posted on Feb, 25 2010 @ 08:48 AM
Oh, ADHA exists alright. I know, as I was diagnosed with it. In my case, I was an honors student in high school and cruised through with high marks.
However, when I got to college everything changed.
See, in H.S., all the material was taught in the classroom w/homework to reaffirm the days lessons. That learning style made it easy for me. However,
once I got to college and had to read chapters and teach myself complex mathematical & scientific theories...well, my grades plummeted. I had a
serious problem with looking/reading the same single paragraph over and over and getting close to zero comprehension.
A friend of mine who worked as a receptionist at a psychologists office mentioned to me one day that my personality and my study habits were
indicative of ADD. Being desperate for some solution to my poor studies, I set an appointment with a specialist. I went in and conducted a series of
tests, all focused on comprehension, reaction time, etc. When all tests were done, I met something like 13 of 15 criteria for ADD diagnosis, as
established by the AMA (the number of criteria is my best guess, as that was many years ago).
I was diagnosed with a high level of ADD (no H for me) and was prescribed medication and had to make regular visits to the psychiatrist (mainly
because they are the ones who write prescriptions for controlled substances). The Psyc. recommended some self help books to help me learn to help
myself. While on medication, I taught myself how to study and comprehend and eventually was able to drop the medication.
Now, I still have a lapse on occasion; however, the difference now is that I can recognize when a lapse occurs, I can stop, regroup, refocus and work
through the attention deficit.
With all of that being said, I do believe that ADD or ADHD is diagnosed way too much.
On a side note, I asked my Psyc. why I was only now, as an adult, begin diagnosed with ADD. The Dr. said that in many cases, particularly those that
have ADD rather than ADHD, the issue does not reveal itself until college, as those with ADD tend to be highly intelligent and manage to excel in a
H.S. educational environment. Those with ADHD have trouble even in grade school, as their hyperactivity prevents them from absorbing the daily lesson
plans.
Anyhow, I figured I would chime in with my 2-cents. It's frustrating to see folks say that it's a made up disorder, as you can never know unless you
are affect by it. I use to say the same thing to my girlfriend (now my wife) in college...she had panic disorder...I never understood it and I was
critical of her disorder...UNTIL...one day I had a panic attack...WOW!!! that changed my whole perspective and gave me a new respect for
illness/disorders that I knew nothing about.
[edit on 25-2-2010 by Aggie Man]