Poll: How do you feel about A.D.D.

[Kryzantine]

I've seen people who were diagnosed with ADD, and one friend of mine who honestly might actually have it. He's not in the first group, so I can't say for sure; then again, a diagnosis doesn't have much value these days.

I can't even say he's worse off for it. Despite being distracted VERY often, it's not as if he is unable to work, communicate or live effectively. It may even work better for him in a few regards, he certainly proves more interesting to others.

I say leave the kids off the drugs. Yeah, ADD exists, but the vast majority of cases, even those of actual ADD, simply don't limit the ability to live freely. Parents should perhaps behave like parents in these kinds of cases. I grew up around friends with so-called "tiger moms" - rigorously teaching their kids and pushing their kids to learn, to memorize, to do well on tests. That kids with ADD aced those tests and even met me is proof enough that it doesn't exactly limit their ability to perform well. Obviously, there are extreme cases, but in a discussion on a large population, those people only live up to their name and are negligible upon the greater conclusion.

 

[FalloutJack]

People with A.D.D. should have every opportunity to grow into functional individuals without having to suffer more complexes or some negative side-effect. People need to communicate with those with A.D.D. and not try to destroy them, but ease them along into a development that can cope with the world around them.

Pills are handy, but they are a bandaid. You have to keep re-applying them because the thing they're dealing with doesn't go away. Verbal and physical discipline only invites more mental complexes/conflicts. You're just scaring the hell out of the kid. Ignoring it means you're gambling. Maybe he turns out fine, maybe not.

I say therapist because therapists are trained to help and would know how to guide such people in a positive direction.

 

[biggskanz]

The vast majority of cases diagnosed as ADD are actually just bored kids doing what bored kids do. Kids don't want to go to school, they don't want to learn boring old math, so why is it such a big surprize to today's parents when they find ways to amuse themselves instead of doing their homework?

That's what I was gonna say. I would add that often it's teachers who are pushing for the medication of their students since it's the teachers who have to deal with rowdy kids.

You know ADD is bullshit if it just magically disappears when the kid is interested in something.

And according to this [URL="http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5ilBNpu4oa62i2RHvWrWC362LFLaA" ]link[/URL] American kids are 3 times as likely to be drugged than European kids.

 

[Palademon]

Did you know ADD doesn't just mean acting bad or not paying attention?

Becuase I am neither of those things and I have ADHD.
And I refuse to take pills to make me think better because why bother achieving something if I needed help?

EDIT: Oh, and by the way, my 59 year old mum has ADD

 

[DarthFennec]

I have ADD. Verbal and physical discipline have been tried for years on me and they have failed miserably. Only the pills work for me (I'm on Adderall). Previous generations did have ADD, there was the odd kid every once in a while that simply couldn't focus no matter what they tried, but they never thought anything of it. The reason for the perceived increase in ADD patients nowadays is because ADD has become a popular excuse for not focusing. While a lot of us actually do have the disorder, most kids diagnosed with ADD don't really have it. Kids can't focus on schoolwork, it's boring and stupid at that age, so symptoms of ADD crop up whether the person actually has it or not. It's really hard to deal with, if you actually have the disorder. Being scolded doesn't help. Nothing helps. No matter how hard I try, no matter what I do, no matter how much effort I put into something, I can't do shit unless I'm taking the medication. Which sucks, because I have absolutely no form of income at the moment, yet I have to somehow come up with $50 a month so I don't fail my university courses, not to mention my tuition and housing fees, and food ...

So, I chose pills. But I also want to say that the diagnosis should be a little more comprehensive than just asking `are you having trouble focusing'. Too many kids are drugged for no reason, just because of this excuse, when it could be fixed by some discipline. For the rest of us though, drugs are necessary.