31–40 of 195 posts
Just out of curiosity: do you ever stop and think/ask why ADD or ADHD exist only in the US? How could such a condition be so frequent yet only present in just one country?
...it's often a sign you've missed some basic facts and need to rethink your priors. And so it is here.
"We could still have a principled definition of ADHD. It would be something like “People below the 5th percentile in ability to concentrate, as measured by this test.” Instead, we use the DSM, which advises us to diagnose people with ADHD if they say they have at least five symptoms from a list. " I'm in Germany and I've been diagnosed with ADHD-PI lately (I am in my 30s) after seeing a private specialist about this…
That seems like an odd test. Of course everybody will score better on a concentration test while on medication for concentration.
"We could still have a principled definition of ADHD. It would be something like “People below the 5th percentile in ability to concentrate, as measured by this test.” Instead, we use the DSM, which advises us to diagnose people with ADHD if they say they have at least five symptoms from a list. " I'm in Germany and I've been diagnosed with ADHD-PI lately (I am in my 30s) after seeing a private specialist about this…
For example I have a stellar reading ability but my written work and spelling is awful.
I felt extremely sad on taking Adderall and other similar stimulant medications like Ritalin. Maybe the sadness effect would have gotten less with continuing the medicine, but overall, I didn't feel like taking drugs since they cause a lot of other side effects like insomnia. Now I've been able to control my ADHD successfully. Atleast upto the point that it has stopped affecting my life and career so much. a) 0 sugar…
>I don’t think there are good data here, but my intuitions and personal experience is that “addiction” of the sort you get with heroin or tobacco is very rare, at least when responsible people without a personal or family history of addictive behavior take stimulants as prescribed. Most people agree the risk is lower for extended-release stimulants (eg Adderall XR), and very low for Vyvanse.
I think that statement is bonkers.
Of course they are going to be addicted to the substance if they use it everyday of their lives.
My definition of addiction is not being able to stop taking the drug for whatever reason, and feeling some sort of withdrawal. I think for most people that take something daily, it would be extremely hard for them to stop.
This is where things get messed up: being chemically addicted to something where the cost of the drug can be astronomical .Yes, I am talking about Shire's Vyvanse.
>Shire Plc is a Jersey-registered, Irish-headquartered global specialty biopharmaceutical company... its brands and products include Vyvanse, Lialda, and Adderall XR.
The best is that they offer a program the temporarily reduces the price of the drug for a period of time aka you get addicted to it over that time period and then are forced to pay it becuase their is nothing like it until 2023.
Yes, I am aware that each state has different insurance options, but starting a company called "Shire Cares" just to spread the belief that they care but really do not is silly.
From their website: "Pay no more than $30 for up to 12 prescriptions up to a maximum savings of $60 per prescription.† (https://www.shireregistration.com/vyvanse%20savings%20link)"
What they do not tell you is after that period ends, the price goes up drastically. With insurance, 30 pills costs "around $286.42 (https://www.goodrx.com/vyvanse)
The last thing I will say is: Where is the data on a drug that annually generates billions of dollars each year? They have 10 million users. You are telling me they could not monitor the habits of 1-2k people over a couple years? Sounds fishy to me.
For others who want to learn more about the crazy growth of add/adhd medication sales that very few want to talk about. (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/15/health/the-selling-of-atte...)
"We could still have a principled definition of ADHD. It would be something like “People below the 5th percentile in ability to concentrate, as measured by this test.” Instead, we use the DSM, which advises us to diagnose people with ADHD if they say they have at least five symptoms from a list. " I'm in Germany and I've been diagnosed with ADHD-PI lately (I am in my 30s) after seeing a private specialist about this…
That seems like an odd test. Of course everybody will score better on a concentration test while on medication for concentration.
In any case they certainly won't have anything like the kind of improvements people with ADHD has, improving from spectacularly bad to (usually) only slightly below normal.
It's a common mistake made by both professionals and laypeople that ADHD is a condition with only slight deficiencies in focus, when in reality they are often staggering.
Anecdotally, everyone with ADHD I've met understand the concept of things being so boring it becomes physically painful to do them. Everyone else think they heard me wrong.
For me the computerised test was almost impossible at the end, because my bored brain refused to even see the images on the screen. All I saw unless I blinked and tilted my head was a white, blank screen, only that it wasn't blank.
With methyl phenidate it was hard to understand it could have ever been hard, and that even though I still have significantly below average concentration even with medication.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I take fruits which have no/negligible sugar like Amla, Lemos, Avocados. Once in a while, I do take supplements. But on the whole, I try to live a more natural life, with as less drugs/medicines as possible. Even for milk, I drink raw milk and not processed milk.
> 0 sugar > I drink raw milk You'd have to drink milk in tiny quantities; I'd be astonished if raw vs processed makes a difference if so.
This article confusingly talks about atomoxetine in several places, but atomoxetine is very different than Adderall, in particular, because it's not a stimulant.