Your thoughts on ADD

There is a list of things--a constellation of traits and/or behaviors-- that lead to an ADD diagnosis.

Because this constellation can impact a person's ability to perform in life--it is considered a disabilty, so that these (mostly intelligent people) can ask for test-taking methods and modifications in school, which can assist them in proving their intelligence on tests, and acheiving more than they could without modifications.

It isn't fair that these people are smashed down into a learning institution that is based on the norms, when they don't learn like the 'norm'.

There are coping mechanisms for ADD people, which can take them from struggling to success.

I think you may be wearing the blinders... We don't all excel in the "thirty kids to a teacher/ lecture for an hour" format.

No we don't - in fact, I don't think anyone does. Everyone has ADD, in some part, the way it is defined. The disorder lies in the way the education system is run. But the teachers would rather blame the pupils and slap a disorder acronym on them.

Check out:

http://www.add-adhd-help-center.com/symptoms_add_adhd.htm

If you think your roommate might possibly be right, go over to the Student Health Service and ask to be evaluated.

A thousand years ago, you'd have made a dandy Viking. Two or three hundred years ago, you'd have been an excellent pioneer. These days the ADD cluster of traits does not blend effortlessly with civilization.

You know what you are--and you're used to being that way. Fine. Still...consider...do other people seem to have easier lives?

Don't rely on your roommate's snap diagnosis. Take an over-the-counter allergy remedy and check with the Student Health Service.

Good luck.

rufio, I am apparently ADD as well, and I think of it this way: All the components are there in your head to be a real leader, once you can learn to focus on one task at a time.

My son was diagnosed, and this led me to discover--HELL! Is this what has been making things so difficult for me?

I scored 145 on an IQ test and was placed in the Gifted Program at school, but got yelled at on a regular basis because "I wasn't applying myself." (Yes, I was.) My grades sucked. I couldn't focus for any appreciable length of time. I adapted, and did well early in my career--became an A student for the time my life allowed me to attend college...

If you can harness your strengths, you will SAIL through things so much easier than before--and may actually reach your potential. (Something few of us do--ADD or not.)

Talk to a professional. Take the 'test'. Fight for yourself.

Sofia, a potent story. That reminds me of my youth. They didn't know what the heck to do with me, and I spent long hours in the Principal's office for 'interfering with the other student's learning process'. To me, ADD is just a buzzword that makes up a ficticious 'condition' to explain fast thinkers.

We thought so fast, we were light-years ahead--which put us seemingly behind...

My teachers hated me. Well, there was one, who described it nicely to my mother: She's like a lovely butterfly...carefully visiting each flower (student's desk) in my lovely garden (classroom).

I didn't realize I was socializing during classtime. When I'd get in trouble, I was humiliated, and tried to vine my legs around the rungs of my desk to hold me there. But, in a few minutes, I'd be flitting through my "beautiful garden"... One teacher told my mother, pointing maniacly to her gray hair bun: "Ya see this! Your daughter put ALL of those gray hairs there!"

One time, I was lost at school. The teachers searched for me frantically. My parents were called. I was found, singing in the teacher's lounge. When the principal asked me what I was doing there, I told him the acoustics were best in there. He later told my mother he had tried to be stern, but he had to turn his chair away from me and laugh.

That darn ADD!

I think so.... and yet it's treated as some sort of medical disorder and they prescribe medicine for it.

And no one is born being able to focus on one thing 100% of the time. It's human nature.

I used to expend my boredom in class by reading while the teacher was talking. Then I drew things all over the desks. I never upset any of the students, but there's a certain mentality of teacher that really can't stand me. In elementary school I was sent to the office, and in high school I was forceably removed from the class a couple times. My dad can't stand me, and neither could my first roomate. Now I just have issues with the homework - how do you read Chomsky, or Kant, or Levi-Strauss from beginning to end in one session? It's not possible.

Sofia, the thing is, I know what my problems with studying are, without having anyone else tell me. Sure, I could use some techniques for studying and concentrating. But I don't want them from someone who is convinced I have a "disorder".

I never socialized in class because I didn't have many friends during elementary school, heh. I did in high school though, as much as was possible anyway, and I ditched a lot.

Ok - my thoughts - and I recognize I am gonna be waaay in trouble.

I think most diagnoses for ADD/ADHD are a crock of ****.

It is a highly fashionable (in the US and, sadly, now, in Australia) largely crap diagnosis. It hardly exists in the UK - and lots of other countries.

There is no diagnostic "test" for it - except in some shyster labs. It is based on a subjective assessment of a bunch of normal kid behaviours that are believed, in ADD kids, to be taken to an extreme. Psychological testing can indicate whether there is an attention problem - but ADD is not the only explanation for this. In the US and, oftentimes in Oz, by bad paediatricians, other explanations are not explored, kids just get drugged.

On MRI some processing differences are showing up in people's brains - and we MAY have an objective diagnostic test one day - but - brain differences are clearly there in trauma, too - and there are other ways of dealing with it - to some extent. I mean, too much trauma, and our brains will always be different - but there is non-drug therapy to assist.

Here, in situations where the child's context sticks out like dog balls as being HIGHLY problematic, we get weeny kids referred, on a cocktail of drugs, when all the drugs don't work - surprise! - because none of the underlying problems are being dealt with. I would like to stick some paediatricians here in prison for child abuse. THREE year olds on FOUR drugs!!!!!

The US and Australia are conducting one of the biggest, uncontrolled, drug trials in the history of the world. The results are beginning to look not good. What a surprise! Feed growing kids speed, sometimes in huge doses, for years - what do you expect? And tranks, cos they can't sleep.

There are numerous other possible explanations for these behaviours - including trauma, poor attachment, just being a normal kid but really busy, family conflict, anxiety, poor parenting and so on.


Some psychiatrists here are saying the whole diagnosis is a piece of ****.

I am not that extreme.

I think there is a relatively small population of kids, with some problem/s we are now calling ADD/ADHD (it has had lots of other names) that CAN be helped by carefully assessed and monitored speed - and with other assistance.

What is happening now in the ADD/ADHD industry is, to my mind, child abuse. AND - as with so many other situations, medicalization of a problem means that many of the parents with kids who are suffering from trauma and such are the very ones who will stick blindly to the disease model, and doctor shop until they get their poor kids drugged to the eyeballs. I don't blame them - these are traumatized and overwhelmed folk themselves. Medicine colludes with them to avoid facing problems, and sells them the dream of the problem solving pill.

The same as giving kids anti-depressants. There is good evidence that, in kids and adolescents, these not only do not help, but do real harm. (Clue - their brains are different). Already, the use of certain of these drugs has been stopped in Oz for kids and adolescents - and research proceeds.

I could go on but I will shut up.

Any parents reading this with kids diagnosed as ADD. I am NOT speaking to you if there has been really good assessment, and behavioural and emotional causes have been looked into. I am not denying that SOME kids have something, which can be assisted by speed - and, if the symptoms were having a bad effect on their lives, it is reasonable to treat them. I am speaking of the multi-million dollar ADD industry. The losers are gonna be a lot of kids.


And Rufio.

If you do not have attention problems, you don't have attention deficit disorder, ok? The ruling criterion is ATTENTION DEFICIT, right?

Like all of us - ALL OF US - the amount of speed used in ADD treatment would probably clear your mind and such.


But you enjoy your energy!!!! Something is only a problem if it CAUSES problems.

ADD has become fashionable. and, like you said rufio, we all have it. i think it's become the hot topic because our lives have become so fast since the internet... everything is a click away. zip, zip.

and, i've just lost my train of thought...

Lol!!!

I don't know anything about ADD, dlowan.... from what I have seen, the little I have seen, it is NOT about attention span at all. It's a list of behaviorisms that I'm sure I've seen everyone exhibit at some point, and the reasons for them don't have to do with attention span. I really don't even know what "attention span" might be, besides another catch-phrase.

And if having an imagination is considered a problem.... I don't want to know what the "clear mind" everyone hails is like.

Actually, Rufio - if you look at the DSM IV you will see it is a major criterion.

As the name implies. ATTENTION DEFICIT disorder. Sheesh.

It means nothing very clear - just that you can pay attention less than the average person. For diagnosuis, it is supposed to be CONSIDERABLY less. That is why I said it is subjective.

Yes, there are other criterion - but, in any responsible diagnostic process (which is not something that necessarily occurs) it is a NECESSARY element.

I can't seem to get the straight DSM IV online - here is a precis of the official diagnostic guidelines:


"What Are the Signs of AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ]?

Professionals who diagnose AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ] use the diagnostic criteria set forth by the American Psychiatric Association (1994) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; the fourth edition of this manual, known as the DSM-IV, was released in May 1994. The criteria in the DSM-IV (discussed below) and the other essential diagnostic features listed in the box labeled "Defining Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder" are the signs of AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ].

As can be seen, the primary features associated with the disability are inattention,hyperactivity, and impulsivity. The discussion below describes each of these features and lists their symptoms, as given in the DSM-IV.




Inattention

A child with AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ] is usually described as having a short attention span and as being distractible. In actuality, distractibility and inattentiveness are not synonymous. Distractibility refers to the short attention span and the ease with which some children can be pulled off-task. Attention, on the other hand, is a process that has different parts. We focus (pick something on which to pay attention), we select (pick something that needs attention at that moment) and we sustain (pay attention for as long as is needed). We also resist (avoid things that remove our attention from where it needs to be), and we shift (move our attention to something else when needed).

When we refer to someone as distractible, we are saying that a part of that person's attention process is disrupted. Children with AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ] can have difficulty with one or all parts of the attention process. Some children may have difficulty concentrating on tasks (particularly on tasks that are routine or boring). Others may have trouble knowing where to start a task. Still others may get lost in the directions along the way. A careful observer can watch and see where the attention process breaks down for a particular child.

Symptoms of inattention, as listed in the DSM-IV, are:*

often fails to give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities;
often has difficulty sustaining attention in tasks or play activities;
often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly;
often does not follow through on instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (not due to oppositional behavior or failure to understand instructions);
often has difficulty organizing tasks and activities;
often avoids, dislikes, or is reluctant to engage in tasks that require sustained mental effort (such as schoolwork or homework);
often loses things necessary for tasks or activities (e.g., toys, school assignments,pencils, books, or tools);
is often easily distracted by extraneous stimuli;
is often forgetful in daily activities.





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* (American Psychiatric Association, 1994, pp.83-84)






Hyperactivity

Excessive activity is the most visible sign of AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ]. The hyperactive toddler/preschooler is generally described as "always on the go" or "motor driven." With age, activity levels may diminish. By adolescence and adulthood, the overactivity may appear as restless, fidgety behavior (American Psychiatric Association, 1994).*

Symptoms of hyperactivity, as listed in the DSM-IV, are:

often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat;
often leaves seat in classroom or in other situations in which remaining seated is expected;
often runs about or climbs excessively in situations in which it is inappropriate (in adolescents or adults, may be limited to subjective feelings of restlessness);
often has difficulty playing or engaging in leisure activities quietly;
is often "on the go" or often act as if "driven by a motor;"
often talks excessively.



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* (APA, 1994, p. 84)





Impulsivity

When people think of impulsivity, they most often think about cognitive impulsivity, which is acting without thinking. The impulsivity of children with AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ] is slightly different. These children act before thinking, because they have difficulty waiting or delaying gratification. The impulsivity leads these children to speak out of turn, interrupt others, and engage in what looks like risk-taking behavior. The child may run across the street without looking or climb to the top of very tall trees. Although such behavior is risky, the child is not really a risk-taker but, rather, a child who has great difficulty controlling impulse. Often,the child is surprised to discover that he or she has gotten into a dangerous situation and has no idea of how to get out of it.

Symptoms of impulsivity, as listed in the DSM-IV (p. 84), are:

often blurts out answers before questions have been completed;
often has difficulty awaiting turn;
often interrupts or intrudes on others (e.g., butts into conversations or games).
It is important to note that, in the DSM-IV, hyperactivity and impulsivity are no longer considered as separate features. According to Barkley (1990), hyperactivity-impulsivity is a pattern stemming from an overall difficulty in inhibiting behavior.
In addition to problems with inattention or hyperactivity-impulsivity, the disorder is often seen with associated features. Depending on the child's age and developmental stage, parents and teachers may see low frustration tolerance, temper outburts, bossiness, difficulty in following rules, disorganization, social rejection, poor self-esteem, academic underachievement, and inadequate self-application (American Psychiatric Association, 1994).




Defining Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder*

Instead of a single list of 14 possible symptoms as listed in the prior edition of the DSM (the DSM-III-R), the DSM-IV categorically sorts the symptoms into three subtypes of the disorder:

Combined Type -- multiple symptoms of inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity;
Predominantly Inattentive Type -- multiple symptoms of inattention with few, if any,of hyperactivity-impulsivity;
Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Type -- multiple symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity with few, if any, of inattention.
Other essential diagnostic features of AD/HD [ A.D.D. OR ADHD ] include:

Symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, or impulsivity must persist for at least six months and be maladaptive and inconsistent with developmental levels;
Some of the symptoms causing impairment must be present before age 7 years;
Some impairment from the symptoms is present in two or more settings (e.g., at school/work, and at home);
Evidence of clinically significant impairment is present in social, academic, or occupational functioning;
Symptoms do not occur exclusively during the course of Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Schizophrenia, or other Psychotic Disorder and are not better accounted for by another mental disorder (e.g., Mood Disorder, Anxiety Disorder, Dissociative Disorder, or Personality Disorder).


And are you referring to me when you make the comment re imagination? If so, I have no idea where your remark came from. Do you READ what people say, Rufio? You seem to be grossly distorting my comments as being pro the current ADD industry.

Sometimes, people here know what they are talking about. It helps if you read what they say before rebutting what has not been said - in fact, what has been specifically NOT said - indeed contradicted.

I agree with you, btw, that lots of normal kid behaviour is being pathologized.

I agree with dlowan that most diagnoses are fueled by a combination of poor parenting and lazy teachers and 'difficult' children.

It is child abuse to medicate these children into submission. I tried everything in the book to help my son before trying medication. And, I fought tooth and nail with the poorer teachers, who gave my son trouble. I forced the school system to incorporate assists for him--and held their feet to the fire when they treated his difficulties as behavior problems. He was a very polite child, and also was in the Gifted Program.

He used the medication for one and a half years and told me it helped 'slow his mind down.' Thank God, he began learning his own coping techniques, and we felt confident taking him off the medicine sooner than doctors advised. He has been successful since. It was a learning experience for him, and me.

He's appreciative of the benefits of ADD. My 'suffering' with it was worth it to me, to know how he felt, and the many problems ADD can cause a young person. My experience with ADD enabled me to be his advocate, rather than another source of stress and misery.

But, I am so sad for the millions of kids I believe are misdiagnosed and drugged for parents' or teachers' convenience.

I think it is equally horrid for old crotchety, judgmental doctors to dismiss the validity of ADD.

Now - what you describe Sofia, is an example of what I think is rational use of meds, for the good of the child.

We have actually had a doctor, here, in my state, who diagnosed and sent drugs to families after JUST A PHONE CALL!

Yep.

Another aspect -- there was some study that showed rather conclusively that if "problem" kids, a group that was being considered for an ADD diagnosis, just got enough sleep, they were fine. They found that the symptoms of not enough sleep correllate really closely to the symptoms of ADD. Kids are often so over-scheduled, with band and soccer and homework and of course have to watch TV and play video games and IM, that lack of sleep is a huge problem. Kids NEED sleep, and a lot more than 8 hours.

Last I knew, school schedules were being adjusted (later) based on this information.

One of my closest friends is a paediatric neuropsychologist. She is often sent kids for testing that the docs want an official diagnosis of ADD for, so they can be medicated. Regrettably for them, she doesn't believe ADD is the appropriate diagnosis in most cases (over 90%) and sends back a report saying that the child needs better parenting, and more self-discipline, and recommends the parents be sent for parenting courses. That didn't go over too well when she worked in the U.S. hospital system.

She's getting a better response here from docs who aren't so tied to U.S. journals.