ADD: You have it and you and you and you

[jackfaire]

This is more about the many false diagnoses that make people not take this seriously than anything else.

"Well doctor my son can't sit still after having a lot of sugar while the Sun is shining outside the classroom there must be something wrong with him."

Of course instead of saying hmmm he is a kid or look his fellow students can't either must be a boring teacher, they do exist, it must be the student having a chemical imbalance.

The problem is that I really do have ADD and yes I do have problems focusing not because god that was boring and now I am going to let my mind wander off for awhile but because wow this is completely aweso.....ooooo squirrel. Is less of a joke and more of a reality to me.

While I am doing my job I will suddenly shake my head and realize that rather than noting a customer's account I have spent the last 5 minutes with my mind chasing random thoughts. Even worse is when I do it with the customer on hold.

Normally I can cover it up but lately my boss has noticed and because the world is saturated with people that "have" ADD I can't just tell her "Hey please cut me some slack"

And no it's not just a work thing either. I can be doing my own personal stuff and drift off too. I usually employ the write it down method, if a random thought pops up write it down and shove it away to come back to later.

I am thinking when my insurance is back in April of seeing if maybe I should get on some Meds for it see if I can focus better.

*sighs* I really didn't want to ever go back on meds but this is a long term (read job security) job and I really don't want to lose it when it's funding me so I can work on my writing, which is also made difficult.

[Ginger Tea]

ADD is the cop out for the states as depression is in the UK
guy down the hall got signed off on sick with "depression" years ago and spent a fair chunk of one year in a bottle of white cider and his anti depression meds said "do not take with alchohol" so he might as well have not taken them instead of bitching that his pills didnt work to his GP, whom he didn't meantion his drinking problem to.
he had to get reevaluated once as his GP got struck off, led me to think that he was on the fiddle and would sign you sick for a fee.
everyone gets depressed but only a few where it really affects them, he however, probably would be fine drinking aside.

So yeah saying I have ADD or ADHD would't garner any sympathy within the work place as its seen as the lazy cop out and not a real issue for those that do have it, same as ME aka yuppie flue in the late 80's and 90's

[Rageaholic]

I have ADD too (for real). When I start talking about something, I can never stay on topic and I don't even realize it until 5 minutes later. Then when I try to get back on topic, I only confuse people more. I hesitate to judge others for faking it because I got the same thing from teachers. If I struggled with something, I would often beat myself up, feeling like an idiot. I wouldn't want to do that to others who may genuinely have it. It never really occured to me that if people would stop claiming to have ADD, than it would be taken more seriously.

I mean, a lot of learning disabiliies are like that. As someone who has a tendancy to beat himself up over stuff, it does not help when people act like you can just "get over it". I mean, if someone has a genuine struggle with something, does it really make them lazy? I don't think so.

I still blame ignorant teachers who think they know everything. But those who actually do use it as an excuse are not helping.

[Kimmik]

I have what I call ados.. attention deficit oooo squirrel. I use to call it shiney[s till I was on the porch with hubs and friend and I was talking and right in the middle I went ooo squirrel.. but it was a cute one. I know I have ADD on top of a perfection complex and ocd... they have offered me meds but I promised a friend I would never take anything like that. I use to self medicate with speed.

It was nice because I could sit and write and draw for hours, I was able to watch a movie or tv show. I get so pissed at those who do the whole oh you can do it if you really wanted to or the ones that treat you like shit and act like you just want to waste their time, or that you are lazy.

It is one of the reasons that I want to home school Squee. I don't want her to have the problems that I did. Give me the book and leave me alone and I could pass any test you gave me. On the flip side if you make me sit there and take notes or just listen... yeah I bomb the test.
List of Fake* Conditions
ADD
Fibro
Severe Depression
BPD
OCD

Yeah people who use it as a drama method need bitch slapped. Sorry you are having a hard time Jack.

I can never stay on topic and I don't even realize it until 5 minutes later

Oh god I am so guilty of this... and then people tease me about being a scatter brain and the like... I am like no I am fucking sorry my brain just refuses to go slow. That is normally how I make so many typos is because my brain goes faster then my fingers.

*fake as in regards to fucktwats that have no clue on just what the hell is real and not...

[Eisa]

Oh, I have a lot of "fake" diagnoses like that, Kimmik. I hate when people diagnose normal children with ADD just because they're "hyper" or "can't pay attention." I think most kids are like that, at least some of the time!

I can, and have been officially for most of these, been diagnosed with:

*laundry list*

depression
social anxiety
phobias [one test said I had agoraphobia...lol no I don't ]
PTSD
complex PTSD
EDNOS
OCD [possibly sub-clinical?]
Either DID or DDNOS...depends on how you want to fit me neatly into the diagnostic criteria, but for all intents and purposes...
non-verbal learning disability...and I have had ADD symptoms, but they're possibly just a result of everything else and not a diagnosis in their own right, so I'm not gonna include it.


And I hate people who fake dramatic over it. I really do. Also, I do the OOOH SQUIRREL thing, too. Oooh that reminds me of when I was walking to the dining hall one time and saw a squirrel jump into a trash can. Er, sorry.

[Lace Neil Singer]

I feel your pain. Recently, the trendy diagnosis has been autism/aspergers. While some of those children may genuinely have it, in a lot of cases it seems to be simply a way to excuse bad parenting by slapping a label on the kid and screeching "He can't help misbehaving in public, he's autistic!" -.- It just gets on my nerves, cuz it gives those of us who actually have it a bad rap. Also, a lot of these so called autistic kids are what I call "mommy diagnosed"; as in they've not been near a doctor, but Mommie Dearest has decided that her kid has autism so as not to actually have to parent.

[IDrinkaRum]

OoO don't get me started on fucktwats who think my daughter's diagnosis of autism is fake. One of the main reasons? She's a girl! Mainly her autism is exhibited in her perseveration. She obssesses about something and will not let go of it. She has to have it. And she has to have it now. However, for those who don't understand autism and perseveration, she's just "a brat". I'll write more later if anyone is interested.

[fireheart17]

I feel your pain. Recently, the trendy diagnosis has been autism/aspergers. While some of those children may genuinely have it, in a lot of cases it seems to be simply a way to excuse bad parenting by slapping a label on the kid and screeching "He can't help misbehaving in public, he's autistic!" -.- It just gets on my nerves, cuz it gives those of us who actually have it a bad rap. Also, a lot of these so called autistic kids are what I call "mommy diagnosed"; as in they've not been near a doctor, but Mommie Dearest has decided that her kid has autism so as not to actually have to parent.

Been there, seen those. I do see a couple of kids with autism from time to time at work. as for me...

Official diagnoses:

Borderline Personality Disorder
Dysthymia

There's some anxiety as well from either one of those, not sure which. That said, my parents and I have been told-twice-that I could possibly have Aspergers. Based on my behaviour at school. Once when I was 5 and again when I was around 13/14. Both tests came up negative, just that I ha dsome issues with social skills.

[Andara Bledin]

Don't blame the fucktards with the pseudo-illnesses: Blame the doctors that hyped them up in order to push the pills of the day.

My mother referred to it as "the illness du jour."

Plus, some doctors just don't have a clue as regards some of these conditions. It's easier to just slap a label on and prescribe a few pills than actually do the work necessary to determine the real problem. Western medicine is particularly lousy about being more about treating symptoms than actually finding the cause.

As an example: Back when ADD was the diagnosis of choice for hyperactive kids, a friend of mine had her kid diagnosed with it. Since she didn't trust the diagnosis or the prescribed pills, she consulted the net and instead tried checking for food allergies, since that is actually a far more common problem that has nearly identical symptoms. Turns out, her kid (like quite a few others) has an allergy to wheat, which is the main component in many breakfast cereals. No wheat, no problem. And no ADD.

^-.-^

[Lace Neil Singer]

Been there, seen those. I do see a couple of kids with autism from time to time at work. as for me...

Official diagnoses:

Borderline Personality Disorder
Dysthymia

There's some anxiety as well from either one of those, not sure which. That said, my parents and I have been told-twice-that I could possibly have Aspergers. Based on my behaviour at school. Once when I was 5 and again when I was around 13/14. Both tests came up negative, just that I ha dsome issues with social skills.

Well, I was diagnosed with Antisocial Personality Disorder as a teenager, and actually had Aspergers so you might well have it. It's on a spectrum so there are mild and not so mild cases.

Rum, I've had the "you're a girl so you can't have Aspergers" thing; maybe rarer in girls but that doesn't mean anything. Maybe it's just that doctors are narrowminded and believe that girls can't have it, so they don't diagnose it.

[jackfaire]

Don't blame the fucktards with the pseudo-illnesses: Blame the doctors that hyped them up in order to push the pills of the day.
^-.-^

Most of the doctors I was seeing (insurance and hospital were one and the same) were actually tired of seeing kids whose parents were pushing it. It seemed mostly to be the parents pushing for a diagnosis of some kind.

It couldn't possibly be that their kids weren't very good students no the teacher is wrong something must be wrong with Junior cuz otherwise he/she would be a Rhodes Scholar.


Edit:

I point out that the hospital was also the insurance company to make the point that for them diagnosing a bunch of kids with ADD wouldn't actually make them more money it would make them less because then they would be paying for kids to take the meds.

[protege]

Plus, some doctors just don't have a clue as regards some of these conditions. It's easier to just slap a label on and prescribe a few pills than actually do the work necessary to determine the real problem. Western medicine is particularly lousy about being more about treating symptoms than actually finding the cause.

Doctors aren't the only ones who are sometimes clueless. Many parents just want the label. Either for the sympathy, or as an excuse so they don't have to parent their kids.

...and if anyone is wondering, I do have some mental issues. Most people have no idea that I've had to deal with depression most of my life. They're actually surprised, since I don't talk about it much, or even try to use it as an excuse. Keep in mind too that when I was growing up, it still had a negative stigma. Even now, some relatives give me shit because it "doesn't exist" or that I'm "imagining things." Hell, my *mother* was like that. She and my dad downplayed what I was going through, until the dark thoughts started. I had to go through it myself, and I can't forgive them for that.

Back on topic somewhat, I guess I'm a bit pissed off still. Too many people, whether they're on a diet, or even going through mental issues...all want a quick fix for things. It's easier to slap the ADD, OCD, or what have you on something, rather than fix the real issues.

[IDrinkaRum]

Lace, I'm reading this book and I recommend it (from what I've read so far):
http://www.amazon.com/Girls-Umbrella...0867810&sr=8-1

It's a book called Girs Under the Umbrella of Autism Spectrum Disorders. (That's the short title, the longer one is at the link).

It's harder to diagnose girls as they don't exhibit the "typical" autism symptoms that boys do and what autism "quirks" they do have, they can cover up. The book explains it better than I can.

My daughter actually had the typical symptoms (loss of speech, no eye contact, no pointing at objects, stemming, and now the perseverance), but the doctors were relunctant to get me to a developmental pediatrician until I said she lost the ability to say 2 word phrases. (She could still say Mama and that meant everything, but she had been picking up a few other words - she had a speech delay also).

As for me, I have the following:

Depression (started out as Post Partum Depression and then morphed into Depression)
Emotional Anxiety (tied to my daughter)
Panic Attacks
OCD (or CDO - 'cos you know, it's in order Ahem)

The OCD can be seen in those with autism. The perseverance is OCD x a million. My daughter still stems (spinning around until she falls down and then gets up and does it again).

I will say: It took me 2 years of therapy of admit to the possibility of my daughter having autism and to actually say "daughter" and "autism" in the same sentence. This might be a failing on my part as a mother, but I took the diagnosis hard as I blamed myself.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Aww... *pats* Aspergers was unheard of when I was a kid, so out came the diagnosis of Antisocial Personality Disorder to explain why I was unsocial. -.-

Later on, my fiance's mother (who works with autistic children) recognised the symptoms in me and suggested I take an online test. I did and it showed I probably had Aspergers. I eventually got an offical diagnosis from a doctor; also now, my family thinks my older brother has it too, cuz he shows a lot of the same symptoms that I do.

I never had any problems talking, but I always did (and still do) go on and on about my personal obsessions, go off into repetitive loops and use big words. I used to, as a child, stim quite badly; I can just about stem it while at work, tho I end up tapping my feet or fingers sometimes. I also managed to quit chewing my hands and nails.

It still annoys me how some people can slap this label on their kids to avoid having to parent, and brush it off lightly, when it's not something to be just brushed off. These people don't understand anything about the autism spectrum. I've had someone say that I obviously didn't have autism, cuz I wasn't wearing a helmet and drooling. I just about managed to suppress the urge to reach out and punch them. That just shows complete ignorance.

[Ginger Tea]

basic knowledge is a double edged sword
if you are ignorant of something you dismis it or call liar (eg no helmet or drooling)
if you have heard of it, you can misuse it with those who have also heard of it.

I had never heard of Aspergers untill I read the misterious case of the dog in the night (or was it curious?), but I didn't know anyone personally who fitted the symptoms.

my knowlege of Autism stems from TV shows where someone could tell you the day from any given date even factoring the gregorian julian change over, that's all they ever said on the subject, or atleast what stayed in my memory. Then there was the card counting ability in rain man, a film I have never watched, so numbers and the ability to excel with them seemed to be a plus and everything else was thrown out because of if. again thats the image I got from TV.