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September 24, 2014 at 12:58 pm in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #126017
I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree, BabaD… I don’t see much improvement in perception among the general public, because the mainstream media continues to misrepresent ADHD and there are many more stories about over-diagnosing or disagreement between “experts” and skeptics as to what medication works and what causes it. Stories about how people’s lives can change when they get the diagnosis and are then treated don’t rank. And there isn’t enough consensus on what the causes are because the research is still coming in on that, and medical professionals don’t follow these developments as closely as we’d wish them to.
Why does getting it right concern me so much? I have a niece who is introverted, has very inconsistent grades in school and depression with no hyperactivity. She daydreams and cannot stay organized or finish her homework without major struggles. She is 18 and no one, including her parents, teachers, counselors or her doctor understands she probably has ADHD, though her issues point directly to this condition. I have to answer to management at my job if I I am late to work because I forgot where I last placed my keys or completely lost track of time. Since I work in a job where focus, timeliness and caution are absolutely mandatory (I drive a bus for a living) there is low tolerance for making mistakes. If I tell them too much or they misunderstand what medical problem I have, I could easily be out of a job.
Disarming or charming most people isn’t my goal, since this is something that runs in my family and started at least 2 generations before I was born. My goal is to educate and get as many of my relatives into some form of treatment as soon as possible, since I see the unfortunate consequences of their disorder and how much their lives could improve if a.) they did get treatment and b.) society stopped stigmatizing those of us with this disorder as immoral, lazy, stupid, etc…Epilepsy was once call “grand mal” and demonic possession before that, and Bipolar Disorder was once called Manic-Depressive illness. Mental retardation has now been re-categorized into varying forms of cognitive disabilities or learning disorders. The medical world didn’t fall apart as a result of using a more accurate term for those conditions, nor did any fallout affect those who needed help with their disability. The terms merely changed as more information was discovered about how these disorders actually affected the brain. As a result more effective treatments could be administered based on the new research.
Overall, comprehensive and comparative studies on brain functioning are a relatively recent phenomenon, since recent computer technology advances have given scientists more tools for their research. More types of scans provide a better map of the brain. Substantial discoveries in the growth of human brains from age three months to the age of fifteen have been made due to the creation of high-resolution brain maps and technology to analyze these maps over various periods of time and growth (MRI and a CT scan provides more information).
I see nothing wrong with reclassifying or renaming something we have better, more accurate information about. If it reduces confusion, more people who suffer from undiagnosed ADHD will see they have a medically-recognized problem more clearly, as will their loved ones and doctors. I see it as a win-win for everyone.
And it won’t change your identity or the fact that you’re okay with it. If anything, more people will accept their condition as a part of who they are, just as you have.
REPORT ABUSESeptember 21, 2014 at 6:28 pm in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #126007@BabaD I don’t have a problem with the term deficiency either. It’s just so much more than a deficit of attention.
@Larynxa EFD: That’s kind of what I had in mind (no offense BabaD)
Two other options:
Genetic Neural Activation Disorder
or
Brain Neurotransmitter Deficiency,At least when I say this or something similar to people, all they can do is nod their heads and pretend like they know what I’m talking about (I’ve had people do this, actually) or ask “what the h__l is that?”
They are then free of the usual preconceptions about what I identified as my “problem”.
REPORT ABUSESeptember 21, 2014 at 1:24 pm in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #126004I think I like EDDIE better than WANKER…
REPORT ABUSESeptember 21, 2014 at 11:24 am in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #126002Uh-ohhh, wrong link! this is the correct link to the lecture I was talking about: it’s actually short so hopefully the word lecture won’t be a turn-off https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQC-Nk5OOfE&list=PLbYYEJj_e1GxHUwG-bN2rNW1x25rrM964&index=5
REPORT ABUSESeptember 21, 2014 at 11:02 am in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #125999@BabaD scattybird That makes sense.. I’m pretty familiar with sending posts on impulse: I usually have to edit several times before hitting the send button, and there a few where I didn’t wait and regretted it. So I totally get that, as well as the offbeat sense of humor :-}.
Must be that hypersensitivity kicking in since I was dead serious. For me and my family, this disorder has been a life/death issue…
Anyway my issue wasn’t with the term disorder. I actually agree with that part. It’s the Attention Deficit part I find objectionable, inadequate and inaccurate.
The link I referenced above better articulates what I was trying to get at. Dr. Russell Barkley’s talks (many of his lectures are on YouTube), really affected me because he was doing the whole “telling my life with his words” thing. And since he focuses on the most recent studies and what actually goes on in the brain when we do something neuro-atypical that no one understands, it becomes clear how it’s caused by faulty functioning in our frontal cortex and neural connections.
So based on the research, both genetic and neurological, our brain activity – or lack thereof – often leads to behavior that is counterproductive and detrimental to our well-being – at least for some of us. I’d call that a disorder. I also appreciate that we need to laugh about it because as of now there’s treatment that does help – on many levels, though there’s no cure.
But based on all the aspects of one’s life that ADHD can affect, especially when you don’t know you have it, lack of focus is the least of our concerns!
REPORT ABUSESeptember 19, 2014 at 6:12 pm in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #125994https://personal.netbankerplus.com/NorthCommunityBank/Login.aspx
The inspiration for my post was this Russell Barkley lecture.
REPORT ABUSESeptember 19, 2014 at 5:06 pm in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #125992@BabaD… Not sure what to make of the sarcasm. If you think my post is dumb or some other form of annoying, then my apologies. If I misinterpreted your intent, perhaps you could clarify it?
Thanks!
REPORT ABUSESeptember 18, 2014 at 9:49 am in reply to: The issue of who to tell and who not to tell about my ADHD #125987I am in 100% agreement with Scattybird and those who want to change the terminology of this “disorder”. I was hyperactive when I was a kid, now my hyperactivity is all in my mind (literally). But paying attention is the least of my problems as most of us can attest to.
I think those of us with this issue (disorder? neurological abnormality?) need to start a movement – no, seriously – that would give this condition the title it deserves, like Impulse dysfunction, Adrenaline deficit, Neurotransmission defect or Executive Function Failure or something similar. More accurate and more about what is actually happening.
I now engage in a a minimum of 30 minutes explaining what I mean when I say I have ADD to those not familiar with it and why it really isn’t Attention Deficit that’s the cause of all my weird inconsistent behavior, but something more sinister and pervasive.
I have quite a few family members (siblings, cousins) who have
undiagnosed ADD and they’ve spent their lives in misery, never knowing why everything is so difficult, from relationships to jobs, substance abuse and money. Most of them don’t believe in new fashionable disorders and/or mistrust the medical profession outright. Attention deficit just means they need to work harder and drink some coffee.Some of them nod their head, and say it sounds accurate after I’ve lectured them for a while on what the symptoms are, but they never seek treatment – because they have a motivational deficit (another term) and they’ve pretty much given up.
I think we need to start some kind of campaign to change this misleading name.
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Thoughts anyone?I had a similar problem with a therapist, but it was more that they gave me a medication that did some things well, but other significant areas of my life were still affected. Anyway, I switched doctors. It sounds like yours doesn’t believe in ADHD or has gotten some info about Adderall she’s not sharing with you.
Please try to do whatever you can to find another doctor: that may be the quickest way to solve your problem. If you aren’t on an HMO plan or something similar,(I’m in the U.S. and am with an HMO, so I’m not sure how Canada’s doctor referrals work) it may be hard to do, but that would be my first course of action.
Reporting her would be a second step – but it won’t solve your immediate problem of not getting the right medicine.
REPORT ABUSE@sdwa I agree with your thoughts about people resisting change – even when it means believing old disproven lies and myths: my family is full of people with both mental illness and ADD. We were all in denial about it, until I saw the “ADD & LOVING IT” Doc. I knew it would be extremely difficult to get any of them to understand what ADD is. And then to see it in their own lives – that would take a miracle
REPORT ABUSE“Husband went shopping today came home looking very pleased with himself so I am a little worried. But I am very practiced at smiling and saying “Yes, I like it. Thank you.”
lol – I know the feeling, but with relatives, no husband.
Ok, I have a better understanding for where you were going in your post about success and doom, etc…, so I won’t worry so much now. I’ve read so many posts that were serious and extreme (not only here) I figured it’s better to be a worrywart than sorry later on.
And I know what you mean about researching successful people and going beyond the hype to learn how they really made it to the top of their field.
What kills me is how some of them really are super-talented, well-trained and deserve their success, though what they do for a living doesn’t always reflect that talent or training – or maybe what they trained to do isn’t all that spectacular. Our society has a serious problem with honoring and paying attention to folks who don’t do much of anything valuable.
And yes, timing, chance, having a supportive family, or growing up in a privileged existence – those do matter. I don’t want to negate people’s right to achieve what they have, but I know of so many who have the same gifts and abilities who haven’t achieved that level of success for the most fickle of reasons. I need to remember the very old saying,
“I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.”
REPORT ABUSE@Rick I am totally looking forward to that webinar!
REPORT ABUSE@IanL You’re very welcome… I like sharing this stuff so it’s nice to find people who appreciate it.
REPORT ABUSE@blackdog: I’m not sure how serious you were when you wrote about seeing your life as meaningless. But in case you were, please go find someone you trust to talk to about it. I’ve been in that space where I’ve felt like I would achieve nothing more than mediocrity in my life and that was when I hit rock bottom -it’s not a good place to be in. And that was before I knew anything about ADHD and I was facing the same frustration and failure I think you’re talking about.
In the end by some miracle I didn’t die, though I was close. But I had to find a way to redefine success and happiness and to stop trying to live up to society’s, family and friends’s expectations and demands. I see real success as how much I live life just for me. That was how I survived the dark moments.
I hope you can find something you care about and can do well and cherish the gifts you have just for what they are, without needing it to be the key to everyone else’s definition of “making it”. It doesn’t necessarily mean making the best seller list or winning a national prize or making millions of dollars. Redefining success is a constant struggle for me but it has also freed up a lot of pain and guilt and self-hatred as well.
And I don’t think Barkley is all doom and gloom. He’s a messenger and the message is about what the latest research in brain functioning has to say about people who suffer from/are gifted with/ just have ADHD. If all you’re getting from what he’s saying is ADHD is awful I don’t think you’re hearing the second part of the message, which is now that we know what UNTREATED ADHD is, let’s talk about treating it. As Rick said, it isn’t a disease that needs a cure. Nor is it necessarily a horrible curse that will ruin your life – not if you know you have it and that you can get medicine and/or therapy to help.
I try to think of it as a set of problems that have some solutions, a few opportunities and some challenges. Living with it without knowing you have it is tragic. But being on a website like this after finding out you have it can be a real blessing (or amazing good fortune if you prefer).
Happy Birthday, and I hope you have many more…
REPORT ABUSE@kc5kjck well-put. The upside is that once the diagnosis is made, we at least begin to understand why we are socially isolated, whereas before we hadn’t a clue.
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