In my experience, living with ADHD, I have been sharply attuned to the fact that my attentional capacity differs drastically across subjects; and is strongly dependent on the circumstantial facets of my habits; such as the academic area upon which I tend to garner my focus, and/or the biochemical state of my brain (which is usually influenced by the use or discontinuance of my psycho-stimulant medical regime).
During my undergraduate tenure, prior to my introduction to the psychotropic “miracle” drug that I found in Adderall/Vyvance etc., there were times when my absorption into my studies was so intense, that I failed to account for the “big picture”, and was unable to calibrate my focus to encompass multiple features of an area of study at once, leading to mental rigidity, and hence, an inability to flexibly grasp a subject or procedure in its totality. However, there were other moments of intellectual obstinance which enabled me to meticulously comprehend complex subjects and ideas, allowing me to benefit from an enhanced understanding of whatever it was I was doing or studying. And then, of course, there were other moments characterized by an inability to sustain focus on a target stimuli, making my attentional capacities virtually null and void.
Strangely enough, with the aid of psycho-stimulants, I began to realize that, although, often times the medicine enhanced my ability to focus effectively, it also, contra-intuitively has, on various occasions, left me in the same predicament as I had been when hyper-focus arrested my ability to thoroughly understand a topic or process.
In researching, the biochemical components of attention, I found a study demonstrating a hypothesis that explains the way chemical imbalances in the neurochemistry of ADHD victims can be inclusive of, symptoms of hyper-focus. Moreover, because the prevailing, but unfortunately short sighted notions pervading modern day Psychology, deem the symptoms of ADHD to be solely and predominately marked by episodes of total inattention, this study is one which I found to be a more refreshingly wholistic elucidation of the ADHD experience.
To bring attention to a more realistic and broadened understanding of the disorder, I am dedicating my next blog to explaining, in the simplest means possible, how Neurobiological imbalances in different areas of the brain can cause ADHD symptoms to broadcast themselves via states of both hyper focus, and those of complete inattention; and how Psycho-stimulants can produce side effects, which exaggerate states of attentional inflexibility. Read on and follow my next blog to learn the mechanisms that produce a more diverse range of inattention symptoms, and how psychotropic remedies for the disorder may possibly attenuate states of extreme, and dysfunctional attentional implacability.
Looking forward to the next post.
Great article