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Precisely. It's not that stimulants help people with ADHD focus. They help everyone focus, regardless of whether they have ADHD. [1] > Attention-deficit drugs

Precisely. It's not that stimulants help people with ADHD focus. They help everyone focus, regardless of whether they have ADHD. [1] > Attention-deficit drugs increase concentration in the short term, which is why they work so well for college students cramming for exams. > Versions of these drugs had been given to World War II radar operators to help them stay awake and focus on boring, repetitive tasks. > And when we reviewed the literature on attention-deficit drugs again in 1990 we found that all children, whether they had attention problems or not, responded to stimulant drugs the same way. I've always been baffled how I didn't see this for myself years ago - after all, that's exactly what caffeine does for millions of people. Worse, though, people with ADHD are prescribed stimulants for long-term use, and even after the medicine ceases to be effective - because your body adapts to it over time - you can't just stop taking it, because withdrawal sucks. [1] http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/opinion/sunday/childrens-add-drugs-dont-work-long-term.html?hpw http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/opinion/sunday/childrens-a...

KMag 11y ago
I don't smoke, but I do use nicotine gum from time to time to help focus. I find it faster acting and more effective than caffeine, with a shorter half-life. I should probably talk to my doctor to see if I have ADHD, instead of occasionally self-medicating.
mickronome 11y ago
So I have ADD, and I can't tell you if my brain is different or not. But I have exactly zero withdrawal from methylphenidate after years of use. If I don't take it, I simply don't get anything done. I have stopped taking it for several week at one point, and then I start spiraling down to my pre-diagnosis state since I forger to eat and sleep. I get much less impulsive also, car rental managd my own mood much better. My blood pressure add resting heartrate has also improved since I started with the stimulants. A bit unusual according to my doctors. YMMV - the medication is crude, but being without is not really an option - it's really nice to start being able to plan, and actually decide what actions to take instead of simply doing whatever feelt good at the time.

KMag 11y ago

I don't smoke, but I do use nicotine gum from time to time to help focus. I find it faster acting and more effective than caffeine, with a shorter half-life. I should probably talk to my doctor to see if I have ADHD, instead of occasionally self-medicating.

mickronome 11y ago

So I have ADD, and I can't tell you if my brain is different or not. But I have exactly zero withdrawal from methylphenidate after years of use. If I don't take it, I simply don't get anything done. I have stopped taking it for several week at one point, and then I start spiraling down to my pre-diagnosis state since I forger to eat and sleep. I get much less impulsive also, car rental managd my own mood much better. My blood pressure add resting heartrate has also improved since I started with the stimulants. A bit unusual according to my doctors. YMMV - the medication is crude, but being without is not really an option - it's really nice to start being able to plan, and actually decide what actions to take instead of simply doing whatever feelt good at the time.