One More Thing About That Article...

Haha forgot to put a link to the article so here it is http://adultaddstrengths.com/2008/11/18/if-he-outgrew-it-what-is-he-doing-in-my-prison/#comment-1049996

"If He Outgrew It, What Is He Doing In My Prison?"

This blog article, "If He Outgrew It, What Is He Doing In My Prison?" by T. Dwaine McCallon, M.D. is an eye opener to all us young adults with ADD. "A concerning link with future criminal behavior was found in a higher percentage of such youngsters than in control, non-ADHD youngsters. Impulsive acts, poor attending and distractibility, especially from consideration of consequences of your actions, put ADHD youth and adults at risk for criminal activity." This is important to understand because just as I have been warned about too much exposure to sunlight and the recommended use of sunscreen due to the fact that skin cancer runs in my family, young adults with ADD should be warned that they are more likely to end up in prison. Statistics don't lie people. A little off topic but I remember how my Mom always told me to stay away from tobacco, drugs, and alcohol because I am more likely to become addicted due to my ADD. Now I am trying really hard to quit smoking after about 3 years of doing it, what do you know huh? But going back to the article this is my posted response...This article is very personal to me because I went to juvie for a little over a week and had a wake up call. I was a senior in high school and ended up in juvie for basically an incident that could be described as an impulsive rage. I am a good kid and would have never seen myself there, but actually going there made me realize how easy it really is to get there. But I agree that having add makes a person more likely to end up in prison. I recently started medication, Vyanse, and am a sophmore in college. I whole heartedly believe that medication is the way to go if a young adult realizes symptoms havent gone away completely. I don’t want to be 50 years old and look back and say “Wow, its already over, and I don’t ever remember wanting to come down this path.” People with add, at least myself, are passionate people that if given the chance to apply themselves, can accomplish great things!

Hunter vs. Farmer

Something I find very interesting about this book is the hunter vs. farmer analogy. This analogy is that persons with ADD have hunter genes, while persons without ADD have farmer genes. The hunter gene is then said to be actually passed down genetically and makes that person have qualities that a successful hunter would posses, such as impulsive, short attention span, ect... But this gene died over time and the farmer gene came about when civilizations started to farm thus not needing to be impulsive and the need to be content with one project came into play. So with this theory...people with ADD don't have a disorder but have more of that hunter gene while most people, the ones without ADD, have the farmer gene. So I thought this outlook on ADD is interesting and gives an alternative to thinking of it as a disorder. Many creditable people have backed up this theory saying the pieces fit together, but it is still a theory. Oh and a quote out of this book i found interesting was "Each of us really understands in others only those feelings he is capable of producing himself." -Andre Gide 1921

Book I'm Reading

I've recently been reading "ADD Success Stories" by Thom Hartman. This book is composed of stories that are written by people with ADD who have found ways to overcome their disorder. I would recommend it for people who have recently found out they have ADD or for people who are struggling with ways to handle daily tasks, such as constantly losing your car keys. The book can be found at http://www.amazon.com/ADD-Success-Stories-Fulfillment-Attention/dp/1887424032/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1231900725&sr=1-1 and is about $10.00.