I was actually diagnosed with ADHD when I was 4 back in 1991. I always thought it was bullshit. Im now 30, I can see all the symptoms and I have to be very conscious of them. My short term memory, distracted easily, and I felt chills when this guy described perfectly the shit that happens to me. My parents never put me on drugs. Back in the early 90's it was riddelin. I just had to learn to deal with it. Now i just carry a small notebook around with lists and notes. It helps a lot, as long as I rememebr to look at it.
Haha. I was going to say everyone suggests lists and notes to me but it's a miracle to get me to remember to look at them.
Similar-ish story. My teachers mentioned to my parents when I was around 4 or 5 that I had trouble paying attention and focusing in class but since I wasn't hyper it was nothing to worry about.
Struggled through every year of school, dropped out of college twice, blah blah blah but I could never figure out why I struggled so much. I just thought I was stupid and hated school because of it.
I hate that "well they're not hyper so they can't be so bad off" bullshit. I have ADHD-PI and my brother has ADHD-C, so he's hyper and I'm not. My whole life I was told his was "worse" than mine. But guess who ended up failing and dropping out of everything?
I lean more towards the fact that it was the early 90s so their understanding of the disorder and diagnostic process was way different than what's in place now.
I'm also my parents' first kid, and the first grand kid on both sides so they literally didn't know better. They heard the advice of my teachers and thought "well they say it's not a problem!" And because I also didn't know better I just thought that's how it was going to be. I got very good at pretending to be engaged and was disciplined in the sense that I sat and "listened" and did as I was told. Except I was never ACTUALLY listening.
Just like with any other mental illness, awareness and resources to become aware are far more prevalent and accessible in today's society than they were 30 years ago. It's unfortunate for those of us who grew up during that time but all we can do is try to prevent it from happening to younger generations.
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u/muddywater87 May 30 '17
I was actually diagnosed with ADHD when I was 4 back in 1991. I always thought it was bullshit. Im now 30, I can see all the symptoms and I have to be very conscious of them. My short term memory, distracted easily, and I felt chills when this guy described perfectly the shit that happens to me. My parents never put me on drugs. Back in the early 90's it was riddelin. I just had to learn to deal with it. Now i just carry a small notebook around with lists and notes. It helps a lot, as long as I rememebr to look at it.