Is ADD a real disorder to you?!


Question: Is ADD a real disorder to you?
The title isn't very clear. I am almost sure I have ADD. I'm not one for excuses but I can't focus (even on finishing a thought), I had anxiety attacks/racing thoughts as a kid, think a lot (off subject ALWAYS), loose things constantly, have intelligence not even close to that which is reflected by my grades, etc. I am 16. I know I have ADD but I am always hearing that its just an excuse for kids to get stimulants. I do get a good dose of amphetamines. This is kind of a bad question. I more mean to say-
Do YOU believe in this?

I primarily want to hear from skeptics so that I may grasp why you think that way. If you think it's the case of the lazy, unmotivated teen, tell me! I can handle it. I've heard a lot of disbelief over the years and I enjoy a good ol' fashion conflict between individuals. Especially via the Internet :)

As a secondary question (expert preferred, although I'll take speculations)-
Is ADD a defined and obvious disorder? Or is all over the spectrum?

Answers:

WikiPedia:

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or AD/HD or ADD) is a neurobehavioral[1] developmental disorder.[2] It is primarily characterized by "the co-existence of attentional problems and hyperactivity, with each behavior occurring infrequently alone" and symptoms starting before seven years of age.[3]

I would appreciate your adding more detail about when exactly you started seeing "symptoms".

I personally believe that ADHD is more or less not a real disease and just an excuse to give kids drugs so that they'll be zombies and do their school work "as they should". But I can see the scientific point of view as well.

I must admit I'm against taking drugs for ADHD/ADD... Think about it, if ADHD is real, then everyone has it! Look at test scores and you'll see the majority of kid's that have huge talent only get Ds or Cs, why? In my opinion it's because of the drugs that make them go "num". It's hard to concentrate when you aren't having emotions.



I believe ADD is a real disorder, but I also believe that people who have ADD can control it to a certain extent. I believe you couldn't control some of it, but I do not think you need medication to contain yourself. ADD is eventually grown out of so I would think that you are starting to.

I hope that you wouldn't believe that you couldn't focus because of this disorder.

I hope you take all of this into consideration.

That's my opinion

-worm178



It's not a subjective disorder, you can simply measure brain-activity to prove ADD/ADHD, because there's a clear difference in brain make-up compared to 'normal' people.

Now this isn't done that much, so similar disorders will get bunched together under ADD, but it's a clear disorder, everybody with real ADD/ADHD is fundamentally different from a 'normal' person.



I have ADHD and have a lot of the same symptoms that you have but when I started to take medicine o could tell that I started to do better in school!

Although on the other hand I think that that's just because we r kids and still growing up! Bc in the 1900s they did not have this kind of problem!

Brain!



Yes, of course ADD is a "real disorder". Fortunately there have been some excellent advances in recognition and treatment. As with any prescription medication that is used for any other purpose, it is unfortunate that there will always be people who abuse drugs.



i do believe it is a real disorder



yes it is real. My husband and my daughter have it and so far my husband has learned to cope with it. When he was your age, it was not yet diagnosed, so he had to learn on his own small tricks to help himself. Now I am dealing with it with my daughter and she does take concerta and she still struggles.
Tips:
- Get a timer and work in blocks of 25 minutes if it is homework (it is called pomodoro technique, look it up).
-Keep your things as organized as possible
-Do your work in a place that does not have a lot of posters, or a tv.
-Set a specific schedule and try to follow it
You are not a lazy teen, you might just need structure and patience. Don't get discouraged! All the ADD persons I have met are extremely bright. Hope it helps.



I.Do.Not.Believe.In.ADD.
Not to diss your parents (AT ALL) but I think a lot of the time, these 'ADD' kids's only problem is lack of parental discipline.
And, of course, there's going to be kids that are more prone to being hyper and having a harder time focusing, but there wasn't ADD a few decades ago?
I believe parents just made it up so they could say 'Oh...that crazy, out-of-control child of mine has a DISORDER, so it's not my fault, and I can't do anything to contain them.'
I am not saying that ALL parents of 'ADD' kids are like this, but I think a good chunk of 'em are.
**I'm not trying to offend anybody**
Hope this helps~



One problem I see is that a lot of times Big Pharmaceuticals tend make up things to sell medicine to people. Just thinking about ADD I know the symptoms exist, but as it is they do not know the cause of it, so how can they be so sure that it just one type and not a multiple of things since they can't find the cause maybe its because they are linking to many things together that do not go together. It does seem we like to label things and just drug our kids no of days. Oh little jimmy is having problems in school some consoling, a bit of monitoring and maybe a review by a specialist Doctor and what if nothing is wrong why they don't get paid much, but say he has a problem because all the symptoms point to it, but nope we can't prove it since we do not know what causes it or really any hard facts like increase of chemicals in the brain or some physical evidence, but you know little jimmy is acting a little off and we think it is ADD here some drugs to give him, nope it won't cure him just stop his behavior. Does ADD and ADHD exist most likely the symptoms exist and for now I agree that treating it may be necessary if it hinders a person, but really how can you treat something if you do not know the cause in fact maybe a lot of the symptoms are secondary causes and not part of the problem to begin with.



I'm a counsellor so I do believe in mental health problems including ADD/ADHD (attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (for those who don't know what the initials stand for) along with things like ME/CFS/fibromyalgia, unfortunately many people don't believe in these diagnoses including some of the medical professionals. One of my kids had ADHD and dyslexia that gave him all sorts of problems at school and he went onto develop Bipolar Disorder and another of them has depression and epilepsy. It's only when it touches your life or those close to you that you start to appreciate the severity of such disorders and the damage they can do to people. Not being able to do well in school can lead to bullying as well as being isolated with no friends and will definitely damage your future career prospects.

Not sure why you want to debate this with people who disagree in recognising these disorders! Are you practising for a school debate or trying to get to grips with the opposition at arms length before tackling people in real life? I think you'll be wasting your time because it's not possible to prove that these exist to someone who is determined not to believe it.

As for the ADD being defined I think it's only defined by fluctuating borders that can vary between individual sufferers. That's because we all have different pain threshholds and different stress holds so what is unbearable for 1 person is normal for another. The defining rule has to be "significantly and seriously disrupts that person's daily life" not an easy line to draw that's for sure! How do you feel you could cope better with your symptoms?




The consumer health information on answer-health.com is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions.
The answer content post by the user, if contains the copyright content please contact us, we will immediately remove it.
Copyright © 2007-2011 answer-health.com -   Terms of Use -   Contact us

Health Categories