(no subject)
Maybe a forewarning. This is a rant. I'm just so frustrated.
I'm sort of proud of my ADD. I am basically so creative that it makes me academically (and sometimes socially) inept. That's pretty cool (and self-glorifying). But maybe I've been misled about what people with ADHD are usually like... Maybe my parents glossed it up so I wouldn't feel bad about myself. "Oh, people with ADD are really creative and smart!" I really have always been under the impression that when someone is truly ADD, they possess very specific intellect and creativity. That they are interesting, spontaneous, bright-eyed, severe. I always really viewed it as a good thing.
It is unfortunate that most of the hypochondriacs, attention seekers and compulsive liars I have ever met in college just happened to also have ADD and fibromyalgia. And any disease that the doctor has to take your word for. Separately, these things probably exist. I am wary, however, of someone who keeps discovering disorders and that you basically have to self diagnose. My point being, I think a lot of people don't actually have ADD...and I think it gives people who do a bad name.
Because of this, every time someone tells me they have ADD, I am extremely skeptical and even find myself thinking twice about whether I still like this person.
I'm sorry, this really is because I've had 4 very obnoxious friends over the course of college who at some point declared that they were ADHD and were obviously not. Some miraculously started showing stereotypical signs a day before or after they were diagnosed. All of them started exclaiming "Oh my god, I'm so ADD!" at least 26 times a day and it became part of their personas. Like ADHD makes you more interesting.
So basically, now I do not trust anyone who says they have ADD. I don't believe them.
It's so easy to get diagnosed...
Dr: What seems to be the problem?
hypochondriac: I can't focus, i'm hyperactive, and am disorganized.
Dr. Well, I hate confrontation, it's really close to my lunch break and I am far too lazy to consider any of the many other causes of these symptoms, plus, I own stock in amphetamines! Congratulations you are most definitely ADHD, have some Adderall . Are your children annoying? They can have some too!
I HATE that it has lost credibility because of over-diagnosis... especially to children who eat too much processed food and are cooped up indoors for 8 hours a day. Every time I have to tell someone I have ADD, I cringe, because I feel like they are thinking the same thing that I think. "No you don't, you just decided you have ADD because you have no ability to use introspection and figure out what's really wrong. You are a whiner. You actually have bad study skills, but would rather not spend time fixing them."
It's the people who are NOT actually diagnosed that are giving it the bad name. They are most often the ones that feel like they need to talk about it all the time and use it every time they make a mistake. They use it to explain their shortcomings, not their thinking style, not their talents, not their needs.
I am acknowledging that I am kind of an idiot and probably need to lighten up. And I apologize if I hurt anyone's feelings. Honestly, how I feel about this affects my life greatly. I feel like these things make me feel self conscious about something that I'm actually kind of proud of. I'm obviously already dealing with trying to cope with college...I really don't like having to be placed in the same group as my four attention seeking, hypochondriac, socially inept aquaintinces.
I feel like I'm at a protest where everyone is working for a good cause, but there is that one protester who is doing something stupid (thinking they're helping) that totally weakens the point and just makes everyone else look bad.
I'm just frustrated.
I'm sort of proud of my ADD. I am basically so creative that it makes me academically (and sometimes socially) inept. That's pretty cool (and self-glorifying). But maybe I've been misled about what people with ADHD are usually like... Maybe my parents glossed it up so I wouldn't feel bad about myself. "Oh, people with ADD are really creative and smart!" I really have always been under the impression that when someone is truly ADD, they possess very specific intellect and creativity. That they are interesting, spontaneous, bright-eyed, severe. I always really viewed it as a good thing.
It is unfortunate that most of the hypochondriacs, attention seekers and compulsive liars I have ever met in college just happened to also have ADD and fibromyalgia. And any disease that the doctor has to take your word for. Separately, these things probably exist. I am wary, however, of someone who keeps discovering disorders and that you basically have to self diagnose. My point being, I think a lot of people don't actually have ADD...and I think it gives people who do a bad name.
Because of this, every time someone tells me they have ADD, I am extremely skeptical and even find myself thinking twice about whether I still like this person.
I'm sorry, this really is because I've had 4 very obnoxious friends over the course of college who at some point declared that they were ADHD and were obviously not. Some miraculously started showing stereotypical signs a day before or after they were diagnosed. All of them started exclaiming "Oh my god, I'm so ADD!" at least 26 times a day and it became part of their personas. Like ADHD makes you more interesting.
So basically, now I do not trust anyone who says they have ADD. I don't believe them.
It's so easy to get diagnosed...
Dr: What seems to be the problem?
hypochondriac: I can't focus, i'm hyperactive, and am disorganized.
Dr. Well, I hate confrontation, it's really close to my lunch break and I am far too lazy to consider any of the many other causes of these symptoms, plus, I own stock in amphetamines! Congratulations you are most definitely ADHD, have some Adderall . Are your children annoying? They can have some too!
I HATE that it has lost credibility because of over-diagnosis... especially to children who eat too much processed food and are cooped up indoors for 8 hours a day. Every time I have to tell someone I have ADD, I cringe, because I feel like they are thinking the same thing that I think. "No you don't, you just decided you have ADD because you have no ability to use introspection and figure out what's really wrong. You are a whiner. You actually have bad study skills, but would rather not spend time fixing them."
It's the people who are NOT actually diagnosed that are giving it the bad name. They are most often the ones that feel like they need to talk about it all the time and use it every time they make a mistake. They use it to explain their shortcomings, not their thinking style, not their talents, not their needs.
I am acknowledging that I am kind of an idiot and probably need to lighten up. And I apologize if I hurt anyone's feelings. Honestly, how I feel about this affects my life greatly. I feel like these things make me feel self conscious about something that I'm actually kind of proud of. I'm obviously already dealing with trying to cope with college...I really don't like having to be placed in the same group as my four attention seeking, hypochondriac, socially inept aquaintinces.
I feel like I'm at a protest where everyone is working for a good cause, but there is that one protester who is doing something stupid (thinking they're helping) that totally weakens the point and just makes everyone else look bad.
I'm just frustrated.