Death bed confession: ADD/ADHD is a hoax.

Ritalin is a stimulant and like all of the stimulants it stimulates the nervous system. Stimulants, by and large, have similar effects. They tend to decrease weight gain and create a sense of alertness and wakefulness. Amphetamines are a popular sort of stimulant. Now, Ritalin is a Methylphenidate. The primary reason children diagnosed with ADHD or ADD are given a methylphenidate instead of an amphetamine is because while the amphetamine will have similar effects as methylpenidate, the methylpenidate will not increase the heart rate as much and this is beneficial, especially if the person has hypertension. Methylphenidate does exactly what they want which is to make it easier in the brain to produce dopamine and hence the feeling of reward, but it comes with less of the downsides than a normal amphetamine will bring with it, since amphetamines work on a less specific basis by increasing the heart rate and blood pressure. Keep in mind that most stimulants will increase dopamine, but not at equal amounts. Dopamine is hte reward chemical of the brain that acts as a reinforcing mechanism to keep us doing what 'works''.

Also note that many of the illegal stimulants or 'uppers' are taken BECAUSE of the enormous rush of dopamine they trigger. They're highly concentrated and usually injected which is much more intense than a pill can be since pills require more time and less is absorbed. Bottom line, most stimulants will have this similar effect and can give us a feeling of reward without us doing the corresponding work to achieve it. This is why drugs can become addictive and destroy a person.

Any drug used to treat ADHD or ADD is necessarily a much reduced form of the illegal drugs, since it targets dopamine production. It's only when this much reduced boost is accompanied by both effort and professional advisement that the medication can serve a worthwhile purpose. If abused, these drugs will hurt, not help.

Please note these drugs are targeted at people who have reduced ability, for whatever reason, to produce the dopamine they need to function normally. Whatever chemical or neurotransmitter you can name: some people will produce more or less than normal. By adjusting these levels via drugs, it gives the person a chance in life to compete with others on a more equal basis. These drugs only work when they're targeted in this manner. If over or underprescribed or abused it won't work.

The gist of this thread is on kids, and basing the fictitiousness on ADHD/ADD on the possible misdiagnoses based on child behavior.
What about the adults?
I always suspected I had ADD (without the 'H' , the space cadet type), then I was in denial for awhile, that ADD was a fake disorder. But I soon reversed that doubt. I realised I was in denial because I refused to accept that something like that could control me.

After having problems in the workplace, struggling to pay attention, to complete tasks on time, memory problems, attitude problems, being disorganised, lack of motivation, and tiring easily.
I decided I had had enough after getting laid off and getting fired from different jobs and went for a diagnoses, at the age of 43 I am finally officially diagnosed with ADD.
I take wellbutrin for it, not perfect, but I feel much better for it!

You see people, ADHD/ADD is much more than being an unruly kid, adults have it too, and we struggle immensely for it, and for it to be called a fake disorder is an insult.
If just one of you could be in my unmedicated shoes for just one week, you would not say that this is a phony malady.

Imagine an employer giving you a task to accomplish, the first line you understood and as you are processing that instruction all you can see is lips moving as your mind drifts off (mmmm, chocolate droooool....Homer Simpson) and you don't know anything that was said.
Or how about it taking all day long to snap out of the 'just got out of bed feeling?' That one is called brain fog, thought processes get lost in the physical feeling that ones head is stuffed with cotton baton.

Anyway, there is more to it than kids being kids, take it from an adult.
ADD/ADHD is real and is no picnic for those who struggle with it.

I do generally agree that ADHD is a ficticious disease, however there does exist people who are genetically predisposed to having extremely difficult times concentrating.

I think the way it's spoken of so loosely.. so easily "diagnosed", and put on meds, is ridiculous, however it beats being a toothless methwhore.

Seriously, I know of an old friend who was decent, and would meet the criteria for ADHD in every which way. It wasn't a slight case of it, she was extreme in her inability to concentrate, and control her impulses.

Well, she experimented, and she is a "true addict". She basically self-medicated her way into an absolutely trashy lifestyle, and became a toothless, BDSM methwhore, with antisocial tendencies.

I honestly wonder if she could have controlled herself with a controlled dose of that legal speed, and bypassed become so toothless, soulless, and trashy from the meth-culture.

I think maybe 1% needs to be medicated... maybe it's even 1 in a thousand, but not 10%, and not nobody.

I agree with the general statement that it takes away from someone's autonomy and developing personality. I think that many people who have slight issues should work through them and prove they are strong enough to overcome minor obstacles. Only the truly defunct should be medicated.

Here's a scenario. A child has some brain regions over activated, and some are under. The kid can't pass math or sciences classes to save his life, but he has a very divergent mind. His creativity is through the roof. Do we potentially ruin a possible creative genius with meds so the school district can meet their quota on standardized tests, or do we allow him to be a bit of a goof, to not get certain things, and to just be as he is?

I think each case must be properly weighed as to the potential benefits and detriments of being drugged up. In most cases, alternatives are better. In my friends case? I think she should have been put on a high dose of legal speed from an early age. Seriously. She's ruined too many hearts, and lives with her methwhore-antics. I can't even describe her decently these days. The pain is too great. I have to dehumanize her just to feel okay about humanity in general.

webedoomed
I do generally agree that ADHD is a ficticious disease, however there does exist people who are genetically predisposed to having extremely difficult times concentrating.

I assume you do not have ADHD/ADD.
But at the same time your statement contradicts itself.

BDSM methwhore,

BDSM?

daryllyn
If this is true...

Will all the people that are getting disability benefits for either themselves, or their children, for ADD/ADHD stop receiving their handouts?

hmmmm.....

didn't know they could/do get a handout since it's not classified as disabling disease....

or can they?

reply to post by Toadmund


There is no contradiction in my statement.

It's not a disease, period.


Yes, BDSM. It's what happens when people are incapable of releasing certain neurochemicals in sufficient quantities without extreme pain. It's common for meth users. Their brains are all sorts of messed up. I'm willing to be nearly all of them are extroverts.

I work in a secondary school in the UK and have seen some of the kids that are on the ADD ADHD list and yeah they have issues, but i personally think that most of them are down to boredom. Lets stop teaching kids things that they dont need. Alright certain subjects are a must, English, Maths, Science to some extent but not like we have now which is having it like six seven times a week that isn't needed and get rid of things like French, Spanish, teach them something that they will enjoy to learn, and before you say it No a good teacher doesn't make dull subjects enjoyable.

One last thing for this rant, bring back school day trips. Museums, Parks, Petting Zoos etc. I have worked at the school for seven years now and i have only seen kids go on trips that cost the parent four five hundred quid a time and that's just for a two week stay, for that kind of money i would take my kid to another country.

reply to post by Xcalibur254


The guy who invents - in his own words, the fictitious disease ADHD - admits it on his deathbed and still you hold on to the belief that it is real. How much more pleasant is it for a poor parent to have their son sit in a room alone staring at a wall like a vegetable then for that parent to actually do something resembling parenting. I think people who hold on to this even after its inventor discredits it just don't want to have to face real parenting or teaching for that matter.

reply to post by WWJFKD


Do you honestly think that every single child who is diagnosed with "ADHD" could become symptom free with excellent parenting and teaching?

I could see perhaps 90-something percent of "ADHD" vanish with the proper diet for their genetic needs, and the appropriate parenting and teaching, but ... I have a hard time buying that it would be 100% effective in all cases.

Some people honestly seem to need something more than can be taught at home and/or in the classroom.

Agree or disagree?

reply to post by webedoomed


The guy who invented it discredited it - period

I'm sorry we can now start referring to ADHD under its former name - being a kid.

Its as if everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief when this new "disorder" was named - Oh thank God there a name for this - there is a name for this and its called being a kid and its a wonderful time to experience with a child you love.

Cobaltic1978
How about parents actually start parenting and not look to attach a label to their child simply because it's easier than disciplining them?

Far, far easier to pile them with BIG pharma products and have a quieter life.

edit on 7/12/13 by Cobaltic1978 because: (no reason given)

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMEN brother....

My sister inlaws kid has bee diagnosed with this crap...what he needs isnt a tablet...what he needs is a firm hand..across his ass.

But nowadays you cant spank your child or you go to jail...so, pass the tablets..

It's a discipline thing, or lack of it.

WWJFKD
reply to post by webedoomed

 

The guy who invented it discredited it - period

I'm sorry we can now start referring to ADHD under its former name - being a kid.

Its as if everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief when this new "disorder" was named - Oh thank God there a name for this - there is a name for this and its called being a kid and its a wonderful time to experience with a child you love.

edit on 8-12-2013 by WWJFKD because: (no reason given)

edit on 8-12-2013 by WWJFKD because: (no reason given)

What about adults? Many adults also suffer from attention deficit problems or impulse control problems. I personally think many self-medicate with coffee/etc.

I think there's a strong impulse in many people to deny these problems because there's a sense of pride and control that must be fortified. Deep down, I think these sorts of people have insecurity driven by unrealistic expectations. To admit that some people have a mental disability or disorder is to admit they will probably live with that problem for the rest of their lives and likely can not be blamed for having it in the first place. This stands in contrast to the ideal held by these sorts that self-control and responsible behavior are all powerful. To believe otherwise threatens their sense of (misplaced) security. Ironically, being as they're produces insecurity! I would not be terribly surprised if these sorts of people also have a mental problem.

reply to post by WWJFKD


You didn't answer my question in the slightest.

Screw the label. Do you think everyone can get by on good parenting and teaching alone? That's my question.

If you answer yes, I think you're a bit naively optimistic.

reply to post by webedoomed


I'm sorry I was born in the 70s before we had disorders I guess - because I cant recall anyone having had this to any degree where medication was needed or any intervention outside of a swift kick in the pants. To answer your question I see no disorder - I didn't when it was first diagnosed and I no more now see it that its inventor has poo pooed it.

Komodo

daryllyn
If this is true...

Will all the people that are getting disability benefits for either themselves, or their children, for ADD/ADHD stop receiving their handouts?

hmmmm.....

didn't know they could/do get a handout since it's not classified as disabling disease....

or can they?

They can in some cases and actually do.

I don't know how common it is to get benefits for it, but it does happen.

reply to post by WWJFKD


Thanks for the response. I was born in the 80's, when few were diagnosed. I saw it's rise through the 90's, and was questioning it throughout the whole emerging "epidemic".

My friend I mention above is the only individual I knew personally who genuinely needed help outside of what parents or teachers could provide. Her mother was a wreck, but out of the picture. Her father was a military man, very loving but strict. If good parenting could have fixed her, she would be a-okay today.

She genuinely needed something stronger than a double shot of espresso.

He confessed this on his deathbed? They should've pulled his plug Immediately after.

webedoomed


Some people honestly seem to need something more than can be taught at home and/or in the classroom.

Agree or disagree?

Yes, That would be dopamine and norepinephrine, which is something that ADD people have not enough of.

reply to post by WWJFKD


Except, as I said, Eisenberg didn't invent it. Alexander Crichton wrote about it under the name mental restlessness in 1798. George Still first clearly identified the order in 1902. It's been in every edition of the DSM under a variety of names. That means it has been officially recognized by the APA going back to at least 1952. The effectiveness of using stimulants as a treatment was known back in the 1930s. Methylphenidate (Ritalin) was introduced in the 1950s. While it's true that Eisenberg did some research on ADHD (very little compared to his work on autism) he is in no way the "inventor." Furthermore, as I pointed out in my last post, if one actually goes back to the source article, instead of the Google translated one that has spawned threads like this, what Eisenberg says is that ADHD is overdiagnosed.

If ADHD does not exist explain why drugs like Ritalin and Adderall produce a different physiological effect in those suffering from the disorder? In fact why do the people suffering from ADHD have a different physiology in the first place?

WWJFKD
reply to post by webedoomed

 

I'm sorry I was born in the 70s before we had disorders I guess

Ah yes, the golden era before Big Pharma and The Gubment colluded to invent the fallacies of mental and physical illness...

Surely some aspects of our modern pharmaceutical-industrial complex are concerning, but just because certain conditions (not specifically referring to ADD/ADHD) didn't used to be diagnosed and/or treated doesn't mean they didn't/don't exist. Also, a condition being overdiagnosed or a medication being overprescribed doesn't negate the fact that some people actually experience that condition or are helped by that medication.