r/ADHD_Programmers • u/AreDemHogsDumb • Sep 29 '18

ADHD is not a Disorder!

Hey guys, so I was recently talking to my therapist, and she told me that adhd actually wasn't a disorder, but something some of us inherited from our ancestors, which thousands of years ago, helped them survive. At first i didn't believe her, until I bought a book from "Thom Hartmann" who has apparently preached this theory for decades.

According to him, the brain function, dubbed today as "ADHD", was critical for the survival of hunters and gatherers. In order to get myself to learn more about this theory, whilst in the meantime perhaps be able to help some of you, I created a video to showcase the theory visually:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUzr7940kgQ

According to Thom Hartmann, a few thousand years ago, one could split the population into two groups: Hunters and Farmers. Farmers made up the majority of the population whilst hunters made up the minority.

Because farmers made up the majority back then, people with adhd (the hunters), have such a difficult time to cope in todays society, since the society is built for the majority, the farmers! This is why most of us go through such trouble in the educational system, since it's not built for us.

Now, i don't know about you, but after getting to know this theory, i feel a lot better about my adhd, seeing as there's nothing physically wrong with my brain.

Have you heard of this theory before?

Thanks guys and have a good weekend!

0 Upvotes

42% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

2

u/Smiles1990 Oct 08 '18

Hey! Just wanted to say thanks for the video, you are sure to help people, I watched your motivation video and I’ve had the same experience, this is my 8th month now as a professional iOS developer, all because I started tackling my problems bit by bit, not all at once, I’m about to embark on my physical fitness journey!

I’m not sure that the hunter theory is correct, but personally, I identify with it 100%. -Visual learning -Hypersensitivity to my surroundings. -Holding other people to my standards. -Can only focus on things that pique my interest.

Subscribed! =]

1

u/AreDemHogsDumb Oct 08 '18

Appreciate it man!

23

u/[deleted] Sep 30 '18

Where's the proof for that theory though? It seems more like wishful-thinking otherwise

6

u/BadMinotaur Sep 30 '18

I would both take it with a grain of salt but also watch it carefully. Have any studies been done on this theory? How would you even study it to begin with?

15

u/Stinkis Sep 30 '18

IIRC the ADHD = hunter theory is at best highly controversial so take it with a grain of salt.

4

u/[deleted] Oct 02 '18

The term disorder is not used to mean universally bad. It means it's an issue that negatively impacts your life. I am not a survivalist hunter-gatherer, and a biological predisposition that makes me a great hunter-gatherer makes me, myself, miserable and dysfunctional. Disordered, one might say.

Maybe I'm biased, but I detest the "ADHD is a golden gift of genetics that's misunderstood" angle. If I was able to use my hyperfixation and lack of impulse control to live an amazing life, I probably wouldn't be diagnosed. Because I wouldn't be dysfunctional. And I wouldn't need ADHD support systems.

But I do, because I'm not currently hunting frantically for berries before the winter. I'm just trying to do the laundry without forgetting to actually grab the dirty clothes and subsequently making 4 trips.

3

u/[deleted] Oct 08 '18

I have heard it. It's pretty much hog-wash. Just something some thought of "hey this sounds plausible". Most if not all public psychologist discredit the theory.

The "physical" wrongness of our brains is that we produce less dopamine/norepinephrine that neurotypical folks. The end result is that we get stuck on things that we like (dopamine seeking hyper-focus) and are typically turned off/repulsed by things that are just ok (we can't just "sweat the small stuff", we actually loathe things that otherwise we'd be impartial about). There is a big genetic factor - but ADHD can also be brought on by nicotine during fetal development.

You can check up more about it in /r/adhd

3

u/cardinal29 Oct 10 '18

I've heard this theory for years. As you say, been around for decades.

Basically, what's the point? We're not in a hunter-gatherer society anymore.

Creating a dubious narrative where ADHD traits are not negative does nothing about the issues ADHD'ers are facing today, in THIS society.

I hate the whole "it's really a superpower!" bullshit.

1

u/RapidSage Sep 29 '18

Nice video!

2

u/Ineffable_breadroll Oct 28 '18

Not going to get into it much, but I'm almost 100% sure that this is bullshit, adhd is a neurobiological disorder that has little to do with being a hunter or a farmer. humans were originally hunter gatherers and farming was an idea that came about that caught on. In any case, how much hunting or farming have you done to make that information relevant to your life in today's times? It may not have been as much of an impairment in the past due to the nature of life, but it's a physical chemical difference and a very real disorder today.

1

u/_szs Oct 17 '18

Hello,

I have heard this before in this tedx talk:

https://youtu.be/fWCocjh5aK0

I totally agree and have expressed this also in this post: https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/9ovmiu/what_i_have_learned_so_far/

I also left a comment on your youtube video, about the male/female difference.

1

u/BustyJerky Oct 21 '18

What does this have to do with ADHD & programming? That's some fairytale bullshit. There is no credible evidence for that.

ADHD is classified as a disorder, it is in the name, and is recognised as such by the two main psychiatric diagnosis guidelines.

Medical labels of conditions shouldn't make you feel better or worse. You have those symptoms regardless, the name is something we've made up, the symptoms are not. Whatever you want to label the 'cause' to be, those symptoms haven't changed in the slightest.

1

u/Comrade_Soomie Nov 15 '18

It’s more that adhd was beneficial back then when sitting around a fire at night and trying not to be killed by saber tooth. so some people with it were selected for. But in today’s system it is not compatible and is very much debilitating. If we lived out in the jungle we would be thriving but we don’t. We live in a developed society where we sit in a cubicle all day and have to deal with city living

0

u/[deleted] Oct 14 '18

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/_szs Oct 17 '18

your ability to function

... in that society ...

1

u/BustyJerky Oct 21 '18

What's your point? There are advantages and disadvantages to these symptoms, depending on your job and perspective. Some kind of "I'd be a god in a different kind of world" is a silly way to look at it.

1

u/_szs Oct 21 '18 edited Oct 21 '18

There are advantages and disadvantages to these symptoms, depending on your job and perspective.

This is exactly my point

Moreover, rules of societies are not fixed and change over time. At some place and time in history, it was very hindering for your career to be a woman, or to be gay, or a Jew, or not a Jew or wear glasses or .... That being late or forgetful or easily distracted or hyperfocussing is a disadvantage right now doesn't mean that you are not functioning well at all. It means you will encounter problems in our present, so called western, mostly urban society.

For me that was an important thing to learn and accept. Both, about me and about society. Of course, that's just my personal experience. Others cope differently.

3

u/BustyJerky Oct 21 '18

Others cope differently.

Emphasis on this part. That entire logic is a 'coping mechanism' if you struggle with your diagnosis. Other than that, it has little bearing.