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Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

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Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#201
post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did we read the same thing? "The primary endpoint was achieved, mean change from baseline on the TOVA API was 0.93 in the EndeavorRx group versus 0.03 in the control group (p=0.006). "

I'm sorry, but have you looked at the TOVA API[1]? I have. Put simply, it's bullshit — and one that doesn't even purport to measure ADHD (which, indeed, is not something one could measure on a linear scale). It has nothing to do with how we experience ADHD symptoms and traits. It does, however, look like something one could train for by... playing videogames. Surprise, playing videogames makes one statistically bette…

You created that one? Thank you, it's amazing and painfully true.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>The key is to find a hard, less captivating book and just power your way through it... This is a lot like saying that the way to treat a broken leg is to just start running on it and not have it be broken anymore.

Unironically yes. Neuroplasticity means that that is exactly a way to improve brain function. Not perfect, not universal, not the only way, but absolutely a working approach. (Obvious disclaimer: Not a doctor, not your doctor, this is not medical advice.)

Dunno why you're being downvoted. Practising reading is probably one of the best things I've done for my attention recently. I've gone from being so unable to sit still in a one hour reading session that I read only 4 pages, to mostly being able to sit still and read around 30 pages. And yeah I started with a book I was hyper-engaged in, then joined a book club and read what's assigned to me, and I'm working up to reading harder things. This is a much cheaper way to train your attention than an overpriced shitty videogame. Though playing super hard video games like Dark Souls type and forcing myself to persevere also can be a good excercise for me.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#203
Half-OT: I played Balatro.

It eats hours.

However!

It drastically cut down on my doom scrolling.

Would be cool to see if someone could design a game that was addictive, but also fade you out of this addiction natively.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#204

Stimulant medication for ADHD has the highest effect size in all of psychiatry. ADHD is highly treatable, when people are properly treated. This just feels like something that somebody made for the parents who are pathologically drug averse at the expense of their children. Of course, the parents don’t realize that their kids don’t get that development time back, so the longer they wait, the harder things can get for…

>pathologically drug averse at the expense of their children

I'm sorry but this just comes off as so perverse to me. Giving amphetamines to children and forming a lifelong dependency on pharmaceuticals should be something to be apprehensive about. IMO it should be drastically less common than it is, the industry has every incentive to over-diagnose and act as glorified drug pushers. I'd rather take a closer look at the environmental factors for ADD than just let the pharma industry run wild on it.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#205
post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Based on the ADHD-content I get recommended online, I agree there seems to be a bunch of people wrongly self diagnosing with ADHD and romanticizing it. It's really cringe and annoying. However, I can assure you that it exists and that people really do suffer from it. I would never use it as an excuse for anything, I actually never mention my diagnosis IRL, but it is useful to know why I struggle with some things that…

Only comment I upvoted so far. But just want to clarify that I never said it doesn’t exist. Just the majority of people don’t have it. I’ve only met 2 people who really have it and they could barely function without drugs. But I’ve met multiple dozens of people who say “oh I have adhd” like it’s fashionable simply because they get bored at work. It bothers the hell out of me knowing there’s people who truly have adhd…

> I’ve met multiple dozens of people who say “oh I have adhd”

People say a lot of things. How many of those people are actually diagnosed and actively treated for ADHD? There is diagnostic criteria they need to meet to be diagnosed. Watching videos on tiktok isn't a diagnosis. It is quite evident when people are "faking" ADHD.

As someone who has struggled with ADHD my whole life and got a diagnosis in my 40s, I would much prefer children are overdiagnosed than not - and I really don't think thats as frequent a thing as is made out.

I guess it may be different in the US where there is a financial incentive to prescribe medications, but in the countries I have lived with universal healthcare its more likely underdiagnosed, IMHO.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Come on... plan better? It's almost always the simplest answer: they can get richer like that. I don't get why people try to rationalize greed so much. It's just that: greed.

People do things for reasons other than greed.

People, yes. Corporations, no. It's literally their raison d'être.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#207
My daughter was prescribed an audio therapy that worked wonders.

An app plays something akin to channel surfing on steroids, at a high initial switching frequency. Patient is to watch their favorite Youtube vids, play a video game - for 30 min while this cacophony slams their ears. Then gradually, day after day, the frequency is lowered to "humane" levels.

Totally worked, no meds involved.

I think it simply flooded her CNS and trained it to focus, without conscious effort. Might only work in 8 year olds, I don't know.

A lot of sound therapy we saw initially tried the opposite, calm stuff like classical music - feels clear why this can't work on a ADHD brain that runs in circles.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#208

$99 a month subscription, because they're FDA or whatever approved. Is there corruption with these kind of things, or did they just hit jackpot?

Genius move, take a crappy mobile game, call it a medical device and sell it for a price not even the best AAA games would ever dream to ask. Only the USA healthcare system could give life to such an abomination.

Nope, we have the same in Germany (and in the EU), called "digital health applications" (DiGA in German). These are smartphone apps with some medical claims, certified as medical devices and prescribed by doctors. They make about €120-€500 for 90 days.

In some cases, these apps might be useful. But I think there are quite a few cash grabs in there, too.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#209

My daughter was prescribed an audio therapy that worked wonders. An app plays something akin to channel surfing on steroids, at a high initial switching frequency. Patient is to watch their favorite Youtube vids, play a video game - for 30 min while this cacophony slams their ears. Then gradually, day after day, the frequency is lowered to "humane" levels. Totally worked, no meds involved. I think it simply flooded h…

Really fascinating. Do you remember the name of the app or the kind of sound therapy? Sounds like it might work wonders.

Re: Doctor-prescribed videogame for ADHD

#210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>The key is to find a hard, less captivating book and just power your way through it... This is a lot like saying that the way to treat a broken leg is to just start running on it and not have it be broken anymore.

Unironically yes. Neuroplasticity means that that is exactly a way to improve brain function. Not perfect, not universal, not the only way, but absolutely a working approach. (Obvious disclaimer: Not a doctor, not your doctor, this is not medical advice.)

As a middle-aged adult with ADD, "try harder, just do it" is absolutely not an effective overall treatment for ADD at any age.
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