ADD / ADHD.. do you have it?

[DC.chief]

I have it. It's been there all along and I just never knew. My doctor mentioned it to me and suggested I read a book called Driven to Distraction. I felt like I was reading biography about myself at times. Prior to then I viewed it as kinda bullshit really. Thought it was something parents used to explain why their kid was out of control. I realize now I was completely wrong and I regret not trying to understand it sooner. For one thing It's not something only children suffer from. Many adults have it and many go undiagnosed.

Today is a first for me. Today I started taking medication for it. And while I clearly haven't taken it long enough to really understand it's effects on me either good or bad I can tell you how I feel currently.

I feel energized, alert and more focused. I feel like nothing can slow me down. I feel like fighting a bear (I won't). I somehow feel more confident. I think I've been bouncing both my feet up and down all day while I've sat at my desk. I also feel like I look like this..



But I don't. I look normal and well rested even though I slept my normal 5.5 hours last night.

So do you have it? When did you learn that you did? Have you taken medication for it? What kind and what type of effects did it have on you?

[rabblerouser]

Originally Posted by RealSNR

It exists elsewhere in the world, but the circumstances leading to the diagnosis are often mishandled. I already stated that I think it's way overdiagnosed especially among children.

American parents typically aren't around as much to structure the lives of their kids. This has a significant effect when kids are spending their unstructured time doing whatever they want at home and then getting to school where they have to sit in a desk and get test standards shoved in their ears.

There are differences to explain why America has a problem with the increase, but to say outright that ADD and ADHD don't exist because some hippie says so shows a gap in your logic.

http://www.ncbi..nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1525089/

http://www.apa.org/monitor/2014/04/adhd.aspx

First off, I don't think Dr. Eisenberg was a hippie - most hippies aren't into speed

No, seriously - I agree with most all of what you say, but I've studied this stuff in college (sociology, psychology) and I'm convinced it doesn't really exist.

Even though the diagnosis is used to describe a certain set of vaugue "symptoms" that people do exhibit and that the "treatment" works for, there is not a single shred of forensic or psychological evidence that it actually exists. If someone has a chemical imbalance, it shows up in the blood work, then they get Depakote or Lithium/Librium.

And whereas the "symptoms" may be real, Dr. Eisenberg, the man who invented ADHD, did on his death bed come clean that he fabricated said disease. There have been recent documentaries on BBC about ADD. I think the symptoms are very real but if the inventor admits that it was a hoax and he invented it then it seems that maybe something is being misdiagnosed here or misunderstood.*

I thought this was interesting. You can have the symptoms of a fictitious disease but you can't have a fictitious disease.*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K62Te9xbUmQ
I think she raises a few great points that could be considered in an intelligent conversation.

[rabblerouser]

Originally Posted by unlurking

Don't blame you. It's pretty much human experimentation with no studies on long term effects. Short term benefits have been pretty impressive for me though, so I'll keep on for a while and see what happens.

Yeah, I'm interested on a psychological and sociological level, so keep checking in (this thread is as good as any), but I think I'm at the point in my life personally where weed and coffee are about as experimental as I wanna get.

[Graystoke]

I am glad all these drugs weren't available when I was a child, because I am sure I would have been diagnosed with something needing drugs.

[Beef Supreme]

A major investigation into scores of claims made in psychology research journals has delivered a bleak verdict on the state of the science.

An international team of experts repeated 100 experiments published in top psychology journals and found that they could reproduce only 36% of original findings.

The study, which saw 270 scientists repeat experiments on five continents, was launched by psychologists in the US in response to rising concerns over the reliability of psychology research.

http://www.theguardian.com/science/2...riment-results

[Brock]

There was my life before adderall and my extremely productive and satisfying life after taking it. I'm sure there are alternatives to it, but it works quite well for me and doesn't cost me anything.

[Beef Supreme]

It's a helluva drug.

[ThaVirus]

I've heard great things about adderall and coke.

I'm not a drug type of guy, though. I don't get flu shots, I don't take ibuprofen when I get a headache, etc. I prefer to let my body sort shit out.

At the same time, I don't think I have any major psychological afflictions that warrant a prescription.

[Hootie]

Originally Posted by NewChief

In the college scene around here it can go for as much as 1 dollar per mg. So a 10 is $10. Which is insane.

I'd have a ****ing doctorate in something by now if I had discovered adderall when I was 18