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Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#211

Post by gavinray »

jv22222 wrote: post #182
stevefan1999 wrote: post #136

I'm an ADD adult and this especially hits me when I'm participating competitions, be it leetcode coding competition or examination. I just hate to do it and every other bits of attention source will got me seeked on, like a notification from my phone, or someone dropped a pen to the ground. That's how fast I lost focus. But on the other hand sometimes I can be extra-focused, with a prerequisite it's something I enjoy…

Has ADD had any kind of effect on your relationships? If so, in what way? I was wondering if ADD might make it seem like one doesn’t care about people because it’s hard to maintain focus on them.

Yes, this is why I stopped filling my prescription two years ago. I excelled at work but it was damaging my relationship due to being so "zoned in" and at times robotic.

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#212

Post by smw »

scns wrote: post #70

I recommend this book to anyone suffering from ADD. The author did over 80.000 brainscans. not affiliated https://www.amazon.com/Healing-ADD-Revised-Breakthrough-Prog... A 80 minute video about ADD by the author: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWnJ4wjVu9k

Might be worth reading his Wikipedia page[1] for some criticism before taking his work too seriously.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Amen

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#213

Post by sibeliuss »

heimatau wrote: post #186
stevefan1999 wrote: post #136

I'm an ADD adult and this especially hits me when I'm participating competitions, be it leetcode coding competition or examination. I just hate to do it and every other bits of attention source will got me seeked on, like a notification from my phone, or someone dropped a pen to the ground. That's how fast I lost focus. But on the other hand sometimes I can be extra-focused, with a prerequisite it's something I enjoy…

I'm in the same boat as you. As I've aged, I've realized it's necessary for me to have medication for me to be productive for an extended period of time. I encourage you to embrace the chemical imbalance as the reason. The medications do work and withdrawing from them isn't bad either (if you decide to take a pill holiday or extended non-use). Finally, it's not about 'normal' focus. It's about you. If you're content…

> withdrawing from them isn't bad either

Perhaps for you, but for others its a nightmare.

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#214

Post by emit_time »

Texasian wrote: post #171
emit_time wrote: post #155

Biggest issue for me is palpitations on adderall. Withdrawal gives me annoying palpitations and I get them sometimes while taking it. It’s very annoying when I want to take the weekend off and have to suffer through massive withdrawal. Honestly has changed my life for the better overall, but if anyone has any suggestions for trying to get rid of palpitations, it would be very much appreciated.

I had the same issue. I’ve switched to Vyvanse and have been loving it. The on and off ramps are much longer so everything feels a bit more smooth than Adderall ever did.

I’ve tried vyvanse and Ritalin, but neither seem to work nearly as well for me :(

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#215

Post by stallmanite »

Izkata wrote: post #128
_dibly wrote: post #7

This was an interesting read but, as an adult with ADHD, all I get out of this is that medication is even more of a benefit to those with real difficulties coping with their ADHD. I've always been one to 'just deal with it' but after a few years of working through school and seeing my younger brothers go through the same thing with medication, I realized that I was essentially just handicapping myself. Now I take med…

> When I was younger I was perscribed ritalin, and it just made me sleepy so I stopped taking it. Now I take a more modern medication and it works wonders. I don't have ADHD, but I'm curious what the modern one is. Back in middle school, around 2001, I did a report on ADD and ADHD, and 3 of the medications that existed for it: Ritalin, Cylert, and I'm not certain of the third but from the other comments Adderall soun…

The substance starting with a D was probably Dextroamphetamine. It’s the old standard and has been around forever. It’s basically Adderall with just the R isomer rather than a mixture of Levo & Dextro isomers.

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#216

Post by victorkab »

Very interesting. Most people I've talked to with ADHD share this experience of sudden loss of motivation...

I can focus easily on tasks - even hyper focus for hours. Problems arise when there's an important but boring task vs a nonessential but interesting task. I will struggle to just think about starting the boring task. It can be really crippling when working with other people or in a startup.

I tried to write about my own experiences with ADHD, in particular regarding distractions. https://www.kabdebon.com/founder/2020/08/25/creative-mayhem-...

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#217

Post by treeman79 »

medion wrote: post #185
Baeocystin wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I literally just got diagnosed with adult ADD a month ago. I'm 46! It... explains a lot of things, both for better and for worse. I never even realized I was developing coping skills vs. just developing normal skills, if that makes sense. I definitely have had the same types of problems as you describe. I've been on Ritalin for a few weeks now, and the difference is remarkable. If this is how normal people feel most…

I am nearly 40 and I have wondered for a long time whether I have adult ADD but have been afraid to go down the diagnostic path, because I'm scared I will lose one of the few true talents I have, which is hyperfocus (or the complete opposite, depending) - that said I think this quality is ruining relationships, so while I can hyperfocus on work or projects, my personal life is a mess. But, I don't know if this is ADD…

Didn’t lose hyper focus.

More that I gained “longer” focus.

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#218

Post by heimatau »

sibeliuss wrote: post #213
heimatau wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm in the same boat as you. As I've aged, I've realized it's necessary for me to have medication for me to be productive for an extended period of time. I encourage you to embrace the chemical imbalance as the reason. The medications do work and withdrawing from them isn't bad either (if you decide to take a pill holiday or extended non-use). Finally, it's not about 'normal' focus. It's about you. If you're content…

> withdrawing from them isn't bad either Perhaps for you, but for others its a nightmare.

> but for others its a nightmare.

I can only assume one of two reasons:

1. They were on XR.

2. Abuse.

If it's another reason, maybe the formulation isn't the best for them because it's highly unlikely to have a 'nightmare' problem with getting off.

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#219

Post by novok »

ditonal wrote: post #149
acituan wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> we don't start giving children coffee at younger ages to help focus > we are inhibiting our full potential because of misplaced fears? I'll argue with the assumption that there is zero long term psychobiological consequences to exogenous psychostimulants (I personally don't buy this, but let's assume it was true). Increasing focus and task salience is only one of the many factors constitutive of human potential. Th…

Feels like every week someone here is touting the idea of ADHD meds being this solution, all these people are just undiagnosed, there’s an unfair stigma against, and I feel compelled to bring up that I bought into that thinking, got a legit diagnosis and took meds as prescribed, they triggered mania in me and nearly ruined my life. I tick all the ADHD boxes but I managed to make it through college without meds so nev…

You might just be smart / high IQ so you could still stumble through college. Imagine what more you could of accomplished if you didn't? Higher abilities need higher standards.

Also you don't have to actually take the medications at all to get an ADHD testing battery. Then you'll know if you actually have ADHD or if you actually didn't. If you don't then your comments are a bit insensitive. Self-diagnoses of various medical conditions by the untrained is notoriously inaccurate.

Re: Adults with ADHD show decreased function in brain dopamine reward pathway (2010)

#220

Post by Baeocystin »

medion wrote: post #185
Baeocystin wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I literally just got diagnosed with adult ADD a month ago. I'm 46! It... explains a lot of things, both for better and for worse. I never even realized I was developing coping skills vs. just developing normal skills, if that makes sense. I definitely have had the same types of problems as you describe. I've been on Ritalin for a few weeks now, and the difference is remarkable. If this is how normal people feel most…

I am nearly 40 and I have wondered for a long time whether I have adult ADD but have been afraid to go down the diagnostic path, because I'm scared I will lose one of the few true talents I have, which is hyperfocus (or the complete opposite, depending) - that said I think this quality is ruining relationships, so while I can hyperfocus on work or projects, my personal life is a mess. But, I don't know if this is ADD…

I don't want to get in to too much detail on a public board, but the short of it is that several major events in rapid succession (unexpected death of my father, lawsuits involving his estate, Covid just as I was re-growing my IT business, loss of several major clients/income security due to same, a sudden chronic health problem, etc, etc, etc, etc.) overwhelmed my ability to get things done in a timely manner. I sought help, and something in the way I was talking must have piqued my psychiatrist's attention, I got tested, and here we are.

It was a lot of shit, all at once, and it would be easy to shrug and say it would have been hard for anyone. But it was enough of a shock to my abilities that I was able to finally see that I just wasn't firing on all cylinders, even though I am otherwise intelligent and capable.

I have not lost my ability to focus. In fact, it's easier than ever. I've always been very distractible (another common symptom), and suddenly the kids making noise while playing next door, dogs barking, phones ringing no longer wreck the house of cards I'm holding in my mind while working on a problem. It's remarkable.

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