NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
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Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#2I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys.
My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay attention but in my personal experience I remember finding it hard to focus as a child.
The drugs also scare me. I remember taking Adderall in college to help study for tests and crunch on projects but I distinctly remember anytime I took one I always wondered how people could take it every day, Adderall (and Vyvance) were amazing drugs for helping to stay focused, but wow did they f** me up, I remember it always felt great at first and by the end of the study session I couldn't imagine how people could take it every day because of the side effects (especially the lack of hunger). Adults taking the drug is one thing but the idea of giving something like that to a child profoundly scares me.
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#3I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys. My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay…
> My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD
The second D - disorder. When it affects the kid's ability to learn, socialise, etc
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#4I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys. My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay…
No need to be skeptical of children that are diagnosed. It is often (and I am speaking solely about boys, just as you do) quite obvious if you are trained in recognising those markers. This doesn't mean all are found and the current training is severely lacking in recognising symptoms for girls.
Regardless, yes it is often described by others and those who are not diagnosed with ADHD as " just not being able to focus". This simplification misses out on a whole scala of symptoms and experiences.
As for the medication, it is true that it is sometimes mis/abused by some students. One thing to realize is that for those who have ADHD drugs and the stuff may have completely different effects on the person. Uppers making some people sleepy for example. Lastly children are often not given those drugs you mention but alternative without those side effects.
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#5I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys. My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay…
Are you also skeptical of obesity in teens because eating a lot is just the general nature of teens, especially boys? Are you appalled that diabetics take insulin every day because you once injected yourself with insulin you didn't need and experienced severe side effects?
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#6> They found that youth with ADHD had heightened connectivity between structures deep in the brain involved in learning, movement, reward, and emotion (caudate, putamen, and nucleus accumbens seeds) and structures in the frontal area of the brain involved in attention and control of unwanted behaviors (superior temporal gyri, insula, inferior parietal lobe, and inferior frontal gyri).
So... ADHD is a symptom of an overly integrated brain.
Not going to lie - I've always been kind of fond of my mild ADHD. There's something enjoyable about being interested in everything going on around you (or in your head). It just happens to be a liability in schools or jobs where you're only supposed to be doing "just this one thing".
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#7I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys. My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay…
> My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD The second D - disorder. When it affects the kid's ability to learn, socialise, etc
The problem is that what is perceived as "disordered" is different across time and space.
Behavior patterns that were once totally normal may get in the way of living the kind of life that some parents have come to expect of their kids—running from school to dance to piano to soccer to tutors to therapy to whatever. Are these kids disordered because they can't keep up, or are the demands unreasonable?
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#8I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys. My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay…
I guarantee that you took Adderall IR, and a higher dose than those typically prescribed by a doctor. It’s like slamming back 10 cups of espresso instead of sipping one over a day. And then judging people who drink a coffee a day.
Slow release and a therapeutic dose is significantly different than slamming back meds in school like that. Therapeutic dose means you can’t even tell you took the med, until you either stop or look back at the day and record how much you were able to achieve.
Yes, some doctors are bad and calculate a dosage based on weight or other arbitrary means. Good doctors and psychiatrists start you on the lowest dose and slowly titrate you up based on DSM guidelines.
Lastly, medication for ADHD is something that makes all the actual effective treatments do-able. It’s a first step not a crux.
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#9I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children, but on the other hand I realize that alot of ADHD symptoms overlap with the general nature of children, especially boys. My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD. Often times it's described as just not being able to pay…
Are you also skeptical of obesity in teens because eating a lot is just the general nature of teens, especially boys? Are you appalled that diabetics take insulin every day because you once injected yourself with insulin you didn't need and experienced severe side effects?
These comparisons feel like bad faith. This is what they actually said:
> I've always been a cautious skeptic of ADHD in children. On the one hand I know ADHD is a thing and that it legitimately affects some children ...
They explicitly say that they know it affects some children, but they're concerned that it's overdiagnosed because the symptoms have overlap with normal child development. This isn't some kind of uninformed conspiracy theory, it's a legitimate concern shared by experts in the field [0].
My fear isn't that experts get confused and mix up real ADHD with normal childhood, my fear is that parents expect too much of their kids and convince their family doctor (who isn't an expert) to diagnose the child and prescribe Adderall. That fear is totally compatible with ADHD also being a real thing that actually needs treatment in other children.
Re: NIH Researchers Identify Brain Connections Associated with ADHD in Youth
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
> My wonder is when does it to go from a kid just being a kid to a child actually affected by ADHD The second D - disorder. When it affects the kid's ability to learn, socialise, etc
The problem is that what is perceived as "disordered" is different across time and space. Behavior patterns that were once totally normal may get in the way of living the kind of life that some parents have come to expect of their kids—running from school to dance to piano to soccer to tutors to therapy to whatever. Are these kids disordered because they can't keep up, or are the demands unreasonable?
Or counterpoint- in my case I was helped at home a good bit with structure. It wasn’t until I was independent at uni that this facade started to fall off, revealing “issues”.