Post AXfHpiPC2rHEemn2xs by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
(DIR) More posts by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
(DIR) Post #AXOoIFRQ3JdmTH509A by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-05T23:18:36Z
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One problem I have with ADHD and ASD as labels is the final "D". Our ways of being are not "Disorders", any more than being gay is a "Disorder". If anything, our societies have a "Disorder", whose symptoms include chronic failure to nurture and leverage the talents and abilities of neurodiverse people for the public good.#neurodiversity #ADHD #autistic
(DIR) Post #AXOoSrBCb3dmPWYLDs by saffronsnail@social.seattle.wa.us
2023-07-05T23:20:32Z
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@strypey Most "disorders" are just legitimate ways of existing that many people have difficulty empathizing with.
(DIR) Post #AXOqCvgOHpbxeSfr1s by DuchessOfSnork@tech.lgbt
2023-07-05T23:39:58Z
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@strypey Oh, hmm. Now I'm going to call it Attention Deficit and Hyperactive Distinction.
(DIR) Post #AXOrvM9FLl6qQcv42S by LeatherCubAndrew@4bear.com
2023-07-05T23:59:18Z
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@strypey one source I used to follow on LinkedIn offered calling it autism spectrum condition instead of autism spectrum disorder.. perhaps the D could become a C?
(DIR) Post #AXOtRJlbq3uQGQfS2y by pitbuster@lile.cl
2023-07-06T00:16:17Z
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@strypey I just use Autism and Divergent Attention these days
(DIR) Post #AXOuGOoGqgoWfnGnNw by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-06T00:25:31Z
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@DuchessOfSnork> Now I'm going to call what I have Attention Deficit and Hyperactive Distinction! 😀​I like that!"Differences" would do, but "Distinction" has way more class : )
(DIR) Post #AXOuae161HlvczvG76 by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-06T00:29:12Z
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From now on, I'm going to campaign for a thorough public health response to the ongoing epidemic of Societal Ignorance of Neurodiversity Disorder (SINS) ; )#SINS
(DIR) Post #AXOvvaQkeFa2XbTLzU by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-06T00:44:11Z
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@LeatherCubAndrew> the other D in ADHD is also problematic if I recall as wellYes, Attention "Deficit". Which is not accurate at all, given our ability to hyperfocus on things that stimulate our intellect and our creativity. If anything, our problem is an *surplus* of attention, which makes us easy to distract when we're not hyperfocused.This is akin to the stereotype that autistic people lack empathy. When for many us, our empathy is so powerful it can overwhelm and shut us down.
(DIR) Post #AXQ33OH4cc0rzeZe5Y by falcoskywolf@mastodon.sdf.org
2023-07-06T13:38:42Z
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@strypey I have thought for a while that ADHD could easily be renamed Focus Divergence- which gives room for both hyperfocus and hypofocus, and the sometimes wild swings between.
(DIR) Post #AXQmKthP8Ytvbnx3ZY by me@social.jlamothe.net
2023-07-06T13:48:41Z
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@strypey I can't speak for ASD as I don't (to my knowledge) have it, but I have to admit that I've had a hard time seeing ADHD (which I do have) as anything other than a disorder. Without medication, even basic tasks are much more difficult for me.I'd like to be able to see it differently though.
(DIR) Post #AXQmKuP0WRmNn2LsXI by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-06T22:06:06Z
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@me> Without medication, even basic tasks are much more difficult for meI hear you. I've been unable to get an adult diagnosis, despite being diagnosed and medicated as a teenager. Sometimes I really struggle just to get through the day.But it's worth asking, how much of this is due to the extra work of constantly adapting to a society built around neurotypical norms? Are these basic tasks still as difficult for you when you're in full control of your working environment?
(DIR) Post #AXTYf98Me1cZO2CdSS by btaroli@federate.social
2023-07-08T06:17:00Z
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@strypey Is there a better monicker for ADH*? I’m open to ditching the D, as I agree we shouldn’t pathologizing our state of being.
(DIR) Post #AXY6mujKFuZa6XCrNg by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-10T10:58:16Z
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@btaroliIs there a better monicker for ADH*?Check out the other replies. @DuchessOfSnork made a good suggestion here:https://tech.lgbt/@DuchessOfSnork/110664115711597057@falcoskywolf made another good one herehttps://mastodon.sdf.org/@falcoskywolf/110667413744943548@LeatherCubAndrew pointed out the first 'D' is also an issue to which I replied with this:https://mastodon.nzoss.nz/@strypey/110664368217315870Open to more suggestions. We do need a name, but an uplifting one would be better.
(DIR) Post #AXd77gQWeVC9vArIm0 by holly@social.v.st
2023-07-12T14:55:17Z
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@me @strypey Exactly. What part of not being able to complete projects _for myself_ is not a disorder? What part of forgetting my keys and locking myself out again is not a disorder? What part of hyperfocusing until my joints ache and I'm low blood sugar is not a disorder? What part of not being able to follow a conversation with someone I care about because my brain keeps switching channels is not a disorder? It's hard enough getting access to treatment, please stop implying we don't need it :(
(DIR) Post #AXd77hPUzny4yHNzoO by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-12T20:55:32Z
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@holly> It's hard enough getting access to treatment, please stop implying we don't need itI'm sorry my post came across that way. I'm *not* saying that we don't need targeted forms of support to function at our best in modern society. But rather that the struggles so many of us face to get that support (I prefer this word to pathologizing ones like "treatment") is a "disorder" on the part of our society, not us.@me
(DIR) Post #AXd7p21IFIArLJj6dE by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-12T21:02:26Z
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@holly Your post focuses exclusively on some of the downsides of our ways of being, as experienced in a neurotypical society. I refuse to believe that's all there is. Believe me, there are plenty of downsides to being intellectually gifted in a society that lionizes mediocrity (myths of meritocracy notwithstanding). It also requires targeted forms of supports to survive childhood and adolescence intact. But I hope you'll agree that being intellectually gifted is not a "disorder".(2/2)@me
(DIR) Post #AXe0B9kDbLlFCCjrGq by holly@social.v.st
2023-07-13T07:12:25Z
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@strypey @me You were speaking about ADHD. You did not mention intellectual giftedness at all.As someone with ADHD, hearing people talk about how it's some sort of superpower feels dimishing and ableist. There are times when we can think outside the box, etc., but that does not make up for the misery of not being able to think clearly or feel in control of your own thought processes. And clarity of thought has nothing at all to do with the external world.
(DIR) Post #AXe0cZCf3R1pyQ73z6 by holly@social.v.st
2023-07-13T07:17:25Z
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@strypey @me It's a bit as if you were in pain and someone said to you .. awesome, now you have the superpower of empathy! Your problem is everyone isn't accomodating your pain.Like, no, my problem is you're dimishing my pain, making others think I don't need help.
(DIR) Post #AXe11EVf85jV27lKNc by holly@social.v.st
2023-07-13T07:21:27Z
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@strypey @me You were speaking about #ADHD. You did not mention intellectual giftedness at all.As someone with ADHD, hearing people talk about how it's some sort of superpower feels dimishing and ableist. There are times when we can think outside the box, etc., but that does not make up for the misery of not being able to think clearly or feel in control of your own thought processes. And clarity of thought has nothing at all to do with the external world.
(DIR) Post #AXfFW2NPsmsUtfRqSG by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-13T21:39:02Z
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@holly> my problem is you're dimishing my pain, making others think I don't need helpI'm sorry but I don't understand why you think this. Both the posts you're relying to emphasize that we need specific forms of support for our condition. What I'm questioning is whether pathologizing our condition and focusing narrowly on a medicalized "treatment" approach is the best way to support us.To be clear I'm not arguing against the use of drug-based support for those it helps.(1/?)@me
(DIR) Post #AXfGIBvffaugQJQqlk by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-13T21:47:45Z
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@hollyMy experience is that developing coping strategies, and designing a way of life that is compatible with the way I work, has helped me much more than drugs. I was diagnosed in my late teens, and while the drug I was prescribed helped a lot with concentration etc during the few hours it worked, it also made my mood disorders *much* worse. In the end, the costs far outweighed the benefits.(2/?)@me
(DIR) Post #AXfGvGqpIvk4ywnh7A by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-13T21:54:48Z
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@hollyNow, friends who were diagnosed more recently tell me there is now a much wider range of drug options. There may now be a medication available that could help me without all the downsides. But they also tell me that the combination of the right drugs, and coping strategies and social accommodations, is more effective than either by itself.(3/?)@me
(DIR) Post #AXfHQsSpVh92c6eCpM by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-13T22:00:33Z
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@hollyThat brings me to the subject of accessibility. When I advocate for buildings to have ramps, lifts, and accessible toilets, I'm not saying people in wheelchairs don't need any medical help. When I advocate for all software to be friendly to screenreaders and for people to included image descriptions, I'm not saying the blind don't need any medical help. But I am saying that's not all they need, and that the problem to be solved is not their "disorder", but an ableist society.(4/4)@me
(DIR) Post #AXfHpiPC2rHEemn2xs by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-13T22:05:01Z
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@holly> You were speaking about ADHD. You did not mention intellectual giftedness at allThat was an analogy used to illustrate the point I'm trying to make. I'm sorry that wasn't clear. > hearing people talk about how it's some sort of superpowerNow you're just putting words in my mouth. I'm sorry this subject upsets you so much. But please, let's maintain an atmosphere of mutual respect as we discuss this neurodiversity we share, and *listen* to what's actually being said.@me
(DIR) Post #AXg9XfBWfuTsytEqZs by holly@social.v.st
2023-07-14T08:05:52Z
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@strypey @me The thing I have a problem with specifically is ditching the label "disorder". I was diagnosed at 41. Until then the labels I lived with were lazy, unreliable, uncaring. Once someone slapped that blessed label disorder on my forehead I was finally able to leave behind the depression and low self-worth from carrying the other labels, and I was finally able to escape the decades-long struggle to prove the other labels weren't true.
(DIR) Post #AXh6vhA0sMojM0G5GC by mav@hackers.town
2023-07-14T19:12:11Z
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@strypey @LeatherCubAndrew I'd also say that the addition of the H was also problematic because lots of us like me who have the hilariously named 'inattentive ADHD' go undiagnosed for years or decades because you're either not "hyper" or you don't understand what hyperactivity means. AMC, atttention management condition? Idk.
(DIR) Post #AXhKROwhQqonX5TpJI by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-14T21:43:39Z
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@holly> I was finally able to escape the decades-long struggle to prove the other labels weren't trueI hear what you're saying. I'm *not* saying the diagnosis isn't useful, it certainly is. I'm taking issue with the word choice in the label, and the framing it implies. Which IMHO swaps one source of negative self-image for another, slightly less corrosive one.This video illustrates the same point about being autistic that I'm making about being ADHD:https://yewtu.be/watch?v=hr7YFJ8iBL8@me
(DIR) Post #AXhKVMf9rUxJbvAI7c by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-14T21:44:23Z
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@holly> the labels I lived with were lazy, unreliable, uncaringI was very lucky as a teenager that my ADHD didn't only give me unsuitable medication that nearly wrecked my life, and could have killed me (mis-medication is a common trigger for suicide among teens with mood disorders). I was also a copy of a book called 'You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid, or Crazy?!'https://www.additudemag.com/product/you-mean-im-not-lazy-stupid-or-crazy-the-classic-self-help-book-for-adults-with-attention-deficit-disorder-book-kelly-and-ramundo/This book helped me put my way of being in context, and start developing effective coping strategies.@me
(DIR) Post #AXhL2kREUDm4uAZOnw by me@social.jlamothe.net
2023-07-14T13:27:35Z
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@holly The interesting part is that even after a formal diagnosis, I still struggle with the "lazy" label. I can only speak for my own experience though.
(DIR) Post #AXhL2l4E9Exyr6oXaK by strypey@mastodon.nzoss.nz
2023-07-14T21:50:24Z
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@me> even after a formal diagnosis, I still struggle with the "lazy" labelI identify with this. The negative self-image, once internalised, can be *very* hard to shift.I've never worked a fulltime paid job. Mainly because most workplaces in this country are terrible at accommodating neurodiverse ways of working. So I feared I was "lazy". Then a girlfriend I was living with, pointed out that a "lazy" person wouldn't work 50-60 hour weeks, unpaid, on community development projects. @holly