Am i the only one who thinks add/adhd is a total scam?

I'm sorry but much of what I'm reading here is complete nonsense.

Perhaps it is true that it's a scam when in reference to already hyperactive children. I don't know. I'm not going to argue that.

If you're asking this question then you or someone you know must be struggling to understand what is wrong with them, and why they are struggling in the first place. It is easy to consider ADD a scam, but no, I do not believe it is.

Attention in this sense doesn't necessarily refer to concentration. Attention is much broader than that and refusing help if needed could result in a life-time struggle nobody wants to be a part of. It's much better to get the help early on because quality of life can be increased a great deal.

It's ok to feel this way. Nobody wants to have these kinds of issues. I would cite proofs but I don't have enough time or space here. Reaching out for help is not a bad thing, and no mental problem is an excuse for bad behavior. Not getting help for a mental problem however, is a very bad excuse. There is a difference between ADD and ADHD.

I believe that it is over diagnosed, but that it isn't a scam. I couldn't focus in school, and it wasn't a matter of energy, I could come to school well rested, or having had lounged in bed for about 24-14 hours straight. No matter how much energy I had, I just couldn't focus. I remember coming home crying one day, and telling my dad that I can't focus. In the end, some testing was done and i was diagnosed with ADD, and when I was perscribed medication, it really started to help me.

Kids are told to sit down and shut up at school for hours on end. They just have extra energy, not add/adhd. I think it's a scam because over a million have been confirmed as "misdiagnosed."

I can see you really understand the neurochemistry of the brain, lol NOT! It is a real thing, with very detailed REAL science behind it, and looking at a list of symptoms does not qualify you the same as someone who went to school for twelve years to say whether its real or not, BUT with that being said, it is extremely hard to properly diagnose, especially in children, and often doctors seem to just lean towards the wishes of the parents rather than actually do their job correctly, but its not a scam mckay?

You clearly dont know anyone with ADD/ADHD. It's very clear that it is an actual disease but I do agree, on the other hand, that it is over-diagnosed.

I went out with a sufferer and can assure you her symptoms were real. However, I do think the illness is largely a symptom of the media, and particularly television which panders to audiences in return for advertising revenue. The audiences (especially younger audiences) want short programmes, quick moving, with greater and greater twists that are more and more easily understood. When I was flipping through the channels the other day and noticed the programming on a children's TV channel, I was stunned to find that no programme lasted longer than 10 minutes and most were only five.

Is that the attention span we want our children to grow up with? Five minutes? When I was a kid, I was told at infant school that I should take a break from reading or studying for five minutes in every hour, otherwise my brain wouldn't be learning at optimum efficiency. I was flabbergasted even then and thought it was ridiculous not even to be able to concentrate for an hour.

I feel dreadfully sorry for anyone who suffers with this condition. It's not their fault. And the people who have power should have the responsibility not to use their power for making money regardless of how they compromise people's health.

If its a "real thing" why don't you offer up some EVIDENCE along with that sarcasm? The "science" behind it is twisted in a way that makes it appear objective and accurate but it is not. Those brain scans they say shows differences in the ADHD brain have actually been shown to measure nothing more than the damage ADD meds have on the brain. To date there have been no clinical studies conducted that compare "normal brains" with NON- MEDICATED ADD/ADHD brains. And whose opinion do you think is more accurate; an educated, concerned citizen with nothing to gain or a psychiatrist who stands to make thousands on ADD and the idiots who believe in it?

It is normal to think this way. For some it is true and many people do have add/adhd. I for one was told that I had both by my doctor. However it is one of the most wildly diognosed medical conditions because it is about attention and hyperactivity. Especially in children this is extremely common behavior. When I was diognosed they had me taking five pills a day to keep me calm. The pills made me drowsy and slowed me down. However one day I was left without any pills and I did just fine it was the same me just a lot more enjoyable to be around. I had energy I was happy and I haven't been on the meds for 5 years. I couldn't be better.

All the kids that I know with an ADD/ADHD diagnosis have parents that have 'questionable' child-rearing ideas. Because no one is held accountable for stuff anymore, ADD is a perfect scapegoat for parents that don't have a clue. I still remember one time when my 18 year old was in grade school and away at Scout camp with my husband. My son was the only kid that was NOT on medication for ADD. I don't think it's legit.

i have ADHD, and guess what? its genetic, there is a genetic mutation that causes a hormonal imbalance in the brain, yes, the medication arrived before the DISORDER, but the medication was developed as a way for military personnel to fight off sleep, then they found it CALMED children with HYPERKINETIC disorder, by the way, the caps are corrections on where your claims are wrong. however, it is over diagnosed, and doctors/psychiatrists do need to rethink how they do the diagnoses, but it is real, and is no scam, do some research if you are going to claim something is fake

Exactly my opinion

I was diagnosed as well even though two out of the three doctors said I didn't have it. I was first givin aderall around first the was finally able to quite in the seventh and the thing is that my brain works faster than the other public schoolers and was board easily. And now I can't even remember my elementary school days and now have memory problems.

I think its all bullshit but I like the little pills they gave me so I play along.

Seriously, though, I have always had inability to concentrate, everything seemed floaty and incomprehensible. After being prescribed adderrall, I could easily grasp things, my grades skyrocketed, and life became more concrete/more real.

Make up your own mind about it, as I said I don't believe in it but I do think there are individuals who could benefit from the treatment.

ADD/ADHD are exceptionally rare in kids, you're right, parents just want a way to slow them down. Only after puberty should you be treating hyperactivity.

It is over-diagnosed. But it's clearly not meant to apply to everyone. I know I'm not like that, neither are most people I know, to be honest. I can think of one person who probably really has them.

Im 20 and i also have ADD.yes,it is real.no,its not a desease..thats just silly.its a common brain problem that some people share.yes,everyone gets distracted from time to time or doesnt feel like paying attention-whatever-but its only labelled "ADD" when it causes problems in everyday life(like learning).iv taken the meds and they were terrible:i felt like a zombie bc i ws tired and had a lingering headache all day.therefore i think that aspect is the scam(meds).Also the meds react differently to ppl wth this problem(ADD).they were used as antidepressants for "normal" ppl..so why would we wana speed up a hyper person/someone wth distracted thoughts?bc it has the opposite reaction on us..it just doesnt really help.so if they cld find meds tht help it wldnt b such a scam.

I have ADHD and it's deffanitly real! I'm 18 years old now I'm much better I don't inturupte I can read 100x better then I used to ( I used to pretend to read, or read a computer would read for me) my spelling is better (not as good as most people my age though) the only thing is my concentration I am not some much outer ADHD where I'm very jump and always have to be moving that's not me. I have rasing thoughts I am thinking about many things at once and I get distracted SO easily that's why if I'm talking and someone else is talking it's really hard for me to concentrate on what I was trying to say or even if the tv is on it destractes me. And that's why I've never done the best in school because I'd get distracted SO easily! I would be bored and I couldn't how many people had blue eyes in the class or how many people had middle parts. Random things.
I HATE when people call ADHD/ADD a disease or even a disorder. I think it's just a learning difference! I think that calling it a disease is untrue it doesn't effect you as a disease does you fuction just like anyone else you just learn differently!
Oh and I've never taken drugs for it ever my parents didn't want to put me on it unless they had to. They wanted me to learn to behave and without the drugs. If I inturuped or didn't do good in school. They would punish me just like they would if I didn't have ADHD they didn't use it as an excuse. I'm glad they didn't because now I don't either.

Most people who feel that way barely know what ADHD even is. It's like saying PTSD isn't real because people are starting to be diagnosed over trivial shit.

I had a friend at school with the disease and it was REAL. It wasn't just that he was a trouble-maker or distracted, there was something else there, that caused him to not concentrate and act up and the school offered him help and support through the same group I was also in known as the "community room", after the room in which the people involved gathered.

He also took medication for it but he was always skitty and uneasy, and keeping his attention was really difficult, his mind was forever looking for something new even if he was supposed to be doing something specific.

It isn't a scam and perhaps it is over-diagnosed but I know my friend was truly affected by the disease and to lump everyone together and think it's not real is not a good way to go about things.

I believe it does exist but is wayyyyy over diagnosed.

My whole family has ADD and ADHD, excluding my mothers. There's such a big difference between all four of us and her.. so no, I don't think it's a scam.. I just think that a lot of people use it as an excuse as to why they don't want to learn, or why they are crazy, or why they are strange. I think doctors 'misdiagnose' a lot of children just because they know they will make money.
My family itself does not use any of these medications because, really, they don't seem to help, and we've learned to alter situations to work with our so-called 'disease.'

I disagree as far as adult-onset ADD goes. I don't know enough about children with ADD to have a valid opinion on that subject. But, Adult-onset ADD is a very real thing. I have the ailment and have had it since I was about 19 years old. I can't begin to tell you the difference I noticed in myself between 17 years of age then 19 years of age, to later when I was put on medication. When I am not on the medicine vs. when I am on the medicine. Big difference. I have even tried many different types; stimulant-based vs. non-stimulant-based, as well as non-medication-based treatments. I strongly affirm the fact that adult-onset-ADD can and will change your life if not treated properly.

Conspiracy theory

I agree with you, they'll do whatever they can to make some extra money.

overrated, every human sometimes getts AHDD

i don't even consider it as a disorder

Well it has a lot to do with what children are being fed. These days, parents would rather take their kids out to eat junk food than cook a healthy meal. it was proven that if children eat healthy then their behaviour improves.

I think ADD/ADHD is created out of thin air. Kids in general are hyper and energetic so to say, they have an attention problem is quite inevitable. If given a calm environment and the proper outlet for energy, then it will not look to be conditioned to submissive parents. Anyone who has children reading this should learn to say no to these fraudulent nonscientific doctors who push drugs on to children.