A.D.H.D.

In my counselling class this week we were talking about the DSM-IV, personality disorders, and the way that different disorders are classified. 

We got to A.D.H.D. and all the HYPE (I couldn't help myself *smirk*) currently surrounding it and my teacher brought up a really valid point.

Yes, ADHD has existed for decades now, but why the current hype? Well my teacher attributes the ride of ADHD awareness to the change of society and role of technology in our lives today. It made so much sense!

A few decades ago, technology did not play as much as a central role in our lives as it does today. Today we have phones on us every second of the day, doing every possible task we need them to do. Kids learn from tv, tablets, and video games, and hardly play outside (since it's not as safe as it used to be). We, as a people group, (mainly younger generations) have been programmed for technology dependency. I know I feel naked and helpless without my phone (It's been a wake-up call being here without any cell service) and I can't get anything done without my computer. (Homework, blog assignments, e-mails, keeping in touch with family and friends, social media) Therefore, we need technology in our hands at all times. 

I don't know about anyone else, but I watch tv, with my computer on my lap, and my phone in my hand, with an open textbook nearby. Talk about stimulation overload! I will text, facebook, research, watch tv, read out of my book, and write things down simultaneously. Kids are being treated the same way. When I worked serving tables I would watch kids color, and also play on their parents ipad. 

Our generations are bred to be multi-taskers. So is it possible then, that these kids DO NOT have ADHD but rather, are being conditioned and bred to function in a world where multi-tasking is a necessity, and are not hyper-active or have attention-deficit, but are ahead of the game learning how to manage multiple stimuli all at once? 

It's quite an intriguing argument and I believe it could have merit and value. I have been thinking about it since my class ended and it's a smart idea. Instead of slapping a negative and possibly outdated label on our children, and medicating them (sometimes unnecessarily) why not explore the idea that our society as a whole has changed, and attention to multiple stimuli is now required in order to evolve and learn at a proper curve?

I thought it was an interesting argument and wanted to see what you guys' thought about it. I'm not saying that ADHD doesn't exist, I just thought it was an interesting idea.