Re:Not a disease (Score 1)

I can relate to your distrust of chemical treatment, given your circumstances, but I would have a question of you: Did you have any chemical habits prior to getting placed on stimulant ADD meds? The fact is that lots of ADD sufferers, especially adult ADD sufferers, tend to medicate themselves because it's not considered okay to have this. The stigma attached to ADD due to thousands of underachieving parents who place their unruly kids on Ritalin unnecessarily has affected the ability of those of us who actually suffer from ADD (be it a disease, disorder, whatever) from getting effective treatment.

I know that my ADD meds (I take a form of methylphenidate, the same active ingredient in Ritalin) made me very anxious and nervous at higher dosages. With my doctor's help, I backed my dosage down and added an anti-anxiety med at a low dosage. This has helped the anxiety, but I can't say that I'm any better when it comes to sticking to my work. It's not that I find my work uninteresting, either. In fact, I love it. I have trouble concentrating on books that I love (I probably read LoTR about 4 times as an adolescent, but the differences in adult ADD versus child and adolescent ADD are significant, and so when I tried reading it again just before the movies came out, I found it nigh impossible), coding (which I love), or even sticking to projects that I develop at work, which I want to do, and which I find to be an exciting challenge. So the argument that ADD is a result of boredom or lack of interest is ridiculous, I think.

That being said, if I could find a way to get off the medication, which in my case is only of minor help, I would love it. Not all ADD cases become addicted to medications, and while your case is certainly regrettable, I'd be more likely to blame the doctor that prescribed it to you than the medication itself. Did (s)he follow up with you on a regular basis? Was it an actual psychologist with experience in treating adult ADD (not just child ADD, but specifically adult ADD)? Did your doctor work with you or refer you to a specialist to help you develop routines that would help you avoid the distractions? I have found that by deveoping routines, things that simply don't change, I am much less likely to get distracted. I set timers for myself for things that I might otherwise hyper-focus on. Yes, folks, while it might seem counterintuitive, ADD sufferers can concentrate on things, in fact we can hyper-focus on some tasks to the exclusion of all else. Ever met someone who doesn't hear their name the first 5 times you call it while they read, watch TV, play a video game, or even watch the squirrels in their back yard? That's hyper-focus. Sometimes (and I love it when this happens) I can even hyper-focus on things that I want to get done. This, my doctor tells me is a result of the sister-malady of ADD, obsessive compulsive disorder, which can be exacerbated by many ADD meds.

As for Einstein's probable ADD diagnosis, well, anything is possible. It's tough to diagnose a dead guy. But nonetheless, Albert was able to get his work done, and therefore was not likely to require medication. Those of us who have trouble getting done the things in our everyday lives that we are required to do, well....different story.

I would simply say to folks not to discount ADD as an imaginary malady. It's gotten a bad rap, and those of us who do suffer from something that causes us to not be able to manage our lives like 'normal' people, to get things done, to not be the super-coworkers, super-dads, or super-moms that everybody seems to believe we should be.....well, we're not all lazy, we're often more intelligent than the average, and we just need some way of helping ourselves get through the day.

To the gentleman who asked the question in the first place: If neural feedback is what works, and is proven through clinical studies, I say try it. In fact, I plan to ask my doctor about it. But don't let people tell you that your daughter is just going to have to deal with it. But also try non-medicative therapies. Hire a professional organizer or ADD coach to help her out, show her ways of keeping her homework together, and develop good habits that will make sure that she can get things done the way she's supposed to, from remembering to brush her teeth to making lists of things to do, and following them. I say that it's your kid. You make the decision.