The "New" Brain disorders, Real or Imagined?

"...but I wonder if there is a real physiological problem or if this is largely a condition that people just talk themselves into. What do you think?"

Honestly, I think that people can talk themselves into those kinds of conditions, and ADD, I believe, is just a lack of discipline.
People don't realize how powerful words are, thoughts too. If someone keeps talking or thinking negative, more than likely, they will end up with what they are saying/ thinking (for example ADD)- someone saying "I can't learn anything, I'm stupid, I can't focus"...

It is really demeaning for doctors to "diagnose" a person with "ADD", really, I belive it is all made up, just so they can have something to justify that behavior as.

-Amanda-

There are instances in which a diagnosis is hastily made. That is most certainly true; however, I don't think anyone can say these conditions aren't real.

I think a lot of things contribute to the over-diagnosis. First, most of the drugs were developed fairly recently, so people who may have had these conditions in the past went untreated. Now those people have children and they are on the lookout for those symptoms in their kids, and they want their kids to have the full benefit of medicine that was denied to them. Second, parenting has changed. Helicopter parents are hyper-vigilant about what is "normal" and "abnormal" and kids are not required to work through things on their own like they used to be. In some cases, this is good. In others, this leads to an unwarranted diagnosis. Third, drug companies and chemical manufacturers are incredibly powerful. They claim that the high cost of medication goes into development, but think about how much cheaper drugs would be if they spent less on sales and marketing. There is a huge push in the U.S. to enjoy better living through chemistry, which leads me to point four. I believe there really are more genuine cases of these ailments than there used to be, because our body chemistries are screwed by our environment...in more ways than one. The water is full of chemicals and hormones. So is our food. Our cosmetic products are just plain poison. Then our work and life environments are made of chemicals, and they are not the kind of life nature intended.

Have you ever seen a bear or a tiger pacing obsessively at the zoo? They do that because the boredom of captivity causes depression, anxiety, and OCD. Humans are animals; do you think our lives are any better or more natural than a zoo animal's?

But whatever the cause, these diseases are real. My mother would die without her meds. My cousin did, because his parents didn't want to put him on anti-depressants. My best friend is brilliant...a down right genius...but he took 15 years to finish his undergraduate degree because of his ADD. He is older than I am, and there was no diagnosis for him back when he was a kid. He spent all of his school years pegged as a problem child. He learned to cope without meds, but his ADD has seriously limited his professional advancement.

I think everyone's orders and disorders are their business and that judging whether they are real or imagined is unproductive and irresponsible. I try to take people at their word. I mean, what's it to me if they want to take a drug they don't need? What's it to me if they don't take a drug they do need? It's not me.

http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman

It is true that a lot of people are fully capable of contolling their ADD/ADHA and whatnot. I've been told by a proffesional that I have ADHD, but I take no medication, and I can focus myself well enough.

My brother, however, cannot control his, and needs his medication to be able to concentrate and do well in school. We were hesitant to put him on the medication, but almost immediately, his grades went up and his work started getting done. He was more focused and less distractable.

But I have to say that a lot of people dramatize these disorders. Most cases of them are far from serious and requiring meds.

And that's comin' at ya' from yer local redneck hippie.

Thank you all for the comments.

It would be foolhardy to wave away all mental dysfunctions as drama, but I am still concerned that way to many cases are nothing but a fad.

I agree that negative self talk has a lot to do with mental disorders. My inner words have a profound impact on my feelings and performance. If I screw something up and tell myself that my participation in a project is over, then it is. I have noticed that when I put undo pressure on my performance in an event I do poorly--even in the face of less skilled people. Measuring myself against other people drives me crazy & causes me to behave in all sorts of strange ways. The biggest factor I find with attention deficit in my life & the lives of those I observe seems to be selfishness. I simply get attracted to some trinket or "feel good" opportunity that I let get in the way of a long term goal.

I come from a family of people who tend towards melodrama. Sometimes these people are depressed. I have noticed that whenever I feel depressed, my depression has to do with a disparity between what I am getting in life & what I think I deserve out of life. This is selfishness too. This theme comes out repeatedly in people I talk to about depression as well. Is it chemical? Is it self talk? If I am melodramatic, I could certainly possess a genetic defect, but I think this characteristic in my life has more to do with the interactions in my family of origin than my chemistry.

I reject the ideas that I am nothing more than an animal & am unable to use my capacity for abstract thought to correct dysfunctional patterns in my life. I am created with mental capacities that far exceed those of my pets. I am capable of asking and answering questions that simply don't register with them.

I also reject the notion that this speculation is unproductive & none of my business. People are social creatures and each of us is affected by things that others do. Anybody ever own a pair of Levi's or Lucky 's? How about Nike's? You bought Nike wear simply because it is a great value for the money & outperforms all other clothing, right? Is Harley Davidson a good value in a motorcycle? The emerging psychodrug culture is much more insipid than that. Not only may I feel left out if I don't have some drugs, I also encounter medical professionals and other victims with drug experience who are emphatic that these might be necessary to make my life better.

What about PTSD? A group of people have the same experiences. Some have trouble, some do not. There is a physiological manifestation. Does the Physiology preceed the disease or not? Does the self-talk influence the physiology?

What about the increasing tendency in the United States towards amoralism? Does the idea that life has no meaning contribute to depression & ADD by sending the message that we are just animals & that there is really nothing to work for?

Do you think that the growing idea among people that a good life is simply a series of scintillating moments and that the pain of failure or grind hard work indicates that one does not possess a 'life'? Is this a misguided notion on my part?