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Excellent point, and definitely worth pointing out. It's amazing how many people are quick to self-diagnose ADHD, but have no problem spending hours on their h

Excellent point, and definitely worth pointing out. It's amazing how many people are quick to self-diagnose ADHD, but have no problem spending hours on their hobbies or interesting projects. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone in the coding community who never has problems concentrating on uninteresting projects.

warfangle 16y ago
There's a weird thing that can happen to ADHD individuals, and its actually considered a symptom: the ability to 'hyperfocus' on certain tasks. It's very similar to The Zone, but it's random and difficult to predict when it will manifest: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus
- Construct 16y ago
  The term hyperfocus doesn't appear in the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the gold standard by which all mental disorders, including ADHD, are officially defined) at all. The term shows 0 results on PubMed, a repository for studies, journals, and other biomedical literature. (Note: If you search for 'hyperfocus' it will give you results for 'hypertonus' because the original term returned no results) And finally, the Wikipedia article is heavily flagged with 'Original Research' and 'Unverifiable/Biased Information' tags, and is also flagged for not having any real sources or citations. I know the term 'hyperfocus' has worked its way into pop-psychology lately, but I've never been able to find reliable research supporting the claim. I am a bit wary of how easily it stretches the definition of ADHD to encompass just about every person I've ever worked with. After all, who wouldn't identify with the idea that they can 'hyperfocus' on video games or fun projects, but have difficulty concentrating on difficult or uninteresting work? Very slippery slope here.
  - j_baker 16y ago
    I have ADHD and hyperfocus. Sometimes I go for hours and forget to eat or drink anything. Two things: 1. The DSM only defines mental illness so that it can be diagnosed. For instance, it doesn't say "prescribe drugs x, y, and z for ADHD". If the DSM doesn't include hyperfocus, it doesn't mean it doesn't happen. It just means it isn't a diagnostic criteria. 2. How much research can you find proving that depression makes people sad or that ADHD makes people unable to pay attention? Do chemists do research on how wet water is? Remember, ADHD is one of the most well-known mental disorders out there. Doctors have been treating it with stimulants for over 70 years. If you can't find research on the subject, it doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. It just means that there's not really any new ground to be broken in the area. That said, hyperfocus is well known among Psychiatrists and Psychologists. It's just like the other symptoms: pathological versions of normal behaviors. A normal person can put down video games long enough to go to school or work. I can't without medication.
  - roel_v 16y ago
    I agree with the sentiment of your post, and I have no opinion on the 'hyperfocus' issue, but I'd like to point out that the DSM embodies the state of the art and as such lags behind new insights. Only after those insights are accepted by the psychiatry community they are worked into the next version of the DSM; DSM V is (as it looks now) going to contain a lot of updates on ADHD in children, and progressive insights on adult-onset ADHD are probably going to be too cutting edge to be included (now this is of course something fairly new and I agree with the methods used to compose the DSM - better to be conservative here; my point is that the DSM is not the most up to date 'standard' to follow).
- nostrademons 16y ago
  Link to the non-mobile version of Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus
- jamesbritt 16y ago
  Exactly. Attention deficit is a misnomer; inappropriate attention, or poor attention control, is the issue. Some additional "been there, done that" comments: if you try drugs, give them time to work. If you trying different drugs, give them time to leave your system. Know that some side-effects are temporary, but each person may respond differently. You may need to try a few different drugs. If you honestly think you have a real cognitive or neurological problem, keep pushing for help and don't give up.
gnaritas 16y ago
> It's amazing how many people are quick to self-diagnose ADHD, but have no problem spending hours on their hobbies or interesting projects. Having ADHD doesn't mean you can't focus, it means you can't control what you're able to focus on. Non ADHD people can make themselves focus on boring things when they have to, ADHD people find this anywhere from extremely difficult to impossible.

warfangle 16y ago

There's a weird thing that can happen to ADHD individuals, and its actually considered a symptom: the ability to 'hyperfocus' on certain tasks. It's very similar to The Zone, but it's random and difficult to predict when it will manifest: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus

Construct 16y ago
The term hyperfocus doesn't appear in the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the gold standard by which all mental disorders, including ADHD, are officially defined) at all. The term shows 0 results on PubMed, a repository for studies, journals, and other biomedical literature. (Note: If you search for 'hyperfocus' it will give you results for 'hypertonus' because the original term returned no results) And finally, the Wikipedia article is heavily flagged with 'Original Research' and 'Unverifiable/Biased Information' tags, and is also flagged for not having any real sources or citations. I know the term 'hyperfocus' has worked its way into pop-psychology lately, but I've never been able to find reliable research supporting the claim. I am a bit wary of how easily it stretches the definition of ADHD to encompass just about every person I've ever worked with. After all, who wouldn't identify with the idea that they can 'hyperfocus' on video games or fun projects, but have difficulty concentrating on difficult or uninteresting work? Very slippery slope here.
- j_baker 16y ago
  I have ADHD and hyperfocus. Sometimes I go for hours and forget to eat or drink anything. Two things: 1. The DSM only defines mental illness so that it can be diagnosed. For instance, it doesn't say "prescribe drugs x, y, and z for ADHD". If the DSM doesn't include hyperfocus, it doesn't mean it doesn't happen. It just means it isn't a diagnostic criteria. 2. How much research can you find proving that depression makes people sad or that ADHD makes people unable to pay attention? Do chemists do research on how wet water is? Remember, ADHD is one of the most well-known mental disorders out there. Doctors have been treating it with stimulants for over 70 years. If you can't find research on the subject, it doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. It just means that there's not really any new ground to be broken in the area. That said, hyperfocus is well known among Psychiatrists and Psychologists. It's just like the other symptoms: pathological versions of normal behaviors. A normal person can put down video games long enough to go to school or work. I can't without medication.
- roel_v 16y ago
  I agree with the sentiment of your post, and I have no opinion on the 'hyperfocus' issue, but I'd like to point out that the DSM embodies the state of the art and as such lags behind new insights. Only after those insights are accepted by the psychiatry community they are worked into the next version of the DSM; DSM V is (as it looks now) going to contain a lot of updates on ADHD in children, and progressive insights on adult-onset ADHD are probably going to be too cutting edge to be included (now this is of course something fairly new and I agree with the methods used to compose the DSM - better to be conservative here; my point is that the DSM is not the most up to date 'standard' to follow).
nostrademons 16y ago
Link to the non-mobile version of Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus
jamesbritt 16y ago
Exactly. Attention deficit is a misnomer; inappropriate attention, or poor attention control, is the issue. Some additional "been there, done that" comments: if you try drugs, give them time to work. If you trying different drugs, give them time to leave your system. Know that some side-effects are temporary, but each person may respond differently. You may need to try a few different drugs. If you honestly think you have a real cognitive or neurological problem, keep pushing for help and don't give up.

gnaritas 16y ago

> It's amazing how many people are quick to self-diagnose ADHD, but have no problem spending hours on their hobbies or interesting projects. Having ADHD doesn't mean you can't focus, it means you can't control what you're able to focus on. Non ADHD people can make themselves focus on boring things when they have to, ADHD people find this anywhere from extremely difficult to impossible.