[h4nnib4l]

The ability to pay attention is a scale. On one end, you have our autistic friend who could probably code through an air raid (a level of concentration that I honestly envy), and at the other, you have kids who can't finish a sentence before they are distracted by something shiny. For most of the people on the latter half of the scale, some fucking discipline is all that is needed. Then you have the 1% who are just at the extreme end of the scale (like people who are flat-out allergic to sunlight), and medication probably makes sense for them; I'm talking about truly crossed up wires, not just "really scatterbrained". Then you get the people who will gladly join in bashing other people on their half of the scale, but feel that they happen to be the exception to that rule (I suspect they find themselves to be the exception to many rules).

This post has been edited by h4nnib4l: 09 October 2012 - 12:12 PM

[wordswords]

ADD isn't something you can consciously 'shake off'. It's a real, medical, diagnosis which can require serious treatment with Ritalin. I don't see where the 'ADD denial' group are getting their evidence to the contrary. I wonder if they have any, apart from half-baked opinions.

[no2pencil]

wordswords, on 10 October 2012 - 01:13 PM, said:

ADD isn't something you can consciously 'shake off'. It's a real, medical, diagnosis which can require serious treatment with Ritalin. I don't see where the 'ADD denial' group are getting their evidence to the contrary.

I grew up with a cousin who was diagnosed with 'ADD' & was prescribed Ritalin. We were both incredibly rowdy, mouthy boys. My mother disciplined me properly, & I learned to behave. His mother shoved pills down his throat, & most days he just slept through the morning & mid afternoon, & was a zombie into the evening. It is my first hand experience that Ritalin is a sick excuse for a baby-sitter & robbed my cousin of his child-hood summers.

[h4nnib4l]

Notice the part where I acknowledged that the extreme end of the scale, the ones who get a disorder with a fancy, ever-changing name, should probably be medicated? Just like any other "disorder" in America, there are a few people with a serious problem, and a shitload of people who have been convinced by the pharmaceutical industry (and lazy-assed parents) that they have it too. If your "disorder" keeps changing its name and becoming more all-inclusive, that's a pretty good indicator that it's largely bullshit. Go ahead, label this as a "half-baked opinion" too, that way you can ignore it too. Whatever helps you live with your bottle of drugs. I'd probably be a little sensitive about getting my discipline from a prescription too.

This post has been edited by h4nnib4l: 10 October 2012 - 11:34 AM

[jon.kiparsky]

I read in the Times yesterday about a doctor in Georgia who's giving out Adderall to all of his under-18 patients (unless they're getting As or B's). This is a doctor who's assuming that ADD is the default condition - and he hasn't been stripped of his license, so there's at least a few people who don't mind this.
Considering that the side effects include "growth suppression, increased blood pressure and, in rare cases, psychotic episodes" this is serious stuff. A nation of hypertense psychotic midgets is not something to take lightly.

Following on h4nnib4l's point, how did we get from basically zero to epidemic in fifty years?

[no2pencil]

jon.kiparsky, on 10 October 2012 - 02:48 PM, said:

Following on h4nnib4l's point, how did we get from basically zero to epidemic in fifty years?

$$$

[modi123_1]

I basically blame the children. Thinking of them got us into this mess in the first place!

[jon.kiparsky]

no2pencil, on 10 October 2012 - 01:50 PM, said:

jon.kiparsky, on 10 October 2012 - 02:48 PM, said:

Following on h4nnib4l's point, how did we get from basically zero to epidemic in fifty years?

$$$

Yeah, pretty much.

[no2pencil]

It isn't about building a better product. It's about building a new customer base. & what better salesmen then doctors? Leveraging fear & distress over currency.

w00t! USA!! USA!!

[supersloth]

jon.kiparsky, on 10 October 2012 - 12:48 PM, said:

I read in the Times yesterday about a doctor in Georgia who's giving out Adderall to all of his under-18 patients (unless they're getting As or B's). This is a doctor who's assuming that ADD is the default condition - and he hasn't been stripped of his license, so there's at least a few people who don't mind this.
Considering that the side effects include "growth suppression, increased blood pressure and, in rare cases, psychotic episodes" this is serious stuff. A nation of hypertense psychotic midgets is not something to take lightly.

Following on h4nnib4l's point, how did we get from basically zero to epidemic in fifty years?

holy shit i want some adderall that easy.

[jon.kiparsky]

supersloth, on 10 October 2012 - 02:10 PM, said:

holy shit i want some adderall that easy.

Just turn up looking young and dumb.

[supersloth]

jon.kiparsky, on 10 October 2012 - 01:13 PM, said:

Just turn up

that's where i gave up reading your post

[wordswords]

no2pencil, on 10 October 2012 - 05:17 PM, said:

I grew up with a cousin who was diagnosed with 'ADD' & was prescribed Ritalin. We were both incredibly rowdy, mouthy boys. My mother disciplined me properly, & I learned to behave. His mother shoved pills down his throat, & most days he just slept through the morning & mid afternoon, & was a zombie into the evening. It is my first hand experience that Ritalin is a sick excuse for a baby-sitter & robbed my cousin of his child-hood summers.

I think the healthcare system is a bit different in the US. Here in the UK, (although there are some exceptions), you wouldn't get a prescription from a doctor unless there was a really good reason, because we have a public health service. In fact it is more likely that a doctor would refuse to give you something like Ritalin, because it costs the NHS a lot to subsidise the prescription, completely aside from the risk of addiction and side effects. Doctors here often are told not to prescribe expensive drugs when there is a cheaper alternative, to save money.

From what I've heard in the US, the patient drives the process a lot more as they are a customer, and so demands for diagnosis and strong medicines which the parent has convinced him/herself that the child needs, are more likely to be fulfilled.

[WolfCoder]

I crank up the melodic power metal and smash at my keyboard until I've made enough progress that day. There's no "before" with big projects since it's a thing you resume working on day after day. You only get started once but you continue many times.

[h4nnib4l]

I still think my old senior drill instructor could remove your need for ADHD pills.