Why does it feel like too much effort just to go from sitting around looking at garbage online to simply watching a film or playing a video game?
this is stupid. something about activation energy? are there any activation energy hacks?
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Others have said depression, but this can also be caused by burnout or ADHD. If you’ve tried the usual suggestions (better sleep, exercise, diet) and it’s really bothering you, then talking to a doctor could help narrow down the possibilities.
This. Way too many people these days are confusing burnout or addiction with ADHD. Literally seeing YouTubers state they are burned out and then declare it's ADHD, and how Adderall helped them be productive magically.
No shit the METH analogue is making you productive, it's fucking meth. It'll perk up anyone no matter how burned out you are. There's a reason it was commonly used by students who hadn't slept and could only afford ramen while finishing their thesis back in the day.
It sucks how that's being over diagnosed and causing a shortage in people who actually need it. Psychologists in the USA have way too much power - how can you basically prescribe meth to someone without even a blood test or further testing to rule out other non-focus causes, but a nurse can't even get you some heart medication over there?
Edit: very late, but let the record show Adderall was indeed being over prescribed in the USA:
https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/06/up-to-50k-patients-face-adderall-disruption-amid-telehealth-fraud-indictment/
So Adderall is an amphetamine salt. Not a methamphetamine. Not that they don't have methamphetamine drugs that are prescribed for ADHD. But they are drastically different drugs.
I do think their prescriptions are over dosing, but to say that over prescribing is preventing those that need it is the wrong conclusion. If there is that much need, then there should be increased production. However the federal government restricts the productions to a certain level.
Like most drugs to treat mental illnesses, it's a lot of "try this and report" to determine the effectiveness and the dosage. We don't truly understand the neurotransmitters or how they affect mood and mental health. We work on correlation. It's only by how the patient self reports the effects that they can adjust the dosage and potentially change to different drugs.
Meth analogue. It's not straight up meth but works on the same receptors, much how synthetic opioids do. It'll still perk up and focus a normal burnt out person too.
Two things can be true. If it's being over prescribed, then technically production meets need, but need has also been artificially raised. That said, there at least was a shortage due to over prescription, and in some places still are.
Except a lot doesn't try basic things first when unsure to rule out other possible causes. Not even blood tests in many cases to see if it's not some other illness or deficiency. Or just overwork. I know correlation isn't causation but that Americans especially seem to be diagnosed much higher than Europeans with ADHD despite the healthcare not being socialized seems to correlate with the extreme work culture Americans have. There's basically no vacations, a consumerist culture that encourages debt, and high work schedules. When you work that much, it's not unreasonable your brain starts to complain about not having fun and refuses to easily concentrate anymore and instead prefers seeking dopamine. Combine that with dopamine hitters that require a short attention span like TikTok or much of social media in general and that's a recipe for a burnout very similar to ADHD. But giving Adderall to someone burnt out is the same as giving coffee to someone sleep deprived - it's only getting you through the symptoms but not actually fixing the problem. And the American mental health system seems to extremely easily give drugs rather than figure out if you actually need them first, or if there's another way to actually fix the problem.
Actually, that's the American health system in general. Mild hypertension? Don't bother encouraging the patient to just go for an evening walk every other day for some mild exercise first to see if that helps, just take some calcium ion channel inhibitors! A bit overweight with some slightly elevated blood glucose levels? Let's not get them to consult a nutritionist first, just go straight for the ozempic.
To me the current over diagnosis of ADHD and over prescription of medication in general is more a sign of the private healthcare system and runaway capitalism in general in the USA, rather than extremely significant prior under-diagnostics.
Then there are also people who drink or used to drink a lot or use lots of recreational drugs in higher than safe doses and call it adhd when they experience memory or attention problems… When I finally admitted I needed help, it was after years of positive lifestyle changes not having any effect. That’s very bad too because I pretty much tortured myself for too long, most of my potential went down the drain and I became a person who pretty much no longer trusts themselves and is always scared of pursuing opportunities because of inevitable spiraling into dysfunction. That scenario is something nobody should end up in and people need to feel supported to seek help to minimize such damage, but those making zero effort and completely jumping over so many first steps in helping the typical and very common symptoms is really irresponsible. Having people claim to have adhd just because they have memory problems, or attention problems from spending unrestricted and unmonitored amount on apps designed to break the brain, or a textbook burnout… It’s not just insensitive to those who are suffering from the disability, it is also detrimental to give amphetamines to a body that needs care, rest, or exercise.