Is ADHD a bullshit illness?

To be serious for just a second, as much fun as goofing off has been in this thread:

I'm sure it's a real condition, and a very serious and debilitating one. I also think it's staggeringly, grossly overdiagnosed. 2% of the diagnoses are probably genuine, while the other 98% are just kids with "cool" parents who are in point of fact simply too lazy to instill a particle of discipline in their kids.

See, what does that actually mean "can't focus on anything"? How far does it go? It's not like these people walk around in a daze. Take this guy at work, he's still capable of pretty much functioning as a normal person. It doesn't seem to be overly debilitating in any way.

That sounds more like Aspergers than ADHD.

That would suggest a huge lack of competence in the mental health treatment community.

Do you reckon that's where the problem lies?

My son (about 4 or 5 at the time) had it to the point where he couldn't go on field trips because half the staff was keeping him under control.
The Army headshrinkers just "counseled" to no avail. One day while in the waiting room my son was being his normal self and a Colonel (older doctor of course) noticed I was doing all the things parents are supposed to do, to no avail. So he met with my son. He basically sized my kid up as being "way beyond help" with normal counseling, and put him on Ritalin or something like it.

Then he was still active, but controllable. It was that or pull him out of preschool, which would lead eventually (as school got harder) to academic failure.

As for myself: I have pretty bad attention disorder, but not hyperactivity. I am normally calm (except for some anger issues) but my brain has to struggle to keep a train of thought, or remember anything with several steps. I know facts, but I can't get things in sequential order.
So, how did I do great on the ASVAB (aptitude test)? Because it's multiple choice - each question only takes a minute at most, then you dump that and move on to the next question.
Here's the downside....when it's time to learn complex things (or even many simple things but in a particular order) I am way, way behind the "power curve."
Thus, I am dead-last in almost every single school/course/class I am in.
I try hard, study extra, practice etc. just to keep up.
And math? I never got further than Algebra I and it took me two years, just to squueze by with a D. Long, complex problems really took their toll.
So now (after many years) my attention span is better, but here's the downside to that: my short term memory is toast. Also the ability to do two things at once, or think fast without drawing things out. I can't "picture things" in my mind. I have to see things with my eyes, and keep seeing things over and over if neccessary.

So how do I pull in "the big bucks?" Because I have shitloads of (hard fought) experience, and a good work ethic, and I'm very much a "team player." I know my weaknesses, and I am creative enough to circumvent them. And, I write a lot of things down, or draw them out if it involves abstract though or planning.

AmI whining or complaining, or asking for pity? Not at all, just explaining how some peoples brains are wired. I am very much a success, and am willing to fight to stay on top...an attitude that works for me.

You might call it that. Charitably, it could simply be the result of a snowball effect. The more popular "ADHD" became as a diagnosis, the more lazy parents brought their undisciplined kids to mental health professionals yelling "It's ADHD!" and the easier it became for those mental health professionals to say, "Yeah, it's ADHD, fine, here's a 'scrip', get your brat out of my office, NEXT!"

I wouldn't be surprised if she had Aspergers too. She's... odd, to say the least.
The inability to focus is more of a... takes a lot of effort to concentrate on anything, and any noise will your thoughts... sort of thing. So if everything's perfectly quiet, it would take my friend about 3x as long to do her work as it would the average person, and she'd end up exhausted just from trying to focus. This would happen late at night when her medication wore off, 'round 7 PM. She'd get back into the room at 2 AM looking like a zombie, drained from finishing an assignment that would have taken the average person til 11pm or so to finish.
I saw her try to fill out a form once in a room full of noisy friends. Three hours later she was almost done. It was amusing for a while, we kept poking her every couple minutes to see how easily she'd forget what she was up to. It was fun.

Yes, but the idea of it being down to a condition is just labelling is it not?

I was terrible at maths at school. Indeed, I hated school and my grades were only average. It's always been with real every day situations and experience that I'm excelled, so I am not any different from you in that regard....but because I hated school and didn't put in as much effort as the other kids I don't think I have some sort of condition to explain it away.

So you really believe that this is a condition and not that she's simply not as smart as the rest of you?

See, based on that, oldfella, I'd reckon that your son is one of the genuine diagnoses. I've met plenty of other kids while growing up that had Ritalin prescriptions who would get the fresh bottle, turn around and sell it. I knew so many kids like that as a teenager that it was a common occurrence from about middle school through college, so mid-late '80s through mid '90s. Can't be sure of the years exactly, not doing math in the Red Room and all.

Oh she's smart. Incredibly smart. I doubt I've ever met anyone more intelligent. She can pick up concepts really quickly. It's just that when it comes time to do work, it's so much effort to focus that it ends up taking inordinate amounts of time. She had to drop her engineering major because she couldn't do the math quickly enough even though she understood all of it.

And presumably, it being the kind of condition it is, each of these doctors will be seeing the kids on a private basis, thus earning $$$ for each diagnosis and leaving mummy and daddy with an excuse for little Johnny's lack of ability?

Almost sounds like a consumer product.

Naw, you're the epitome of a well-adjusted adult ...

Well, that's if you judge a person my an internet persona mate.

All mental illness is just a sign of not being beaten enough.

El Chu, I'm just wondering when you got your license to diagnose?

In other news, Yes ADHD is real. Yes, ADHD is often misdiagnosed. It can go into remission or be better controlled in adulthood. It can remain at the same level during adulthood, which is less common.
It can sometimes be the outcome of bad parenting, and certainly it's effects can be improved with better parenting. Yes, lack of activity and overstimulation from media can be at play.

You know stuff it would take a professional to figure out, and probably can't be figured out in the break room.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

The instant he signed up to Wordforge he along with all of us got every license under the sun.

So shut the hell up about him talking about it unless you plan to keep your mouth shut on any issue which you don't have a license.

Where am I purporting to diagnose?

Are we not allowed to discuss a medical issue without being doctors first?

Well you are right about one thing everyone on WF has the right to spout off about that which they have no clue. I also have the right to call them out on it.

You should start a red room thread where you give everyone a free diagnosis. That would be a hoot.

Attempt to diagnose based on a "little research". OCD and ADHD are not closely related. OCD is an anxiety disorder. ADHD is a thought disorder more closely linked with Autism spectrum disorders. Yet, you linked the two and used this as a justification for it not being legitimate in the case of your coworker.
It's very possible your coworker doesn't have ADHD, but your "little bit of research" doesn't validate your argument.

Considering the amount of "expert" opinions I read on here about legal matters, including from you, should I go round calling everyone out for not being a lawyer?

Should we call out anyone who reads an article on foriegn policy for not being a diplomat?

Should we call out those with political opinions because they are not professional politicians?

Should we call out anyone who discusses a war because their are not generals?

See where this is going?

Also, don't you find it somewhat hypocritical to call me out for being a doctor......and then immediately go forth to give your less than qualifed opinion in the very same post? Or did you suddenley become a mental health professional and tell noone (assuming you aren't)?

And what argument is that?

And, where am I making a diagnosis? I am having an informal conversation with my WF acquintances about something topical from my workplace. It's hardly the same as me taking the contents of this thread as authorative and then confronting said staff member in a formal meeting for being a fraud.

ADHD is a real thing. (Which now includes ADD, by the way).

It is horribly misdiagnosed by the school system, and there are kids who do get put on ADHD medicine that are just being kids. There are also kids with ADHD that don't get treated because "they can read a book" or "they can play video games".

i think vandy really is a mental health professional, actually.

I thought she was in the military, or is that someone else?

Anna is in The Navy - not sure about her job, but it may be mental health, I can't recall right now.

Out of curiosity, does this guy have any form of tourettes? A facial tick? An annoying sound that he makes when he talks?

I've been a mental health professional for about 4 years now. Told everyone. I guess you missed it.