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It's not that people with ADHD just have different jobs, it's that any job can be difficult to keep, and even just managing your own life. ADHD is far less triv

It's not that people with ADHD just have different jobs, it's that any job can be difficult to keep, and even just managing your own life. ADHD is far less trivial than some people make it out to be.

Klathmon 9y ago
Not just jobs, I can't even watch movies or play single-player videogames when I'm not on my medication (both things that I really enjoy doing and they help me unwind) You have no idea the mental anguish from having to rewind a movie that you are watching alone (because other people won't put up with this) for the 3rd time because you still missed an important plot point a few minutes ago. It makes enjoyable things feel like work, and then you don't want to even try. The things that are supposed to help me relax just end up causing frustration. Or even the irony of not being able to fall asleep because I keep getting distracted thinking about stuff that I forgot to do today... Medication and therapy literally saved my life.
- zarkov99 9y ago
  Have you tried meditation?
  - Klathmon 9y ago
    I've tried a LOT of things, including meditation. It does help when I can get it to, but the biggest helps have been from following a VERY structured consistent schedule that I follow militantly, and some other small lifestyle changes like making sure I eat right and exercise helps quite a lot. But at the end of the day, the medication just helps so much more, and the side effects are manageable, so I'm pretty happy with it. I do take amphetamines and I do worry about possible neurotoxicity issues that it may have, but I'm planning on working with my doctor in 3-ish months to start trying out other medications again (as right now I'm moving and don't want to mess with anything).
    - moltar 9y ago
      Do you find carb intake has any effect, positive or negative?
      - Klathmon 9y ago
        I haven't noticed anything specific, but I haven't really ever been focused on carbs alone. Most of my dietary issues were simply eating at all (I could easily go an entire day without getting hungry, and the medication only makes this worse), and making sure I was cutting my caffeine intake out (didn't work) or at least making it very consistent (like most stimulants it has a positive effect on the ADHD, but unless it's consistent it can cause more problems than it solves). I'm still working on this, and it's one of the major reasons why I want to talk to my doctor and try different medications again, but I have heard some say that low-carb high-fat diets are beneficial to ADHD, and I know that many agree that having "enough" fat in your diet is crucial. I also really need any extra calories I can get right now, so cutting carbs isn't the best idea until I have a handle on my weight.
        moltar 9y ago
        I don’t have an official diagnose for ADHD. But I do feel that I have an attention problem sometimes. Low carb, high fat diet in combination with fasting I find helps a TON! I’m like another person. So focused. I don’t eat until 2pm, just coffee and theanine (to reduce the jitteriness).
- dingaling 9y ago
  > ...because you still missed an important plot point a few minutes ago. Asking genuinely out of curiousity, what do you experience during this periods of 'blackout'? Is it the mind wandering onto other thoughts or focusing on one specific item?
  - Klathmon 9y ago
    It's not really a "blackout"... I guess it's actually kind of hard to describe. Have you ever tried to read a sentence and listen to someone talk at the exact same time? You are only going to be able to "focus" on one or the other, or you'll fail and understand neither of them. Without medication (and on bad days) my entire life is like there is a second part of my brain that is vying for my attention. Either focusing on something not important (hey i never noticed his hat, did he always have that? I think he did in the beginning... Oh shit I missed what's happening again), or in many cases focusing on the act of trying to focus that I forget what I'm actually supposed to be focusing on (and then the pity party in my head starts about how pointless it is to even try here right now, and that then is a 3rd distraction). There's also times that I can hear and understand what is happening, but everything from about 3 seconds ago is just... gone... So I can read and fully comprehend a sentence, but I'm trying so hard to focus on that sentence that I don't commit the previous one to memory, and any references back to it get confusing because I don't remember what happened there. Interestingly that last one happens most with the 6 digit 2-factor authentication codes. I break them up into 2 sets of 3, but when i've said the second set of 3 to myself to try and remember the whole string long enough to switch apps and enter it, I've forgotten the first 3... Like most things, it's not as bad at some days and times, and worse on others.
    - jimkri 9y ago
      This happens to me often as well. I need to copy something simple onto another page, I read it and scroll/flip to the next page and I totally forget what the word or phrase was. Even if it was something super simple.
    - TheLegace 9y ago
      I've had this problem for many years, although it's not perfect that problem is largely solved and being able to shift focus so quickly has become a super power. When your focus shifts so often you can't develop basic cognitive functions(especially executive function). The part of your brain that is suppose to regulate focus is really funky. But I bet when you find something your really interested in your brain won't stop focusing and it feels like you have blacked out and are doing everything in "automatic" mode. This is called hyperfocus and it can be incredibly useful if you can "control" it. You might cycle through various medications over the years, some might even cause you anxiety and other horrible side effects. But it won't actually fix the underlying problem which are structures in your brain that aren't developed properly. Luckily there are solutions; treatments to improve your mind ability focus like Neurofeedback. Once you can focus you need to find a physically/mentally stimulating task that requires serious cognitive functions like memory, task execution, focus switching and the many other functions. I like to dance and play music. I've done a lot of work reverse engineering the brain and made incredible progress improving its ability to operate. Don't ever that listen to that pity party in your brain. Once you cross a certain point(after A LOT OF WORK) your ADHD becomes a gift and you will never want to give it up not matter how much failure and loss you have experienced. ALWAYS remember you are different, everything about you is different from the normal population and trying to conform to their systems, ways to of thinking and working will rarely work for you. EDIT: I will add I understand that medication works for some people and that's great. But it was largely a waste of time for me and seriously affected my liver.

It's not that people with ADHD just have different jobs, it's that any job can be difficult to keep, and even just managing your own life. ADHD is far less trivial than some people make it out to be.

Klathmon 9y ago

Not just jobs, I can't even watch movies or play single-player videogames when I'm not on my medication (both things that I really enjoy doing and they help me unwind) You have no idea the mental anguish from having to rewind a movie that you are watching alone (because other people won't put up with this) for the 3rd time because you still missed an important plot point a few minutes ago. It makes enjoyable things feel like work, and then you don't want to even try. The things that are supposed to help me relax just end up causing frustration. Or even the irony of not being able to fall asleep because I keep getting distracted thinking about stuff that I forgot to do today... Medication and therapy literally saved my life.

zarkov99 9y ago
Have you tried meditation?
- Klathmon 9y ago
  I've tried a LOT of things, including meditation. It does help when I can get it to, but the biggest helps have been from following a VERY structured consistent schedule that I follow militantly, and some other small lifestyle changes like making sure I eat right and exercise helps quite a lot. But at the end of the day, the medication just helps so much more, and the side effects are manageable, so I'm pretty happy with it. I do take amphetamines and I do worry about possible neurotoxicity issues that it may have, but I'm planning on working with my doctor in 3-ish months to start trying out other medications again (as right now I'm moving and don't want to mess with anything).
  - moltar 9y ago
    Do you find carb intake has any effect, positive or negative?
    - Klathmon 9y ago
      I haven't noticed anything specific, but I haven't really ever been focused on carbs alone. Most of my dietary issues were simply eating at all (I could easily go an entire day without getting hungry, and the medication only makes this worse), and making sure I was cutting my caffeine intake out (didn't work) or at least making it very consistent (like most stimulants it has a positive effect on the ADHD, but unless it's consistent it can cause more problems than it solves). I'm still working on this, and it's one of the major reasons why I want to talk to my doctor and try different medications again, but I have heard some say that low-carb high-fat diets are beneficial to ADHD, and I know that many agree that having "enough" fat in your diet is crucial. I also really need any extra calories I can get right now, so cutting carbs isn't the best idea until I have a handle on my weight.
      - moltar 9y ago
        I don’t have an official diagnose for ADHD. But I do feel that I have an attention problem sometimes. Low carb, high fat diet in combination with fasting I find helps a TON! I’m like another person. So focused. I don’t eat until 2pm, just coffee and theanine (to reduce the jitteriness).
dingaling 9y ago
> ...because you still missed an important plot point a few minutes ago. Asking genuinely out of curiousity, what do you experience during this periods of 'blackout'? Is it the mind wandering onto other thoughts or focusing on one specific item?
- Klathmon 9y ago
  It's not really a "blackout"... I guess it's actually kind of hard to describe. Have you ever tried to read a sentence and listen to someone talk at the exact same time? You are only going to be able to "focus" on one or the other, or you'll fail and understand neither of them. Without medication (and on bad days) my entire life is like there is a second part of my brain that is vying for my attention. Either focusing on something not important (hey i never noticed his hat, did he always have that? I think he did in the beginning... Oh shit I missed what's happening again), or in many cases focusing on the act of trying to focus that I forget what I'm actually supposed to be focusing on (and then the pity party in my head starts about how pointless it is to even try here right now, and that then is a 3rd distraction). There's also times that I can hear and understand what is happening, but everything from about 3 seconds ago is just... gone... So I can read and fully comprehend a sentence, but I'm trying so hard to focus on that sentence that I don't commit the previous one to memory, and any references back to it get confusing because I don't remember what happened there. Interestingly that last one happens most with the 6 digit 2-factor authentication codes. I break them up into 2 sets of 3, but when i've said the second set of 3 to myself to try and remember the whole string long enough to switch apps and enter it, I've forgotten the first 3... Like most things, it's not as bad at some days and times, and worse on others.
  - jimkri 9y ago
    This happens to me often as well. I need to copy something simple onto another page, I read it and scroll/flip to the next page and I totally forget what the word or phrase was. Even if it was something super simple.
  - TheLegace 9y ago
    I've had this problem for many years, although it's not perfect that problem is largely solved and being able to shift focus so quickly has become a super power. When your focus shifts so often you can't develop basic cognitive functions(especially executive function). The part of your brain that is suppose to regulate focus is really funky. But I bet when you find something your really interested in your brain won't stop focusing and it feels like you have blacked out and are doing everything in "automatic" mode. This is called hyperfocus and it can be incredibly useful if you can "control" it. You might cycle through various medications over the years, some might even cause you anxiety and other horrible side effects. But it won't actually fix the underlying problem which are structures in your brain that aren't developed properly. Luckily there are solutions; treatments to improve your mind ability focus like Neurofeedback. Once you can focus you need to find a physically/mentally stimulating task that requires serious cognitive functions like memory, task execution, focus switching and the many other functions. I like to dance and play music. I've done a lot of work reverse engineering the brain and made incredible progress improving its ability to operate. Don't ever that listen to that pity party in your brain. Once you cross a certain point(after A LOT OF WORK) your ADHD becomes a gift and you will never want to give it up not matter how much failure and loss you have experienced. ALWAYS remember you are different, everything about you is different from the normal population and trying to conform to their systems, ways to of thinking and working will rarely work for you. EDIT: I will add I understand that medication works for some people and that's great. But it was largely a waste of time for me and seriously affected my liver.