No it’s not. ADHD is a developmental disorder that affects the prefrontal cortex, which controls executive function. Attention deficit and hyperactivity are poor descriptors of the disorder, and lead to a lot of misconceptions about it.
To correct your analogy, calling it ADHD is like referring to all automobiles as dirt bikes.
The conversation about ADHD itself being a bad name is valid, sure, but that’s not what I’m talking about.
It’s called ADHD - this might be a bad name, but the previous user said instead it should be called the name of one of the components, and I disagreed with that. This works even if it was called “nachos” instead of “ADHD”, the point is that reducing it to a single symptom or mechanism would also be a bad name.
Hey! I do that too! Instead of saying I have trouble committing names/dates/verbal info, I just tell folks I have a short term memory disorder. Which is true! I need to mess up someone’s name or an important piece of info like 5 times until I cement it in, with guilt and embarrassment.
Which should be the name instead of ADHD.
That’s like saying a car should be called “wheels”
No it’s not. ADHD is a developmental disorder that affects the prefrontal cortex, which controls executive function. Attention deficit and hyperactivity are poor descriptors of the disorder, and lead to a lot of misconceptions about it.
To correct your analogy, calling it ADHD is like referring to all automobiles as dirt bikes.
The conversation about ADHD itself being a bad name is valid, sure, but that’s not what I’m talking about.
It’s called ADHD - this might be a bad name, but the previous user said instead it should be called the name of one of the components, and I disagreed with that. This works even if it was called “nachos” instead of “ADHD”, the point is that reducing it to a single symptom or mechanism would also be a bad name.
To be blunt, the stigma of typicals around adult ADHD is so severe that for most people I just tell them I have an executive function disorder.
It usually confuses them into learning what the issue actually is rather than their perception of what ADHD is.
Look, I’m bad at life because my brain does things wrong, okay?
Hey! I do that too! Instead of saying I have trouble committing names/dates/verbal info, I just tell folks I have a short term memory disorder. Which is true! I need to mess up someone’s name or an important piece of info like 5 times until I cement it in, with guilt and embarrassment.