Why does ADHD receive so much attention?
815155
Because telling parents their child has ADHD is much easier (and sells more drugs for the drug companies) then telling parents that they need to provide consistent discipline with their children and stop giving them everything 'they never had'. Not parent blaming here, most just feel too guilty to discipline because they want their kids to be happy and like them.\n\nNot to mention that kids are bombarded with TV and video games, which are highly stimulating and then they are expected to go and sit still in classrooms.\n\nAnd don't even get me started on the things that kids are eating these days. There is no way a body can function and think and learn filled with highly processed, sugary foods.\n\nInstead of drugging our children, society needs a wake-up call. Then maybe any actual cases of ADHD can be identified and not passed off as 'the fad diagnosis'.
979266
You can't get enough people to pay attention to you, can you?
344737
ADD/ADHD is just something one has when they are born.  However, it is not diagnosed until they are older and exhibit symptoms of it.  Sometimes it may not be diagnosed until preteen, teen, or even adult years. \n\nFor years, ADD/ADHD was assumed to be a disorder of childhood that faded with the onset of adolescence; however, the disorder is not limited to children.  There are approximately eight million American adults who have ADD.\n\nThe syndrome Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) defies a concrete definition. There are no blood tests, brain scans, or psychological tests that definitively diagnose it.   Not all Attention Deficit Disorders display the same exact symptoms.  There are many combinations of cognitive and behavioral problems that may exist. \n\n\nIn response to the other answers so far:\n\nADD/ADHD is not an imaginary disorder.  It is a chronic developmental disorder which is genetically based.  It is not a learning disability, but can coexist with learning disabilities in approximately 25 to 33 percent of those diagnosed with ADD/ADHD.\n\nThere are studies that have found that stimulants are the single most effective way to treat this disorder.\n\nPeople are understandably squeamish about ADD/ADHD and medicating children who are otherwise healthy.  When the public deals with issues concerning children, they don’t want to believe that ADD/ADHD is a real problem that requires medication because it is often treated with Ritalin which is a controlled substance.  Unfortunately, there is no type of medication that will cure ADD/ADHD.  The use of medication to treat it, however,  is very controversial.
780586
Do the "normal" children get less attention than the "special" ones?  I have 4 kids in school.  2 with no issues.  One with ADD and Dyslexia, and another that is just a slow starter.  The ones who have issues get wonderful amounts of attention and help.  Now I have not noticed any thing with my 2 that are good in school.  But  another parent in our area decided not to send her child to this elementary school, because a substitute teacher for our school told her that the "normal" ones are pretty much ignored.  I have thought a lot about this lately, and think it would be a pretty controversial thing to pursue, as we all of course want    the ones with special needs to get the attention they need, but at what cost?  How do you demand equal attention for the others without sounding callous?
87900
Usually because of medication. Most are on a ton of it..
420582
Definitely.   These days, our medications are so advanced that there is a pill that can virtually target any sympton in the body.  The past 10 years for medicine has been the biggest breakthrough decade (partly due to the internet).  ADHD is actually sluggish brainwaves and as a result, many distractions come into the brain because nevers aren't traveling back and forth at a fast enough rate (totally opposite of what most people think).  And there are medications that can go exactly to those nerves and speed them up causing more focus which automatically calms a kid.  Truly amazing.   I am not saying I'm an advocate of pills at all, but if someone's quality of life is suffering,,,,maybe it's an option.  The question was about being helped so I answered accordingly!!
561136
I have/had the same problem. For my entire life i felt different from other people, had difficulty in following what was being said because my concentration was flipfloping from one thing to another.\n If I was bored with something I would stop whatever project I was envolved with and start another. I tried to get an associates degree,instead i got bored could not concentrate and dropped everything I had going for me and moved to Alaska(radical hey). A real downside for me was that I was being taken advantage of by those who knew I had a problem of sorts and I was worked until I could not stand anymore.\n Anyway.. before you slide down the path. there are millions of people who have this problem,it is not a bad thing it is in the way we learn and diseminate communication. I can not and will not say you have this but for me thay call it Attention Deficite Disorder(ADD). I had been told by many of doctors that I should be screened for this due to my erradic past,so I did and have been greatfull ever since. It is weird to think clearly and not scattered. I now start and finish tasks in little to record times. Hey check it out.
501926
my son has adhd. you just need to listen to him. He gets soooo upset when you don't let him fully explain himself, even if your in a hurry...listen and validate his thoughts. Also just take time to sit and read with him, or talk about how he feels, what he's into and so on. I't soo tough. my son's 8 and has alot of trouble with friends in school. he's a good kid, they just need lots of love.
924603
I was diagnosed with AD/HD a few months ago and like you I was skeptical.  I have a few mental illnesses as well so many of the same questions were running around in my mind as well.  I think it's when you have a lot of the symptons.  I know people who are lazy and disorganized but that is because they choose to be.  AD/HD people just can't grab the concept.  We try our best to do it and it's a real struggle.  The one that hit me was the concentration one.  I say ignorance is bliss!  I could do three things at once and easily jump back and forth, if I got distracted I just happily went off to what ever distracted me and came back to what I was doing, if I couldn't remember what I was doing oh well!  After I was diagnosed I was trying really hard to write an email and was concentrating so hard to make sure I got everything in there that I needed too.  The phone kept going off and my YM messenger kept blinking and I was distracted and couldn't remember what I was doing!  It is frustrating when you know you have to try really hard to concentrate and you still can't!!\n\nI realized I self medicated in school and still do! (In college)  I take a big soda with me into classes so I can stay focused.  If I don't have that caffeine I am fidgety and am unable to focus on what I need to.  My mind wonders.\n\nThe way I understand it, so far since I am still learning, is that our brains don't have the stimulators that everyone else does, at least not as many, and our minds are searching for outside stimulation to get what it needs.  That's why stimulators such as caffeine and ridolin have the opposite effect they give our brain the stimulation it craves and we are able to focus on what we need to other than it reving us up.\n\nI haven't recieved any medications for AD/HD yet because I'm slightly apprehensive about it making me drowsy and I love the high energy that I have.  I believe that the high energy is just who I am as a person and the AD/HD just adds a little something to it.\n\nI know many AD/HD people are highly creative and they go off their meds when they need to be creative.  I'm also afraid my creativity will suffer from it.\n\nHope this helped!  Feel free to contact me :)
279983
The syndrome Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) defies a concrete definition. There are no blood tests, brain scans, or psychological tests that definitively diagnose it.\n\nNot all Attention Deficit Disorders display the same exact symptoms.  There are many combinations of cognitive and behavioral problems that may exist.\n\nADD/ADHD is not an imaginary disorder.  It is a chronic developmental disorder which is genetically based.  It is not a learning disability, but can co?exist with learning disabilities in approximately 25 to 33 percent of those diagnosed with ADD/ADHD.\n\nIn general when the public deals with issues concerning children, they don’t want to believe that ADD/ADHD is a real problem that requires medication because it is often treated with Ritalin which is a controlled substance.  \n\nStudies have found that stimulants are the single most effective way to treat this disorder.  \n\n\n\n\nIs that enough or would you like more?
212108
Let us put it this way, popular people do not get a lot of attention. \nJust that, the people who get a lot of attention are called popular!!
147275
i think add is highly over diagnosed and unnecesary. people will blame anything on add, when really there is usually another problem. add was not even an illness in the DSM until recently (even considering the fact that it was changed from adhd) people need to get over this whole add obsession and figure out the real problem as to why their child isn't doing well in school. if i were in school today i would probably be considered add (which i'm not)
503559
It's not an issue of wanting attention. It's needing attention to feel good about themselves.\n\nOh yes. My wife(soon to be ex-wife) is/was really beautiful, but needs way to much attention. Since our son has been born things have drastically changed because she is not the focus of attention anymore. When she lost all the pregnancy weight and started putting on her pre-pregnancy clothes that was when everything seriously went down hill. She started talking about going to the pool hall and would drop our son on my lap and run out the door saying I'm going shopping in tight jeans and a corset with it all hanging out.\n\nI knew it was the beginning of the end.
647262
Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurological brain disorder that manifests as a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity/impulsivity that is more frequent and severe than is typically observed in individuals at a comparable level of development. ADHD begins in childhood, and as has only recently been understood, can persist into adulthood as well. While some children outgrow ADHD, about 60% continue to have symptoms into adulthood. The disorder manifests differently in adults as hyperactivity tends to diminish.\n\nAttention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the term used in the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) diagnostic criteria. ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) with or without hyperactivity is the older term from the DSM-IIIR.\n\nAdult ADHD symptoms are similar, but not identical, to those seen in children and adolescents. The adult form of the disorder is sometimes referred to as ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), because symptoms of hyperactivity tend to diminish with age, often taking the form of restlessness or fidgetiness (e.g., persistent pencil tapping and/or foot tapping) and difficulty engaging in quiet activities. However, the medical community uses ADHD for both children and adults.\n\n1. An inattentive type, with signs that include:\n\ninability to pay attention to details or a tendency to make careless errors in schoolwork or other activities; difficulty with sustained attention in tasks or play activities; apparent listening problems; difficulty following instructions; problems with organization; avoidance or dislike of tasks that require mental effort; tendency to lose things like toys, notebooks, or homework; distractibility forgetfulness in daily activities\n\n2. A hyperactive/impulsive type, with signs that include:\n\nfidgeting or squirming; difficulty remaining seated; excessive running or climbing; difficulty playing quietly, always seeming to be "on the go"; excessive talking, \nblurting out answers before hearing the full question;\ndifficulty waiting for a turn or in line; problems with interrupting or intruding\n\n3. A combined type, which involves a combination of the first two types. This type is most common.
341697
This is not a disease thats a Disorder and the right name of it is ADHD....its better if u talk to a psychiatrist if the kid has some problem in his/her study or her social contact at school but most of children with this disorder (if they dont lose their study) will get better in future.
593065
As someone with plenty of experience with related conditions, I think the answer is kind of complicated... Yes, there is a tendency towards overdiagnosis and overanalyzing these days, however...I think they've also gotten better at recognizing these kinds of problems. I don't think any of it reflects an actual increase in cases...I think it reflects things like catching cases that would have formerly gone under the radar, having broader definitions for the terms, and that tendency to label everything as pathological. There are some fringe groups who would have you believe otherwise, and I have encountered them as a person with NLD who's done a lot of research about it...but that's all they are: fringe groups who either want to scare people, sell something to people, or just benefit from bending the statistics somehow. \n\n"Autism", when it first came into the lexicon, was something very specific and very rare; these days, they talk about an "autistic spectrum", which is broad and easy to manipulate into whatever you want it to be to fit a particular situation. I think ADHD has a similar problem with terminology.
94528
because you want attention?