Re:How too much daydreaming affected me
by soulofmischief on Wednesday July 26, 2023 @04:25PM
(#36884430)
Hmm. I experienced this. As a child, I chewed on my shirt. No one could figure out why. From kindergarten to maybe 4th grade, it was a problem. My guardians' response was to collude with the school administrations and instruct teachers to call me out in class and belittle me if they saw me chewing on my shirt, and to send me to the principal's office. Then I would get beaten/punished at home. This happened with regularity. A lot of shame and punishment.
At the time, I had undiagnosed OCD. And, it turns out, the medicine which I was being given against my will for an ADHD diagnosis I received at age 5, was causing me to experience dry mouth, which made me instinctually suck on the buttons and corners of my shirt. Mystery solved. But two therapists and years of punishment didn't figure that out. I did, in my adulthood.
I had the same experience with uncontrollable, hour-long bouts of laughter which would end in vomiting and extreme stomach pain. Punished for them, told I was just trying to get attention. Turns out that was an expression of OCD. And dozens of other things not worth mentioning. The older I got, the more I came to appreciate the level of misunderstandings about my issues which led to even more violence inflicted upon me.
So that is a possible avenue of explanation for why RSD and ADHD seem to be correlated. After speaking with some friends who have borderline disorder (I don't have this, but I do have bipolar disorder type II) it seems to be something they have experienced as well. And a great deal of BPD cases involve trauma.
There is little doubt that something chemical is taking place given that specific gene mutations seem to cause these disorders, or at least predispositions to them. I'm sure that there is a correlation between RSD and the dopamine reuptake issues which characterize ADHD. But the feedback systems in nature vs nurture mean that these disorders can cause problems which themselves exacerbate the disorders or cause new symptoms to present.
At the time, I had undiagnosed OCD. And, it turns out, the medicine which I was being given against my will for an ADHD diagnosis I received at age 5, was causing me to experience dry mouth, which made me instinctually suck on the buttons and corners of my shirt. Mystery solved. But two therapists and years of punishment didn't figure that out. I did, in my adulthood.
I had the same experience with uncontrollable, hour-long bouts of laughter which would end in vomiting and extreme stomach pain. Punished for them, told I was just trying to get attention. Turns out that was an expression of OCD. And dozens of other things not worth mentioning. The older I got, the more I came to appreciate the level of misunderstandings about my issues which led to even more violence inflicted upon me.
So that is a possible avenue of explanation for why RSD and ADHD seem to be correlated. After speaking with some friends who have borderline disorder (I don't have this, but I do have bipolar disorder type II) it seems to be something they have experienced as well. And a great deal of BPD cases involve trauma.
There is little doubt that something chemical is taking place given that specific gene mutations seem to cause these disorders, or at least predispositions to them. I'm sure that there is a correlation between RSD and the dopamine reuptake issues which characterize ADHD. But the feedback systems in nature vs nurture mean that these disorders can cause problems which themselves exacerbate the disorders or cause new symptoms to present.