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Comment by bradmccarty | Hacker News Reader

There's a lot of investigation that has been done around ADHD and the ability to "hyperfocus". Dr Russell Barkley has an interesting insight on this phenomenon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yfkg0VWx3rM

I'm not certain that I agree with him in full. I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was in my early 20s. The ability to deeply focus on a project was helpful to me as well. I certainly don't think that we can call it a "cure" for ADD, but it can absolutely be a positive byproduct.

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Hyperfocus is just a form of self medication. People with ADHD find things they are stimulated by, grow a dependence on it and through practice naturally become great at those things. This is a misconception to consider "many hours of practice" as "adhd gifts".

I dont think it is a gift at all, rather the only option we end up having to escape.

(Mild ADHD here) Hyperfocus sounds great, yet it comes at a steep price: extreme exhaustion. Sometimes I just can't work for days (weeks happen) straight. Then at times hyperfocus kicks in and I complete three days work in one swoop, but after that I feel energetically empty. You're right on the dependence because HF gives a high, and I admit although the attention deficit part is a terrible pain, the high is so great that a part of me doesn't want to medicate, because it would go away.

Hyper-focus is not great, nor is it some form of "super power" that adhd people have. Its any time that somebody with adhd is able to focus on something. People without attention disorders can focus willingly, people with adhd cant.

The difference is that the adhd brain is deprived of euphoric dopamine until you have that "hyper focus" activity that the adhd mind begins to depend on.

People with adhd are highly prone to becoming mentally dependent on activities like video games because of this euphoria. However, I find that being medicated appropriately and focusing on what I want to focus on is more rewarding than the activities I depended on pre-diagnosis and treatment.

I see your point, Brad. Cure might have been a little strong of a word to use but I agree, definitely a positive byproduct. Watching the video now.

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