[Loonkin]

The ADHD over-diagnosis problem is pretty rampant. Voted on my husband's behalf; doesn't have ADHD.

Yes, but there is also lots of people with ADHD that aren't getting diagnosed and it's impacting their ability to fulfill their potential. We need more education and different perspectives on both sides.

Edit: ADHD is now the term for all types of ADD and ADHD. Now instead of saying ADD, technically we're supposed to say ADHD without Hyperactivity. Don't ask me why - I think it's silly.

And I'm getting some comments from people who are focused on the overdiagnosis and misdiagnosis of ADHD. This is definitely happening, but it's also happening that people AREN'T getting diagnosed until much later in life. At which point the lack of diagnosis has done sometimes irreparable damage to their self-esteem and chances at being successful in life.
We need more understanding on both sides of the issue.

 

[Loonkin]

Some descriptions of ENFPs make it sound like we all have ADD/ADHD... I can never relate to those descriptions where we have boundless energy and are like puppy dogs distracted by a new shiny.

I have difficulty focusing on one thing at a time but I've got nothing to blame but myself and my own laziness and boredom.

Possibly it's just that. It could be more.
One of the trickiest things about ADHD is that it seems like you should just be able to will yourself into making your mind work the way you want it. Sometimes you can. And sometimes you just can't.
In my journey of accepting my diagnosis I learned that my brain works differently than society expects it to. And by accepting that and embracing it, it allows me to see that there's nothing wrong with it. It allows me to accept how I am and learn to work around that.
The diagnosis doesn't have to limit me. It can free me.

I suppose sort of similar to how understanding one's personality types allow them to see how they are. As I said earlier, I believe that at one point, ADHD was an evolutionary advantage. It's only in this society that it appears to be a "disorder."

 

[Llyralen]

Possibly it's just that. It could be more.
One of the trickiest things about ADHD is that it seems like you should just be able to will yourself into making your mind work the way you want it. Sometimes you can. And sometimes you just can't.
In my journey of accepting my diagnosis I learned that my brain works differently than society expects it to. And by accepting that and embracing it, it allows me to see that there's nothing wrong with it. It allows me to accept how I am and learn to work around that.
The diagnosis doesn't have to limit me. It can free me.

I suppose sort of similar to how understanding one's personality types allow them to see how they are. As I said earlier, I believe that at one point, ADHD was an evolutionary advantage. It's only in this society that it appears to be a "disorder."

I agree, I think it was an evolutionary advantage. It makes perfect sense to me. I read some stuff about exercise and ADHD a while back. I can't remember the amounts of exercise it said, but it was what formed my opinion about it being an advantage if the circumstances were right. Maybe it would be hard to get enough exercise in our current culture without doing sports for a job like Michael Phelps or Shaun White. *shrugs*. Sorry, I wish I knew more-- but you seem very knowledgeable.

Did it help you unlock your potential to get diagnosed? Are treatments getting better?

 

[WickerDeer]

I was professionally diagnosed with ADD (and medicated) as a teen--I didn't vote in the poll b/c I was never diagnosed with, nor have I suspected myself of having, ADHD.

But that diagnosis was also professionally discarded, later, so who knows? It was the nineties and they were diagnosing a lot. I think it's good to look at research and learn about how our minds work though.

I think that regardless of whether you fit a formal diagnosis or not (or you have suspicions or inklings), you can reap information and understanding of it and the research around it. I still think it's good to study--but there are some issues with misdiagnosis and overdiagnosis imo.

Edit: The OP says that now all attention deficit disorders are called 'adhd,' and I don't know anything about this--but in the past add and adhd were different, because one featured hyperactive behavior and the other was a general issue with attention, I think.

Edit: I voted in the poll now.

 

[Falling Foxes]

Possibly it's just that. It could be more.
One of the trickiest things about ADHD is that it seems like you should just be able to will yourself into making your mind work the way you want it. Sometimes you can. And sometimes you just can't.
In my journey of accepting my diagnosis I learned that my brain works differently than society expects it to. And by accepting that and embracing it, it allows me to see that there's nothing wrong with it. It allows me to accept how I am and learn to work around that.
The diagnosis doesn't have to limit me. It can free me.

I suppose sort of similar to how understanding one's personality types allow them to see how they are. As I said earlier, I believe that at one point, ADHD was an evolutionary advantage. It's only in this society that it appears to be a "disorder."

I assumed this is something that would have come up in childhood. No one would have ever questioned the calm, shy, quiet one who got all their work done. No one had ever assumed I have ADD or the like.

Pretty sure I don't have it. If anything I think the attention issue is the result of being a millennial. Unless ADD/ADHD is learned behaviour and not automatic?

 

[Loonkin]

I agree, I think it was an evolutionary advantage. It makes perfect sense to me. I read some stuff about exercise and ADHD a while back. I can't remember the amounts of exercise it said, but it was what formed my opinion about it being an advantage if the circumstances were right. Maybe it would be hard to get enough exercise in our current culture without doing sports for a job like Michael Phelps or Shaun White. *shrugs*. Sorry, I wish I knew more-- but you seem very knowledgeable.

Did it help you unlock your potential to get diagnosed? Are treatments getting better?

I was diagnosed at the age of 7 and I had my ebbs and flows of accepting and denying it over 20 years. It was when I tried to go back to school at 27 that really started to acknowledge that my brain just worked differently, no matter now much I tried to make it work the way I wanted it to. Over the last 7 years I've been learning bits and pieces about it, and the more I know about it, the more it makes sense. And the more I can learn to work with it and even wield and hone it.

Or that's the theory, at least. I find at times I slip into victim thinking and wishing society was more flexible for people like me. And other times I truly can't tell if I'm using my ADHD as an excuse... or if I'm legitimately limited in certain ways. It's quite the mind-f***.

But other times, I am able to see it as giving me some of my best strengths and it gives me hope for being able to plug them into something I'm passionate about and can make a living from. It's a journey, though, for sure.

 

[Loonkin]

I assumed this is something that would have come up in childhood. No one would have ever questioned the calm, shy, quiet one who got all their work done. No one had ever assumed I have ADD or the like.

Pretty sure I don't have it. If anything I think the attention issue is the result of being a millennial. Unless ADD/ADHD is learned behaviour and not automatic?

ADHD without hyperactivity (I still don't understand why they specify it this way), is the hardest to diagnose. And many people go their whole lives not knowing that they have it and it can do some serious damage. I'm not trying to suggest you have it, by any means, I'm just clarifying some of what I know.

And I think how it works is that one has a predisposition for ADHD in their genetics, and it may or may not express itself depending on an array of factors (although I'm still not sure how you can have a predisposition and not have it be traceable in genetics tests). I definitely think that there were some aspects of my childhood that had a factor in it developing. Watching TV and diet, I think are the main culprits for me. Not so much that watching TV brought it on, but rather, it trained my brain to react to certain stimuli and even become dependent on it to satisfy my brain. Some people with ADHD have a hard time making dopamine in their brains, and that's part of why we seek more stimulating things. And then as far as diets go, I found out about 7 years ago that I'm sensitive to gluten. It has more of an impact on my tendency towards depression than on my ADHD, but removing it from my diet does seem to help with that, too. Every time I add it back in, I get way more emotional and less in control of my brain and emotions. And sugar. I'm very sensitive to sugar and I was seriously addicted to it when I was a kid. My parents tried not to have it in the house, but I still grabbed sugar packets from the cafeteria at school and had them stashed in a show box in my room.
:chargrined:

 

[Moby]

I have difficulty focusing on one thing at a time but I've got nothing to blame but myself and my own laziness and boredom.

I don't think it's anything to be ashamed about though!

 

[Falling Foxes]

I don't think it's anything to be ashamed about though!

It is when I'm not doing anything productive at all.

 

[Loonkin]

It is when I'm not doing anything productive at all.

That describes so much of my life. *Sigh*
I feel like I'm finally improving, in general, though. Keep at it it'll probably get better.

 

[WickerDeer]

I think it's good to continue looking into avenues that have helped before--and for some people, looking into ADD might help. I actually felt being diagnosed as a kid was a blow to my self esteem, rather than helping me. But then, it probably had to do with the way it was approached. Idk how many times books about ADD were pushed on me. Sometimes it felt like there was more of en affort to label what was wrong with me, than to listen to me or allow me to understand myself. So I ended up resenting diagnosis, and pretty suspicious of them. But they can definitely help--I've known a lot of people who benefited and were helped immensely by them.

Still--I thought about how the brain does use glucose to function. Dario Nardi theorized that Ne types tend to have this 'christmas tree' activity, where the brain becomes active in many, seemingly disconnected, regions at once. This seems to be related to creative insights and maybe brainstorming (?--I don't really know, but seems like it would be to me).

But the downside would be that it would use a lot of glucose, and then the brain might go into a sort of depleted state, while trying to recover.The Christmas Tree Brain | Ann C. Holm

I just thought of this because of sugar.

When I was a kid I would dip into these states of attention, where I was basically in my own world. I'm not sure why, but it was really noticeable. I suppose it would look like daydreaming, but I might almost describe it, in retrospect, as a kind of meditative state.

I've been doing a lot more meditating (though more guided visualizations lately--mostly focused on healing or relaxing), and I've noticed it can sometimes be what I need. Like tonight, I was getting a little stressed because I've got something to get done, and I'm partially there...I just decided I was going to meditate though, to relax. It helped alot.

I mean, I'll probably do another one now to wind down to sleep too. But our brains, just like our bodies, need rest time too. It's a novel idea for me to accept that and to really consciously try to rest or relax, rather than just berating and wanting to push myself, look at my shortcomings and my flaws, and try to push through something.

Here's an article about meditation:

Meditation and the Christmas Tree Brain | Ann C. Holm

But I don't see it that way, entirely. I think sometimes we really do need to just take a moment to rest--not to just numb off on some little video game on the phone, but to consciously relax, focus on the self, and take a break.

And...again...it's not some magic solution. It's just something I've been thinking about lately, and its interesting to me because it's so different than my typical self-berating, trying to make myself 'do it,' until I just focus off on something else. It's more of a conscious break, with the intention of renewing and resting.

If doing visualizations magically makes my room tidy and organized, and I become efficient with time, and I stop treating the idea of going through my mail as an especially cruel and unusual torture, I'll let everyone know.

 

[Loonkin]

I think it's good to continue looking into avenues that have helped before--and for some people, looking into ADD might help. I actually felt being diagnosed as a kid was a blow to my self esteem, rather than helping me. But then, it probably had to do with the way it was approached. Idk how many times books about ADD were pushed on me. Sometimes it felt like there was more of en affort to label what was wrong with me, than to listen to me or allow me to understand myself. So I ended up resenting diagnosis, and pretty suspicious of them. But they can definitely help--I've known a lot of people who benefited and were helped immensely by them.

In retrospect, having a diagnosis at such a young age caused resentment for me, as well. It confirmed that something was wrong with me and at that time, they were really just starting to see what it really looked like and how many people had it.
I kept on hearing what I wasn't good at: focusing, being patient, not being impulsive, using my cognitive functions and controlling my emotions (although I learned about those last couple things relatively recently). I didn't really know what ADHD was. So because of my lack of knowledge and being confirmed everyday that I was different, I feel like my diagnosis in many ways did more harm than good.

I suspect it would be different for adults getting diagnosed now, especially if they're able to learn as much as they can about it. I still need to learn more about it, but what I have learned now that I'm older has been empowering me. So in a way, I'm reclaiming my feelings about my diagnosis.