8 ms·

This is just circumstantial and possibly biased based on the kinds of people I personally encounter, but it seems like at least 1/3rd if not 1/2 of the people I

This is just circumstantial and possibly biased based on the kinds of people I personally encounter, but it seems like at least 1/3rd if not 1/2 of the people I meet claim to have ADHD or be "neurodivergent". If such a large percentage of people had ADHD then it sounds like that is just neurotypical at this point. Maybe almost everyone experiences similar symptoms to varying degrees and almost nobody gets tested because it doesn't cause them any problems.

BurningFrog 3y ago
I think "neurodivergent" mostly means autistic.
- harimau777 3y ago
  It tends to be used for any learning disorder or mental health diagnosis that either isn't inherently harmful or isn't an overt break with reality. Most people using the term would definitely include ADHD and at least the high functioning end of the autism spectrum. Many would also include things like OCD and perhaps depression. Another way to say it is that it is used for mental conditions which fall under the social model of disability. That is to say, they are primarily harmful due to society not accommodating them as opposed to being inherently harmful. Things like ADHD and high functioning autism are primarily problems because they don't fit into society's expectations. On the other hand, schizophrenia is much more inherently disabling.
falcolas 3y ago
> because it doesn't cause them any problems. Yes, this is the defining line of a clinical diagnosis: are the symptoms inhibiting your ability to live. You'll also see similar claims around depression, OCD, and any other mental disorder. Since the disability is not visible, people regularly dismiss them using the same "everybody is a little ADHD" rhetoric.
renewiltord 3y ago
I'm with you, I think these cannot possibly be disorders if so many people have them, and certainly not if you're living a normal life. People sometimes say they're "high-functioning X", but that just means you're normal. I talk about some of the behaviours I have here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39049655 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39049655 > I have a bunch of odd behavioural characteristics too that overlap with mental conditions: clanging, rocking and stimming, and until my mid-20s if I 'touched' something (including stepping on a tile-edge or crack at an angle) on my one side I had to symmetrify with the other side. Since my life is otherwise fine, I think it's probably just the normal variance of the species.

BurningFrog 3y ago

I think "neurodivergent" mostly means autistic.

harimau777 3y ago
It tends to be used for any learning disorder or mental health diagnosis that either isn't inherently harmful or isn't an overt break with reality. Most people using the term would definitely include ADHD and at least the high functioning end of the autism spectrum. Many would also include things like OCD and perhaps depression. Another way to say it is that it is used for mental conditions which fall under the social model of disability. That is to say, they are primarily harmful due to society not accommodating them as opposed to being inherently harmful. Things like ADHD and high functioning autism are primarily problems because they don't fit into society's expectations. On the other hand, schizophrenia is much more inherently disabling.

falcolas 3y ago

> because it doesn't cause them any problems. Yes, this is the defining line of a clinical diagnosis: are the symptoms inhibiting your ability to live. You'll also see similar claims around depression, OCD, and any other mental disorder. Since the disability is not visible, people regularly dismiss them using the same "everybody is a little ADHD" rhetoric.

renewiltord 3y ago

I'm with you, I think these cannot possibly be disorders if so many people have them, and certainly not if you're living a normal life. People sometimes say they're "high-functioning X", but that just means you're normal. I talk about some of the behaviours I have here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39049655 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39049655 > I have a bunch of odd behavioural characteristics too that overlap with mental conditions: clanging, rocking and stimming, and until my mid-20s if I 'touched' something (including stepping on a tile-edge or crack at an angle) on my one side I had to symmetrify with the other side. Since my life is otherwise fine, I think it's probably just the normal variance of the species.