3 ms·

There is a huge difference between the common stereotype of ADHD (just rowdy children who can't sit still), and actual symptoms and diagnostic criteria. The dif

by pornel 3y ago

There is a huge difference between the common stereotype of ADHD (just rowdy children who can't sit still), and actual symptoms and diagnostic criteria. The difference is almost as comically warped as an image of a "hacker" in media vs actual hackers. ADHD includes many other things like weak short-term memory, defunct perception of time, hard to control hyperfocus, overwhelming inner monologue, and executive dysfunction that makes some tasks physically impossible to start even when the person wants to do them. And it comes with a bunch of other comorbidities. Doctors diagnosing ADHD also have obligation to exclude other causes of the symptoms, like bipolar. The stimulant medication does not actually cause stimulation in people with ADHD. When people have a deficit/insensitivity to the neurotransmitters, the meds merely bring them up from a dysfunctional level where the brain lacked ability to function properly to the normal-ish level.

bluefirebrand 3y ago
I really like that you list a whole lot of things that ADHD includes that most people are unaware of, but I wanted to call attention to the two that probably had the largest negative impact on my own life Rejection Sensitivity and Emotional Disregulation I have always been paralyzed by being afraid of failure (rejection), and that has kept me from pursuing a lot of things in the past And I've always been prone to anger outbursts, even over seemingly trivial silly things. It has damaged so many of my relationships and overall left me pretty lonely throughout my life. And when the dust settles I'm sitting there thinking "Why was I so angry about that thing. I don't even care that much about it" My ADHD diagnosis and medication, starting in my early 30s, has almost entirely turned my life around
- weweersdfsd 3y ago
  I wonder if the symptoms you described can be also explained by being on autism spectrum. And then there's generalized anxiety disorder - a common comorbidity with ADHD, which could also cause worrying about failure. I fairly certain I have either ADHD, autism, or probably both, and have existing diagnosis pointing to being "neuroatypical". But coming up with exact diagnosis seems to be pretty difficult, because many other diagnosis can explain specific symptoms.
  - teamonkey 3y ago
    It's possible, sure. There's a blurry line between ADHD and autism, and ADHD is often comorbid when diagnosed with autism. I would say, though, that ADHD medication can help with rejection sensitivity disorder and help regulate some emotional stress on top of the more well-known ADHD symptoms. Practically speaking, it doesn't matter where it comes from if it can be treated.
  - bluefirebrand 3y ago
    It definitely is. For ADHD in particular I think you have to zero in on executive function. It does bring along a lot of friends, but poor executive function is absolutely the keystone of any ADHD diagnosis If you don't struggle with that, then you can probably safely eliminate it as a suspect... Or at least put it much lower on the list
- itp 3y ago
  Thank you both for adding these comments. I'm older than you, mid-40s now, and I'm _just_ starting to get treatment for ADHD after a lot of unnecessary struggles. I'm sure that people like the root of this thread mean well, but at the same time that attitude is exactly what kept me from receiving treatment or care when I was younger.
- sneed_chucker 3y ago
  How long have you been on medication? I think I should start medication again (diagnosed 7 years ago in early adulthood) but am scared of the side effects of long term medication use.
  - Darrengineer 3y ago
    TLDR: I’ve been on Adderall over ten years and no known long term problems attributable to my meds. You should share your concerns with a/multiple doctor(s). I’m not the parent but since no one answered: I was diagnosed in early childhood but only started meds around 21 years old (the first time I took Adderall was the first time I wrote an outline for a paper) and I’ve been on it nearly continuously for 13 years now, almost at the maximum dose. So far, no side effects at all of long-term use other than a learned behavior of building anxiety and stress every month around the time of getting my perception due to the war on drug style of regulation. I have only rarely had short term side effects when only taking extended release Adderall. On your concern generally, I’m not a doctor but I’m not sure long-term effects should be a big concern without some known contraindication. To my recollection, none but my current doctor have given much discussion to long term effects of Adderall, if at all. My current doctor (who I believe had finished residency shortly before I started seeing him) was concerned about long term (heart) effects and I asked him for some links to info/studies. He sent me a webmd link to an article discussing a paper examining cardiac events in Canadian patients over 65 recently starting Adderall, which found no increased risk of cardiac events vs those not starting/taking Adderall. I don’t think there were conflicts of interest declared but it seemed like some authors had some association with the Shire pharmaceutical company. For context I’m mid 30’s, American, and have been taking Adderall as a long-term patient so I was confused about why he would send that but he didn’t expand on it when pressed. Research I did on my own only led me to studies showing that people with ADHD are twice as likely to of die in an accident as non-adhd counterparts, which I had never heard from any doctor and I believe is the leading cause of death in my age group. As another note, my uncle was prescribed Concerta for an off-label use and quickly started having suicidal thoughts and stopped using it. Work with a physician who feels like a good match with you so you can be candid with them.
- andenacitelli 3y ago
  I’m predominantly inattentive type but focus isn’t actually my most severe symptom. That would be executive dysfunction. I lucked into SWE being a hyperfocus of sorts, so luckily work isn’t awful if I’m not on meds, but holy cow is anything else just complete drudgery. Feels like everything is behind a wall of “startup energy” that is so hard to get through, especially without external accountability. Rejection sensitivity is also part of it for me. I felt like I could never think fast or organized enough in the moment when talking (I would lose my train of thought in the middle of sentences), so I would get anxious coming in and try and plan, but there’s only so much you can plan for, and it just is a bad cycle to get in. Therapy and internalizing things don’t actually have that high stakes is helpful but only mostly a fix.

by pornel 3y ago

bluefirebrand 3y ago

I really like that you list a whole lot of things that ADHD includes that most people are unaware of, but I wanted to call attention to the two that probably had the largest negative impact on my own life Rejection Sensitivity and Emotional Disregulation I have always been paralyzed by being afraid of failure (rejection), and that has kept me from pursuing a lot of things in the past And I've always been prone to anger outbursts, even over seemingly trivial silly things. It has damaged so many of my relationships and overall left me pretty lonely throughout my life. And when the dust settles I'm sitting there thinking "Why was I so angry about that thing. I don't even care that much about it" My ADHD diagnosis and medication, starting in my early 30s, has almost entirely turned my life around

weweersdfsd 3y ago
I wonder if the symptoms you described can be also explained by being on autism spectrum. And then there's generalized anxiety disorder - a common comorbidity with ADHD, which could also cause worrying about failure. I fairly certain I have either ADHD, autism, or probably both, and have existing diagnosis pointing to being "neuroatypical". But coming up with exact diagnosis seems to be pretty difficult, because many other diagnosis can explain specific symptoms.
- teamonkey 3y ago
  It's possible, sure. There's a blurry line between ADHD and autism, and ADHD is often comorbid when diagnosed with autism. I would say, though, that ADHD medication can help with rejection sensitivity disorder and help regulate some emotional stress on top of the more well-known ADHD symptoms. Practically speaking, it doesn't matter where it comes from if it can be treated.
- bluefirebrand 3y ago
  It definitely is. For ADHD in particular I think you have to zero in on executive function. It does bring along a lot of friends, but poor executive function is absolutely the keystone of any ADHD diagnosis If you don't struggle with that, then you can probably safely eliminate it as a suspect... Or at least put it much lower on the list
itp 3y ago
Thank you both for adding these comments. I'm older than you, mid-40s now, and I'm _just_ starting to get treatment for ADHD after a lot of unnecessary struggles. I'm sure that people like the root of this thread mean well, but at the same time that attitude is exactly what kept me from receiving treatment or care when I was younger.
sneed_chucker 3y ago
How long have you been on medication? I think I should start medication again (diagnosed 7 years ago in early adulthood) but am scared of the side effects of long term medication use.
- Darrengineer 3y ago
  TLDR: I’ve been on Adderall over ten years and no known long term problems attributable to my meds. You should share your concerns with a/multiple doctor(s). I’m not the parent but since no one answered: I was diagnosed in early childhood but only started meds around 21 years old (the first time I took Adderall was the first time I wrote an outline for a paper) and I’ve been on it nearly continuously for 13 years now, almost at the maximum dose. So far, no side effects at all of long-term use other than a learned behavior of building anxiety and stress every month around the time of getting my perception due to the war on drug style of regulation. I have only rarely had short term side effects when only taking extended release Adderall. On your concern generally, I’m not a doctor but I’m not sure long-term effects should be a big concern without some known contraindication. To my recollection, none but my current doctor have given much discussion to long term effects of Adderall, if at all. My current doctor (who I believe had finished residency shortly before I started seeing him) was concerned about long term (heart) effects and I asked him for some links to info/studies. He sent me a webmd link to an article discussing a paper examining cardiac events in Canadian patients over 65 recently starting Adderall, which found no increased risk of cardiac events vs those not starting/taking Adderall. I don’t think there were conflicts of interest declared but it seemed like some authors had some association with the Shire pharmaceutical company. For context I’m mid 30’s, American, and have been taking Adderall as a long-term patient so I was confused about why he would send that but he didn’t expand on it when pressed. Research I did on my own only led me to studies showing that people with ADHD are twice as likely to of die in an accident as non-adhd counterparts, which I had never heard from any doctor and I believe is the leading cause of death in my age group. As another note, my uncle was prescribed Concerta for an off-label use and quickly started having suicidal thoughts and stopped using it. Work with a physician who feels like a good match with you so you can be candid with them.
andenacitelli 3y ago
I’m predominantly inattentive type but focus isn’t actually my most severe symptom. That would be executive dysfunction. I lucked into SWE being a hyperfocus of sorts, so luckily work isn’t awful if I’m not on meds, but holy cow is anything else just complete drudgery. Feels like everything is behind a wall of “startup energy” that is so hard to get through, especially without external accountability. Rejection sensitivity is also part of it for me. I felt like I could never think fast or organized enough in the moment when talking (I would lose my train of thought in the middle of sentences), so I would get anxious coming in and try and plan, but there’s only so much you can plan for, and it just is a bad cycle to get in. Therapy and internalizing things don’t actually have that high stakes is helpful but only mostly a fix.