ADHD

[Rocky998]

"Asperger's is a less severe form of autism, not a separate condition. The current consensus is that Asperger's syndrome and autism are one and the same, the difference between the two being a matter of degree. Asperger's syndrome is another name for less severe autism."

A more respectful way of saying it, yes

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

Yeah the meds helped me. It helps me get things done! I tried therapy but not for ADHD. It helps with a broad range of issues.

The downside of the med is that when you feel them wear off you might feel a bit grumpy.. and also in general they decrease your appetite.

It really depends on the type of the med that ur doctor prescribes for you.

I was on venlafaxine as well… and stablon plus other SSRI and benzos…It is pretty hard to get off them when youve been taking them for years! Great job!!

A friend of mine who's also just recently been diagnosed said the meds made him feel a bit zombiefied for the first couple of weeks...but then he grew accustomed to them and he's having regular assessments to adjust the dosage to his therapeutic level...do you always feel like a zombie? I can't see how that would allow you to be more productive

 

[Rocky998]

A friend of mine who's also just recently been diagnosed said the meds made him feel a bit zombiefied for the first couple of weeks...but then he grew accustomed to them and he's having regular assessments to adjust the dosage to his therapeutic level...do you always feel like a zombie? I can't see how that would allow you to be more productive

It gets rid of your hyper-activity ig lol

 

[Mollyforever]

A friend of mine who's also just recently been diagnosed said the meds made him feel a bit zombiefied for the first couple of weeks...but then he grew accustomed to them and he's having regular assessments to adjust the dosage to his therapeutic level...do you always feel like a zombie? I can't see how that would allow you to be more productive

I am no longer taking benzos and venlafaxine. just ritalin and small dose paroxetine in the mornings. Adhd meds are stimulants so I was not in a zombie mode. But meds react differently for everyone and I cant really say for your friend, just my personal experience.

 

[fishyfun&fans]

In my case The drugs did get rid of the hyper activity but the trade off is i became too normal(totally not myself)and too lethargic if that makes sense

I became grumpy and tired very withdrawn some of them made me lose weight some made me gain it some gave me migraines

On rare occasions did these drugs provide a stable cure with no side affects

 

[Colin_T]

It hasn't been mentioned yet but a lot of people diagnosed with ADD (attention deficit disorder) and ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder) don't actually have it. A lot of the symptoms can occur in people that drink too much coffee or drinks with stimulants in, food colours, preservatives, sugar, artificial sweeteners, illegal and legal drugs (side effects), stress, old age, lack of exercise and a few other things. Too much time using electronic devices (phones, computers, etc) can also cause symptoms.

There have been lots of reports of children being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD and the parents changed the kid's diet (removed junk food and fed them normal food), gave them some exercise, and the problems resolved without medication.

Reducing the amount of time you spend in front of a phone, tablet, pc or even playing games on the TV can make a difference to your sleep pattern, the amount of sleep you get and when you do get a decent night's sleep, your brain works properly. Lack of sleep will make you feel like a zombie, you will have trouble focusing, you might have balance problems, increased risk of disease, the list goes on. Everyone needs a decent night's sleep to function properly (physically and mentally).

Make sure you have a decent bed so you can actually get a good night sleep. Don't use electronic devices for at least 2 hours before you go to bed. You can watch a movie but don't text, surf the web or play games just before bed because they stimulate the brain and stop you sleeping.

Exercise can help in lots of ways. It causes the body to produce killer cells that fight diseases, serotonin that helps normal brain function and makes you feel better, and it tires out the muscles and body, and this will help you sleep better. One of the reasons people sleep less as they get old is because they don't do as much exercise. If you sit in a chair all day, chances are you might get 3-6 hours sleep per night and wake up feeling tired. If you spend several hours a day exercising (moving about), you will probably get closer to 8 hours sleep.

Any way, before you take drugs for a possible ADD or ADHD diagnosis, check your diet, reduce the pc use, do some exercise and try to get a good night sleep. If you still have all the symptoms after a month of that, then pop the pills.

 

[Lamie]

I would recommend doing yoga if you have the time. I would definitely be taking yoga classes now if I didn't have 3 children to after look and being soo busy.

 

[Rocky998]

why do people care when others call them stupid or weird?
why do you need to "fit in"

I found a great way for you to MAYBE understand... So this is going to sound cheesy but listen to the song "Leave me Alone" by NF and I relate to most of it... I know, its cringe to say "listen to this song to understand me" but seriously its hard for me to just explain

 

[Caesar]

This is weird, but are there any adults with ADHD here who would be willing to share their experience and day to day living with ADHD with me? It doesn't have to be here, it could be privately if you prefer...thanks ❤

Turning 28 in a few months.

I was recommended an ADHD diagnosis as a child by my elementary school districts child psychologist in grade 1 or 2. I saw some child specialist and decided to hyperfocus on showing I was such a good reader that I could read upside down... Needless to say I was officially diagnosed with a severe learning disability and declared incapable of learning to read or write . Obviously I learned to read and write just fine, but that was the end of my parents foray into childhood psychiatry.

My parents kept telling me that I grew out of my ADHD since I became able to mask symptoms and develop coping strategies as a teenager. When transitioning from elementary to high school, I was swapped from a special learning plan to a standard learning plan for no apparent reason and with time forgot about ADHD. Then around 2016 I came across a video of an ADHD specialist discussing how it can manifest and impact adults. Instantly everything clicked.

It's a struggle man.

I want to get properly diagnosed, but man, it's not exactly an ADHD friendly process! I've got my childhood ADHD 'recommendation', a copy of a case study that was done on me for ADHD by a teacher, a mountain of self-assessments, an evaluation from a friend who's a psychiatrist, etc sitting... Somewhere. One day!

 

[Caesar]

It hasn't been mentioned yet but a lot of people diagnosed with ADD (attention deficit disorder) and ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder) don't actually have it. A lot of the symptoms can occur in people that drink too much coffee or drinks with stimulants in, food colours, preservatives, sugar, artificial sweeteners, illegal and legal drugs (side effects), stress, old age, lack of exercise and a few other things. Too much time using electronic devices (phones, computers, etc) can also cause symptoms.

There have been lots of reports of children being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD and the parents changed the kid's diet (removed junk food and fed them normal food), gave them some exercise, and the problems resolved without medication.

Reducing the amount of time you spend in front of a phone, tablet, pc or even playing games on the TV can make a difference to your sleep pattern, the amount of sleep you get and when you do get a decent night's sleep, your brain works properly. Lack of sleep will make you feel like a zombie, you will have trouble focusing, you might have balance problems, increased risk of disease, the list goes on. Everyone needs a decent night's sleep to function properly (physically and mentally).

Make sure you have a decent bed so you can actually get a good night sleep. Don't use electronic devices for at least 2 hours before you go to bed. You can watch a movie but don't text, surf the web or play games just before bed because they stimulate the brain and stop you sleeping.

Exercise can help in lots of ways. It causes the body to produce killer cells that fight diseases, serotonin that helps normal brain function and makes you feel better, and it tires out the muscles and body, and this will help you sleep better. One of the reasons people sleep less as they get old is because they don't do as much exercise. If you sit in a chair all day, chances are you might get 3-6 hours sleep per night and wake up feeling tired. If you spend several hours a day exercising (moving about), you will probably get closer to 8 hours sleep.

Any way, before you take drugs for a possible ADD or ADHD diagnosis, check your diet, reduce the pc use, do some exercise and try to get a good night sleep. If you still have all the symptoms after a month of that, then pop the pills.

Caffeine actually mildly improves ADHD symptoms. So if someone is experiencing similar symptoms while ingesting caffeine when they typically don't otherwise, then that's definitely not ADHD.

And to give context, if someone does have ADHD and they add structure to their life by focusing effort on supporting a healthy lifestyle, that would help reduce the impact of ADHD symptoms. It doesn't resolve them, but reduces the impact.

And finally, if someone is medicated for ADHD, they'll generally be given a stimulant. They'll know real fast if they don't have ADHD as the effects of, say Amphetamine, are ridiculously different on a neurotypical brain.

 

[Sgooosh]

im really weird im naturally crazy but i can control myself like when i dont turn off the “switch” i get bored easily LOL

 

[NannaLou]

I’m sorry that some of you are struggling with these conditions. There is a “spectrum” (The Autistic Spectrum) that has Aspergers at one end/side and Autism on the other. I’m not sure calling Aspergers a “less severe form of Autism“ is very fair. The effects of either can be very difficult for people to cope with and can be quite different. I have a nephew and two grandsons with low level Asperger signs and symptoms, my nephew used to ask, “are you asking me a question?”, and I couldn’t say get your stuff for school, I’d have to verbally say, PE kit, lunch box, coat…
My nephew wasn’t t ‘bad enough’ to get support through the education system where we are, at secondary school the support funding only covered the “worst” 15% of children with additional education needs

The grandsons are much younger and we just muddle through and make strategies, my youngest grandson, from about 18 month/2 years old wouldn’t eat ‘dirty food’ (anything with gravy or a sauce) or anything that might make his fingers dirty or sticky. I cut up iced donuts into slices and have showed him he can hold the dough bit so he didn’t get icing on his fingers, and watching a 3 year old, rough and tumble boy, ask for a fork if there’s iced birthday cake still makes me smile.

We are very fortunate that at the moment we are managing their “qwirks” (that are at the very lower end of the spectrum) but I do worry about them as they get older, I’m not sure if puberty will have an impact…

I think we all make strategies for coping with different things, my memory is very poor at the moment, so I have lists for everything…

Try not to ‘measure’ yourselves against others, you, like everyone else is a unique individual, try to find something you can do/enjoy doing and take pride in that, develop strategies for situations that you find difficult.

Best wishes to you

 

[fishyfun&fans]

symptoms do decrease with age and coping methods but the adhd is always there

its like when i focus on flying 99 percent of the time my minds fixed on the flight but that 1 percent of brain that isnt fixed on flying is going nuts thinking about 1001 different things

ive learnt to manage this but i still dont like flying on my own just in case

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

symptoms do decrease with age and coping methods but the adhd is always there

its like when i focus on flying 99 percent of the time my minds fixed on the flight but that 1 percent of brain that isnt fixed on flying is going nuts thinking about 1001 different things

ive learnt to manage this but i still dont like flying on my own just in case

I never learnt to drive for exactly this reason...I find it so difficult to concentrate on so many different things all at once, I started lessons before the first lockdown and I found it torturous. I was exhausted after my hours lesson from the stress of forcing myself to focus. And then my instructor always asked me to do a recap of what I'd learnt in the lesson when we got back to my house and I could never remember! I must have done her head in

 

[Tacocat]

It is true that some people don't actually have adhd/add, but there are others(including me) who can't actually control themselves, and have strange impulses that take over instantly, and get extremely hyperactive. Then, you get bored, and can't concentrate, wander around, go eat something, forget you have work, ta da! It's 23:53 now. Then, you get a pixel art assignment, and then you spend no one knows how long, and then all of a sudden it's 4:02, but you've created a masterpiece. You get me?