Do you think ADHD is real?

One of my friends has a VERY HYPER 5 year old that will be starting school in the fall of the year. I am sure the school will recommend that he be put on medication, because he is even more hyper and into everything than our son was. I mean, you do not leave this kid alone to go to the bathroom. He will have flour and sugar strung all over, a window broke out, and will be riding the dog around the house within 5 minutes. We were watching him one time (he was about 4) and my husband went outside for a minute; he had a pillow torn apart and the filling strung out in 5 different rooms, and had drawn on a wall. This was literally in a 5 minute time span. Keeping him out of trouble is a full-time job, and I'm sure the teacher won't put up with it.
I don't know if I think it's a good idea or not. It probably is the only way he'll sit still long enough to get anything accomplished. I think it's awfully young to be starting on such powerful drugs, but what do you do? I don't have any good suggestions for them.
I think the ADHD meds have the attentiveness and productivity effects on EVERYONE though, not just ADHD kids. It's commonly used by non-ADHD college kids as a way to stay up and study for tests (we had mini-thins for the same reason), or as a weight loss aid, or by any person wanting to get a lot accomplished in a short period of time. It's great if you are wanting to clean the kitchen floor with a toothbrush. I'm actually suprised, the way the world is driven for people to work harder and longer, and to lose weight, that these medicines are not more commenly prescribed for adults. I mean, what could be better than being able to work 50-60 hours in a row, sleep every 4th or 5th day, and be skinny as hell? That sounds like a yuppie's dream!

 

Well I myself was diagnosed with ADD as a child (only medicated for a short duration before I refused to take it in my early teens) and I STILL am not sure that I believe it truly exists, at least to the extent that it appears to be today.

I am who I am, simply put. I don't need an unwarranted clinical diagnosis simply because I don't fit inside the box. Yes, I jump from one thing to the next, yes, I have trouble finishing tasks, yes I can talk a mile a minute and have problems sitting still and doing nothing (relaxing), but I believe it makes me who I am. I am also extremely creative, bright, a fantastic multi-tasker, very driven to succeed and accomplish, and insanely organized. Everyone is different, we can't all act the same. Besides, wouldn't life be pretty dull if we were all cookie cutter images?

Just as, I've had hints dropped that my younger son may have ADD, which I think is a total crock. He acts like a normal child, I don't see anything abnormal about his behavior at all. He's a child, and he acts like one. I've also recently found out that he suffers from some very bad allergies, and it seems to flare up even moreso at school. Well obviously, if a child is suffering from illness, he/she isn't going to be acting perfect 24/7 are they? Coincidence?

It saddens me to think of how many young children have their little spirits simply wiped away due to being overly medicated. Let's look at the underlying causes of why this child is acting as they are.

 

I agree. There seem to be a lot more diagnoses than there should be.

 

lol.. if anyone would have been diagnosed w/ ADHD as a child it would have been me.. no one could stop me from moving around all the time.. lol my third grade teacher even let me stand move around because she knew how jumpy i tended to get..

 

I'm not saying nobody has it, it sounds like you probably did. I'm just saying it seems like there are people who are being diagnosed with it that shouldn't be.

 

ADD/AHAD has litle to do with hyperactivity and more with concentration. That is why it has to be medically diagnosed by a specialist. When the learning ability is impaired by the lack of concentration is where the problem start. Most hyperactive children are misdiagnosed as having ADD. If they are hyper but their learning ability IS NOT impaired then they do not have ADD.
If they are hyperactive but learn very fast and can succesfully replicate complex tasks or take tests then they do not have ADD.
I have two kids who are hyper but they get excellent grades and they learn fast. We decided not to medicate and control the problem thru diet. Go to a natural diet ..avoid junk foods, canned and package food, beverages other than water ...and you will see results.

 

I think .5% of the people diagnosed actually have add/adhd. Most people, the other 95.5%, dont know how to focus. Its much easier to get a pill than actually put forth a little effort to gain or maintain focus.

 

Oh yess, I suffer from this shit. I'm always jittery, wayyyyy to energetic which causes me to easily be distracted from what needs to be done.

 

I was diagnosed with ADHD at an early age, and I was always getting into all sorts of trouble. It wasn't even bad things, just talking out loud and stuff. I guess that's why I was slapped with ADHD and thrown on some medication and that was the end of it.

Haha, always gives me a laugh...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze5UVLtgj4s

 

Does ADHD exist? For sure it does!! Is it also often used as a crutch, yup. Many children are misdiagnosed for a variety of reasons... many times because the parent pushes for it. They want a quick fix.

However, I do believe that many times it is a very honest diagnosis. See, my son has his own personal issues (very delayed in talk and general anxiety at the age of three) and goes to a Special Needs school. There are children at his school that definitely have the correct diagnosis. I could create a giant list of all the various behaviours I personally witness that would explain just how severe these cases are.

However, I think the issue is not necessarily the labeling (although I do have very personal issues about incorrectly labeling behaviours) but more in the treatment. Many people are either advised or request to medicate their child when often times there are many other things that can be done to help these children first.

Is there a place for medication with these children/adults. For sure!

The part I find the saddest is that many children that should be diagnosed are not and because of the stigma attached to having a "Special Needs" child, they avoid any type of intervention. Now that is unfair. everyone deserves the same chance to succeed in this world.

Great thread!

 

I think its BS, just feeding the nation energy to keep us working and addicted to there poison

 

It's good poison though....lol I have a huge problem with focusing/concentration etc etc, with my meds I don't have that problem..

 

We've lived for thousands of years without these drugs, we can live in the future without em. Not to say there aren't cases where drugs might help manage the symptoms, but what we're doin in the U.S. is crazy. We try to impose all to early our standards for personality that are considered normal. We try to force young kids to act like us, think like us, etc. All kids are ADD/ADHD, that is the quality of newborn life. To explore, experience, figure out who they are, what things do, etc.

When you start giving drugs for "mental states", a warning should go off in ur head.

 

last time i checked MOST kids were hyperactive and energetic.

 

If it does exist, it's severely over diagnosed. Maybe schools arent the best place for some kids. After all, its like putting a hamster in a cage for 8 hours a day. Some people just arent cut out for it but we are all expected to just conform.

 

I am 38, my mom had been teaching school for 12 years when I was born in 1971. She started talking to the pediatrician about it ( although it was called minimal brain dysfunction at the time) when I was four years old. The pediatrician stated that I was too intelligent and my I.Q. was too high to have the disorder. Well, when I was 22 i spent two days being tested by a group of people, ( psychiatrist, psychologist ) because my mom insisted that I had adhd.. and after two days of testing, paperwork done by my family, several of my high school teachers ( my mom was a high school teacher and two of her good friends had taught me as well so even though it had been a few years.. ) anyway, lo and behold diagnosed with adhd... i did behavior modification, medication and still do to this day.. and still have issues related to the disorder.. My daughter is also.. i had her tested the same way rather than doing it the easy way.. because I wanted to make sure.. I have never let her play video games, sit in front of a tv all day etc.. she has always had lots of creatyive, make a big mess kind of time.. there are paints, crayons, markers, paper, construction paper, glue etc and always has been in this house.. she has always had tons of time running around outside, playing, digging, unsupervised so to speak ( as in the kind of play like when i was a kid not ordered/ planned play time) and she still had all the characteristics.. i started her in school in a small proivate school with 9 girls in her class. She had an experienced teacher. she struggled.. then mid year i had her tested.. started medication.. and within 1 month she caught up in reading, in another month she was more advanced in math.. today she is on level in reading and tested well above level in math ( she just fished 1st grade)

There is a huge difference in behavior and ability to learn with medication, even so we do not medicate every day on breaks and during the summer.. we medicate every 2nd or 3rd day during long breaks.. it seems to be the right mix unless we have something like a brownie event or something.. then we medicate for those. It is real.. but it is very very much over diagnosed.

 

It makes a huge difference in my ability to do normal things.. I tend to hyperfocus ( normal with add/ adhd) when not medicated.

I survived without meds, but had to really struggle.. with meds life is not a struggle and

just for the record it has nothing to do with energy levels.

It is a chemical imbalance if yoou really have the disorder.. for me, adhd meds ( i have taken two - originally dexidrine for almost 12 years on the same dosage and then switched to adderall again same dosage for the next 6 years) it makes me sleepy.. i generally get up on work days, take it, lets the dogs out, get things ready then about 45 minutes to 1 hour after taking it i get overwhelmingly sleepy.. and i lay down take a nap , get up and then get ready for work and go to work.. oh yeah.. i get up 4 hours before i have to be at work.. at 4 am.. so i can do this..

it always hass made me very sleepy when taking add/adhd meds.. which i have been told is exactly how it should.. it is a conformation that I am truly add/adhd.. it never has made me jittery/ hyper/ energetic.. i am far more energetic not taking the meds..

nicole

 

In most states you do not have to have an abnormal I.Q. to have an IEP.. You do have to have a learning disability, abnormal I.Q. ( either low or high) My daughter who does have ADHD( we do medicate) , Generalized Anxiety Disorder ( which I refuse to medicate) has an IEP.. oh by the way she was invited to the Gifted program. She scored in the top 1 percent in the country in math and at the end of 1st grade, by her own choice ( she kept bringing stuff to the teacher and asking how to do it, so she showed her) is doing 3rd grade math.. she does math for fun...literally she has me print stuff out and do math...for fun.. she reads because she wants to, even though she has more difficulty with reading.. While she is in private school, we do an IEP.. but she was invited to the public school gifted program. She is exceptionally bright.. she is not an auditory learner .. she is a visual/kinetic learner.. and we use that to our advantage rather than as a disability.. she struggled with phonics... so the school ordered a different set of reading books for her.. she has used two sets.. one is old dick and jane because it is based on repition.. and the other is someting they found specifically for visual and kinetic learners.. so an IEP can be good.. it also has allowed her to raise her hand and ask to be allowed to get up and move around.. so when she feels the need to move a lot, she does it in an ordered way.. she raises her hand.. and she is allowed to walk around the back of the class room for a minute before returning to her seat.. it has also made her be responsible for her actions.. she has to do things a certain way to be allowed to "fidget" .. she has a perfect conduct score and understands consequences..

 

Is ADHD real? Most definitely. But is it a condition that should be treated via medication? Certainly not.

In fact, I believe it's the next evolution of the human race.

Now, when I was in public school (I'm homeschooled now), they tried to say I had it. They wanted me to take medication for it, but my parents (thank God) refused.

So, do I have it? Probably.

I have all the supposed symptoms.. I have difficulty standing still, I have difficulty focusing.. but, I can learn things very quickly.

And, I've learned to focus myself on things.

This makes me succeed more than the average person. I've directed my mind toward cars, politics (I'm a Libertarian), computers (Linux is my specialty, I am very good with setting up systems), and music. I'm learning to play guitar, I can play a few songs as it is, I'm getting better all the time.

ADHD is not a medical condition, but it's actually the evolution of the human race. That would explain why the government is working so hard to puch medication for it; they want to control this. A child on ADHD medication is like a V8 with a two barrel carb, limited from it's true potential.


To all of the ADHD kids out there:

All it takes is for something that you're interested in, and you shall succeed. Trust me. I couldn't get interested in the Linux Movement until I got interested in the Libertarian Movement. I realized how much one depended on the other, and that we should support them both to guarantee our freedom.

So yes.. I ramble a lot though. XD

 

I have ADHD but i dont get treated any different than the rest.