I stumbled upon this newsgroup just a few minutes ago, and found some
of the posts interesting.
I'm interested in opinions on the overlap between what in the US is
called either ADD or ADHD, and what in the UK is called dyslexia, and
the extent to which the diagnosis of such conditions may be, to some
extent, socially conditioned.
I'm a PhD student. At the start of this year, finding it extremely
difficult to concentrate and organise myself, and to focus on anything,
I went to the University Counselling service, and was then directed to
the Learning Disability service. A few months, and a couple of tests
later, I was classified as dyslexic.
What I found interesting, however, is that I seem to be 'dyslexic'
without being, in the etymological sense, 'dyslexic': my spelling's
better than average, my reading speed and comprehension is faster than
most people (though probably only average for my cohort), and my
English writing ability has always been significantly above average. I
have a cognitive profile which is, in some areas, 'dyslexic' - for
instance I have very good 'holistic' and visual reasoning ability, and
perform extremely well on block design tests - but I don't have the
characteristic traits of poor writing, reading and spelling which most
people associate with the condition.
What I do have, which is an unequivocal problem, is a poor working
memory (within the bottom decile). This makes it hard to perform a
great many day-to-day tasks - such as remembering phone numbers,
deadlines, meetings etc. - and many academic tasks (I've always been
better at algebra than arithmetic, as the latter involves keeping lots
of pieces of information in one's working memory at once, and being
able to recall them quickly and accurately).
It also means I have a tendency to get distracted and confused, and to
lose my 'trail of thought' very easily. This is my main problem, which
I went to the University services to get help for.
In the US, I've been told, this profile would likely not have been
diagnosed as dyslexic at all, but as ADD. The US solution to the
problem of poor working memory - which in children tends to manifest
itself in kids frequently changing from one activity to another and not
concentrating in class - is crude but apparently effective: feed those
with poor working memory with legally prescribed amphetamines (or
amphetamine-like substances).
The approach is crude because the drugs can't be targetted directly at
the part of the brain responsible for working memory: they effect the
whole body, including the heart and, going by re****ts of occasional
hallucinations, sometimes also audio-visual processes.
The approach seems effective, however: in controlled experiments for
working memory they've been shown to offer significant improvements.
Anecdotally/statistically, the vast increases in the rates of their
prescription to US schoolchildren, despite the (often excessive)
concern parents have for their children's wellbeing, seems testament to
the fact they ARE effective in raising children's ability to
concentrate and thus perform better in school. (They're also taken
illegally by many US university students in order to improve exam
performance: suggesting they DO in fact tend to improve exam
performance.)
What I find interesting is that, in the UK, ADD doesn't 'exist' in the
same way dyslexia does. People don't test for it - they don't look for
it - and so they don't find it. Even though there's considerable
overlap between dyslexia and ADD, prior expectations of professionals
in the field of learning disability often seem to condition whether
someone's diagnosed with either dyslexia or ADD.
Considering poor working memory is something that plagues most
dyslexics, and that stimulants improve working memory significantly in
a range of impaired groups (those with schizophrenia and alzheimer's
disease have also been treated with stimulant medication: schizophrenia
seems to be the extreme end of poor working memory - it it fails enough
then one's ability to comprehend reality fails, and one gets sucked
into an incomprehensible hypnogogic stream-of-consciousness living
nightmare), then it seems strange to me that I'm not offered the
medical route for treating my poor working memory associated with my
dyslexia.
I'm offered free computer equipment and (if I were still a taught
student) the op****tunity to get extensions in exams: neither of which
I'm convinced are either effective or fair in helping me in a way which
isn't to the detriment of others. But I'm not offered something which I
know would be effective.
(Apologies to those who find this analogy in bad taste) I can't help
but feel this is like being told one's got cancer, but then being
refused chemotherapy (because it can have 'bad side effects') and then
offered a free holiday instead!
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