2 pages and nobody suggested ADD?
I think people tend to overdiagnose ADD. I have a friend who I would know had it even if he hadn’t been diagnosed. Everything is difficult for him. Just being around him makes you notice how mentally distracted it is. Sometimes I rag on him: “we could be talking about the holocaust, and you’ll say, “Look, a squirrel!””
I think the problem is that most people (including the people who diagnose patients) have never actually met someone with ADD. People with ADD are “characters,” people who you definitely notice.
You either think they’re weird, think they’re charmingly adventuresome, or just think something is off. You can’t talk to someone with ADD without thinking they are exceptional in some way. You think it is personality, but it isn’t - they’re just that mentally spastic. Especially when they have ADHD.
You love them to death, but sometimes it is beyond irritating.
[quote]nephorm wrote:
I didn’t think you had hit your head… didn’t you hit your jaw more than anything?
Of course, there could still be some trauma. Get your ass to a doctor.[/quote]
Well, I don’t know how exactly I hit, I bit through my tongue though so I definitely hit my chin. I think I landed mostly on my feet, folded up and hit my head on my knees. I just am forgetting shit all the time that normally I would remember. And no, Barney, I haven’t been smoking the cheeba. What kind of doctor to see, a neurologist?
[quote]apayne wrote:
Well, I don’t know how exactly I hit, I bit through my tongue though so I definitely hit my chin. I think I landed mostly on my feet, folded up and hit my head on my knees. I just am forgetting shit all the time that normally I would remember. And no, Barney, I haven’t been smoking the cheeba. What kind of doctor to see, a neurologist? [/quote]
Apayne, my post was meant for you by the way… you have potentially suffered some brain trauma. The brain heals and adapts, so as well as seeing a doctor, presumably referral to a specialist, consider the supplements I was talking about as they might help with that process.
By the way, the various forms of L-carnitine are like creatine in that the body does create them naturally… so they aren’t some strange substance you need to be overly concerned about.
If you are unsure, specifically enquire about supplements, by name (write them down if you must) while talking to the doctor, but don’t waste any more time. If you weren’t just joking around, make it happen immediately man.
CLewis,
If you find an answer, please post back here and let me know. I am perplexed by feelings quite like yours.
My background has some similarities to yours as well, at least in a successful academic history, in reluctance to “take stuff”, and generally tame behaviors.
In my searching, so far ADD seems like the most accurate name for my “problem”.
ADD is usually treated with stimulants, as it is a result of an understimulated brain (leading to the inability to focus normally)
People with ADD are often prone to risk-taking as a way to naturally self-medicate (i.e. stimulate) themselves. You mentioned that your “one moment of clarity” came after doing something you considered dangerous.
…Are you sure that you don’t have some “risky” behavior that you find yourself partaking in (or longing to partake in), even though you know better? - You don’t have to answer this.
I am not trying to diagnose you. I don’t know you, and I am not qualified. You seem like a smart guy who needs to figure things out for yourself - (usually the hard way, I suspect).
If you are similar to me, then you might find yourself wondering why you always take the path of greatest resistance.
I may be mistaken, but I think that my fogginess is getting worse with age (and kids) - maybe it is just a lack of time to take care of myself the way I used to, or perhaps just increased awareness.
Recently, I tried Adderall, and I have noticed that it did seem to alleviate some of my “foggy” symptoms. But the benefits did not seem to outweigh my aversion to “taking stuff”. I am still evaluating my opinion on this. I may try it again.
I caved and went the medical route because I could see that my work was being adversely affected by my distraction. When I was younger, I could compensate for my fogginess by pulling-off “super-human” feats of endurance and focus (e.g. all-weekers - as opposed to all-nighters). Wherever I worked, it seemed like I got nicknamed “the machine” - perhaps not what you would expect for a guy who currently thinks the best diagnosis for his “problem” is ADD.
Do you relate to this? If so, have you thought about what got you to the point where you needed to do something “superhuman” to be successful (or at least live up to your own (high) expectations)?
Anyway, there are varying degrees and different manifestations of “ADD”.
Sometimes it can be a strength - or at least the mechanisms that one develops for coping/succeeding with ADD can become strengths - such as a strong will and self-discipline.
Anyway ADD is not always personified by the goof-off troublemaker kid, or a quirky outwardly unfocused personality. You may be doing yourself a disservice by eliminating it from the pool of suspects so quickly. Look into it, read a little, look at yourself honestly (this is difficult). It won’t hurt you to do a little research. You probably think you have an open mind - but how open is it really?
Worst case is nothing changes. If you are lucky then you may pick up some pointers for aligning you energies in a single direction, you may find a reason for some of your feelings - or at least learn that others are similar to you.
…
I look back on my life and see an unfocused mess. However, most people would probably consider me to be pretty successful.
Despite that, I feel that my efforts have been directed pretty haphazardly, and often wonder what I could have accomplished if I could always stay as focused and clear as I know that I am capable of.
When I am “on” - I impress myself, otherwise (most of the time) I wonder what the heck I am doing - because it seems like a waste.
By the way, I am about to break down and try some Spike here in the near future.
If I do, I will post back to this thread with my opinions.
OK - I am done writing and sounding like an idiot. I should get back to work - but I just can bring myself to do it 
Also, I may be completely off-base, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I saw some similarities to myself, so I used it as an excuse to waste some time.
Oh yeah - martial arts and meditation always helped me. I am trying to figure out how to work those back into my life at the moment.
[quote]apayne wrote:
What happened was I had a fall of about 25 ft. For the first week I couldn’t concentrate on a task without getting distracted. Since then it has gotten better but I still notice that I am not able to think the same as before. My friends have actually made remarks that it seems I am getting dumber. [/quote]
My father had similar symptoms after a fall. Turned out to be a subdural hematoma. Stop procrastinating and get yourself to a doctor ASAP.
[quote]jwillow wrote:
apayne wrote:
What happened was I had a fall of about 25 ft. For the first week I couldn’t concentrate on a task without getting distracted. Since then it has gotten better but I still notice that I am not able to think the same as before. My friends have actually made remarks that it seems I am getting dumber.
My father had similar symptoms after a fall. Turned out to be a subdural hematoma. Stop procrastinating and get yourself to a doctor ASAP.[/quote]
Well I will be calling the health insurance people in the morning to find a doctor. I have got my insurance in order now, so I may as well check it out. I don’t think it’s anything, but if it’s something I can correct, I should. Thanks for the input.
[quote]apayne wrote:
I don’t think it’s anything, but if it’s something I can correct, I should. Thanks for the input.
[/quote]
Depending how you hit, your brain whacked into something hard, probably the top of your skull. This isn’t good of course, as the blood supply can be damaged, or the resulting swelling has nowhere to go except into the soft brain tissue, which can kill it. So yeah, it is something! If you would’ve gone right away, they might have taken a piece of your skull off to allow the swelling to go outward. I think if you go now they might be able to repair blood vessels, or at least give you training to improve your memory and concentration.
Gyarrgh, thank you for making me feel like an asshole. Oh well, a little brain damage adds character just like a facial scar! Really, I’m sure it will be fine, I’ll update.
[quote]CLewis wrote:
That moment sucked because it was so transient and because I wish I could get back to it.
I have otherwise done fine - I do what I have to do, get decent grades, etc. Any ideas?[/quote]
Sounds like you’re bored and have nothing better to do with yourself than to overanalyze your life. Stop longing for the past and put your effort on the present.
Definitely not bored - I always take on much more than most people, to the point where people believe I do too much. This is something that is in the back of my mind, that I usually ignore, and sometimes (like recently) certain events make me wonder about it. It doesn’t take two seconds to make a post.
I don’t “long for the past” - I feel like this holds me back from doing everything I want to do now! If you suggested that to my friends, they wouldn’t stop laughing. I am always thinking and planning years in advance. Most of them think it’s crazy.
zogster - something to think about. It is in my family. I have also discounted it before. I am going to try Powerdrive and Spike and see what happens.
[quote]texass wrote:
Sounds like you’re bored and have nothing better to do with yourself than to overanalyze your life. Stop longing for the past and put your effort on the present.
[/quote]
[quote]CLewis wrote:
I am always thinking and planning years in advance.
[/quote]
Once again, put your effort into the present.
[quote]apayne wrote:
Gyarrgh, thank you for making me feel like an asshole. Oh well, a little brain damage adds character just like a facial scar! Really, I’m sure it will be fine, I’ll update.[/quote]
FFS, why do you think I was trying to clue you in to the acetyl-l-carnitine arginate? Now, I don’t know if the study used to support the below was done on humans or not…
[i]
Acetyl-l-carnitine arginate is a patented form of carnitine that stimulates the growth of neurites in the brain. Studies show that acetyl-l-carnitine arginate stimulates the growth of new neurites by an astounding 19.5%, which is almost four times better than acetyl-l-carnitine.
[/i]
Stimulating nerve tissue growth can help the dendrites in the old noggin find each other and reestablish connections… assuming there might be some damage in the first place.
Anyway, don’t panic, if there was brain trauma, obviously you aren’t a total loss and it does improve for quite a period of time. Do yourself a favor and check into some key supps with respect to brain tissue support.
Under what conditions do you get mentally foggy? I find that it often happens when I’ve been hammering at a problem for too long. My brain just locks up (I call it “Thinking like molassas”). Maybe you just need a quick break?
In any case, I think it’s pretty strange that you think you’re “smart” yet wonder why you’re not always mentally nimble. No matter how smart you are, you’re going to have good days and bad days. A 600lb squatter will have days where he can’t squat 500lb. Does that make him weak? Sometimes, shit just happens.
Also, I’m curious as to why you’re asking here. Why don’t you ask your buddies at school? I’m sure you’ll find that even the top students at your top university go through the same thing.
Final note: I would still check to be sure that what you’re experiencing is not a stroke, brain tumor, the onset of Alzheimer’s, or some other brain problem. However, those typically have more severe symptoms than just “mental fogginess.”
Any decent reference site will have a list of symptoms that you can check, but if you’re really worried, go see a doctor.
CLewis,
Your statement "Definitely not bored - I always take on much more than most people, to the point where people believe I do too much. " strikes a chord with me as well.
I used to do this a lot - to the point where it got me into trouble. For a long while I could keep up with my commitments by working like a madman, but eventually I took on more than could be done in a the amount of time I had.
… It took me quite a while to discover that I was causing my own trouble.
Eventually, I was forced to learn how to say “no”. It was difficult, because I knew that I could do everything that I wanted to do if I only had more time. – No matter what I did or how much I wanted it, there simply was not more time.
I learned that it is far better to say “No” up front, than to run out of time and screw myself and the people who are depending on me.
Saying “no” made me feel lazy and worthless, even though I am clearly neither. Now, I am used to turning down added work/interesting opportunities when there is not time for it. … I still feel bad about it.
I think this tendency to take on too much comes from the search for stimulation (the old self-medication thing again).
I always perform best under stress (high stress). If the situation did not supply the needed stress, then I would create my own.
I think the scientific term for this behavior is “shooting myself in the foot.”
It might also be called procrastination. Maybe more like stealth procrastination - If there is something I wanted to avoid, then I would find something else with a higher priority to do. This would give me a good excuse to put off the undesirable task. After some time, when the deadline was extremely near, I would have the stress that I needed in order to focus on the undesirable task.
… the body’s stress response is what provided the extra stimulation that my brain needed to stay focused.
On a loosely related note:
As far as dealing with too many things to do at one time is concerned, I found David Allen’s Book “Getting Things Done” to be pretty helpful.
Also, with regard to the notion that it is strange that you think yourself to be smart but not always mentally nimble.
I suspect that you have never really viewed yourself as “smart”, but have been presented with so much evidence over time that you finally accepted it as true. – At least that is my experience. … I still claim that I do not deserve credit for being smart, I just work hard.
As far as mental nimbleness goes, in my history - if I am under stress, or personally interested in something, then I excel to the point that I often surprise myself. Otherwise it is a struggle to stay anywhere close to focused on what I am supposed to be focusing on.
My guess is that your problem probably isn’t true “fogginess” or a lack of nimbleness, it is more likely that you have too many things going on and your mental energy is being dissipated because it is “simultaneously” exerted in too many directions.
ADD provides an explanation for this type of behavior.
If ADD is the correct diagnosis for my “problem” then so be it.
I hesitate to call it a problem. On the contrary, I would give this behavior credit for letting me do some of the things that I am most proud of in my life
… but it sure makes it difficult to work in some environments (i.e. my current environment).
I am becoming more and more resigned to the idea that I may need some external help (medication) if I decide to continue working in an environment like my current one (office job).
My big challenge is to figure out how to get paid well for doing whatever I am interested in at the moment (this problem has been stumping me for a while now - I even started my own business a while ago.)
Again I will add a disclaimer: I don’t know anything other than my own experience, so feel free to disregard my comments.
Did you ever answer the question about sleep and consistent sleep scheduling?
[quote]zogster wrote:
If ADD is the correct diagnosis for my “problem” then so be it.
[/quote]
ADD is definitely NOT your problem, kid. Anyone with ADD would never be so introspective nor be able to concentrate long enough to write such a long and detailed post. Stop trying to play amateur psychiatrist. Pills and supplements are never a cure all for something you are lacking, nor will they make you into someone you are not. If you suspect a serious problem, seek professional advice.
Yo Mamma,
I have only one question for you regarding your post:
Are you certain?
P.S. Thank you for the roundabout compliment.
[quote]zogster wrote:
Yo Mamma,
I have only one question for you regarding your post:
Are you certain?
P.S. Thank you for the roundabout compliment. :)[/quote]
In the most absolute sense.
BTW, that’s Momma with an “o”.
Yo Momma,
(sorry about the misspelling).
That’s what I figured.
I could try and explain more thoroughly and perhaps give you a glimpse of how others think … but it would be fruitless since you are certain of your correctness in the most absolute sense.