This is actually a serious post, for once.

In doing my research on mental health and the history of, as well as researching ADHD for a paper I'm writing for a class, I have inevitably come across some comments about this little disorder that didn't sit well with me. And it came it a point where I had to shoot my mouth off. But I did it responsibly, and I didn't curse or yell or call people stupid (well, directly, at least). I gave them information that I have found in my research and they could take it or leave it. So here for your viewing pleasure is a comment I posted on a blog that had something to say about the supposed 'myth' of ADHD. I'm going to put additional personal comments to the end, though, so if you don't care to hear my emotional raving, just skip this entry.

I'd like to say to the naysayers of ADHD-- it is a real issue, and a serious one at that. Just because it's 'overdiagnosed' doesn't mean a thing-- ever think it might be due to better instruments of testing? As someone who's had ADHD-related issues her whole life, I can tell you that it is a lot worse than you think. Those who don't have mental illnesses or disorders aren't fully capable of understanding what it's like for those who do. Who are you to say that these very real problems are all in our head? As a child, I struggled to do well in school-- I'm bright, but I can't concentrate worth anything. I am easily distracted, making up patterns in my head and often completely losing track of what happens. This continues even today, when I am out of childhood and have what is known as 'Adult ADHD.'
Another myth that I can debunk right now is that parents of children with ADHD use it as an excuse for their child to be lazy and inefficient with their schoolwork. Not so for mine. My mother and father were adamant in not allowing my disorder to interfere with me getting a good education, and it has definitely paid off.
To whomever said that the medication we take for ADHD is dangerous and causes mental deficiencies [one of the commenters on the blog post], would you care to cite those sources where you found that information? I'm a Psychology student, and I have never heard this come up. Yes, methylphenidates (the main drugs found in such medications as Ritalin, Concerta, and Aderol) are in the same family as stimulants, but they affect the ADHD brain differently than they do those without the disorder. ADHD is caused by a chemical imbalance in the prefrontal cortex of the brain-- this is proven by numerous CAT scans of ADHD brains as opposed to those brains without the disorder.
Perhaps it's 'overdiagnosed,' but you must also keep in mind that 1 in 4 cases of ADHD also turns out to be bipolar disorder, which is almost indistinguishable from ADHD in children. As well, ADHD and normal childhood inattention/hyperactivity are distinct from one another in the way it affects the children. To be diagnosed with ADHD, one must be found to have severe problems in social, educational, and home environments to the point where it is incredibly difficult for the person being diagnosed to function normally.
ADHD has always existed; it's only now, when we have the technology to differentiate it from other, 'normal' issues, that we can understand the truth of the matter. I'd recommend reading about how psychological diagnoses are carried out; it might help in the understanding of the whole process. I can tell you from personal experience that it is no fun for the tester or the one being diagnosed, but it's important in order to help people function normally and be able to live productive lives.
So whether or not my words have had any effect on you, I've said what I need to say about my disorder. It's a real issue, one that many people sadly don't understand well enough to pass judgment.

And on a personal note...
As someone who's lived with ADHD, I can tell you that it is hard, very hard, to get through the day without my medication. When I take it, it isn't always apparent, but when I don't take it, or when it wears off, I definitely notice a difference in my ability to concentrate and stay calm and focused. I was always in trouble as a child, and my parents said I was a completely different child when I had my medicine-- different in that I could calm down, stay focused longer, and generally be far more productive than I had before. I was a wild child, to be perfectly blunt, and I had no control over what I did. I was six years old when I was diagnosed, nearly thirteen years ago, and when I recently read my psychological evaluation from that testing, I cried. I honestly and truly cried. I cried for my parents, who had to deal with me; I cried for the psychologist, who'd written that it had been an 'ordeal' for us both to get through the assessment; and I cried for myself, when I read the words that 'Lauren's...greatest fear is that "[she] will never pass the first grade."' I hadn't remembered that for all those years, but when I read that, it all hit me straight in the gut, rushing back to me in a flood of emotions and memories. The report talked of how I seemed impatient, but unusually bright for my age; how the psychologist and my mother both were amazed I had the disorder, since ADHD children aren't usually very good readers (they stopped testing my reading level in second grade). We later figured out that it was what they call 'hyperfocus,' which allows ADHD people to focus with greater intensity on certain activities (which, incidentally, is why Michael Phelps is so damn good at swimming-- seriously).
Some other problems I had were-- and sometimes still do-- depression and isolation. I saw a therapist for a little while in the fifth grade-- 10 years old. I had more behavioral problems cropping up, so much that they gave me what they called a 'point sheet.' They used it for behaviorally-challenged kids at my elementary school, the bad kids, and I had to have one. You would give it to your teacher (or teachers, like PE, music, art, science, and regular), and they gave you so many points for how well you behaved during that class. It was embarassing, and shameful, that I had to do that after every class period. I felt awful about it. Worse yet was that I had no friends in my class-- the one boy who I'd been friends with the year before was in a different class than me. My teacher had to ask some of the girls to be my friends-- ironic, since one of them is now one of my best friends, and my college roommate. It's funny how these things turn out, isn't it? But I didn't know this until years later, and when I found out I felt betrayed, really. Here I'd been thinking that they liked me for who I was, despite of all my problems, and it turned out that they'd been asked to be my friends. Even today, I still wonder if people are my friends because they want to be, or because they feel obligated to be.
I also suffered bouts of depression in seventh and eleventh grade. Both times my grades and my life in general suffered. There was one point in high school where my mother threatened to send me to alternative school if my grades didn't improve. I think that it was a combination of my ADHD-related issues, my teenage emotions, and the overall situations surrounding me at the time that led to these 'deep blue funks,' as my mother calls them. Isolation tends to happen to me more naturally than I'd like it-- I have neurotic periods that tend to freak people out, especially when I'm getting ready to hit my low points.
But the worst part isn't the concentration issues, or the isolation. It's when people act as though ADHD isn't even real. Have they ever dealt with it? Have they ever suffered the way we who have it do? They don't know what it's like, so who are they to judge? It didn't used to affect me as much, because I didn't really get it, but in the past few years I've gotten a little upset, almost angry even, when people make an 'ADD joke.' It's not in good taste to joke about people with cancer, so why would you do that with a mental disorder? And yes, I consider ADHD a mental disorder-- maybe not along the lines of severity of schizophrenia, but a mental disorder nonetheless. I just don't think it's right, or nice, but rather rude and mean-- though this may not always be intentional, to be fair. Rather, I think that it's a 'joke' made out of ignorance and misinformation, which is in dire need of...well, fixing is the best word I can think of right now. People need to be educated on these types of matters.
On the other hand, yes, it is fully possible for someone to be misdiagnosed. Yes, it is true that some parents use it as an excuse for their children. Yes, nothing is ever proven fact in any science-- even a 'social science,' as psychology is considered to be. But really, people? Think about it: in the 19th century, people believed that there were two kinds of mental problems, and they were mania and melancholy. Well, look how wrong they are. Forty years ago, homosexuality was labeled as a mental disorder! Now, scientists have possibly discovered the genetic-- I hesitate to say 'quirk'-- trait that may indicate homosexuality (for gods' sake, people, even freakin' penguins and monkeys can be gay, okay?! ). It just proves how things evolve over time.
In conclusion, and I know I've rambled a lot, know what you're bashing before you do so. Research things, know what you're talking about, and be informed. Try not to hurt people's feelings and all that, mmkay?

That's all I've got. I'll let that simmer for a few days or so before I can collect my thoughts and return to some semblance of normalcy. Later, everyone~