Pay attention.
Stop fooling around.
If you would just try, you could do it.
You're lazy.
Settle down.
You can do it when you want to.
Why are you acting this way?
You're too smart to get such terrible grades.
Your room is always mess.
You just have to buckle down.
Stop bothering other children.
Are you trying to drive me crazy?
Why can't you just act like your brother or sister?
Why are you so irresponsible?
You aren't grateful for anything.
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_adult_symptoms.htm <-- basic overview
http://www.chicagocarless.com/2010/02/13/the-adhdeer-in-headlights-syndrome/ <-- overwhelmed and can't tackle anything you need to in life?
http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/757.html <-- chronic, unexplained sleep problems such as a "rolling" sleep schedule?
http://depositfiles.com/files/ua7keyv4j <-- great self-help book... "You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid, or Crazy?!" ... describes the condition, maladaptive coping strategies undiagnosed ADHD'ers develop to hide their condition from themselves and others, and how to make it an asset instead of a handicap
I recently discovered I have ADHD in a big way - and it explains a lot of shit I've struggled with my entire life and problems I've had, whether practical, mental, or physical... it's amazing how no one caught it, considering how obvious it was... so I'm guessing there's probably enough weird people here on this forum that some of you may be in the same situation. Hence this thread...
It's a real condition, not "fake" or "made up" or an "excuse for laziness" - there are actual documented changes in the development of the brain, including different lobe sizes, different bloodflow, and a dopaminergic system that is all screwy (the stimulant ADHD medications often, though not always, have the opposite effect in those with ADHD as in those who don't have it - if you feel calm or sleepy after blowing a line you have ADHD). It's incurable, but it's manageable, so long as it's acknowledged and not minimized (you can't just "will" your way out of it).
Those with ADHD are overwhelmed with everyday life, unable to determine what to focus on first, and lack the ability to concentrate when needed - but, it's a paradoxical condition. The reason no one thought I had it is because of "hyperfocus," which is where you get so focused on something interesting that you lose all concept of time and can't break away for hours, sometimes days of continuous work. It's why when you guys get me on a topic I find interesting - politics, economics, social justice - I end up writing some absurdly long winded shit.
Basically it's a deficit of executive function - ADHD'ers can't choose what to focus on. If something is interesting, you get stuck. If something is boring, no matter how hard you try or how badly you want to do it, you won't be able to - you'll spend 99% of your time staring blankly, waking back up every half hour or so for a brief moment before spacing back out. Time slips through your fingers like sand. After enough years of upsetting failures, you learn to just avoid trying, because the only result is suffering and more damage to your self esteem. Obviously this is harmful not only to yourself but to relationships. It's common to forget what you're talking about mid-sentence, and to have difficulty paying attention to what others are saying (especially in a classroom format!). I've realized I've become an expert at reconstituting meaning from bits and pieces of sentence fragments and words. No wonder no one can tell when I'm ripped.
And the more tired or stressed out you are, the worse the ADHD symptoms become. It's like quicksand. The more you need to do, the less you're capable of accomplishing, by no fault of your own. And the more it makes you fuck up, the more stress you face, therefore you fuck up even more. It's a feedback loop.
Apparently ADHD'ers frequently fall ill when they're pushing themselves too hard and are becoming overwhelmed. It's probably why I ended up with shingles last year.
Pace yourselves and take care of your health!
It's not all bad though. If you have ADHD you are likely to be wicked creative. Anyone ever wonder when they saw all my revenge ideas for getting back at bad roommates? It took brain damage to come up with shit that twisted. And if you can somehow learn to induce that state of hyperfocus (which I'm trying to figure out) you can be amazingly productive. It's playing with fire though. Browsing Wikipedia is like driving a silver stake through my heart - kiss everything I was supposed to be doing goodbye, and say hello to days of sharing obscure facts and ideas with everyone I know about random wars, economic principles, weird animals, you name it... The internet is deadly for us - it wouldn't be a bad idea to stuff my computer with hand grenades and hurl it into a lake of fire. Maybe drop a few hydrogen bombs on it for good measure.
Stop fooling around.
If you would just try, you could do it.
You're lazy.
Settle down.
You can do it when you want to.
Why are you acting this way?
You're too smart to get such terrible grades.
Your room is always mess.
You just have to buckle down.
Stop bothering other children.
Are you trying to drive me crazy?
Why can't you just act like your brother or sister?
Why are you so irresponsible?
You aren't grateful for anything.
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_adult_symptoms.htm <-- basic overview
http://www.chicagocarless.com/2010/02/13/the-adhdeer-in-headlights-syndrome/ <-- overwhelmed and can't tackle anything you need to in life?
http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/757.html <-- chronic, unexplained sleep problems such as a "rolling" sleep schedule?
http://depositfiles.com/files/ua7keyv4j <-- great self-help book... "You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid, or Crazy?!" ... describes the condition, maladaptive coping strategies undiagnosed ADHD'ers develop to hide their condition from themselves and others, and how to make it an asset instead of a handicap
I recently discovered I have ADHD in a big way - and it explains a lot of shit I've struggled with my entire life and problems I've had, whether practical, mental, or physical... it's amazing how no one caught it, considering how obvious it was... so I'm guessing there's probably enough weird people here on this forum that some of you may be in the same situation. Hence this thread...
It's a real condition, not "fake" or "made up" or an "excuse for laziness" - there are actual documented changes in the development of the brain, including different lobe sizes, different bloodflow, and a dopaminergic system that is all screwy (the stimulant ADHD medications often, though not always, have the opposite effect in those with ADHD as in those who don't have it - if you feel calm or sleepy after blowing a line you have ADHD). It's incurable, but it's manageable, so long as it's acknowledged and not minimized (you can't just "will" your way out of it).
Those with ADHD are overwhelmed with everyday life, unable to determine what to focus on first, and lack the ability to concentrate when needed - but, it's a paradoxical condition. The reason no one thought I had it is because of "hyperfocus," which is where you get so focused on something interesting that you lose all concept of time and can't break away for hours, sometimes days of continuous work. It's why when you guys get me on a topic I find interesting - politics, economics, social justice - I end up writing some absurdly long winded shit.
Basically it's a deficit of executive function - ADHD'ers can't choose what to focus on. If something is interesting, you get stuck. If something is boring, no matter how hard you try or how badly you want to do it, you won't be able to - you'll spend 99% of your time staring blankly, waking back up every half hour or so for a brief moment before spacing back out. Time slips through your fingers like sand. After enough years of upsetting failures, you learn to just avoid trying, because the only result is suffering and more damage to your self esteem. Obviously this is harmful not only to yourself but to relationships. It's common to forget what you're talking about mid-sentence, and to have difficulty paying attention to what others are saying (especially in a classroom format!). I've realized I've become an expert at reconstituting meaning from bits and pieces of sentence fragments and words. No wonder no one can tell when I'm ripped.
And the more tired or stressed out you are, the worse the ADHD symptoms become. It's like quicksand. The more you need to do, the less you're capable of accomplishing, by no fault of your own. And the more it makes you fuck up, the more stress you face, therefore you fuck up even more. It's a feedback loop.
Apparently ADHD'ers frequently fall ill when they're pushing themselves too hard and are becoming overwhelmed. It's probably why I ended up with shingles last year.
Pace yourselves and take care of your health!It's not all bad though. If you have ADHD you are likely to be wicked creative. Anyone ever wonder when they saw all my revenge ideas for getting back at bad roommates? It took brain damage to come up with shit that twisted.
And if you can somehow learn to induce that state of hyperfocus (which I'm trying to figure out) you can be amazingly productive. It's playing with fire though. Browsing Wikipedia is like driving a silver stake through my heart - kiss everything I was supposed to be doing goodbye, and say hello to days of sharing obscure facts and ideas with everyone I know about random wars, economic principles, weird animals, you name it... The internet is deadly for us - it wouldn't be a bad idea to stuff my computer with hand grenades and hurl it into a lake of fire. Maybe drop a few hydrogen bombs on it for good measure.
