Does ADD really exist?

Question

Some say Attention Deficit Disorder is just a made up condition for doctors to get more money, some say it it is actually a serious condition. What do you think?

Answer 1

ADD does exist, but the controversy is when physicians use it as a diagnosis for not knowing or not taking the time to find out what is causing the attention loss. In true cases, medication does help and is very effective. In other cases, it is a calming agent that appears to help, and is considered "symptom treatment" rather than "disorder therapy". Second opinions are my suggestion if you know someone who you think may not be ADD. ADD can be diagnosed and medicated without any type of tests by a MD General Practitioner just giving them an exam in their office and taking activity history, rather than a psychological review. It does exist, and it is serious, but there is much room for error here.

Answer 2

It is real ! I know people who's kids have it as well as ADHD and I'll tell ya, those kids are hyper nuts! They can't keep babysitters because the kids are so bad, even Ritalin doesn't help! I told them to check into ADD and ADHD on the Internet and they said they would! My nerves are shop just being around them for 1 hour, so I guess it is a REAL disorder!

Answer 3

Yes

Answer 4

well it does exist.. buuuut i aint too sure about there being any prescription drugs for this condition..

its just like a habitual condition that i dont think really has 'drugs' that can cure it.. i for one know that i have ADD.. like just now, i was midway typing this answer, and all of a sudden switched to outlook and started checking my mail there, after i had been on the phone, and then realised that ohhhh i was meant to be typing my answer..

i always do things like that....

Answer 5

yes. but i don't think it's as cut and dry and cookie cutter as ppl seem to think. not every kid is the same nor too will the ADD/ADHD conditions that they will have. my son AND my step son AND myself have ADD/ADHD.
most ppl think of ADD/ADHD people/children as slow, stupid, or trouble makers. that is NOT the right attitude to have about this. and it's VERY sad that ppl misunderstand this condition.

my stepson, is very sweet, behaves very well in school. he is loving and affectionate w/his teachers and w/ his family. however he has problems w/ reading comprehension. he has to work harder than the "average" student to retain the information he reads, so that he can test better. it's hard for him...but he tries very hard too. it's not like he goes nuts; like you see ppl portray it. he gets frustrated and upset that he has to work so hard at it, but that is normal! wouldn't you get pissed if you read something and then three minutes later had one hell of a time remembering what it was your read? OR you remember it, you just have a VERY difficult time getting it written down on paper. its like that expression, you know what you want to say..you just don't know HOW to say it. BUT on the flip side, my step son is an excellent speller, he's won three spelling B's. and won the regional spellers competition for the UIL in our area. these are not stupid kids.

my own son has ADD borderline ADHD, he has a problem w/sitting still. it's not that he doesn't listen or doesn't want to do the work. he just cannot remain seated. something in his head TELLS him to get up and move around. this is something that more people see. the kids that are sitting at their desks but they are kicking their feet, squirming in their chair, humming, looking around. and it can be REALLY bad, or moderate. have you ever had an itch that you couldn't scratch that was in a place that would be IMPOLITE to scratch in public...well, you end up squriming around and stuff. same thing, only ten times worse. you just HAVE to move. my son is not stupid either, or a problem. he is a very bright child, he teachers love him. he is gifted actually, and in the GT classes..he just cant sit still somedays.

when these problems effect my childrens ability to properly do their work, and/or effect their grades i would consider that SERIOUS!

my ADD/ADHA experience started when i was very young. i REMEMBER kindergarten-12th grade. *i have a good memory* so i remember the pills, the time outs, the horrible hateful teachers, the snide remarks from other parents, the disapointment over my grades, i remember the blood tests i had to take every summer to make sure the medication i was on wasn't hurting my liver. and i can think back to the times when i was having what i have coined now as my "ADD moments", i CLEARLY remember sitting in my desk listening to my teacher giving intruction. i was trying SO HARD to pay attention...but something said, "stand on your desk" and i just HAD to.

back then..ppl just thought i was a stupid troublemaker. i wasn't worth teaching because i wasted time.
i wasn't trying to. NO child wants to be the center of NEGATIVE attention in class. the teasing was horrific! it's not fun, and it is REAL. i wouldn't wish that experience on anyone.
im not stupid either, nor was i ever although my peers, and even the very ppl that were suppose to protect and help me thought so. my teachers in grade shcool were pathetically cruel and just evil hearted.
i actually have a gifted range IQ, and was tested as such as a child also, during all the other testing i had to go through back then. one parent mocked my mother when this was part of a dicussion one after noon w/ some of my classmates standing around. this woman stated that i should be placed in a special school for "people like HER KIND". she was suggesting that i belonged in an institution.
no one really can know what it's like to LIVE this way unless you've been in these kids shoes.
i will NEVER let anyone over medicate, bully, or mock my children.

i would hope that people would learn about this problem and learn to control their judgemental mouths as well.

booma's use of the phrase "the kids are so bad", is a PERFECT example of people MIS-reading this condition. they are NOT bad kids. you just see them as such because they are not behaving the way YOU want them to. patients and understand are the key, NOT insults.
something another person said, that ADD/ADHD can be diagnosed w/out tests....
would you trust a doctor that would test for cancer w/out proper testing? without IN DEPTH screening and research? why the HELL would you let a doctor do that with your child about anything let alone ADD...the medication they use are Narcotics people...not PEZ! but if you feel all you need is to fill out a one page questionnaire w/out having the doctor observe them and test them go right ahead, and watch the pills stack up.
i put my children through the same testing my parents did me....i wanted to KNOW FOR SURE! a one page questionnaire can NOT tell you everything. and then you sit back and wonder WHY there is such a huge room for error?? WOW!

Answer 6

I thought that it was only made up for a while until my best friends child and one one my cousins children were diagnosed with it.It's definitely real.

Answer 7

It does, I have ADHD. All 3 of my kids have it as well. my Parents both have it, and my little sister does too.

Answer 8

Yes, it really does exist.

Answer 9

yes

Answer 10

interesting question. like to see the results.