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I work with someone with ADHD. It is plain as day when the medication starts to wear off. They can focus and program with diligence in the morning to early afte

I work with someone with ADHD. It is plain as day when the medication starts to wear off. They can focus and program with diligence in the morning to early afternoon, but then later have a difficult time following longer trains of thought. It's not mere laziness - this person buckles down for even the most tedious of tasks, but rather their attention sorta slides off the topic. If you took the way a person's eyes slide off something shielded by a SEP-field, or the opposite of how your eyes are drawn to police flashers. It's hard to describe, but it's certainly not just a goofy bandaid. They develop a routine around the process: harder or deeper problems in the morning, and small quick tickets/tasks in the afternoon. Or: as the day wears on, the work gets more granular (and thus more resilient to inturruption). Mind, this is from my outside viewpoint. What actually goes on in their head can only really be described by them. But quite a few months of routine give me this impression.

stuxnet79 11y ago
You have just described my routine except I don't take medication. I don't doubt that ADHD is a thing, but I'd like to know exactly where the line is drawn in the sand. Because from what I've heard of what ADHD medication does I could definitely stand to benefit from it.
- brazzledazzle 11y ago
  If you'd like to learn more about it this is basically the best video you could watch in my opinion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCAGc-rkIfo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCAGc-rkIfo It's quite long so I'd watch it at 1.5x and/or in chunks. Even though it's for parents of children with ADHD it makes it clear with good examples what they're dealing with. Also worth keeping in mind that the disorder is different for adults in some ways.
- HCIdivision17 11y ago
  There aren't lines; every case is so specific to that person's needs I don't think it's fair to pigeon-hole too much. For me, my coworker's change in demeanor was enough. You may find that medication smoothes the swings for you (and for all I know, my coworker would swing even harder without the medicine - I think that was mentioned once). Or not. See a doctor and try it out in a safe dosage. If you find it helps, great! If not, well, maybe something else will work. Or perhaps you're just quirky. It's hard to tell sometimes :) There was a comedian who said something along the lines of: "I got got glasses the other day, and it shocked me. How could instantly improved eye sight not be at the top of everyone's To Do list?!" So when people talk about medication like it's a debate, I get confused. How could instantly improved mood and cognition not be at the top of everyone's list? (I'm a hyprocrite in that respect, but I'm just onery and enjoy the struggle.) If you don't want it, but the medicine helps, work your way off it slowly enough that you train your body to compensate (a number of people have told me that it's geometric: you can cut a third, then another third, then another until finally it's a negligible amount, but linearly tends to give poorer results). But most importantly: do what improves your life. I wear glasses, and I've never felt shame for it. No reason to feel bad about a biochemical imbalance - that's even more complicated!

stuxnet79 11y ago

You have just described my routine except I don't take medication. I don't doubt that ADHD is a thing, but I'd like to know exactly where the line is drawn in the sand. Because from what I've heard of what ADHD medication does I could definitely stand to benefit from it.

brazzledazzle 11y ago
If you'd like to learn more about it this is basically the best video you could watch in my opinion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCAGc-rkIfo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCAGc-rkIfo It's quite long so I'd watch it at 1.5x and/or in chunks. Even though it's for parents of children with ADHD it makes it clear with good examples what they're dealing with. Also worth keeping in mind that the disorder is different for adults in some ways.
HCIdivision17 11y ago
There aren't lines; every case is so specific to that person's needs I don't think it's fair to pigeon-hole too much. For me, my coworker's change in demeanor was enough. You may find that medication smoothes the swings for you (and for all I know, my coworker would swing even harder without the medicine - I think that was mentioned once). Or not. See a doctor and try it out in a safe dosage. If you find it helps, great! If not, well, maybe something else will work. Or perhaps you're just quirky. It's hard to tell sometimes :) There was a comedian who said something along the lines of: "I got got glasses the other day, and it shocked me. How could instantly improved eye sight not be at the top of everyone's To Do list?!" So when people talk about medication like it's a debate, I get confused. How could instantly improved mood and cognition not be at the top of everyone's list? (I'm a hyprocrite in that respect, but I'm just onery and enjoy the struggle.) If you don't want it, but the medicine helps, work your way off it slowly enough that you train your body to compensate (a number of people have told me that it's geometric: you can cut a third, then another third, then another until finally it's a negligible amount, but linearly tends to give poorer results). But most importantly: do what improves your life. I wear glasses, and I've never felt shame for it. No reason to feel bad about a biochemical imbalance - that's even more complicated!