Add

July 16, 2008, 6:22 AM

I saw this today on las noticias(the news).

Do you guys think ADD is a valid disorder that affects millions of kids?

Or..

Are kids who are a little slower than others, or jumpy, and hyper, given the ADD stamp of approval, when in fact theres nothing wrong with them, and as such their easier to deal with.

All opinions wanted. !

- Kuja

July 16, 2008, 6:30 AM

Well i am one of those kids with ADD and i do think that some kids genuinely do have it. others, like may at my school blame every single instance of acting out on ADD and it REALLY gets on my nerves, as the teachers accept it as an excuse. i mean come on... We are in High school and kids are using that as an excuse. For people such as myself, who truly have ADD it becomes quite an annoyance, as people tend to stereotype those with ADD. for me, ADD means i have trouble paying attention to one thing for an extended period of time, or i always have to be doing something, while people in my classes say it causes them to jump up in class and yell and cause a distraction. This has become the generalization of students with ADD at my school

July 16, 2008, 8:20 AM

ADD (and ADHD) is a real disorder, but it's also used as an excuse way to often. Doctors and drug companies love it because Ritalin and the like can be prescribed by the pound. It also makes for an excellent excuse for parents and children to use when they don't want to blame poor parenting, sugar highs and lack of self-control.

I think alot of so-called ADD is nothing more than poor parenting. All the time I'll see in Walmart or restaurants parents who let their kids run around, pick up things, and scream, and rarely will they scold the child. Usually the highest admonition I see is the parent kindly asking the child to calm down, as if they're requesting a favor from a friend. You don't ask a kid to sit down and shut up, you tell them. If you don't teach a kid to be calm and keep quiet in public, they're not going to think anything of it. And having poor breakfasts in the morning or lots of candy won't help the matter.

I've met plenty of people with ADD who behave like normal people and I wouldn't have even known they had it unless they'd told me. So even if someone DOES have ADD, it's no excuse to be hyper and out of control.

July 19, 2008, 3:37 AM

I think ADD/ADHD is in fact a real disorder as I have the latter. I'm only 15 so I didn't quite understand but my docter said something along the lines of when your brain sends out signals like hormones and adrenaline, the receptor for some signal doesn't function correctly so not all the signals get through so it's more hit and miss. So you have less control over your emotions.

And I'd like to think, as I'm pretty secure with my parenting and how I was raised, that my parents aren't the cause. I do try to act normal most of the time, and unless I have had too much candy I act like a normal, calm, human being.

So no I don't think that ADD and ADHD are excuses to be hyper but actual mental disorders.