My #ADHD is the reason I'm a hacker, board-certified anesthesiologist, social justice advocate, anti-fascist, health policy wonk, investor, entrepreneur, and your secret weapon at trivia night.
If you or someone you love has ADHD, empower them. Understand that they see connections that you don't, and that nine times out of ten, they're going to be right.
The moment that you try to force us into a box, we'll move onto something else but if you let us spread our wings, we'll help you soar.
2/x FTR I wasn't diagnosed with #adhd until I was in med school. The delay in diagnosis was due to limited access to mental health care until that point in my life－but all the signs were there all along. As part of my diagnostic workup, I was was asked to provide evidence of learning difficulties during my childhood, so I requested my "permanent record" from my K-12 school district and, sure enough, it was there. My first-grade teacher commented that I was "very bright but disruptive"
4/x Even after I was diagnosed, there was a stigma, especially in Silicon Valley where techbros abuse #adhd medication to gain a competitive advantage professionally. It took me years to accept that I did, in fact, needed the medication.
It's taken several more years to speak openly about it, but I believe it's important for #adhd patients and parents alike to know: you're not alone.
5/x There's a certain chaotic beauty to #adhd, but that beauty is not appreciable without treatment. If you have ADHD-- I see you.
I know it's hard to get treatment-- it's important to keep trying. I know it's tempting to just stop taking the meds, especially right now while there's a national shortage-- don't do it unless your doctor specifically says it's safe to do so because it's not safe to stop abruptly.
6/6 Last thing I want to say about this is: if you're in tech, please don't make light/fun of #adhd treatment. There's a very good chance that someone within earshot actually needs the medication that you take for fun/just because/to give you an edge.
Also, if you're a parent of a child with ADHD: don't be ashamed and don't be afraid-- early diagnosis can make a world of difference. I know it's not easy, but it's worth the effort. Trust me.
I've found something interesting that happened recently. I've long fought with being a pop drinker. Always loved drinking Pepsi (despite knowing how terrible that stuff tends to be). Recently I started on some #adhd medication and I've found that my appetite for pop has just dissipated. I decided on a whim to have a Pepsi out of the fridge just now and I managed 3 sips before giving up on it. Has anyone else had an experience like that?
Was listening to the Mac Power Users "State of The Platforms" episode and mostly what it made me think was that I just don't like apple much anymore.
They're all the worst aspects of #ADHD combined. Spurts of creative energy directed at something, then wandering off the moment it stops being interesting. They leave things 80% done, and then forget they exist until forced to remember years later.
Today's been a real struggle with #ADHD things. Just ... totally draining to stay even remotely on topic.
However, I'm happy to report that I've lost a bet with @dachary regarding if we would get new glasses first (end of june) or me getting drugs. My money was on glasses.
Tomorrow... tomorrow we take drugs! 🎉
are they good drugs? will tehy work? who knows?! they're the first drugs i've been able to acquire in a month.
I almost muster enough concentration to stop scrolling through YouTube shorts when I land on Mayim Bialik being super eloquent in her description of #adhd and stimulants. https://youtube.com/shorts/6JfIM1HxYQY
Feels like the BBC's #ADHD story hinges on that weird part of the NHS' diagnostic criteria: you can only be diagnosed if they deem it to be "significantly affecting" your life. No doubt their bar is less attainable than private.
Which means if you spent 20 years figuring out mechanisms to manage it then congratulations, you don't have the thing. Like how if your leg gets blown off but you fashion your own crutch to move about on, you're now completely normal and need no help with mobility.
so the bbc and the times (both far right in politics) after years of attacking lgbtqaai people have moved onto neurodivergent
There is a documentary out claiming lots of people are "misdiagnosed" with adhd/add
They did this by having a journalist lie about his symptoms
Guess what - if you lie to a doctor they will misdiagnose you
Let's ask why they did this? #trans#nonbinary#adhd#add@actuallyautistic
Why the fuck is my gym's live capacity at 50% full, at 9:30 on a Monday night? Don't people know I have ADHD to manage? GO HOME, LET ME DO BIKE SPRINTS IN PEACE.
I'm way out of running shape right now, but as I'm spending more and more time writing, hoping to re-enroll and finish my dissertation, running is more on my mind. I hadn't been diagnosed with #ADHD when I started running, but it makes total sense now.
When I'm spending 10 hours sitting at a computer working everyday, the brain is tired but, kinetically, the body isn't. And thanks to #ADHD, my brain is pathologically incapable of stopping. So if I'm working too late, I try to go to bed in a delightful state of hyperactive exhaustion. It's no wonder I had insomnia half my life.
Hey fam, in the past couple months I've been diagnosed with #ADHD and it has been life changing, in a great way, and I'm in the best place I've ever been. However, I've still got work to do and would love to get some ADHD #coaching to help me get a better quality of life.
I know times are tough but if you are in a position to flick me some cash, no matter how small, to put towards some ADHD coaching I would be forever grateful.
@alexandra ahh! Yeah, I just bit the bullet and booked it. I figure putting my #ADHD to good use by making it urgent meant I’ll figure out a way to make it happen lol
Last time, I asked the Dr about an #adhd dx. He said there's only one person in the entire state and it would take a year+ just to get an appt..
He offered to write a prescription and just see if that helped. I declined for reasons I'm not clear about. I think I just don't like taking things. I want someone to snap their fingers and Make It So.
I have another visit this week. Considering asking again.
It feels like cheating. And like maybe knowing is more important than treating?
@Mina@HistoPol@FediFollows Unfortunately, I seem to be literally the only person who is trying to discuss sexuality in an academic but explicit way. There is very little sexual education of any kind in our society. Certainly not on social media. So my content is put with porn. Many people (women I suspect) consider any explicit vocabulary to be suspect. Mastodon asks for CW on any erotic content. My images are non-pornographic but I use words like clitoris and orgasm so that is erotic!
"The most common NDs are #autism spectrum disorder (#ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder (#ADHD).1 Many NDs are not as well known or widely studied."
#Dyslexia is not mentioned. I know people with the two latter conditions, but none who identified as #ASD in RL.