ADHDFamilies

Seems that I’m not the only person who has ever suffered a few difficulties in life due to adult ADHD. This Post on youraddnews.com discusses the symptoms and effects of ADHD on the adult. I found it very good reading, and I hope that you will too.

I’ve seen a lot of ADHD blogs stating you should read one book or another.  Generally if you dig a bit deeper you’ll find that the site is run by the autor, or that the blog owner has something to gain from your purchase, and therefore continues to push the same book over-and-over, regardless of the fact that there are literally hundreds of books that deal with ADHD and comorbid conditions.

Today I discovered a blogger who, like me, is the parent of a child with ADHD.  Charles has a lot to say, and in this post has compiled a list of books he thinks you should read.  Along with that he has compiled an essential list of web sites to visit as well.

Though his blog is not a blog about ADHD, I highly recommend you take a look at what he’s written.  Just Follow This Link to see why I think he’s nailed it on this one.

I find the most interesting and intelligently written articles on LD and mental health issues on the Internet. Not usually at sites run by doctors, Psychiatrists or therapists, but on blogs run by the parents of, or the people with, the conditions they are writing about.

this really shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s stopped to think about it. We are the people that actually live with these disorders. I’m not knocking the medical community, but in all honesty, I doubt many psychologists out there actually have ADHD, ADD, BiPolar Disorder, Autism, or any of the other conditions they treat. They are trained to recognize the signs and symptoms, that’s it. Most of them will never truly understand.

Susan Senator apparently feels the same way. Her post, titled “I Pick You Up” talks about the new ad campaign being run by the New York University Child Study Center. This campaign features images that are intended to shock parents into treatment actions for Autistic children. The problem? The way it’s being done, and in my opinion it’s done this way because either they or their advertising company simply have no idea the kind of pressurethey are placing on parents.The Ads are based on fear tactics, something I firmly believe is wrong.

Take a moment and read Susan’s post. I think you’ll be glad you did.

From Youth For Human Rights - Boston.

Apparently, there is a school board member in the Boston Area somewhere who has also deemed themselves to be both a clinical researcher and a psychotherapist. Said educator is pushing the doctrine of “drug free” and states that there is no empirical evidence that ADHD is actually a disease.

To Quote:

ADHD has never been proven to be a neuro-developmental disease by any of the currently acceptable scientific standards. There is a lack of empirical evidence (meaning it cannot be repeated, tested, measured, or verified) that ADHD is a disease by definition. Therefore, to make such a claim is fraudulent.

Let me fill you in on something, sparky. ADHD is not a disease. ADHD is a disorder. Just for kicks, let’s go for the definition of that word:

• An abnormality in mental or physical health. In this module, disorder is used as a synonym for illness.
  science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih5/mental/other/glossary.htm

And there you have it. A disorder is an abnormality. Again, just a bit of common sense applied to the subject, from someone who carries this disorder around with him all day long. I do not think like “normal” people. In that sense you may call the way my mind functions a disorder if you choose to do so. It really doesn’t bother me.

What bothers me is that for some reason you people have decided to take an extremely left wing approach to what I’ve traditionally thought of as a right wing issue. Banning medication is not the answer. Finding out whether or not this is an evolutionary step is far more reasonable.

In conclusion, (and pardon me if this was a tad incoherent. I have had enough of schools pretending to know what’s best for my children!) Mr. or Ms. School board Member. Please refrain form engagin in sciences outside your field. There are trained professionals available to help these parents and their children find the best possible path they can. At times this may involve medication, but I hardly see where evangelizing a different point of vue from a position of respect is actually helping anything but your own hubris.

I mentioned Dana Blankenhorn’s blog yesterday.  In that entry I referred to his entry on his son’s problems with schools.  I got started reading the rest of his entries on ADHD and found this one.

In The Robin Williams in my Head, Dana compares having ADHD to having Robin Williams stuck in the back of your mind., always there, always talking, always being the mischief maker that he is.

I’ve got to admit that this is one of the best comparisons on ADHD I’ve ever heard.  Personally, I can relate to Robin Williams.  My sense of humor is just as explosive, just as spontanious, and just as nearly uncontrollable.  I find things funny when no one else does.  My anger works the same way.  Certain things that don’t strike me as being logical set me off on rants, and politics, (which I nearly never discuss), is one of those issues.

Take the time to read this post.  It’s well worth it.  And do as I did, Add Dana’s blog to your RSS reader.  He’s a bright guy, as many of us with ADHD are.  He’s also the father of a kid with ADHD.  In that respect he and I are very much alike.  I passed that gift on to three of my children at least.

Did you say gift???

Yes, because that’s what I consider ADHD to be, but I’ll go in to that in my next few entries.