous behaviour if anyone?s interested.) I?ve spoken to several people about ADHD, including Doctors who don?t believe it exists.
So I was wondering what you guys think. I?d love to hear your thoughts on this and any experiences you may have had.

It's quite real, which is why medications which stimulate a specific area of the brain can calm them down, but whether it's diagnosed properly or whether the medications will work is another question.
Psychiatry is a relatively new science, medications will work on some people that won't work on others, and we can't always accurately predict the results, but they do work and can help.
Doctors who say it doesn't exist aren't Pscyhologists, and Psychologists who claim it doesn't exist are ignoring all the medical research and data which says otherwise.

Edit: Also, to make very clear, it's a biological ailment. It's got nothing to do with the way you were brought up and everything to do with how your brain naturally functions. It usually manifests itself around puberty because the way your brain behaves is changing.

 

[Nalgas D. Lemur]

that's a rather nice summation, and I also have it. It sucks, it's fucking insane I can't focus a lot of the time (sometimes I can) so I sit down to program, with my notepad of code snippets and prototypes and I just can't write anything for no particular reason, the code's there, but it just rushes by before I can do anything with it. and the worst part is I can't take meds for it because I'm doing something else right now >_<

Yeah, it really is frustrating when trying to do stuff like that. It's debatable whether or not I have "true" ADD, because while I had minor issues with it as a kid, it didn't get to be a major problem until later on after a head injury. If it walks like a duck and responds to treatment like a duck, that's good enough for my doctor to call it a duck, though.

It did have to go completely untreated for a while, because seizures were another fun thing I acquired by hitting my head, and stims have an annoying tendency to make those worse if they're not under control first, so I know all about trying to get work done when your brain decides to get up and wander off instead. I've finally got it mostly sorted out, and I actually managed to read a book this weekend for a change. Like, in two days, a few hours at a time, instead of in 15-20 minute chunks. I'd almost forgotten what that's like. Kind of neat to stay focused through an entire chapter instead of getting sidetracked halfway through a paragraph and forgetting how it started before reaching the end.

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

Yeah it's over diagnosed, but that doesn't mean there aren't people genuinely afflicted with it.