Has anyone heard of Ritalin?

"Has anyone out there had any experience with Ritalin?  My kid's doctor just put her on it and I'd like to know about side effects, etc."



This is not an uncommon question in ADHD circles.  It's always driven me nuts.  Until I was preparing to blog about it.  I would ask anyone who reads this to please share it with whomever it may apply to.

My initial rant was about how annoying it was to me that people would put their kids on meds BEFORE asking around about the medication.  As I was thinking about how to explain why, it dawned on me that, generally, these kids are young.  Parents are young.  The situation itself is new, confusing, and quite possibly scary.  Plus the parent has had the Dr's reassurance that this is the right thing to do.  Who thinks to tell the Dr "Hey I'd like some reading material and some time to think about this."  That said, I really can't say I blame anyone, however:

update

My Life with A.D.D/A.D.H.D.: My road to a Healthier life: Before I get into the meat of the topic, let me summarize the back story.  At the end of April, I went in for my yearly check up, and my blo...









Just a follow up on the blog posted above.



I have made it!  from now on I am and will continue to be the lightest/thinnest I've been in 10 yrs.  I did this mostly with maintaining a healthy diet, and now it's time to start working on getting stronger.

Nosey Nosey Nosey

Not only am I easily distracted,  I am INSANELY curious.  With ADHD, I constantly find myself picking up on other people's conversations.  When they interest me, of course, I become hyper focused and before you know it, I'm asking questions and giving my 2 cents!  Sometimes I get a weird look, others I get appreciation.  It's a toss-up.  When I see a squirrel running through a yard, It doesn't just distract me from a conversation I may be having.  I also have to watch the squirrel run through the yard, up the tree, across the branches to another tree... which would all be worthwhile if I could see a hawk swoop down and grab it.  But alas, nothing like that ever happens.

Master of the Lost Keys

I know, it probably seems like a silly title.  but imagine, if you will, He-Man, with all his might.  Now imagine that the only might he has is that he MIGHT know where his keys are.  That's what I envisioned when I renamed my fb page.  I often feel empowered by my ADHD, but in what way am I truly mighty?  I don't know anyone who can lose keys with the expertise I do. 

When my wife parks behind me and I have to leave before her in the morning, I would much rather just take her car than move it out of the way.  Unfortunately, this often means I have to wake her up to move it.  If I do it, there's a good chance I'll take her keys to work with me instead of putting them back where they go. 
The other side to this is that I have found various keys, not having a clue what they belong to.  last year I found the spare keys to a car I hadn't owned for several years! 

Honestly though, it's not just keys.  The worst is when you leave your kid in the car as you run into a store where your ex is dropping off your other kid.  I've done it.  It was for like 5 min, and I about vomitted when I realized what I had done.  That's the worst.  The worst ever.  I shudder thinking about it even now, 6 years later.

And on a less scary note, what's could be more frustrating than losing your glasses???  When you lose your keys, you don't need your keys to look for them (hopefully).  When you lose your wallet, you don't need your wallet to find it. but when you lose your glasses...

How are you supposed to see where they might have gone if you can't see without them? It's like looking for a flashlight in the dark...

Do you see the flashlight?

I am cursed with (I feel) the worst of the ADHD symptoms: Forgetfullness.  You could show me a baby picture of one of my kids, and I wouldn't be able to tell you who it is, just that it's my daughter.  You could ask me what I had for dinner last night, and unless I made it from scratch or REALLY enjoyed it or hated it, I probably wouldn't remember.  So of course, if things aren't put in a designated place, they could be lost forever.

In fact, there was more I was going to write in this entry, if only I could find my notes...

I am not disabled. Are you?

One hugely debated topic I've come across is whether or not ADHD is considered a disability. Considering that ADHD is more of a spectrum (having varying levels of intensity) I would imagine this would vary depending on the severity of the ADHD in an individual, and would ultimately depend on our idea of disability and what it means to be disabled.

What happens when we disable something?  When an alarm system is disabled, it no longer prevents entry.  When a Bomb is disabled, it can no longer go off. To me, being disabled means the inability to produce an expected action or result.

Scared Out of My Mind

One of my worst nightmares came true last weekend.  Someone very dear to me was in the hospital after suffering a heart attack.  It was my dad.  He is ok, and even after having a heart attack has a stronger heart than most people, but I was pretty scared.  And if you thought having ADHD could make me a basketcase, you ain't seen nothing!

I have not been able to focus to save my life.  I have been trying to cope with this huge event, and my mind ist still trying to wrap around the fact that this really happened, and thus having a hard time processing anything else. I have to wonder if I've just experienced something similar to the different between an "NT" and someone with ADHD? 

Even Shiny chickens and Bacon-loving Squirrels Think About the Meaning of Life

That's right, folks, it's the blog post you've all been waiting for: What is the meaning of life???  Why are we here?  We are born, taught how to eat. We learn to crawl, walk, run, skip, jump, drink, smoke, streak, dress professionally, invest... then we die.

I found myself thinking about this the other day (some day I'll upload all of my voice memos to myself regarding potential blog posts).   Mankind started living en-tandum with nature.  This is not another nature loving tree-hugging post.  Just saying, we used to coexist.  Now we farm.  It's a fact.  Moving on: at some pivotal point in our development (Mesopotamian domestication) the ancestors of Ancient Babylon (the actual location of the Tower of Babel, for you bible people) decided it was time (or they needed) to stop chasing herds and start domesticationg plants and goats.  They settled down and soon came to live in huts, then clay buildings, then hotels and skyscrapers.  Living was the meaning of life.  Eat, sleep, make the babies, grow the food, die.  Then, someone lived a little too long, or had a little too much time on their hands, and began to ponder life.  Why are we here?