Comments on: Attention

Attention

homunculus — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 14:29:31 -0800

Why can't I pay attention anymore? Maybe I have ADT or NADD. Did we already discuss this? I can't remember. I need to be more mindful.

By: homunculus

homunculus — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 14:32:03 -0800

Via MindHacks, Mind & Life, and /.

By: three blind mice

three blind mice — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 14:44:45 -0800

You say this condition is reaching epidemic proportions. What percentage of the working population suffers from ADT, in your estimation? Hallowell: I'm guessing now, because I haven't done surveys. But I've done informal surveys at seminars I give. and this is where i stopped paying attention.

By: Mean Mr. Bucket

Mean Mr. Bucket — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 14:49:04 -0800

I never could get the difference between Attention Deficit and Being Spoiled.

By: Gyan

Gyan — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 14:52:10 -0800

I just finished reading Delivered from Distraction, Hallowell's latest. While he makes some good points, my instinct is that he's milking it. Note, I'm not one of those who believes ADHD is a scam. In fact, after reading the description of the condition, that's me. I also score 6 points on the WHO's Adult Self-Report Scale, where 80% of those who score 4 or above, will turn out to be diagnosed with ADHD, when properly evaluated. But American commercialised medicine, combined with a puritan aversion to medical enhancement (as opposed to 'treatment') reduces all abnormal conditions to pathologies, but more importantly, increases the tendency of differing mnids to be boxed into a conceptual block (actually, one of the good points about Hallowell is he does share the sentiment about ADD not being a 'disorder', but that's not too surprising, given he himself is afflicted with it). Of course, the first linked article is talking about stimulation overload, and the subsequent evolution of an ADD-like syndrome as a response. If that, just practise some mindfulness meditation. Mean Mr. Bucket : "I never could get the difference between Attention Deficit and Being Spoiled." Not all those with ADHD were spoiled and vice-versa. A better term ought to be Attention-Wandering Syndrome.

By: schroedinger

schroedinger — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 15:03:44 -0800

Boo-yah! Another psychobabble explanation for why I don't get work done to bullshit about instead of getting my work done! WIN.

By: elwoodwiles

elwoodwiles — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 15:31:57 -0800

Wanna go ride bikes?

By: Lectrick

Lectrick — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 15:35:00 -0800

Throw a Type-A personality into the mix and you get the kind of horrible soul-selling overachievers I tend to work with in the Big 4 consulting firm I work for. Just yesterday I got no less than 3 BlackBerry replies in a row... after the business day was long "over". This is murder on a young bachelor's quality-of-life...

By: LittleMissCranky

LittleMissCranky — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 15:59:57 -0800

I never could get the difference between Attention Deficit and Being Spoiled. I would guess that's because you either don't know or don't understand anyone who truly is ADHD.

By: alteredcarbon

alteredcarbon — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 16:08:52 -0800

Exactly. I was just going to...uh, you're....too much....info...*head explodes*

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 16:31:30 -0800

Wanna go ride bikes? Sure....

By: peacay

peacay — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 16:32:08 -0800

I bet there's an above average level of ADHD among internet addicts. *looks in mirror, kicks cat, walks away looking for ...umm*

By: emdog

emdog — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 18:31:12 -0800

spoiled? if you consider catholic school and being groomed for west point as spoiled, then you might be right. but if the diagnosis considers having a mensa iq, currently 17 unfinished projects and an eccentric, absent-minded perfesser reputation...........

By: KevinSkomsvold

KevinSkomsvold — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 22:10:22 -0800

I think this is what elwoodwiles may be referring to.

By: Uther Bentrazor

Uther Bentrazor — Sat, 09 Apr 2005 23:22:41 -0800

Results 1 - 10 of about 12,100 for Attention deficit disorder let's go ride our bikes. (0.19 seconds) That joke is older than time.

By: schroedinger

schroedinger — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 03:55:28 -0800

Q: How many ADD kids does it take to change a light bulb? A: LET'S GO RIDE BIKES!

By: swlabr

swlabr — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 06:10:09 -0800

I have been looking at metafilter for years. It has always served as a wonderful distraction for me. At work, at home, where ever. This post is one where my instinct, which I hereby follow, leads me to say, "God Bless" the good person who constructed it for us. I especially liked the links on memory and happiness. Be sure to take a look at the one to the Psychology Today piece. Hope springs eternal!

By: Satapher

Satapher — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 09:07:29 -0800

all undesirable personalities will be given acronyms and pills. alpha male ascending. stop all this weeping, swallow your pride, you will not die, its not poison.

By: swlabr

swlabr — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 10:01:11 -0800

Hopeful, yes, as a survival strategy. But I must agree with Satapher's warning, or premonition, or perception.

By: homunculus

homunculus — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 10:40:33 -0800

all undesirable personalities will be given acronyms and pills. Possibly.

By: telstar

telstar — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 14:54:42 -0800

I never could get the difference between Attention Deficit and Being Spoiled. I could never tell the difference between ADD and big pharma's sales targets.

By: troutfishing

troutfishing — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 20:11:38 -0800

There seems to be a dearth of facts, here, on the clinical nature of ADD and ADHD. Come on folks, you can meet a higher standard.

By: homunculus

homunculus — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 21:31:42 -0800

you can meet a higher standard. Someone hasn't been paying attention...

By: nightchrome

nightchrome — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 22:04:17 -0800

While I don't find it unlikely that some people do in fact suffer from some serious mental problem regarding focus and attention, I would wager that 85% or more of all people "diagnosed" with one of the AD-whatevers are perfectly fine and just suckers for the pill companies.

By: Gyan

Gyan — Sun, 10 Apr 2005 23:20:33 -0800

nightchrome, that's an interesting assertion. Any backup, besides cynicism? Hallowell estimates that about 10 million adults in the US have ADHD(out of 220 mn adults total). So far, 1.5 million have been diagnosed. He further states, "studies around the world - in China, Japan, India, Germany, Puerto Rico, and New Zealand - show comparable figures." Basically, 5 to 8 percent adults suffer from ADHD. Like many other conditions, there's a continuum of severity, but there seems to be a somewhat objective marker for ADHD viz. cerebellum volume.

By: jester69

jester69 — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 09:37:44 -0800

[i] I never could get the difference between Attention Deficit and Being Spoiled.[/i] I could never get the difference between paralysis and eating twinkies. Way to conflate two things that have nothing to do with one another. Just because you haven't seen Victoria falls, doesn't mean they don't exist. I never have understood why people just can't wrap their heads around someone having out of whack brain chemistry. Perhaps if you haven't experienced something personally, it would be best to remain silent, rather than to insult people that have struggled with those issues.

By: homunculus

homunculus — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 11:20:42 -0800

Scanning the Monk

By: nTeleKy

nTeleKy — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 14:15:57 -0800

I could never tell the difference between AD(H)D and Possibly because because all the information you get about it is from dumbed-down news reports written by people who do not understand psychology? A minimal synopsis: There is a part of the brain that serves to guide attention. This action is sometimes hindered for various reasons. This results in a less-than-average ability to effectively focus attention that is generally labelled ADD. Of course, there's a lot more to it and other related diseases than that, but I don't see how anyone can doubt the existence of the above. Whether or not medication is needed is certainly a different story, however, and is completely dependent on the individual case. The meds aren't always just handed out like candy, either, and all have a unique effect on biochemistry and behavior. Whether the shrink actually dispenses based on the needs of their patient is a different matter, and I'd be more inclined to blame that on the medical industry.

By: es_de_bah

es_de_bah — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 15:02:23 -0800

i've always wondered about this sort of thing, but i figured that I was just being paranoid, self-defeatist, and/or stoned... i wonder which Hallowell is?