[dmak]

I don't like to view it as an disorder, because that says there is a correct way that your brain should function. I think it's just different. Viewing it disorder is self-defeating for people with ADHD, it's like saying they think there is something wrong with them at all times, but there really isn't. They just find different ways to do things.

[jotm]

Except the effects vary from person to person and in the worst cases, people never find ways to do anything.

[baristaGeek]

Exactly. It's just a difference in cognition.

[falcolas]

It is starting to aggravate me that every time we have articles like this come up that people keep trotting out the crap explanations of "it's just another way of thinking", because they saw it in some TED talk.

No, it isn't. It's a fucking neurological disorder which affects dopamine production, which interferes with normal brain function.

Imagine sitting down to work on something you really want to finish, but you can't. You're reading reddit instead, because that gives you a quick dose of entertainment. You keep yelling at yourself to do the work, because it's your job on the line. But no, you'll end up looking at cat pictures, because, hey, cats. That's what ADHD is like.

[walterbell]

Have you been to an ADD conference where you are surrounded by hundreds of similarly-wired brains? Neurotypical is defined by the local majority. In a hunter-gatherer society, slow reaction time means no dinner. Don't be fooled by labels which originate in specific social contexts. Environmental impedance mismatches can be addressed by changing the human or changing the environment.

[falcolas]

You know what else means no dinner in a hunter society? Your spear breaking because you forgot to fire harden it. Scaring away the pretty because you inadvertently bumped into a tree (inadvertently bumping into things on a regular basis is an indicator of ADHD). In a gathering society: not gathering because a butterfly distracted you. That's the effect of ADHD.

ADHD doesn't make you some magical hunter, patience does. Reaction time has nothing to do with ADHD, it comes from paying attention when the stimuli comes about, something a person with ADHD can't do.

As for "normal", I base it off the figure of 95%. That is, our brains are different from 95% of humanity. That strikes me as a good definition of abnormal, better than "I surround myself with th those like me, so I'm totally normal".

[walterbell]

If everyone has a spear-hardening "problem", there will be external structure and rituals to ensure that this activity is not forgotten. Reaction time is explicitly measured by one clinical test which diagnoses ADHD.

There is no normal, that's the main point. If you get enough people with "AD(H)D" in a room, and ask a few questions about preferred cognitive styles (sound, light, touch, motor movement) you will discover clusters of preferences and a wide range of differences.

The label ADHD is most useful as a search term for a vocabulary of common challenges. Naming any problem is necessary to develop shared solutions. Prior to the advent of this term, non-neurotypical people independently named their logistical challenges and independently re-invented solutions.

Are you familiar with the term hyperfocus? Is that a strength or weakness?

[techdragon]

If you want to be really correct it's a simple label for what is otherwise a spectrum of symptomatic severity due to underlying neurological issues.

I've met plenty of people who are 100% ADHD, both parents, all their children, it is inheritable, and the degree to which each person needed treatment for their personal ADHD symptoms tends to vary a lot. ADHD isn't a binary condition, you can have ADHD tendencies, mild ADHD, severe ADHD, etc.

The frustration felt by those suffering with the worst symptoms when people fail to appreciate their condition is hard to fix. While Autism has been the subject of the decade thanks to a particularly disgusting pustule of a human being publishing a particular fraudulent paper in a medical journal, ADHD is quietly toyed with now and then. Most improvements to treatment for ADHD have been accidental and is further hampered by the usual concerns regarding psychoactive pharmacology, what is a legal treatment in one jurisdiction is an illicit narcotic in others.

We're all human, I like lots of other people, have ADHD. Consequently I'm going to post this as written rather than try to edit away the lack of a clear direction or good summation. I've learned to cut my losses on tangential trains of thought, this one has already lead to a rather mushy breakfast :-/

[colechristensen]

What are these conferences?

[walterbell]

Last year's Adult ADHD conference: http://www.cvent.com/events/adda-s-15th-international-adult-...

Tapes from older conferences: http://www.audiotapes.com/browse.asp?Topic=3

There is useful practical information buried among clinical studies and pathology discussions.

[colechristensen]

I've definitely known a few people who have used their diagnosis for a mild cognitive disorder as an excuse to exhibit it's negative symptoms. Knowing how to and proactively managing emotional and motivational responses is one thing, saying "I have ADD" and using that to be perfectly happy watching Netflix all day instead of doing your homework is entirely something else.

And I totally agree. Some people are given wrenches, other people hammers. The solution isn't to make people really good at tightening bolts with hammers.