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this post was submitted on 23 Jan 2024
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Sure!
Autism and ADHD are both spectrums of symptoms, but you apparently think that 'real' diagnosis are those with the most extreme symptoms.
Autism has nothing to do with being a quirky introvert in real life. The common traits such as taking things literally, strong reactions to stimuli, and others I'm forgetting all have a range from mild to completely debilitating and the diagnosis is based on how it impacts the person's day to day life. I work with a couple people who have milder symptoms and other than just being easier to talk to than most people because they say what they mean, it is just something that them knowing helps them understand how to interact with others to reduce conflict. It also helps them avoid situations that overwhelm them since increased sensitivity to stimuli is a huge part of it. Maybe you shouldn't take tiktok/movies/other entertainment as representation of real world medical diagnosis.
I have ADHD, diagnosed in my 30s, and while I also think middle class white boys might be over diagnosed that is more of a middle class pressure on doctors than a general trend of over diagnosing. I spent two years trying behavior changes, but since they were not successful I tried meds and it took three before finding one that really does feel like it magically fixed things. I was even able to be relatively successful in life before, but with medication things are so much easier because while it is working the odds of me losing focus is greatly reduced and getting stuck being indecisive over minor things is greatly reduced. It doesn't turn me into Superman, it turns me into Clark Kent. Comparing ADHD medication to calm down with addiction to stimulants making you feel like Superman is the dumbest shit I've read this month.
Both diagnosis are also things everyone does dialed up to a degree that is disruptive. That does mean that someone who wants their kid to be diagnosed can exaggerate things to increase the odds of a diagnosis, but that doesn't mean your general statements that the two conditions are fictional is accurate. Both are dismissive and frankly offensive. Again, I disagree with the reasons behind your opinions because of how terrible the 'reasons' are, not that you have those opinions.
It was hyperbole but my point stands. I feel "normal" on meth. In your words yes I feel like Clarke Kent. As in you suddenly feel how you think you're always meant to feel.
My point is the effects ADHD people describe when 'finding a med that works' are exactly the same as those of a normal person doing stims. There's literally no difference except heart rate.
I get the impression you've no idea what meth is like - let me explain: It's exactly like when you take ADHD meds. That alive/awake/suddenly I'm here. That's it. OK It's obviously got major side effects when taken to excess (e.g. 4 day wanking binges or obsessive sorting/cleaning). But I'd argue those are signs of OVERDOSE not meths inherent effects. Which doctors agree with because guess what!? Methamphetamine is prescribed to treat ADHD!!! Along with methylphenidate and guess what I used to abuse? Ethylphenidate - almost exactly the same effects.
So either I've been self-medicating away an undiagnosed ADHD disorder or ADHD isn't a thing and people are simply taking performance enhancing legal drugs and explaining it away as medicine. Cos I'm tlelign you as an addict they are designed to make you feel fucking fantastic. It's literally in the medical literature. It's not a fucking surprise you feel great on ADHD meds - EVERYONE would and does!
OK look at it form a different angle: Lots of people are terrible at socialising. A new diagnosis of "Asocialphobic Personality Disorder". Doctors have discovered an excellent new treatment for it called Ethylene Hydrate which you take 44ml of every 2hrs. It cures the new disorder Asocialphobic Personality Disorder!!! WHAT HO!!! Miracle - we've fixed the worlds problems.
Except Asocialphobic Personality Disorder doesn't exist and Ethylene Hydrate is just another name for alcohol.
Alcohol makes you more sociable. But sprucing it up in scientific language sure makes it sound like a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.
I don't have a problem with ADHD sufferers or people taking meds. I do have a problem with the hypocracy. People used to medicate on alcohol for anxiety. Same with opium for pain, cocaine for motivation and many more. Native tribes used to chew coca leaves to travel long distances. Opium was used for operations.
Kratom was used heavily by SE Asians to manage long work days...remember this one!
When the world is screaming at you: PERFORM, CONSUME, PERFORM, WORK, CONSUME, PERFORM, CONSUME, WORK, WORK, WORK.
You're being left behind, life feels kinda shit - cos life IS shit!! So what do you do?
You ask: What could be wrong with me? How do I fix myself?
Doctors invent a whole new diagnosis and start prescribing uppers. What do they do? They make you PERFORM and WORK and CONSUME! Suddenly you fit into the life around you. It's not you who was broken - the WORLD is broken. You felt shit precisely because life is SHIT! Have you heard that things like depression, ADHD, Autism and other mental health issues are more common in the developed world than in the developing?
Ever wonder why?
It's not because the doctors are shit. It's because they don't need diagnoses to explain their situation.
Drugging yourself with ADHD meds and antidepressants has become the new religion. In the past we could blame shit on god. We could find comfort in religion. When we see problems now we turn to doctors and science.
Nothing changed - life is shit. It's miserable and painful. ADHD meds didn't fix you. They mask the reality of life.
There's no difference between your med use and my meth use except dosage and legality.
I've written too much on ADHD to be bothered with Autism so I may/not answer that later. This will do for now.
Did you always feel that way when you used meth, or just after you were addicted?
If it is the former you might have ADHD or some other condition like depression where stimulation helps you.
I tried cocaine a couple of times in my 20s and it calmed me down, but everyone else was hyped up and annoyed me so I stopped using it. Tried meth once and it was also calming, so I figured it didn't work on me and never tried it again. When I was finally talked into seeing a doctor about concentration issues a decade later this was very helpful for the doctor as it led to me getting a full test and eventually the attempted behavior modification and then medical treatments.
It is the exact fucking opposite. The right stimulants calm down people with ADHD. They stimulate regular people.
Honestly it sounds like you have had some really weird experiences with terrible doctors and other people in general. But everything you are saying is like the bizzaro opposite of how these things work.
OK I'm gonna speak to my GP at some point cos this isn't the first time I've contemplated having undiagnosed ADHD.
Funnily enough I did an online autism test the other day and it said I was "Highly Likely" autistic. But then it says further down the page they charge ~£2k for diagnosis from a private clinic that obviously wants to push for more profit. Who do I trust? It isn't helped by the fact most ADHD, autism and cannabis diagnoses/prescriptions are private so there's a profit motive to them all. Poor people don't qualify. On Universal Credit and have ADHD? You're fucked cos the meds cost £00s per month or a 3yr waiting list if you're lucky.
Added to the fact diagnoses is just confirmation bias. I can look at every disorder in the DSM from BPD to bloody schizophrenia and I fit every single one. It's about picking the right memories. Am I asocial? Yes! But isn't everyone? Am I miserable? Yes, of course! Do I procrastinate? Yes! Am I selfish? Yes, sometimes! Do I shit twice a day? Yes! Do I have problems concentrating? YES!
But wait...is that cos I've been lay down on the sofa all day browsing Lemmy? Come to think of it does that explain everything? Is browsing Lemmy 12hrs per day the cause or a symptom of something?
I see people talk about ADHD symptoms online all the time and I go - "yeah I get that". It's become so common that "neurodivergant" sounds neurotypical! Do you remember how "OCD" got overused? People would say "I'm so OCD cos I had to bin the toast I dropped butter side up". Erm, no it's dirty and it's obvious. That's kinda how it feels when I see people complain about ADHD symptoms - "no you're not ADHD - that's just normal".
In fact lets try it:
So do I have ADHD? AFAIK everyone has those at some point. Fuck knows I assumed this was all normal and I was just shit at life...? My head's at war with itself. On one hand I don't want more drugs because I was an addict and antidepressants don't work. On the other I keep seeing reasons why I should ask for a diagnosis because it seems blindingly obvious.
I also did coke a few times as a student and once in my late 20s with the same result - calm mind but with palpitations. Someone told me it was probably "shit coke" but it had great reviews from everyone else. I also took modafinil for a few months and it helped my motivation - it's thought to act in a similar way to ADHD meds and is being studied as an ADHD med.
I don't know. It's annoying to think the 40yrs of my life being a complete cluster fuck could be explained by a diagnosis and some pills. Do you see where I'm coming from?
Speak to your GP, tell them how you react to things and that you want to know if there is someone you can be referred to that addressed those kinds of things. Specifically things like 'I respond differently than others to [drug] and also these behaviors that are affecting [part of your life] and want to know what I can do to find out if this is something that can be addressed'. Don't say that you think you have ADHD or Autism, just focus on what you know and that you want to address it.
A lot of symptoms/behaviors overlap between diagnosis and have different treatments. For example, both Autism and ADHD frequently (but not always) have auditory processing issues where it can be hard to understand things someone said, not because of difficulty hearing, but how the brain is processing what is heard. A professional will be able to help sort out whether something is confirmation bias or an actual diagnosis.
The most important part of a disorder like ADHD is that it reaches the level of a disorder even though most people have the same symptoms from time to time! Like how everyone gets sad from time to time, but depression has similar symptoms but is completely different than just being sad.
Personally I think you have a lot of things that would be very good to speak about with a medical professional. They will be the one who can actually evaluate you and they will ask a lot of clarifying questions. For my diagnosis I also took a multiple choice thing that was a couple hundred questions in addition to multiple appointments before there was a diagnosis.
That is a scam and you should only trust licensed medical doctors who did not pursue your business.
I think you have been fed a ton of misinformation and really hope you speak to your GP and find out if this is something you should pursue. I won't speculate whether you have ADHD because I am not a medical professional, but that is the type of person that will be able to help. I look back and wish that I had been diagnosed earlier, but all of the experiences that led to medication reinforce the fact that it actually does help me and that it isn't just some placebo. Hell, friends I have had for decades can tell when I forget to take them!
The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is right now.
Funny enough, it could be a symptom of ADHD, depression, or some kind of compulsion depending on why you do it. For ADHD it could be the stimulation or avoidance of something else. For depression it could be seeking some kind of connection.
But only a medical professional would know enough to narrow down the possibilities to reach a diagnosis. And you might even get the wrong one first! I was diagnosed with something else before ADHD, and it was mostly the horrible reaction to drugs for the first that excluded it and led to the one that worked. It is slow and honestly I hope you find something that helps you.
I love how this has gone from "ADHD and autism are over diagnosed" to "guys do I have undiagnosed ADHD and autism?"
That's exactly what I was reading. It's like he hates part of himself and is proper angry or jealous about other people seeking and getting help.