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You have 2 superpowers. And all I got is this lousy t-shirt (and adhd). This whole “neurodivergecy is a gift!” “Celebrate your differences! Embrace your kinks

You have 2 superpowers. And all I got is this lousy t-shirt (and adhd). This whole “neurodivergecy is a gift!” “Celebrate your differences! Embrace your kinks!” thing is irksome to me. I know it isn’t intended in a bad way but, sometimes things aren’t a socially repressed positive just looking for love and attention. Not everybody gets a trophy. Stimulants though, I know they work for some but boy, adhd + addictive drugs? Head scratcher. I have a nagging suspicion it’s the next OxyContin, personally. Maybe not on such a grand scale but I see negative effects in myself and others regularly. Maybe humans shouldn’t be hopped on speed so much?

hirvi74 3y ago
> adhd + addictive drugs? Head scratcher. I have a nagging suspicion it’s the next OxyContin, personally. If I am Icarus, then stimulants are my wax wings. Stimulants have been the cause and solution to most of my problems in life over the past decade. Some days, I truly feel like I made a deal with the Devil. But what alternative do I have? The world has no sympathy and even less empathy. I want to survive in this world like everyone else. Sure, I do not technically need them to survive. I wasn't even diagnosed until my early 20s. However, I've had a taste of the good life, and I can't go back. I do not think I am clinically addicted, but I am very psychologically and physically dependent on stimulants. One sick thought that occasionally ruminates inside my mind is that while I feel like the medications have helped me so much, I look around me -- look back on my life -- and I literally have accomplished nothing. I have nothing to show for any of it. Life is "stable", for sure. Same underpaid, miserable job for 7 years now, but really, that's it... I do not care what any medical research paper or any doctor says. These medications are powerful psychoactive substances. I think they absolutely fuck with one's mind, and one's perception of reality albeit in subtle ways. I am starting to wonder if my perception of reality has been warped in to making me think I have been performing better than I actually have been all these years. I'm not really sure how to end this scattered rant, but all I can say is that I've lost a lot of faith in psychiatry and psychology because of ADHD and its treatments. ADHD is the most treatable psychiatric condition? Seriously?
- kanbara 3y ago
  as a counterpoint if we’re doing anecdotes: i had adhd diagnosed as a kid, medicated for a while, then stopped. didnt do great in school, just ok. struggled at uni with timekeeping and grades. made it decently, and then had some decent jobs. got quite lucky, but always had issues with social skills and being too talkative. eventually got a tough job that needed a lot of personal initative and went back on meds. vyvanse has changed my life, allowed me to focus on my thoughts, keep organised, and not only helped me excel, but also fix my sleep schedule, get promoted, and just generally live like a normal person.
  - hirvi74 3y ago
    I mainly use Dexy (Dexedrine), but ironically, I cannot handle Vyvanse. Something about it sends me off the rails. I think it is due to some underlying metabolic reasoning i.e., I metabolize it way too quickly, but I have no idea. How long does Vyvanse last for you? At best I could only ever get 4-6 hours out of it.
    - tpoacher 3y ago
      out of curiosity, and a total longshot, any chance you have Gilbert Syndrome? (if yes would you mind letting me now? For "research" purposes)
viraptor 3y ago
> adhd + addictive drugs? Head scratcher. I have a nagging suspicion it’s the next OxyContin, personally. Can't speak for all of them, but I don't feel any drive to take them beyond getting the positive effects. I even have a reminder otherwise I forget it. It's basically a meme repeated by many people with ADHD by this point about how they forget to be addicted to those dangerous drugs.
- salad-tycoon 3y ago
  Yes, true. I’ve met them too. Problem is you don’t know which side of the coin you’ll land on and often times these drugs are initiated at a young age where with that first pill you go from zero to 100 in 30 minutes and suddenly everything is easy , and you writing is pristine, you mow straight lines, you excel at things, you don’t get in as much trouble etc etc. But we have to remember not everyone has a legit prescription for these and that’s a big number of people too. There are absolutely pill mills for these drugs and they are very easy to find. Now I wonder about cardiac damage, or social damage from having the wrong type of people revved up to the max socially interacting. Look at some of the jarring/angry tik tok culture . Look at Alex Jones, he’s had some interesting things to say in the past but at his worst he looks like he’s hopped up on adderall and booze and just spewing crazy poop. It’s just an example, please don’t get caught up on the specific example of what adderall can drive you to. So at the end of the day, it’s a double edge sword. I’ve met many people who also were able to use narcotics responsibly and it helped them. It helps some, neutral for others, disaster for the rest. My only real point is, it can help but please future reader treat them as serious drugs because they are serious. Yeah we give them to kids but they are not “kid safe.”
  - rhombocombus 3y ago
    I treat them as the lifesaving medications they are. I have always maintained my working and professional life. Vyvanse allowed me to maintain all of the other relationships in my life and be an effective parent in addition. I’d rather not take it but the alternative is way worse!
  - brailsafe 3y ago

hirvi74 3y ago

> adhd + addictive drugs? Head scratcher. I have a nagging suspicion it’s the next OxyContin, personally. If I am Icarus, then stimulants are my wax wings. Stimulants have been the cause and solution to most of my problems in life over the past decade. Some days, I truly feel like I made a deal with the Devil. But what alternative do I have? The world has no sympathy and even less empathy. I want to survive in this world like everyone else. Sure, I do not technically need them to survive. I wasn't even diagnosed until my early 20s. However, I've had a taste of the good life, and I can't go back. I do not think I am clinically addicted, but I am very psychologically and physically dependent on stimulants. One sick thought that occasionally ruminates inside my mind is that while I feel like the medications have helped me so much, I look around me -- look back on my life -- and I literally have accomplished nothing. I have nothing to show for any of it. Life is "stable", for sure. Same underpaid, miserable job for 7 years now, but really, that's it... I do not care what any medical research paper or any doctor says. These medications are powerful psychoactive substances. I think they absolutely fuck with one's mind, and one's perception of reality albeit in subtle ways. I am starting to wonder if my perception of reality has been warped in to making me think I have been performing better than I actually have been all these years. I'm not really sure how to end this scattered rant, but all I can say is that I've lost a lot of faith in psychiatry and psychology because of ADHD and its treatments. ADHD is the most treatable psychiatric condition? Seriously?

kanbara 3y ago
as a counterpoint if we’re doing anecdotes: i had adhd diagnosed as a kid, medicated for a while, then stopped. didnt do great in school, just ok. struggled at uni with timekeeping and grades. made it decently, and then had some decent jobs. got quite lucky, but always had issues with social skills and being too talkative. eventually got a tough job that needed a lot of personal initative and went back on meds. vyvanse has changed my life, allowed me to focus on my thoughts, keep organised, and not only helped me excel, but also fix my sleep schedule, get promoted, and just generally live like a normal person.
- hirvi74 3y ago
  I mainly use Dexy (Dexedrine), but ironically, I cannot handle Vyvanse. Something about it sends me off the rails. I think it is due to some underlying metabolic reasoning i.e., I metabolize it way too quickly, but I have no idea. How long does Vyvanse last for you? At best I could only ever get 4-6 hours out of it.
  - tpoacher 3y ago
    out of curiosity, and a total longshot, any chance you have Gilbert Syndrome? (if yes would you mind letting me now? For "research" purposes)

viraptor 3y ago

> adhd + addictive drugs? Head scratcher. I have a nagging suspicion it’s the next OxyContin, personally. Can't speak for all of them, but I don't feel any drive to take them beyond getting the positive effects. I even have a reminder otherwise I forget it. It's basically a meme repeated by many people with ADHD by this point about how they forget to be addicted to those dangerous drugs.

salad-tycoon 3y ago
Yes, true. I’ve met them too. Problem is you don’t know which side of the coin you’ll land on and often times these drugs are initiated at a young age where with that first pill you go from zero to 100 in 30 minutes and suddenly everything is easy , and you writing is pristine, you mow straight lines, you excel at things, you don’t get in as much trouble etc etc. But we have to remember not everyone has a legit prescription for these and that’s a big number of people too. There are absolutely pill mills for these drugs and they are very easy to find. Now I wonder about cardiac damage, or social damage from having the wrong type of people revved up to the max socially interacting. Look at some of the jarring/angry tik tok culture . Look at Alex Jones, he’s had some interesting things to say in the past but at his worst he looks like he’s hopped up on adderall and booze and just spewing crazy poop. It’s just an example, please don’t get caught up on the specific example of what adderall can drive you to. So at the end of the day, it’s a double edge sword. I’ve met many people who also were able to use narcotics responsibly and it helped them. It helps some, neutral for others, disaster for the rest. My only real point is, it can help but please future reader treat them as serious drugs because they are serious. Yeah we give them to kids but they are not “kid safe.”
- rhombocombus 3y ago
  I treat them as the lifesaving medications they are. I have always maintained my working and professional life. Vyvanse allowed me to maintain all of the other relationships in my life and be an effective parent in addition. I’d rather not take it but the alternative is way worse!
- brailsafe 3y ago