ADHD Does Not Exist

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Some do. It can even go into remission at any age, even in childhood. It's because the developmental delay catches up.



This is a good summary of what is involved in the developmental delay with images of what it looks like:

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/news/science-ne ... tern.shtml

This is interesing about ADHD following similar pattern of brain development, but with delays, suggesting that ADHD brain organization is similar to NT brain organization, which seems not to be the case in ASD.

Yep, Dr. Barkley always mentions this in his lectures, that young people with ADHD underreport their symptoms and their self-assessments don't match what other people say about them. They think the problem is everyone else but themselves, parents, teachers, school, society in general. But by the time they are in their 30's, they have more awareness of their impairments, and their self-assessments match what others say about their symptoms.

I self-diagnosed at 17, was formally diagnosed at 18 and then went into total denial in my 20's, partly because of the lack of support I found after I was diagnosed (hard for me to believe people with ADHD fake it just to get accommodations in work or school because for me it was like getting blood from a stone) and partly because I decided it was a "gift" rather than a disorder.

I used to catch Dr. Barkley on PBS in my 20's and what he had to say absolutely enraged me. I seriously resented the hell out of him. Thought he was wrong about pretty much everything he had to say. But now I get it. And it's hilarious to hear him describe in his lectures, that characteristic lack of self-awareness and how it matures into one's 30's, because that is exactly how it happened for me.

I don't see it as so much of a gift anymore, but I still embrace it as being part of what makes me, me, and I don't want to change it. Medication worked for me, during the short time I took it, but I didn't like the way it changed me. I doubt I will ever try it again. I am very sensitive to any kind of pharmaceutical drugs, so I don't even like to take the mildest over-the-counter stuff. I am especially wary of psychiatric drugs, and psychiatry in general, but I am coming around to the idea that it has its place, and people like Dr. Barkley are not the devil incarnate. (lol)

^I think we need a sticky thread for this, or better yet a banner on the top of every page of the forum.

Yes, and you can see it in some if you interact with lots of people who just have ADHD, neurodevelopmentally speaking.

Many don't come across as particularly "NT" by comparison, however.

They mostly just lose hyperactivity. Some could be able to manage their ADHD better that it no longer causes seriously impairment. I suppose to them they don't seem to be doing that bad compared to their childhood.

I know a lot of adults who still struggle with the EF problems.

Tell me about it. Also, explanations of "statistical significance" and how you do not in fact need to poll every single person on Earth to achieve statistical accuracy.