Serious Autism/Aspergers/ADD/ADHD/Other Mental Disorders

[Captain Skywalker]

Okay so I have no fucking clue where to put this thread but I saw that there wasn't an existing thread so I decided to post this.
Basically, this thread is for people to open up about struggles or stories they have about autism, ADHD etc.
As for myself, I was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome(also known as High Functioning Autism) at a young age. Aspergers can be summed up as a variant of autism but has less severe but different effects. People with Aspergers are generally incredibly smart and do very well in classes but struggle socially(ie: doesn't understand social cues, generally quieter etc). They also struggle with motor skills such as tying ties, buttoning jeans/dress shirts, tying shoes etc. As a result, they generally aren't good at sports(especially team sports) because they can't process information fast enough. They also tend to be extremely obsessive over a certain topic. This leads them to excell at said field but lack much variety. Those are the main differences between Aspergers and Autism. I'd like to know more about similar mental disorders if you guys can enlighten me.

 

[Camden]

ADD/ADHD guy coming in here. I wouldn't say it ruins my life, but it just makes everything a lot more difficult. It certainly made school shitty for me because I could never focus on anything too long. It's a bit easier to control as an adult but if any of you observe me close enough you'll probably notice some of the tendencies I easily exhibit.

I used to take medication for it, but I stopped doing that once I hit my teen years. As a young child I took Ritalin. Ritalin is an evil drug and no one should have to go through that. All it does is slow you down and prevents you from enjoying things. I hated it. I eventually started using Concerta and while I felt much better than I did on Ritalin I didn't feel like it was doing anything for me (even with larger doses) so I said fuck it and decided to just work through it. Like I said, ADD/ADHD don't ruin my life, but I would much prefer not having to deal with them. =\

 

[Adamant Zoroark]

AS here. I was probably 8 or 9 when I was properly diagnosed (would have been roughly third grade as that's when I remember starting to receive treatment). I've never had much of an issue with motor skills (never struggled to tie shoes etc.) but I definitely remember having virtually nothing resembling social skills. Back in elementary school, I had an obsessive interest in cars; I just liked everything automobile.

Everything did seem to improve over time; I no longer have obsessive interests and I can kind of socialize, although if I'm not careful, I can very easily keep running a conversation the other person finds boring. However, my condition has improved to the point that people usually don't know I have AS unless I tell them.

Relating to all of this, I find that playing a musical instrument helps. I have been playing guitar since late 2007, and I can definitely say that I started to improve dramatically around that time. Of course, this could just be the typical turning point, but I can definitely say that playing an instrument helps with coexisting conditions like depression and anxiety.

 

[jumpluff]

I also have AS. I was diagnosed when I was ten, had to visit a lot of famous neurologists and stuff because AS was only really gaining prominence then and my neurological comorbidities (dyspraxia and some other delays, for example) were what I was seeking help for. The social stuff was recognised after. I was lucky to have a lot of mentors at the time who helped me recognise problems I was having with my peers at school and self-evaluate. My diagnosis also led to the near-immediate diagnosis of my brother, who had had early intervention as a child with severe behavioural issues and stuff but was in many ways otherwise much higher-functioning than I was.

I consider most of the stuff that hasn't changed (except being overly literal) pretty benign. It's a personality thing and I think some of the best parts of my person correlate with the intensity of the traits that are considered to be AS. For example, my curiosity and passion about my interests... I would be an entirely different person without that. I use my love of repetition as an anti-anxiety method (although I kinda think it's possibly a tic...?). Where things didn't come naturally or intuitively, I strove and strive to learn them through observation, asking others, and trying my hardest to exercise theory of mind skills. The skills that people in AS may lack are all learned skills and not innate, which is a frustrating thing to have to argue constantly; for example, empathy is something a child actively learns through interacting with other people and psychologically grasping theory of mind, and the majority of people can learn to practise it to some extent too. That's why we 'grow out' of some of our AS, because a lot of it is just 'learning delays' or pathologised personality stuff that we're socialised out of. ;) Acceptance helped me a lot. My brother is also autistic and rejected it for a long time because he was worried about the stigma, but he embraced those aspects of himself and became much, much more comfortable asking for help, admitting his flaws and quirks, and with his weird but endearing side.

It made school very hard though, even ignoring dyspraxia. I developed severe social anxiety that progressed into selective mutism and eventually hikikomoriism. I ended up having to be homeschooled because I was an easy bullying target and some of it was so bad it became a matter for the fuckin' cops, lol. I really struggled to interact with others in a normative way and my weird behaviour made me stick out a lot, as did my neurological disabilities (for example, kids loved to imitate my gait, which was a product of my AS and other weird brain stuff). I started hiding behind my mother out in public and stuff and just lost all the extreme confidence and pride I had as a child (completely self-unconscious and unashamed). I had to learn basically all skills like interacting with others, using the phone, etc. starting again from 17. I think I've come a long way. At 13 I started gradually to chop up my sentence structure and by 15 I was pretty much silent in most situations / even if I wasn't silent, the talking would be very minimal.

I'm also strongly musical, although I can't play a musical instrument and I'm jealous of those who can. Even just improv is fun for me, though. I was given permission to listen to music in class and stuff and it helped so much with my anxiety (which really peaked in HS and resulted in those pretty dramatic speech regressions). It's always been a good outlet for my feelings and excess energy. Having creative outlets is great; I also write a lot, and when I was younger I went through so many reams of paper drawing that my ecological footprint is probably worse than a small country's :/

I had speech and occupational therapy as a child and I wish I could have had more. OT was extremely helpful and I still struggle a lot with some basic skills. Rural areas, yo.

 

[Pilo]

Not sure if this should go here but I suffer from anxiety. It inhibited my daily life a lot but it isn't nearly as bad now. Even so, I figured I'd still post about it. I would constantly worry, oftentimes irrationally and it began to have a severe impact on my life. It made life pretty difficult to enjoy and I mostly worried instead of having fun or focusing on any given task. Back in 2012/2013 when my anxiety was arguably at its worst I started seeing a therapist. She helped me out a lot and I'm definitely in a better place now than I was then.

That's not to say I don't still have anxiety though, I suppose I'm a bit better at dealing with it now though.

 

[internet]

They tried to treat me for computer addiction because I pretty much no longer going to school, but I ended up getting diagnosed with AS. This happened last year, while I was 17. Now I go to group therapy for that, 3 hours a day every Monday Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday. I still don't go to school, and might not ever again. I really hate school.

I currently take Aripiprazol (abilify).

I used to go to church organ lessons but quit when there was a new teacher who I really disliked. I rarely play anymore :(

 

[Cresselia~~]

AS here, wasn't diagnosed until 23.
That diagnosis explains lots of stuff for me, and the group therapies do help my social skills... at least I think so.

Even when my AS used to make me struggle socially, I still like the fact I have AS.
I kind of feel like my good grades in school are due to AS.

I actually had a lot of friends even prior the diagnosis. Pokemon has helped me a lot when it comes to making friends.
Most of my real life friends are Pokemon friends that first met on the internet. We became real life friends because we entered tournaments.

The only down side was just that I got bullied in school. But there are lots of kids without autism who gets bullied too, so I wasn't that unhappy about it.
I think I've grown over it / overcome it anyway.

 

[Kavatika]

ADD/ADHD guy coming in here. I wouldn't say it ruins my life, but it just makes everything a lot more difficult. It certainly made school shitty for me because I could never focus on anything too long. It's a bit easier to control as an adult but if any of you observe me close enough you'll probably notice some of the tendencies I easily exhibit.

I used to take medication for it, but I stopped doing that once I hit my teen years. As a young child I took Ritalin. Ritalin is an evil drug and no one should have to go through that. All it does is slow you down and prevents you from enjoying things. I hated it. I eventually started using Concerta and while I felt much better than I did on Ritalin I didn't feel like it was doing anything for me (even with larger doses) so I said fuck it and decided to just work through it. Like I said, ADD/ADHD don't ruin my life, but I would much prefer not having to deal with them. =\

I also have ADHD. I have never been on Ritalin so I can't compare the two, but I've been taking Adderall for my ADHD since I was first diagnosed with it, and I've never had any problems with it. From the times that I haven't been on it (both my mom and I have ADHD, so we'd forget to get a new prescription every now and then), I can definitely say ADHD is far easier to handle when you're medicated. Have you considered trying some other medication?

 

[OLD GREGG (im back baby)]

Technically mental and personality disorders are grouped together, so I'm going to put my worthless two cents.

In late 2011 I was going through some dark times and ended up in a mental health clinic for a couple of days. Prior to that I had been seeing a psychologist that diagnosed me with mild bi-polar schizophrenia and prescribed me haloperidol. I was about 25 years old at the time and was pretty heavy into drugs. It truly became a turning point for me.

The antipsychotics they put me on just drained the life out of me, literally. For the three months that I actually took it, I walked around like a zombie and mostly stayed in bed. I got the opportunity to get out of Tennessee for awhile and took it. Went and stayed with family in Indiana for six months. I took that time to detox from the unnecessary medication I had been put on. When I came back home to Tennessee it was great to see all my friends and really nice for them to see that I had gone back to my old self. I really don't want to discuss the events leading up to my breakdown or the factors that contributed to it. It was basically a drug induced phase that improved 100% when I got away from the wrong people that I had been keeping company with. Peer pressure is nuts and while it maybe true that I'm not going to jump off a bridge just because a friend does it; still, it's hard to fight temptation when it's right in your face. I'm very grateful that I didn't end up strung out like most people do. If you EVER find yourself in a situation similar to the one I am explaining, do yourself a huge favor and get away while you can.

 

[Camden]

I also have ADHD. I have never been on Ritalin so I can't compare the two, but I've been taking Adderall for my ADHD since I was first diagnosed with it, and I've never had any problems with it. From the times that I haven't been on it (both my mom and I have ADHD, so we'd forget to get a new prescription every now and then), I can definitely say ADHD is far easier to handle when you're medicated. Have you considered trying some other medication?

I'm at the point now where I don't feel comfortable trying to take drugs for the sake of fixing myself. If I take any drugs now, it's either for recreational use or for a quick-fix for a headache or some pain. Yeah, I know it's a pride thing but I don't want to feel like I'm doing alright just because some drug straightened my head out.

 

[Grey Knight]

Here is the thing, it is said that 50% of kids will be autistic on some degree in 2025, its less with girls, only few of the people with autism actually know that are autistic.

Autism is a wide range of things also called ASD: Autism Spectrum disorder, it can be anything from minor reading, writing or social disability to complete failure of development into an adult.

The name autism comes from the greek root "Eαυτος" meaning myself/me, a disorder that can define someone's personality and make him who he is, and in fact many things like social anxiety and irascibility walk the line between of what is autism and what it a behavioral attritube.

1 in every 6 kids born in US the last decade developed at least some degree of autism, problem in reading, problem in talking, could be anything really, that statistic is even scarier if you consider autism is 4 times more common in boys, so please reconsider the term autism, especially the guys that use it like if its noting both irl and internet.

 

[ant]

I'm not sure if it counts but I suffer from panic attacks during certain events. when I was a kid I loved swimming, and one day I just drowned and I've been scared of water ever since. sometimes, when it's too hot or something, I feel like I can't breathe and it's horrible. Couple of years ago I went on a holiday and took a tour where you could float in natural pools and see the wildlife in there, and I couldn't even get the snorkel on because I felt like I couldn't breathe + the waves against my chest just made it a horrible experience that I thought I could go through; the rest of the tour was really cool, especially when I could swim but touch the ground!! I also get panic attacks before getting my blood drawn or whenever I see a needle. but I think that's just a phobia...

I never got this checked (although I should) and it's probably some form of anxiety

 

[Oddish.]

I was diagnosed with Aspergers in 2013. My parents had suspected it for a long time though, and I never wanted to believe it.

Looking back at my life, it was so obvious but I was oblivious until my parents finally confronted me about it in high school. Then I was in denial.

My parents always recognized my issues with socializing. I attributed those issues to my introversion. Though thinking about it, my Aspergers possibly could have something to do with that. I was awkward in social situations and had difficulty expressing myself. I was poor at maintaining friendships, and even now, I still have trouble keeping in contact with people I care about. I never really cared too much about social norms and because of that, I often said things or did things that came off as offensive to other people. I often find myself in situations where something I said came out way meaner than I intended it to be. It's embarrassing and nerve-wracking when I come off as rude to other people. I'm not very good at making eye contact, and usually fidget with things or look around while talking to people.

Social situations are pretty intimidating to me. While I'm pretty comfortable around my friends, I usually hate being around new people and large crowds. Even on the internet, I'm reluctant to go into the rooms on Showdown or go on irc because there's so many people there that I don't really know and I feel weird about just jumping into the conversation.

I've also always had trouble in school. I've gotten better, but I usually always finished assignments/tests last or had to finish them afterschool. In general, I had a hard time focusing. Because of this, my parents had to request that I get extra time to complete tasks, which I was ashamed of. My parents also recently had me go to a center where people with physical and mental disabilities can get help finding a job. I quit my last job as a server because I was too nervous and awkward. I just wasn't comfortable talking to people and had frequent panic attacks while working.

I've had various specific interests my whole life. I've recently gotten heavily into true crime, particularly serial killers. Pokemon can be considered one of those obsessions, as it's been with me since I was young. I also really like psychology and forensics. I'm pretty artistically inclined, and I've been drawing since I was about three years old. I also like to write, and I'm far better at expressing myself through writing and drawing than speaking.

I have a psychiatrist that I've been seeing for a couple years now. I'd say it's been helping. I've gotten better at focusing on school, and I've been making efforts to improve my social skills. I've got a long way to go, but it's a start. I'd recommend professional help honestly. Idk if Aspergers ever truly goes away, but it can at the very least be controlled.

 

[Captain Skywalker]

My problem with AS is that it still effects me as a 16 year old.
My obsessiveness is still pretty obvious. Nowadays it's sports, when I was 12 it was video games, when I was 8 it was animals. You get the idea. It makes it really confusing as to what I want to do post-school. It also effects me in the sense of athletics. I'm a 2 sport athlete for my high school(basketball and baseball) and I'm never going to be good no matter how hard I try because my AS makes it really hard to process information quickly and that I'm not athletic at all cause I never played as a kid.
And math. I've hated math since 3rd grade.

 

[jumpluff]

My problem with AS is that it still effects me as a 16 year old.
My obsessiveness is still pretty obvious. Nowadays it's sports, when I was 12 it was video games, when I was 8 it was animals. You get the idea. It makes it really confusing as to what I want to do post-school. It also effects me in the sense of athletics. I'm a 2 sport athlete for my high school(basketball and baseball) and I'm never going to be good no matter how hard I try because my AS makes it really hard to process information quickly and that I'm not athletic at all cause I never played as a kid.
And math. I've hated math since 3rd grade.

Hey there,

AS may be something that will affect you in varying ways all your life, but you can learn (and be taught) coping methods and 'grow out' of some things. Others are just with you. I can say with certainty that at sixteen I was negatively affected by some traits of my AS that aren't nearly as pathologic now I'm twenty-three. Still at this juncture of your life I definitely appreciate your problem.

For me my interests were very broad and wide-ranging (literature, science, philosophy, mathematics, theology, etc.) but I found that there was a running theme (I liked abstract things like systems, I liked finding connections between things, I liked understanding how things worked and being able to explain things, and I wanted to do things that were... esoteric, I guess? Weird and unusual, new frontiers I guess) and that my extreme interest in things helped me apply myself to things I studied. I did change degrees a few times but that was also due to other problems in my life. It's a problem that affects a lot of young people because at this point in your life it's very difficult to know what you're gonna do, since you're still changing. Maybe you're a very hands-on person for example (just a guess based off what you've written). Figuring out stuff like this about yourself might sound very vague but it can definitely help you figure out what you like to do, as well as taking electives, trying stuff, being willing to throw yourself out there and give new hobbies a shot, etc.

As for athletics, there's definitely a component of sports that's just... the love of playing. I hope that will stay with you. It's a very healthy mental outlet and a great way to stay grounded in life, no matter how good you are. Another problem with AS that might be affecting you is dyspraxia btw, you might want to look into it. Motor sequencing can be a challenging thing for AS athletes. But are you interested in other things related to sports, like coaching or statistics or journalism or so forth? These can be helpful outlets for hobbies where you can't physically engage as much. One of my fixations used to be viruses and I wanted to be a microbiologist more than anything, I was distraught because due to various disabilities it was unlikely I'd be able to use a stereomicroscope in the lab for prolonged periods of time. Now I'm studying genetics (similar field) and neurosceince and very happy. But I read constantly about viruses and keep up with public health articles and for a long time I considered becoming an epidemiologist.

I also took remedial math in uni and that did wonders, math is not for everyone but some people struggle in school due to the way it's taught, so if math is not one of your strong points I would urge you to still consider some careers where a little math is necessary because it's not too late. Many people get through with just one or two math classes in first year, if university is an option you are strongly considering.

As for obv. obsessiveness I've talked a lot already but down to talk about that as well, that's still a huge trait of mine so yah not the best qualified to advise on some things but you can learn some conversational cues :)

 

[Captain Skywalker]

Hey there,

AS may be something that will affect you in varying ways all your life, but you can learn (and be taught) coping methods and 'grow out' of some things. Others are just with you. I can say with certainty that at sixteen I was negatively affected by some traits of my AS that aren't nearly as pathologic now I'm twenty-three. Still at this juncture of your life I definitely appreciate your problem.

For me my interests were very broad and wide-ranging (literature, science, philosophy, mathematics, theology, etc.) but I found that there was a running theme (I liked abstract things like systems, I liked finding connections between things, I liked understanding how things worked and being able to explain things, and I wanted to do things that were... esoteric, I guess? Weird and unusual, new frontiers I guess) and that my extreme interest in things helped me apply myself to things I studied. I did change degrees a few times but that was also due to other problems in my life. It's a problem that affects a lot of young people because at this point in your life it's very difficult to know what you're gonna do, since you're still changing. Maybe you're a very hands-on person for example (just a guess based off what you've written). Figuring out stuff like this about yourself might sound very vague but it can definitely help you figure out what you like to do, as well as taking electives, trying stuff, being willing to throw yourself out there and give new hobbies a shot, etc.

As for athletics, there's definitely a component of sports that's just... the love of playing. I hope that will stay with you. It's a very healthy mental outlet and a great way to stay grounded in life, no matter how good you are. Another problem with AS that might be affecting you is dyspraxia btw, you might want to look into it. Motor sequencing can be a challenging thing for AS athletes. But are you interested in other things related to sports, like coaching or statistics or journalism or so forth? These can be helpful outlets for hobbies where you can't physically engage as much. One of my fixations used to be viruses and I wanted to be a microbiologist more than anything, I was distraught because due to various disabilities it was unlikely I'd be able to use a stereomicroscope in the lab for prolonged periods of time. Now I'm studying genetics (similar field) and neurosceince and very happy. But I read constantly about viruses and keep up with public health articles and for a long time I considered becoming an epidemiologist.

I also took remedial math in uni and that did wonders, math is not for everyone but some people struggle in school due to the way it's taught, so if math is not one of your strong points I would urge you to still consider some careers where a little math is necessary because it's not too late. Many people get through with just one or two math classes in first year, if university is an option you are strongly considering.

As for obv. obsessiveness I've talked a lot already but down to talk about that as well, that's still a huge trait of mine so yah not the best qualified to advise on some things but you can learn some conversational cues :)

Yes I absolutely love playing even though I'm terrible. I wish I was better because I love the games but I'm fairly convinced that my AS hinders my effectiveness because of the fact that ,while on the court, it becomes harder to focus and process information quickly such as when to set screens, my movement etc. This has led me to pursue sports journalism because I love talking about sports as well as writing so that's one thing I'm definitely interested in. I would describe myself as sportsy because I'm a huge sports fan despite my lack of athleticism so I see it as a likely career path.
But on the other hand, I've always been a fan of video games since I first touched a controller at age 5. For a long time, I wanted to be involved in game development but math has never been my strong suit and I struggle in math still so I always felt like I couldn't be a developer because programming involves a lot of math

 

[Cresselia~~]

My problem with AS is that it still effects me as a 16 year old.
My obsessiveness is still pretty obvious. Nowadays it's sports, when I was 12 it was video games, when I was 8 it was animals. You get the idea. It makes it really confusing as to what I want to do post-school. It also effects me in the sense of athletics. I'm a 2 sport athlete for my high school(basketball and baseball) and I'm never going to be good no matter how hard I try because my AS makes it really hard to process information quickly and that I'm not athletic at all cause I never played as a kid.
And math. I've hated math since 3rd grade.

My parents used to have a problem with me being obsessed with Pokemon.
But then they realised it's a symptom of Asperger's, and they stopped telling me not to play Pokemon.
I'd say I'm still obsessed with Pokemon, but I don't personally think it hurts me or anything.
My boyfriend is a bit unhappy about it, but he thinks it's because of depression.
My boyfriend isn't that vocal about it anyway. He only admitted that he was bothered when I asked him whether he minded.

 

[scrake]

i was diagnosed with adhd a couple of years ago. i tried a few medications and none seemed to help much (ritalin, nopramin, adderall xr, strattera). i'm currently off meds since i found their benefits rather transient. recently i tried nuerofeedback therapy and that helped me feel more calm and focused during the treatment, though after a few weeks i can't say i still feel that way unfortunately. my life would be a lot easier, with being in school, if these things had worked out for me. i'm pretty optimistic, despite these problems. i've got a tutor to help me in college the last couple of semesters which helps a lot because i suck hard at synthesis (slow processor) despite being a naturally good writer as far as gram/spell/punc (ignoring my hatred of using capital letters on forums). i'm thinking i'm gonna get my first job at a grocery store soon, which would be awesome. i think recently i've also just been feeling more confident in myself, less social anxiety, etc.

on a side note i read a cool book at my college called "driven to distraction" if anyone is interested in useful adhd related info and coping mechanisms. i really enjoyed it and thought i gleamed plenty of useful insight from it.

i was thinking of posting here for a while thank god i am done good night

 

[aurora]

I was diagnosed with Aspergers when I was about 3 or 4 years old after a psychometric test. Up until I was about 8 or 9, such a diagnosis might have held water. However, the diagnosis was effectively overturned when I was just finishing primary school (late 2010) after I did another psychometric test. The supervisor or what have you told my parents that the results gleaned from that test resembled those of a neurotypical individual far more so than those of an individual with Aspergers.

BUT

I was told I had Aspergers a few weeks before I did that second test. Here's the kicker: my parents never told me the specifics of the results. They only said 'wow, your intelligence isn't just because you have Aspergers!' This, along with constant reinforcement from my parents - but my father especially, if not completely now that I think about it - that...

• I was very different from everyone else;
• I had "the drop of Coke" (a really stupid metaphor, looking back);
• and "we are very similar ... I was an outcast like you are" (I never thought I was before I was told I "had" Aspergers, but hearing that all the time really drummed it in that maybe, just maybe, I was)

really shaped how I felt about myself for the next five years. I truly believed that because of my 'condition', I was doomed to be a socially awkward mess, so I became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Everything I did was underscored by my subconscious telling me "you're not like everyone else, you're autistic lol why do you even try'. The reinforcement went on and on and on. At one point, after a particularly disastrous party where I had an awful time thanks to feeling incredibly strong dysphoria throughout the night, my dad said to me, unironically, 'maybe you're more autistic than we thought'. That really shook me. By that point, I was starting to realise that I might not actually fit the definition of someone with any trace of Aspergers, but hearing that set me back considerably. I would struggle with this until the end of 2015.

I was getting grilled by my mother about an admittedly poorly arranged "meeting" at school regarding my gender identity. To this day, I still think what I did leading up to that was justified and that the meeting itself was the only bad part (I couldn't control what people were saying during it, and some of the things said by the person invited in rubbed my parents the wrong way). Eventually I broke down, because some of the things I was being lectured about were just ridiculous. During my breakdown, I told my mum how, among other things, I was sick of being constantly told I was autistic. My mum expressed genuine surprise at that, as she was never the person reinforcing the existence of my supposed autism, and proceeded to tell me that that psychometric test I had taken way back in 2010 had revealed that I wasn't autistic after all.

Just like that, the last five years of incessantly being told what I will equate to 'ur autist lel' were completely invalidated. I felt utterly betrayed and lied to. I felt like a pawn, and began to wonder if my dad was using my 'Aspergers' as a means of manipulating me. Worst of all, I felt absolutely disgusted at how my social life and relationships with people had been constantly suffocated / stifled once a certain point was reached, respectively, because of how I had been made to perceive myself. It was relieving in a sense, but I have been left a very bitter and resentful person due to all of this and I'm still traumatised to this day.

I sometimes wonder now if my supposedly autistic behaviour was just because I was a pretty smart kid by primary school standards and saw things differently. Maybe my behaviour became 'deviant' because my parents encouraged it and never told me things I was doing might have been inappropriate, thus putting me - like any other naive child - under the impression that everything was fine, allowing for things to snowball to pathological levels. Nurture over nature was all but proven by Lazlo Polgar and his manufacturing of three chess goddesses, so perhaps I was just a product of extremely bad luck. The very thought makes me sick to the stomach.

 

[Hourai]

AS and ADD here. Diagnosed with Asperger's when I was about 5 or so, not long before I had surgery on my lower jaw because of a (thankfully noncancerous) tumor, so my parents have known for a long time. I wasn't diagnosed with ADD until I was 13, when my grades began to tank pretty hard because I couldn't focus. I was on Ritalin until recently, when it started to become almost completely ineffective. When I was younger, before I was diagnosed, I was obsessed with automobiles of all types, and then I was obsessed with everything related to space until I was 10, and now it's pretty obvious what my current obsession is. I've always has a hard time making and keeping friends, as I have fallen out of contact with all my other friends. The only one I didn't end up falling out of contact with out of my own forgetfulness died in 2009. I've also had issues with my fine motor skills all my life, I wasn't able to tie shoelaces until I was 12.

 

[Minwu]

My parents suspected I'd had ADD ever since early elementary school but never pursued a diagnosis because... ??? This lead to a lot of unnecessary grief in school though, including many nights spent staring at a blank sheet of paper until like 1 AM as an 8-year-old, because of course I was supposed to finish my homework and not play or sleep until I did!

I finally got diagnosed at 20 by my general physician, and the Adderall I got put on did help a bit with general tiredness and focus, but due to my erratic sleeping habits and eventually picking up a night shift job it became a bit difficult for me to take my meds regularly. Turns out adderall has some pretty shitty withdrawal symptoms, so I've been off it for a year now and I'm just working and taking electives part time. So right now me my studies and my disorder are pretty stagnant until I can actually sort my shit out and commit to treating it, I guess.

 

[Twisted Kneebar]

I also have ADHD. I have never been on Ritalin so I can't compare the two, but I've been taking Adderall for my ADHD since I was first diagnosed with it, and I've never had any problems with it. From the times that I haven't been on it (both my mom and I have ADHD, so we'd forget to get a new prescription every now and then), I can definitely say ADHD is far easier to handle when you're medicated. Have you considered trying some other medication?

Adderall is a fantastic drug. Makes me more focused, less impulsive, and have more energy. Plus, I can better recall whatever I studied after I'm off it. For that guy to rule it out because he doesn't want to feel like the drugs did it and not him, is really stupid and limiting, IMO. Of course it has to be taken responsibly and I only do it when I have to.

 

[Winry]

ADD/ADHD guy coming in here. I wouldn't say it ruins my life, but it just makes everything a lot more difficult. It certainly made school shitty for me because I could never focus on anything too long. It's a bit easier to control as an adult but if any of you observe me close enough you'll probably notice some of the tendencies I easily exhibit.

I used to take medication for it, but I stopped doing that once I hit my teen years. As a young child I took Ritalin. Ritalin is an evil drug and no one should have to go through that. All it does is slow you down and prevents you from enjoying things. I hated it. I eventually started using Concerta and while I felt much better than I did on Ritalin I didn't feel like it was doing anything for me (even with larger doses) so I said fuck it and decided to just work through it. Like I said, ADD/ADHD don't ruin my life, but I would much prefer not having to deal with them. =\

Oh my god, I have ADHD too and was given Ritalin to take first, and I didn't sleep for three days. Like I was 100% wide awake in my brain but my body was like "PLEASE... LET ME SLEEP..." Terrible drug. =(

 

[Cresselia~~]

I used to work at Janssen as a researcher-- the pharmaceutica that produces Adderall.
If any of you guys have questions on this drug, or other Janssen drugs, you can ask me on this thread :)

I don't have any restrictions as to what I could not leak.

 

[Dece1t]

I was scrolling through some old forums, and this seemed pretty interesting, so I thought I'd pop by to make a post about my experience with my own mental disorder. A lot of people know me as a Driver in the Monotype room whose often outspoken and acts strange sometimes, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to open up so maybe more people can get where I'm coming from sometimes.

Man, where do i start with this lol? When I was born, I was essentially deaf for the first 3 years of my life, so other than that you really couldn't tell what was wrong with me aside from that. When I got into Pre-K, and just began talking, a lot of people noticed I didn't exactly act "normal" for say. I immediately had some noticeable problems with my social skills especially. This unfortunately throughout my childhood hindered me when it came to making friends (I can't exactly say that I was a loner, but at the same time, the friends I had were scarce and I didn't always talk to as much). I wanna say when I got into High School is when I came to terms with the fact that I had Asperger's (granted, I was never formally diagnosed, but I have a lot of the symptoms of it, such as not being able to pick up social cues, getting hooked onto a certain topic and having difficulty dropping it, my head being slow to process things fully, getting awkwarded out around big crowds/new people, ect.). I've known something was very different about me for a long time, and my parents knew so as well, but they very rarely treated me as if I was retarded, they just treated me as a normal person with an extra challenge to tackle in life, I guess you could say. Anyways, even though that was the case, of lot of people that did not know me very well, including family not in my household, often didn't understand me, and why I acted the way I did sometimes. To this day I'm terrible at picking up social cues, and I need to constantly give myself mental reminders to be sure to look people in the eye so I don't look like I'm being rude. The last few years especially though I feel I've really grown as a person, to the point that you honestly couldn't tell something was wrong with me unless you really got to know me enough/if I personally told you. I've been in high pursuit of my passion of singing (and music in general tbh), I have a loving girlfriend who supports me in my struggles every step of the way (who funny enough is technically normal, and isn't exactly a "nerd" or gamer either), and honestly, life has just been great now that I've come to terms with my disorder, and that I know now that shouldn't be what defines me. This is really my first time opening up on Smogon (with the exception of 1 person that I told only recently funny enough), and in general I've just been really open about it my disorder, but at the same time, optimistic. I just want to give a special thank you to scpinion and StarBlim for being there for me when I needed it, and being awesome friends in general to have on here.

As for anyone that's in the same shoes as I am, here's my advice: don't think about it. You're a human being just like anyone else, and everyone has their own challenges in life they need to overcome--think of it as a big boulder on your back you have to lug, but with a little effort, you can lift it up and carry it anywhere you go with little trouble. Thanks for reading.~