The ethics of America. A new article on the usage of stimulants was released today--but not the usage by ADHD diagnosed, rather the usage by non ADHD individuals looking to amp up their brain function.
The thinking behind this idea is simple: if stimulant meds allow a person with ADD/ADHD to operate "normal" then they should allow a "normal" person to be superhuman. Some are asking, "Is performance enhancement restricted only to practice makes perfect?"
We live in a nation of convenience. The easier, the faster, the less personal sacrificed required--the better the idea. We have built empires on quick and easy. Why wouldn't our pharmaceutical companies pick up on this? If they hadn't I would suggest they create a better research/marketing team...but alas...they have indeed followed our hunger for convenience. So it makes sense that we would consider making Adderall cocktails available for those looking to be superhuman. Drugs like this line the pockets of pharmaceutical fat cats and we believe we can fly. Seems like a win-win. Or is it?
Can we manipulate science to enhance what is not maladaptive? Should we even try?
(Read article at: http://bigthink.com/ideas/24201 by Max Miller)
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
ADHD Awareness Week
I received an email earlier this week announcing this week was "ADHD awareness week". The email encouraged me to "celebrate my ADHD and find someone to educate about ADHD". As I was reading this email I was driving down the interstate at warp speed because I was late. Not late because I overslept..late because as I woke up so early that I just knew I had plenty of time to edit that paper before leaving, check my email, and load the dishwasher...turns out I didn't, and then I couldn't find my keys....
Celebrate my ADHD. I almost laughed, well...that shouldn't be too difficult.
I told my oldest daughter, C (who is also ADHD) and she responded...are we supposed to wear a ribbon? you know, if I celebrate my ADHD at school....the principle might call you....Nevermind. This sent me into a deep thought process....do we have a ribbon? if we did have a ribbon, could we commit long-term to a color? Would people know what the ribbon was for? If I wore the ribbon would I get those tilted heads that said "oh..I am so sorry, that must be so difficult"?
Turns out...us ADHD people are represented by a color--the color orange. Why orange? Beats me.
Orange is the color of construction zones, prison jump suits, and caution flags. The ribbon is shared with animal protection awareness and self-injury awareness among others. According to google search for the meaning of the color of orange it means: vitality with endurance and the color stimulates appetite and energy....hmmm...interesting.
So in honor of those ADHD brains out there...here's to you: (and for those of you who are not ADHD...read and be amazed....)
*Huh? or I'm sorry, I wasn't listening.... are frequent phrases you say
* you really hate talking on the phone because it is way to easy for you to lose the conversation and to actually listen takes too much effort
* you get out of the shower and you aren't sure if you actually washed your hair
* you make a phone call...and before the other person answers...you forget who your calling and why
* you show up at your doctor's appointment on time (you are so proud)---only for the receptionist to tell you the appointment is tomorrow...or worse it was yesterday and you missed it
* You write post-it notes...and you loose post-it notes.
* Your kid asks for juice or a snack three times before they give up and gets it themselves. In your defense...you have walked into the kitchen all 3 times to get what they want---only to forget why you are in there and turn around and leave
* You sit in your college class, listening to your professor and find yourself counting how many times he/she says "okay"--literally keeping count on your paper instead of taking notes
* You are talking to your spouse, parent, friend and right in the middle of your sentence you just.................
* Your drying machine makes the same sound every time it finishes drying...and every time you think, "ice cream truck!"
* The very nature of housework goes against every fiber of your entire being...but you operate best when everything has its place---ironic
*Even though your diagnosed ADHD...you secretly think that it's everyone else who is a little "off"---I mean really, who wants to be "normal"?
* You feel like you embody irony in every sense of the word: you are outgoing--yet shy, you are a risk taker--yet insecure, you talk too much---but don't say nearly everything on your mind (for fear of what people would say), you have huge dreams---but details drag you down
* You think in terms of linked thoughts...one thought leading you to another...to another...to another...and none of them are particularly related...except for that one word
* There is a person that you see frequently and for the life of you--you can't remember their name...so you wait for someone else to call it and you just avoid it calling it until then. (ADHDers...you know you do this)
I could go on...but I will save it for another post. Just know, although I don't have a ribbon...I am letting my ADHD flag fly with pride. And for those who aren't ADHD...yeah...we think we're cooler than you.
Celebrate my ADHD. I almost laughed, well...that shouldn't be too difficult.
I told my oldest daughter, C (who is also ADHD) and she responded...are we supposed to wear a ribbon? you know, if I celebrate my ADHD at school....the principle might call you....Nevermind. This sent me into a deep thought process....do we have a ribbon? if we did have a ribbon, could we commit long-term to a color? Would people know what the ribbon was for? If I wore the ribbon would I get those tilted heads that said "oh..I am so sorry, that must be so difficult"?
Turns out...us ADHD people are represented by a color--the color orange. Why orange? Beats me.
Orange is the color of construction zones, prison jump suits, and caution flags. The ribbon is shared with animal protection awareness and self-injury awareness among others. According to google search for the meaning of the color of orange it means: vitality with endurance and the color stimulates appetite and energy....hmmm...interesting.
So in honor of those ADHD brains out there...here's to you: (and for those of you who are not ADHD...read and be amazed....)
*Huh? or I'm sorry, I wasn't listening.... are frequent phrases you say
* you really hate talking on the phone because it is way to easy for you to lose the conversation and to actually listen takes too much effort
* you get out of the shower and you aren't sure if you actually washed your hair
* you make a phone call...and before the other person answers...you forget who your calling and why
* you show up at your doctor's appointment on time (you are so proud)---only for the receptionist to tell you the appointment is tomorrow...or worse it was yesterday and you missed it
* You write post-it notes...and you loose post-it notes.
* Your kid asks for juice or a snack three times before they give up and gets it themselves. In your defense...you have walked into the kitchen all 3 times to get what they want---only to forget why you are in there and turn around and leave
* You sit in your college class, listening to your professor and find yourself counting how many times he/she says "okay"--literally keeping count on your paper instead of taking notes
* You are talking to your spouse, parent, friend and right in the middle of your sentence you just.................
* Your drying machine makes the same sound every time it finishes drying...and every time you think, "ice cream truck!"
* The very nature of housework goes against every fiber of your entire being...but you operate best when everything has its place---ironic
*Even though your diagnosed ADHD...you secretly think that it's everyone else who is a little "off"---I mean really, who wants to be "normal"?
* You feel like you embody irony in every sense of the word: you are outgoing--yet shy, you are a risk taker--yet insecure, you talk too much---but don't say nearly everything on your mind (for fear of what people would say), you have huge dreams---but details drag you down
* You think in terms of linked thoughts...one thought leading you to another...to another...to another...and none of them are particularly related...except for that one word
* There is a person that you see frequently and for the life of you--you can't remember their name...so you wait for someone else to call it and you just avoid it calling it until then. (ADHDers...you know you do this)
I could go on...but I will save it for another post. Just know, although I don't have a ribbon...I am letting my ADHD flag fly with pride. And for those who aren't ADHD...yeah...we think we're cooler than you.
Friday, September 3, 2010
The Flip Side of ADHD
It is no secret that I am a lab rat. I love the process of research. Given a topic of interest my curiosity races ahead of me and I become a hermit. I pull information from scholar search banks, published journals, and the most random remote areas to piece together a puzzle--then I get to go out and test my idea. I get to ask the question: am I wrong? Absolute thrill of a lifetime is to find out that I am indeed right...or...that I am wrong and I have discovered something entirely new. Ooooh to be that researcher!
ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, is a one of my research passions. I do not share the opinion of most of my clinical counterparts that every part of this "disorder" is evil. I know the stats, the data, the life outcomes, the information on medication, performance, scholastic achievement, depression and overall impairments of ADHD. I live behind stacks of studies on my desk detailing every one of these impairments. Yet, I still believe that ADHD can be a conduit of many, many advantages: Creativity, risk taking, ingenuity, charisma, perseverance, hyper-focus, resilience, observant, the ability to make complex ideas simple, the ability to piece together fast moving theories and multi-task like nobody's business.
Why would I think this way? Especially considering the countless details of information that tell me otherwise. Because I am ADHD. And as an ADHD woman, mother, wife, student, and researcher, I have learned that there are countless ways to do things....and then there is a way that lends to creativity, perseverance, and multidimensional thinking...I prefer that way. I came across this article: ADD in the corner office: Five Top executives discovered that an LD can be a capitalist tool. This article shares the story of five execs who prove that limitations are often in the eye of beholder:
"If someone told me you could be normal or you could continue to have your ADD, I would take ADD....I'm afraid of taking drugs, blowing a circuit, and then being like the rest of you...I knew I had strengths that other people didn't have, and my parents reminded me of them when my teachers didn't seem them....I can distill complicated facts and come up with simple solutions. I can look out on a industry with all kinds of problems and say, 'How can I do this better?' My ADD brain naturally searches for better ways of doing things." (www.greatschools.org)
I am in the midst of my newest research endeavor. I am dreaming up constructs and methods of research. I am reading about all the ways those before me have tried. Statistics show that a child with ADHD is lucky to make it out of school without failing a grade--but my history tells me that a girl with undiagnosed ADHD can graduate in the top ten of her high school class, honors in college, and now what?? The sky is my only limit--regardless of the statistics.
Even with all of the challenges and the cross eyed looks I get when someone in my field finds out I am ADHD...given the chance to be normal or ADHD...I will take my ADHD any day of the week.
www.greatschools.org article quoted by: Louis Gilman, ADDitude Magazine
ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, is a one of my research passions. I do not share the opinion of most of my clinical counterparts that every part of this "disorder" is evil. I know the stats, the data, the life outcomes, the information on medication, performance, scholastic achievement, depression and overall impairments of ADHD. I live behind stacks of studies on my desk detailing every one of these impairments. Yet, I still believe that ADHD can be a conduit of many, many advantages: Creativity, risk taking, ingenuity, charisma, perseverance, hyper-focus, resilience, observant, the ability to make complex ideas simple, the ability to piece together fast moving theories and multi-task like nobody's business.
Why would I think this way? Especially considering the countless details of information that tell me otherwise. Because I am ADHD. And as an ADHD woman, mother, wife, student, and researcher, I have learned that there are countless ways to do things....and then there is a way that lends to creativity, perseverance, and multidimensional thinking...I prefer that way. I came across this article: ADD in the corner office: Five Top executives discovered that an LD can be a capitalist tool. This article shares the story of five execs who prove that limitations are often in the eye of beholder:
"If someone told me you could be normal or you could continue to have your ADD, I would take ADD....I'm afraid of taking drugs, blowing a circuit, and then being like the rest of you...I knew I had strengths that other people didn't have, and my parents reminded me of them when my teachers didn't seem them....I can distill complicated facts and come up with simple solutions. I can look out on a industry with all kinds of problems and say, 'How can I do this better?' My ADD brain naturally searches for better ways of doing things." (www.greatschools.org)
I am in the midst of my newest research endeavor. I am dreaming up constructs and methods of research. I am reading about all the ways those before me have tried. Statistics show that a child with ADHD is lucky to make it out of school without failing a grade--but my history tells me that a girl with undiagnosed ADHD can graduate in the top ten of her high school class, honors in college, and now what?? The sky is my only limit--regardless of the statistics.
Even with all of the challenges and the cross eyed looks I get when someone in my field finds out I am ADHD...given the chance to be normal or ADHD...I will take my ADHD any day of the week.
www.greatschools.org article quoted by: Louis Gilman, ADDitude Magazine
Friday, August 27, 2010
Does ACME gadgets have online ordering?
Process is my least favorite word in the English Language. Why? Because processes are often tedious and repetitious. Life is full of processes: relationships, growing up, parenthood, pregnancy, spiritual growth, financial/business growth, health, retirement. Processes are often one step forward--two steps back, rarely are they immediate and painless. They are not ever 100% engaging, 100% of the time...often there are stagnant moments that seem like boredom. However, the truth about processes is: that one can not accomplish anything of worth without walking through some kind of process.
Ironically, my favorite word in the English Language is Impossible. I long to achieve the impossible. I dream big and without boundaries. I can't function when I am not pursuing a large dream. Yet, no one can achieve the impossible without a process. I know this, and even still, I detest the red tape procedures, personal hang ups, and unyielding trial-and-error attempts that processes require...even if I know they can lead to greatness.
I would like to blame my intolerance of life processes on my ADHD. However, I know that it is probably more nurtured by my drive to dream. I was born to dream of the unknown. I approach every opportunity with a "this is going to be the one" attitude. I probably resemble the coyote...who, driven by his hunger to capture the roadrunner, approaches every ACME gadget with a sure-fire confidence. Only to run at top speed over the nearest cliff, hanging in the air for a moment to reflect in his failure, and then plummeting.
This week has been the fullest 5 days of life. I have started the last leg of a process that I started a while ago---almost done with my degree. I have been met with opportunities like no other--and I am honored to approach them with my famous "this might be the one" attitude. I have had victories and "super-woman" moments. But I have hit walls too. The kind that don't move or crumble upon impact. The kind that require more work, more sacrifice, more persistence, more resilience, more creativity, and more prayer. And the truth is...all the extra the barricades require, right now, I am not sure I have. I want to be done with the process.
It's funny. In the joy of pursuit of the impossible, the pain of the process is what is often remembered more than the taste of the success. Is this what pushes us dreamers towards the next dream? Or is this memory what allows us to appreciate the impossible all the more? Maybe the struggle is what makes the success so sweet?
Tonight I am the coyote...researching and placing my order for the next ACME gadget. The great thing is I am ADHD and by tomorrow my interest with the wall will have faded and I will know, just know, that this plan is the one that's gonna get my impossible. I will get up and get to work. That's what us coyotes do...
Ironically, my favorite word in the English Language is Impossible. I long to achieve the impossible. I dream big and without boundaries. I can't function when I am not pursuing a large dream. Yet, no one can achieve the impossible without a process. I know this, and even still, I detest the red tape procedures, personal hang ups, and unyielding trial-and-error attempts that processes require...even if I know they can lead to greatness.
I would like to blame my intolerance of life processes on my ADHD. However, I know that it is probably more nurtured by my drive to dream. I was born to dream of the unknown. I approach every opportunity with a "this is going to be the one" attitude. I probably resemble the coyote...who, driven by his hunger to capture the roadrunner, approaches every ACME gadget with a sure-fire confidence. Only to run at top speed over the nearest cliff, hanging in the air for a moment to reflect in his failure, and then plummeting.
This week has been the fullest 5 days of life. I have started the last leg of a process that I started a while ago---almost done with my degree. I have been met with opportunities like no other--and I am honored to approach them with my famous "this might be the one" attitude. I have had victories and "super-woman" moments. But I have hit walls too. The kind that don't move or crumble upon impact. The kind that require more work, more sacrifice, more persistence, more resilience, more creativity, and more prayer. And the truth is...all the extra the barricades require, right now, I am not sure I have. I want to be done with the process.
It's funny. In the joy of pursuit of the impossible, the pain of the process is what is often remembered more than the taste of the success. Is this what pushes us dreamers towards the next dream? Or is this memory what allows us to appreciate the impossible all the more? Maybe the struggle is what makes the success so sweet?
Tonight I am the coyote...researching and placing my order for the next ACME gadget. The great thing is I am ADHD and by tomorrow my interest with the wall will have faded and I will know, just know, that this plan is the one that's gonna get my impossible. I will get up and get to work. That's what us coyotes do...
Sunday, August 15, 2010
banana boxes, bubble wrap, and life lessons.....
I think, at times, that the life lessons that mean the most come from the most unexpected places, at the most unprepared moments. This weekend, amidst the hauling and lugging, pulling and pushing, the cleaning and organizing, money spent and time sacrificed..behind a stack of banana boxes and bubble wrap I was reminded of a few lessons.
First, I was reminded that family isn't defined by blood lines. Family are those people in your world who seek to know your real heart. They are the people who are cheering the loudest...even when you are in last place. It is these people who count it pure joy to walk through life with you--the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Second, I was reminded that family is the first place we learn true humility. Where else are we given the pleasure of living amongst assumptions, misunderstandings, and opinions and then given the challenge of loving the person in return?
Third, I was reminded that every person has their own process in life. It is a continual challenge for me to remember that processes are often slow and painful, rarely immediate, and subject to change per individual.
Finally, I was reminded that when it comes to family...I am richly blessed. I am proud of where I have come from. I watched this weekend as friends and family alike gathered to do a less than desirable chore and I found myself taken by the amount of blessings surrounding me. Laughter, sweat, a few tears, and hard work...all for what? Because one of ours needed help. Yes, I can say I am proud of where I come from. And looking ahead to the family I became a part of when I married...I am proud of where I am going.
These people that I am proud to call family (no blood line required)--they are extensions of God's heart in my world. They challenge me, make me laugh, make me cry, and I know from experience...when life crashes in on us and it gets too hard to walk...they have been known to carry us until we regain strength. These individuals expect greatness, they demand character and integrity and they only know how to love sacrificially. They have taught me that humility isn't in naming your faults--it is in giving of yourself.
Tonight, I am humbled that God would give me such an amazing blessing as these people in my life. I am overwhelmed at knowing that these people don't just love my little family...they thank God for us. I am moved to tears to know that when I lay down to sleep tonight, God has blessed me with people that are willing to walk this crazy, upside down, sometimes backwards, chaotic, always full life!
Who am I to be given such a gift?
First, I was reminded that family isn't defined by blood lines. Family are those people in your world who seek to know your real heart. They are the people who are cheering the loudest...even when you are in last place. It is these people who count it pure joy to walk through life with you--the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Second, I was reminded that family is the first place we learn true humility. Where else are we given the pleasure of living amongst assumptions, misunderstandings, and opinions and then given the challenge of loving the person in return?
Third, I was reminded that every person has their own process in life. It is a continual challenge for me to remember that processes are often slow and painful, rarely immediate, and subject to change per individual.
Finally, I was reminded that when it comes to family...I am richly blessed. I am proud of where I have come from. I watched this weekend as friends and family alike gathered to do a less than desirable chore and I found myself taken by the amount of blessings surrounding me. Laughter, sweat, a few tears, and hard work...all for what? Because one of ours needed help. Yes, I can say I am proud of where I come from. And looking ahead to the family I became a part of when I married...I am proud of where I am going.
These people that I am proud to call family (no blood line required)--they are extensions of God's heart in my world. They challenge me, make me laugh, make me cry, and I know from experience...when life crashes in on us and it gets too hard to walk...they have been known to carry us until we regain strength. These individuals expect greatness, they demand character and integrity and they only know how to love sacrificially. They have taught me that humility isn't in naming your faults--it is in giving of yourself.
Tonight, I am humbled that God would give me such an amazing blessing as these people in my life. I am overwhelmed at knowing that these people don't just love my little family...they thank God for us. I am moved to tears to know that when I lay down to sleep tonight, God has blessed me with people that are willing to walk this crazy, upside down, sometimes backwards, chaotic, always full life!
Who am I to be given such a gift?
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Let the Adventure Begin......
This blog was started as a school project--an attempt to get to those biases and prejudices we hide. The project was finished with the completion of the Spring 2010 semester (and for those of who are wondering...I got an A+). Thank you to those who walked that journey with me.
Now...I am moving on with a new journey. I have thought long and hard about the idea of blogging. In all honesty, I have zero time to keep up with this. And for those who know me well...I detest the idea of being vunerable to the mass majority. But...at the same time...I have thoughts swimming that need an exit point and at times my heart bubbles over with an enormous amount of joy and graditude that I need a way to express it all. So here it is. What started as a project to dig deeper will now become a window to my world. A new adventure begins...
Now...I am moving on with a new journey. I have thought long and hard about the idea of blogging. In all honesty, I have zero time to keep up with this. And for those who know me well...I detest the idea of being vunerable to the mass majority. But...at the same time...I have thoughts swimming that need an exit point and at times my heart bubbles over with an enormous amount of joy and graditude that I need a way to express it all. So here it is. What started as a project to dig deeper will now become a window to my world. A new adventure begins...
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