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ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

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Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#21

Post by fasteo »

tokenadult wrote: post #19
fasteo wrote: post #18

Slightly off-topic, but I have seem some great responses here I would like to add a somehow controversial comment. I have a 10 year old kid diagnosed with severe ADHD-Inattentive type. He is on meds and behavioral therapy, and I must agree with most of the posts that meds is a must for these kids. My very personal an unscientific explanation is that ADHD is not a disease in the traditional sense; instead, it is just…

Would my kid have any problem living in a simpler society (hunter-gatherer group) ? Definitively not. I know some children like that. Children who cannot keep quiet while hunting would not fare well in a hunter-gatherer society. Indeed, young members of a hunting party who move around too much and make too much noise are in danger of being eaten themselves by larger predator animals. I'm not sure that there has ever…

If I imagine my kid hunting, I see him quiet, hyper-focused, fully committed to get the beast down.

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#22

Post by mattchew »

tokenadult wrote: post #19
fasteo wrote: post #18

Slightly off-topic, but I have seem some great responses here I would like to add a somehow controversial comment. I have a 10 year old kid diagnosed with severe ADHD-Inattentive type. He is on meds and behavioral therapy, and I must agree with most of the posts that meds is a must for these kids. My very personal an unscientific explanation is that ADHD is not a disease in the traditional sense; instead, it is just…

Would my kid have any problem living in a simpler society (hunter-gatherer group) ? Definitively not. I know some children like that. Children who cannot keep quiet while hunting would not fare well in a hunter-gatherer society. Indeed, young members of a hunting party who move around too much and make too much noise are in danger of being eaten themselves by larger predator animals. I'm not sure that there has ever…

At least sometimes kids with ADD symptoms are capable of very focused attention on the things they're actually interested in.

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#23

Post by SpaceCadetJones »

yesco wrote: post #13
elfyhat wrote: post #3

But will the positive experience kids get with this kind of activity have a long-lasting impact in their life? Will they grow up to be adults without ADHD or lesser symptoms? I was in the scouts when I was a kid and teen, ultimately reaching the rank of Eagle scout. I did plenty of outdoor activities and sports, not necessarily extreme, however we did go portaging deep into the Boundary Waters quite a few times. Yet,…

Something to keep in mind is that adrenaline is something used in medication to treat ADHD in some cases. The desire for some to go out and do things like this (ie: Base Jumping) could be sourced to them craving that adrenaline that helps them focus. Maybe they are taking the wrong type of medication or maybe they aren't taking any at all. Additionally I found this part very frustrating >>Panksepp points out that whi…

I can actually attest to being less playful on medication. I'm a very upbeat, humorous, and witty person. Too much of a stimulant however makes me very bland, an intense listener, and I have trouble coming up with replies to people. I tend to think of it as generally I have a firehose of ideas and thoughts spewing, and medication pinches the hose and directs its flow. It's a balancing act though

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#25

Post by SpaceCadetJones »

fasteo wrote: post #18

Slightly off-topic, but I have seem some great responses here I would like to add a somehow controversial comment. I have a 10 year old kid diagnosed with severe ADHD-Inattentive type. He is on meds and behavioral therapy, and I must agree with most of the posts that meds is a must for these kids. My very personal an unscientific explanation is that ADHD is not a disease in the traditional sense; instead, it is just…

I think for me a better analogy might be everyone else is on Win10, while I'm here running Plan9 or something.

I really don't see my condition as a disability, but I'm also not at the severe end of the spectrum. I do perfectly fine with activities I find stimulating, particularly when I get to work with my hands or it requires a lot of physical coordination. I can focus amazingly well on anything if it becomes crunch time and I absolutely need to. I forget to pay bills, schedule appointments, can't maintain a todo list, etc. These are all modern constructs though

There's also been research in the past few years showing individuals with ADHD are more likely to have received some sort of creative award (science fair, musical accomplishment) and can generate more ideas than typical individuals (divergent thinking).

Maybe it's just a difference in thinking that requires a different sort of structure, and only manifests as a disability as were not well suited for the modern ways of living that have arose.

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#26

Post by krampus »

greys0ul wrote: post #4

I think this is an excellent way to help some kids cope with adhd, but I definitely don't think it'd work universally. Reading this made me think back on my own struggle with adhd. A few years ago I was diagnosed with adhd at the age of 23, and god damn do I wish it happened a decade sooner, but my parents were the type that didn't believe in that kind of stuff, so I was just lazy. It's stuck with me to this day even…

Which no-medication methods do you use ?

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#27

Post by ap22213 »

derefr wrote: post #2

Orthogonal. Having ADHD doesn't imply a desire to be outside playing. It's a disorder of motivation, not a disorder of focus—an inability to practice , and sometimes to concentrate ; but not an inability to think, or to enjoy thinking. Personally, in my childhood, I liked math and science. I had (and still have) ADHD, which made that hard, but I struggled through, because that was my passion. Medication (which I didn…

Not to discount your experiences, but that's not at all how I've felt as a sufferer of ADHD (nor my parents or my son). I would describe the feeling of ADHD not as lack of motivation but severe, almost physical, discomfort at attempts to concentrate. If you've ever suffered from nerve pain, you may know what I'm talking about. It's not quite analogous, since the ADHD discomfort is more of a strong, distracting 'itch', but it's similar in its phantom nature.

If one lives with that feeling since birth, it is really hard to understand that others just don't feel that way. We may try to push ourselves forward, through constant force of will, or because others tell us to 'tough-it-out', but it's exhausting. Whereas we see others reading a book a week or month even, we struggle to even read a paragraph - constantly starting over, re-reading, so distracted that we can barely even take in the information.

It's not until we gets treatment that we suddenly and clearly feel the difference, and then we understand the suffering that we've been going through all that time. Feeling 'normal' is amazing! It's like being able to read several pages at a time or sit through an entire lecture without feeling like you're constantly wiping away some sticky, opaque film between you and the information.

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#28

Post by spacedmountain »

fasteo wrote: post #18

Slightly off-topic, but I have seem some great responses here I would like to add a somehow controversial comment. I have a 10 year old kid diagnosed with severe ADHD-Inattentive type. He is on meds and behavioral therapy, and I must agree with most of the posts that meds is a must for these kids. My very personal an unscientific explanation is that ADHD is not a disease in the traditional sense; instead, it is just…

There is pretty solid evidence that ADHD is grounded in differences in structure and wiring of the brain - its more of a hardware problem than software.

I'm not sure ADHD would have a better time for lifestyles. People with ADHD would always be a minority, and probably perceived as odd by others. Organisation and focus have always been useful traits - but also creativity and adventurousness have led to rewards as well (but also risk).

A better analogy I've heard is ADHD is like a Ferrari engine in a golf cart. There's loads of power and energy, but the steering and brakes struggle to keep up.

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#29

Post by molsongolden »

SpaceCadetJones wrote: post #25
fasteo wrote: post #18

Slightly off-topic, but I have seem some great responses here I would like to add a somehow controversial comment. I have a 10 year old kid diagnosed with severe ADHD-Inattentive type. He is on meds and behavioral therapy, and I must agree with most of the posts that meds is a must for these kids. My very personal an unscientific explanation is that ADHD is not a disease in the traditional sense; instead, it is just…

I think for me a better analogy might be everyone else is on Win10, while I'm here running Plan9 or something. I really don't see my condition as a disability, but I'm also not at the severe end of the spectrum. I do perfectly fine with activities I find stimulating, particularly when I get to work with my hands or it requires a lot of physical coordination. I can focus amazingly well on anything if it becomes crunch…

How has your career played out? Do you work for a company or for yourself?

Re: ADHD Is Fuel for Adventure

#30

Post by falcolas »

fasteo wrote: post #21
tokenadult wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would my kid have any problem living in a simpler society (hunter-gatherer group) ? Definitively not. I know some children like that. Children who cannot keep quiet while hunting would not fare well in a hunter-gatherer society. Indeed, young members of a hunting party who move around too much and make too much noise are in danger of being eaten themselves by larger predator animals. I'm not sure that there has ever…

If I imagine my kid hunting, I see him quiet, hyper-focused, fully committed to get the beast down.

If I imagine myself hunting, I can't. I see myself too focused on creating the perfect spear (and never achieving it because I "squirrel" off onto another spear building tangent) to actually bother myself with the act of hunting.

Not to mention, one of the common symptoms of ADHD is bumping into objects when walking around. I can't imagine that going well on a hunting trip.

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