The ADHD Brain IS Different
77Not Enough Dopamine, say Researchers
The kid rockets around the room like a whirling dervish - in between staring off dreamily into space. It doesn't just happen once in awhile. It's every day. Yet some still call ADHD a "made up" disability designed to let lazy parents off the hook. Others wonder, if the kid's all hyped up, why do amphetamine-type drugs like Ritalin and Dexedrine slow him down? "No such thing," as ADHD, some will say. "It's over diagnosed," insist others.
Yet a study done by the National Academy of Sciences more than a decade ago, which studied 20 years of ADHD medical records, concluded that Attention Deficit (Hyperactivity) Disorder is real, that it's not over diagnosed, and that Ritalin is not over-prescribed.
In fact, The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, a division of the National Institute of Health, http://www.nih.gov/ ) conducted research using PET scans to observe the working brain. The research confirmed that the parts of the brain that control movement, attention and social judgment displayed "lower metabolic activity" - in other words, the neurons fired more slowly - in the ADHD brain than in those not afflicted by the disorder. This, then, explains why "speedy" drugs "work." They speed up those slow neurons, giving the ADHD brain time to "stop and think," for example, before acting on impulse. Especially lacking in the ADHD brain, researchers say, is the neurotransmitter dopamine.
NIMH brain scans using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) also found physical abnormalities in both brain circuitry and shape. The brains of ADHD boys who were studied were abnormally symmetrical. Affected parts of the brain were the prefrontal cortex in the frontal lobe just behind the forehead (the brain's command center), and two other areas that translate those commands into action. Those areas serve as, so to speak, the brain's steering wheel and brakes. "Brakes," especially, are what's lacking in the ADHD brain, researchers say, and this "deficit" results in the ADHD brain's inability to inhibit thoughts - such as distractions that interfere with focus.
Just why ADHD brains have this abnormal symmetry could, however, be related to normal genetic variation, so the MRI can't be used to diagnose ADHD. Researchers theorize the right brain's smaller size could also be related to birth trauma or prenatal factors. The researchers say, though, the results of these studies provide "markers" that can be used in treatment studies - that may hold promise for ADHD children and their families.
Carol Bogart blogs at http://carolbogart.blogspot.com/ and writes for Blogger News Network, http://www.bloggernews.net/. Contact her at 3bogart@sbcglobal.net.
ADHD neurons (brain image at right, below) less active, PET scan finds
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Oh yes, it is definitely real. I have a brother that suffers from adhd and it is more than an incorrct diagnosis. Thanks a lot for sharing this hub! I enjoyed it thoroughly!
One of the hardest things for the ADHD child to hear is that he or she is just using ADHD as an excuse. If those who are so quick to blame could trade brains for a day, perhaps they would try harder to be kind. -- Carol
People, especially parents with ADHD kids, who still doubt whether ADHD is for real should read this article:
http://ezinearticles.com/?Is-ADHD-For-Real?&id=1170015
Sad, how often the ADHD child is blamed for brain chemistry he/she was born with.
I agree with every thing you say i have it but i can controll it to a point of not bothering my family to death just the pill i have to take makes me feel different from every one else and its not made up i can tell when i did not take my pill i dont shut up i talk back i treat other ppl like crap its not fun trust me ADHD is real and i dont think befor i say
Poor impulse control, inability to read social cues (like when someone's eyes start to glaze over when you're talking too much), and having impaired "executive function" in the part of the brain that says "stop, think, consider the consequences," are hallmarks of ADHD. You are easily distracted, because your brain lacks the neurochemical filter that allows you to prioritize sound.
I have ADHD, too, as does my son.
Because a disability is "hidden" makes it no less real. When you're to a point that you're deciding what sort of career you might like, think about the kinds of things that you "hyperfocus" on now. You'll find your niche and can be very successful.
For me, it's been journalism. When I was a TV news reporter, I won two Emmys. School, however, could be a struggle, especially if I was bored. Back then, they didn't even know there was such a thing as ADHD.
Keep your chin up and good luck! -- Carol
my mother thinks ritalin is not a drug be cause it is helping me
Drugs that help are called medications. Insulin is a drug that helps diabetics. I'm glad Ritalin is working for you. I've been told there is a new drug called 'Attend' that doesn't have the side effects of amphetamines like Ritalin. The parent who told me about it thinks it's great.
I am ADHD and was diagnosed with it when i was a lil kid, my mom neglected to let me know that i had the condition though, i grew up fine though :) i didn't find out about my diagnoses til just a couple years ago when my sister told me, i wasn't to surprised because i always kind of figured it on my own :P
I have severe ADHD, and I've never been diagnosed with it I just know. It really puts be behind in school, I am unable to focus on anything but photography and music. I dont know where to go or what to do to get anywhere, and I dont know who to talk to about it since my family thinks its fake and Its my fault for my struggles in school and every day tasks
You don't say how old you are, Kathleen, but if you're a minor, I would suggest taking it up with your school counselor and request testing. Under federal law, all students in public school are entitled to a free and appropriate education, and that includes students with disabilities. ADHD is a federally recognized disability.
Once you have been diagnosed, you then can have an accommodation plan put in place, which can include such things as preferential seating (sitting in the front row where it's easier for you to pay attention), more time on tests and so on.
The National Mental Health Institute has a free booklet on ADHD. Google NIH (National Institutes of Health) and search mental health publications ADHD. Request that a copy be mailed to you. Perhaps if you share it with your family, they will recognize that your behavior (symptoms) are consistent with ADHD.
Good luck. I know it's frustrating. People have compassion for disabilities they can see, but not so much for a 'hidden' disability in someone who looks 'normal.'
Finally, 'hyperfocusing' on things that interest you (photography, music) is not uncommon in someone with ADHD -- but people don't 'get' how you can be easily distracted much of the time, yet still able to focus intently when something intrigues you.
If you are over 18 and have no money/insurance, your community may have low or no cost professionals who specialize in ADHD. Google the name of your county and ADHD and some may come up.
You can also contact CHADD (a non profit group that helps those suffering from AD(H)D and they should be able to give you a referral. Another resource is NAMI - The National Association for the Mentally Ill. Don't be put off by the name of the organization. They know ADHD is a neurological disorder, and that the term 'mental illness' is a throw back to when less was known about the chemistry of the brain.
i have it real bad. most people in my life think its just an excuse and all in my head. they just laugh in my face. and it hurts so bad because i know there is something wrong with me that i have almost no control over unless im on my medication. i was diagnosed at about seven years of age. im now nineteen and and am still the same. ive been on medication ever since i was diagnosed and seriously without it i dont think i would have ever graduated high school or atleast made it to every grade at the right time. im now in cosmetology school. i cant do anything else except for artsy things. but ADHD is part of who i am and i just have to try and deal with it.
Just remember, though, everybody has something -- and oftentimes, people with ADHD are extra bright, extra generous, extra personable. Train yourself to use a dayplanner and write down important things such as appointments you need to keep. You can take control of your life. Getting a dayplanner for a birthday present changed mine, and my ADHD is worse than my son's.
I am the parent of a very bright, extremely talented, 12 year old boy with ADHD. I am also a teacher for kiddos with special needs. ADD/ADHD is very real. Often, ADD/ADHD is a secondary diagnosis for my students. It is unfortunate that it can sometimes be overlooked (and thus, not addressed appropriately) due to a more dominate disability. There are huge effects for the child (who already feels he/she is not in contol of his/her body) when they are told they are just misbehaving or being defiant. Each time he/she hears this, it takes a huge chunk of their self-esteem. They are aware of what's going on, they just don't know how to stop it!
In my son's case, at age 6, he explained it like
this: "There is a party going on in my head that wants to come out. I try to keep it in, but I just can't. I don't want to be bad and get in trouble. Can you teach me how to be good?" Wow! Had we given him the impression he was bad? My heart broke for him. I, as with most people who do not have ADD/ADHD, did not fully understand the constant struggle he was going through everyday. He truly wanted to make better choices, but sometimes he just couldn't. How frustrating for him!!
Since then, he's started taking Straterra, which helps with attention, ability to focus on specific tasks, and impulsivity. We also have several organizational supports in place (planner, calendars, schedules, etc) that help him to be independent and successful.
It is by no means a 'magical cure' and requires a bit of tweaking here and there, but it has helped him build his self-esteem, reduce his anxiety, and experience a sense of accomplishment. He feels he is in control, not his ADHD. However, as more demands are made on him with school, athletics, band, etc...I worry he may become too overwhelmed and regress.
My questions: How can one be sure it is ADHD and not something else? With all the new demands and more rigorous workload, any ideas for making transitions smoother?
Thanks
From ages 4 to 17, I had my son independently evaluated, which involved ADHD-specific tests administered by a licensed psychologist, and he was also seeing a child psychiatrist regularly to deal with, among other things, the constant assaults on his self-esteem. No matter what's in a child's IEP, if he has a teacher who believes there's "no such thing as ADHD" and behind the child's back calls ADD 'Absent Dad Disorder' -- it's not likely the child will be treated with the compassion other disabilities would evoke. Just securing an IEP- required 'preferential (front row) seating' is viewed as a burden by those teachers who find it easier to let the kids sit wherever they want than to create a seating chart before school starts. Too often, the ADHD kid sits in the back with the other 'troublemakers' -- and next thing you know, surprise! They're not paying attention or they're being 'disruptive'. How much easier it would have been for all concerned to put the kid in the front row in the first place, rather than have to move him -- which will be perceived by him and his peers as punishment for bad behavior. The ADHD brain reacts differently to stimulant medication because the neurons governing stop-think-consider consequences, impulsivity, distractibility/focus and so on fire more slowly in the ADHD brain. Which has nothing at all to do with the neurons that govern intelligence, creativity, generosity of spirit and so on. I found Russell Barker's The ADHD Report helpful in tracking down medical professionals who were a good fit for my son. The key, I found, to keeping him on track as school requirements and homework became more rigorous was to establish early on that each teacher would email me at least weekly the assignments for the coming week. At the beginning of each semester, I was given a copy of the long term projects, materials needed and due dates. Also, teachers agreed they would check his assignment notebook daily to make sure he had written down his assignments accurately and completely -- and they would check them off. At home, I would check them off, too, to show that he had showed the assignment notebook to me. There was a homework bin (an open plastic cube, yellow, available at Toys R Us in assorted colors for stacking together as toy organizers) at school for assignments (worksheets and such) to come home, and a matching one at home for completed homework -- to take back to school. The ADHD child's biggest enemy is poor time management and few to no organizational skills. My son is now 25. He still struggles. He will for rest of his life. There is no 'cure' for ADHD. However, he understands that while there will always be those who will blame him for symptoms he can't help, he needs to not blame them for their unkindness. He has a disability they can't see. His self-esteem is healthy, he's cheerful and happy, and he never gives up. This year, on his own, he researched a community college, enrolled in two classes, and in both, depending on next week's finals, he might even get an A. It's a long tough road for parent and child -- but hopefully you and your child will forge a bond many parents of 'normal' kids would envy. Your son is so fortunate to have a mom like you.
I have struggled my entire life with ADD. As a kid, It took me longer to catch on to things in class, I would find myself dazing off, and people would pick on me, thinking I was staring at them. I was fine once I got home and could do the work at my own pace, but for the longest time, I felt like I wasn't smart. ADD wasn't a talked about thing back then. I got picked on a lot in school because of being different than others. I was also very quiet and socially awkward, I suppose. People never understand me and always read me the wrong way. I feel things very deeply, care about people, and am very compassionate, but people don't see that.
Now, as an adult who has two children with ADHD and who works with special needs children, I realize that we have to work harder than those with the "average" brain to do every day tasks. My ex-husband does not understand how hard it is for me to work full-time and raise 3 daughters on my own, all while doing all the other normal every day tasks such as paying bills, cleaning, helping with homework, going to the store. THIS is all a lot for a person with ADD to handle, heck it's a lot for anyone to handle. I find it very sad that both parents and some teachers play things off like a child is just a "brat" when it is clearly obvious that the child can not help their behavior. Now, don't get me wrong, they have to have discipline also, but one must understand that they are not just a kid that's being bad, they can't control the things they are doing.
I personally take anti-depression/anxiety meds. due to the fact that when I took ADD meds, it made the anxiety worse...as it runs in my family. I have an 11 year old daughter who also takes these type of meds, due to her anxiety and anger issues, instead of her takin ADD meds. However, my 7 year old takes ADD meds, and it helps her a lot, I don't know how she'd get by without it. When she wasn't on it, it would take like 30 min. to do a 5 min. paper...if she could do it at all, and forget homework, she was a hysterical mess. Life is much better now that she has her ADHD under control, for everyone in her life. I just hope and pray more and more parents and teachers are open to learn more about this condition and stop making these kids feel worse for something they can't help.
Yes, it's sad there's still so much lack of understanding, especially with the amount of government research available online.
Failure to read social clues (such as a person's eyes glazing over when we've overstayed our verbal welcome -- more common with ADHD than with ADD) is a common symptom.
I'm glad you and your girls are getting what you need to live a (relatively) normal life.
If people who say "There's no such thing as ADHD" had it for even an hour, they'd understand how frustrating, often painful, life for the child with ADHD can be.
I recently started taking my son (age 12) to an AD coach, Licensed Professional Counselor. His coach has AD as well and I have learned a lot about myself and my son since we met him. I have always known I had AD but I seem to have "out grow it." I asked the coach why it was different for me and my son. He said that often girls find coping skills easier than boys. He doesn't see AD as a disorder but a difference in how we are. I am left handed also that doesn't mean that I am any better or worse than a right handed person just different. The problem is that the rest of the world can't live wih AD people as they are. Medication allows boys and children with AD to "behave appropriately in public and school."
As a child I could rarely read more than a short story and I thought I would never go to college. I have a BS in Biology and I am finishing My MS in GIS (very suited to AD, buy the way). I have read dozens of textbooks and books for fun. My son's (on medication) scores on his tests at school are now extremely high (except of writing)and they want to put him in the talented and gifted program, if he can control his outbursts. He gets frustated and tends to be over animated and loud.
This "disability" can be a great benefit if you learn how manage it. As someone said above (Carol, I believe) find your niche. I find that playing a video game for a few minutes or taking a walk helps me calm down better than some of the "relaxing" activities such as taking a bath. We were designed this way for a reason. Everyone has a different degree but I believe that we are survives and are stronger for our differences.
Also, I learned that we tend to be attracted to other AD people. Those relationships (especially marriages) can be problematic. 8% of the general public is chemical (alcohol and street drug)dependent 52% of AD people are chemically dependent. Understanding yourself can help you understand why you make the choices you do. When you know what your up against you can learn to make healthy decisions. Educating yourself about AD can be a good thing. My son said "you know that movie castaway with Tom Hanks? I felt like that guy, talking to a volleyball. Now I feel like I am on an island but there are other people there with me". Your not alone.
The key is finding a strategy to give yourself a moment to stop and think. What often derails the person with ADHD is being impulse-driven, and being neurologically unable to consider consequences because the neurons in that part of the ADHD brain don't fire fast enough. For me, a big help was becoming a certified scuba diver. Factoring high on the scale in the training was conditioning yourself to STOP-THINK-REACT if something happened while you were diving that initially induced panic. If you couldn't force yourself to consider the situation calmly, odds were much higher that you would die. Our brains include self-calming chemicals. If you weren't born with enough dopamine and serotonin,exercise releases endorphins. With repetition of the desired outcome, you can retrain your brain. You'll still be 'different' -- but you don't have to be disabled.
i have adhd but i know so much more now
Comments like yours are why I write about ADHD. Thank you, Zach.
Adhd is very real typically can be treated with therapy psychological therapy, occupational therapy as well.
Ritalin is not always the answer, typically just a change in diet and exercise will give the child enough self control to focus his attention.
This sort of advice from a lay person: "... typically just a change in diet and exercise will give the child enough 'control' to focus his attention" is both inaccurate, and unfair to children, parents and teachers. The National Institutes of Mental Health offers a free booklet with accurate information about ADHD. To have a copy mailed to you, go to http://www.nimh.nih.gov.
I was not diagnosed with ADHD until I was 35. I am sure I have always had it and have actually used it to my advantage in the workplace. Since I was socially inept and did not "play well with others" I did a lot of reading from the 2nd grade to Highschool I probably read a book or researched every random thought that went through my mind at the library. Since I was generally curious anyway, I wanted to know what the random thoughts meant. By the time I was a Jr in highschool, I got bored and dropped out with a 4.0 avg. I felt the teachers were forcing me to regurgitate information that they half heartedly spewed out of the lesson books. Many times I was scolded for spacing out in class but what was even more infuriating for the teachers was that I would blurt out the correct answer while still flying through the skies at Mach 3 lol. When I got older, and I apologized to my ex girfriends for this, I was nearly impossible tto live with. I would take 1/3 of the information from my partner, process it, live it mennatlly and then get angry about it. Half of the time they didn't even know how I got to that conclusion but I insisted that the 4 second sequence of the events was real and justified. After my failed marriage and another string of angry and confused women, I realized the one common denomonator of the equation...myself. Dr. Frederick of Virginia Mason in Seattle diagnosed me and my life has been almost a complete turn around. It took sometime to actually be able to think about things in real time without opening my mouth. Currently, my biggest challenge is dealing with people I have known my whole life. They look at me like I am a different person and no longer make comments like "are you out of your rabbit azz mind?" It feels good now @ 37yrs old but I am sort of sad that people i care about and show genuine concern for feel I am just on drugs and the "real" me will return. I wish you all the best and keep the posts going. Recognizing and understanding your situation will help bring out the creative, artistic you that never had a chance to speak up =)
Cheers
CS Tan 3 years ago
I agree that some parents still do not want to believe that ADHD is not made-up but its for real. By refusing to accept this scientific fact, they are actually causing more harm to their ADHD children. ADHD can be treated to a significant extent and many people with ADHD have succeessfully dealt with it to become illustrious and famous personalities in their respective endeavours.