I've got ADD and can't get my life togeather. Should I get meds, or is there a better way to deal with this?
I've got ADD and can't get my life togeather. Should I get meds, or is there a better way to deal with this?
Brayden Young
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Adrian Turner
Depends on you.
One of the neurological markers of ADHD is lack of dopamine and norepinephrine production in the brain which causes some of the symptoms.
Stimulant medications give a baseline and stabilize the chemical deficit which can help a lot with symptom management.
But even with meds a lot of ADHD is self management and organization and coping skills. Lots of list making, lots of self scheduling, lots of environment management and so on.
Tl;Dr
>Do i need meds
Depends on you but some with ADHD absolutely do need meds.
>Is there a better way
With or without meds theres still a lot of management to be done.
Check out Dr. Russel Barkley or how to ADHD on YouTube
Jose Rivera
I'm a 30 year old NEET. My parents wouldn't believe I have ADHD and they think depression doesn't exist (raised by narcissists). I want to unfuck my life and go my own way, so I would like some answers as well. Watching Dr. Russel at the moment.
Joshua Jackson
People with adhd don't typically become NEETs. Your problem probably lies elsewhere.
Cooper Sanders
What happens to ADD people? Asking for a friend.
John Allen
It varies to an extreme and depends on the individual and their environment.
They excel in arts, business, entrepreneurship, skill trades, medicine, sciences; typically jobs where people skills or creativity and problem solving are major components.
But a lot have their specific skills and talents neglected through school. They tend to be more intelligent and it shows, but they can't keep up with the work. They get a lot of "you just need to apply yourself, you're so smart! You can do anything!" So they tend to follow the trends and try to do what other people do thinking they're smart enough (they are) and one day they'll be able to be responsible and focus on things they aren't interested in (they can't)
They'll wind up in post secondary programs not suited to them, or start careers they can't really keep up in. It's not uncommon for an ADHD person to be a job jumper, a globe trotter, get fired frequently, develop major anxiety disorders and so on.
Jacob Jones
My problem is that I need to put together a portfolio of my skills (went to college and have a degree), but I get distracted with projects that are not necessary for my advancement. I never finish any of my work, unless it's for a client and then I will do it 48 hours before the deadline or keep extending it. I have dozens of personal work 80% complete. Then out nowhere I will go and take up a new kind of related skill, like software development. The novelty of learning something new and small little victories puts me into hyperfocus, where I will wake up at 8AM and work on my game/software until 10PM. Two months go by and realize this isn't going to be all that great and should focus on my portfolio. But first, let's take photographs. Or make maps in Fortnite to show off my game design skills. Maybe I should make music, I always wanted to be a producer on the side.
Oh, I have to get 15 minutes of work done today? First thing after breakfast... Oh a YouTube video... Let's check Jow Forums... Oh it's night. I should buy a few t-shirts. Hmm, which color would work best on me? Let's look into color theory. What kind of clothes I have? Hmm, let's do it tomorrow and see if I still want them. Should I look at a different brand? Takes me a month to do it. Certainly has to be ADHD. The only time I can get anything done is if there's a chance someone will hate me for not finishing my work.
Jayden Richardson
Not that guy, but what jobs are better? Which things should I be going after?
Zachary Evans
Yo. ADD user here. Tried a lot of things. Heres my personal opinions.
>amphetamine salts (adderall, dexadrine)
Eh it's a heavy stimulant. Imagine a cup of coffee that's way too strong and doesn't stop kicking. Disorganized bookcases suddenly become a fun challenge which I dont think is a good thing.
Lots of heart racing, dazed moments between hyperfocus, and general overstimulation.
Focus: 8/10
Side Effects: 1/10
>vyvanse
It made me overly emotional. Focus wasn't blasted through the roof like a.s. side effects were above but add in that emotional overstim as well. Short fuse. Easy frustration.
Focus: 6/10
Side Effects: 3/10
>wellbutrin
Mind fog like a motherfucker. Doesn't stimulate as much as most. Quitting smoking cogs was easy. But not sure it helped my add either. Gave me general apathy, nihilism. Not good for emotional state. (Others have combined this one with others for decent results. I have not tried.)
Focus: 5/10
Side Effects: 5/10
>modafinil
Not an add med, but god damn I loved it. I felt like I had the choice to focus rather than being forced to focus like other meds. Made being social pretty easy. Can be bad once toleranced by the body. Just slowly stops working. Dont take on weekends.
Focus: 7/10
Side Effects: 7/10
>marijuana
Ayyy. But for real, a low dose once can help with the choice to focus. Generally I notice the day after smoking, it is easier. side effects are known and not life altering. Feels less mediciney than the others so far
Focus: 5/10
Side Effects: 8/10
See also: CBD
>coffee, nicotine, sugar, taurine, b vitamins
The immediate heart races. The college cocktails. They work, briefly.
Focus: 4/10
Side Effects: 7/10
>zinc, fish oil, gaba, lite b complexes
Nothing
Focus: health/10
Side Effects: benefits/10
Joshua King
That depends on you. I can't really help you with that if I don't know you.
I'm a carpenter. Every day is different, I build shit, I change job sites a lot. It works well for me. Given my passions I probably would have done well in medicine or psychology as well. this guy sounds about right for ADHD as well, but his thing is tech and software development.
Yeah guy, that's my days too, except with regular house chores. I've dabbled in self employment but had the same issues as you.
>I can only focus if someone is going to be mad at me
The ADHD brain goes rain man under crisis. You can use that to your advantage if you figure out how to manipulate it.
I highly recommend you watch a lot of Russel Barkley or how to ADHD as I mentioned earlier. They're helpful.
Also i self prescribed modafanil, ordered it from India. It's working wonders for me. Its a mysterious drug, they don't know how it works, it's not technically a stimulant, but it acts on the pre frontal cortex, where a huge part of the ADHD problems lie.
James Wood
Vipassana at least once a day
Christian Carter
fuck you make me feel bad , i ve been negletcting my practice
Also dont forget samatha along with that vipasssana !
Jacob Jackson
Continuing but not the same way.
What helped me the best with ADD is just realizing when I'm feeling flighty to my current project. Then taking a defined break. Walk around. Smoke (or dont). Get a cool drink. Sit back down. Tell yourself you're going to finish. Make yourself do it. Take more breaks, but not after a set time. 40 to work. 5 to break. And cycle. Time management is so hard for us, but if you get some kind of schedule down it helps immensely.
Dont:
>play a game
>read articles
>chat with others
>really internet at all
>start something new
Gavin Bailey
I try meditations but my mind keeps racing. Can't focus on the breathing. But I guess it's good to be processing all the shit I got going on in my head.
Jaxon Lewis
For me its staggering boredom and then hatred for the topic at hand. It's this immediate feel of wanting to do literally anything else because the current challenge does not reap the rewards we want immediately.
I believe most add people at an early age would just immediately change topics, day dream, ect. Thus this leads to the attention switch most of us do by nature. We look at a different topic but baseline, the start of that topic change is the worst part.
It feels like being in a room that is too hot eventually. Keep focus on something that you dont really want to focus on is immensely difficult. The unwanted attention stress builds up until our brains start darting to other things rapid fire.
Now, the topic or thing of focus doesn't have to be a super difficult thing. It could just be what our minds perceive at the moment to be boring. Or something else appears better. That's why in conversation with someone add they're all over the place. They could go from different topics each time they speak in a conversation. Imagine alt tabbing after every click and sometimes you randomly alt f4.
Asher Foster
>but my mind keeps racing. Can't focus on the breathing.
That is the meditation. Keep returning to your object.
By doing this you are cultivating concentration and mindfulness, both of which are essentially the answer to any "attention" problems the West has concocted.
Nathaniel Evans
>Attention problems concocted
Adhd is neurodevelopmental bruv. Concentration isn't an issue for them.
They can hyperfocus on one topic for unbelievable amounts of time shutting the entire world out in the process. They just can't choose what.
And the attention symptom is one of a hundred other symptoms not related to attention at all.
Jose Morris
Jeremiah Bennett
>They just can't choose what.
Also, so by meditation you are the one dictating where your attention goes, that is the breath or your object.
Christopher Martin
Meditation does help a lot... That wasn't my issue. It's the implication behind the word "concocted" that it's not a real thing. It very much is.
Kayden Cruz
I'm a good technician at work and can solve problems of ungodly complexity, make good money, have a decent family life, but don't communicate well with others and have to work hard to listen to what they are saying, and don't have any friends cause I can't be bothered with relationships outside my immediate family. Would I be a better person if I got treatment, or would it fuck up my current life.
Robert Peterson
Define fuck up your life..
Eli Bennett
Like, will I stop being a brilliant problem solver? Will it affect the few relationships I have? That sort of thing.
Brayden Green
weed, like a hit every few hours