ADHD & Loneliness, Part III
ADHDers have the wrong expectations of non-ADHDers. We think they are like us. Foolishly we reveal something of our inner lives — show our vulnerability — and we assume that as a gesture of good faith they will do the same. So we peel back our skin, exposing muscles, organs and nerves. See, this is what [...]
The Problem of “Keeping It Up” & Other Random Thoughts
Random Thought Number 1023: It can be difficult to keep it up each and every time. There’s the pressure to keep it up. There’s the embarrassment of not keeping it up. What’s even worse, you work so hard to make sure you can keep it up and sometimes you just fall flat on your face. [...]
ADHD vs Normal (Non-ADHD) Adult Thinking
Here is one way to visualize and compare the thinking patterns of an ADHDer and a Normal (non-ADHD) adult. In this example, they are both faced with an ordinary task: paying their phone bill. Interestingly, despite having the same goal, they end up in different places.
Flooded With Thoughts
Somewhere in my hip is a pinched nerve that seems to only bother me in the middle of the night.1 After shaking off my initial grogginess, I head to the kitchen for some water and then to the computer. During this physical transition my brain shifts into “philosophical contemplation” mode. That usually means that I [...]
The Alternate Universe Of ADHDers
…Argos and I lived our lives in separate universes; I reflected that our perceptions were identical but that Argos combined them differently than I, constructed from them different objects; I reflect that perhaps for him there were no objects, but rather a constant, dizzying play of swift impressions. – “The Immortal,” from Collected Fictions: Jorge [...]
The Metamorphosis
What happens to an ADHDer when he succeeds at overcoming some of the negative aspects of his “gift”?
From the Archives: Oscillating States: “Being as Doing” and “Self-Conscious Stumbling”
A.D.D.ers tend to oscillate between two different states: “being-as-doing” and “self-conscious-stumbling.” In the being-as-doing state, they are living within every moment, making decisions “within” the moment, doing things “within” that moment and, one might say, “existing as normal people do.”1 It is (or so I imagine) existence with a normal level of self-consciousness which is [...]
The Curse That Keeps On Giving
A.D.D. is The Curse that Keeps on Giving. It never stops. It never lets up. It never gives you a break. It is a curse from Pandora’s Box. You can’t put it back in. It stays with you till death. You can’t take a drug that will wipe it out. You can’t get a transfusion [...]
What is “normal” for an A.D.D.er?
As I write this…I suddenly feel normal or, to be exact, what I think normal is. I think normal is no waves of panic. Normal is knowing how much money is in your checking account. Normal is not feeling like your nerves are firing erratically. Normal is just to feel tired at the end of [...]
Drug-induced normalcy(?)
I’ve been on Wellbutrin for over a year and recently (within the last few months) started taking a generic version of Ritalin. I’ve got to admit…I almost feel normal.1 I feel that I can now see things that I could not see before. Prior to taking medication…I felt I was in perpetual youth mode with [...]
