Hacker News Reader

Comment by herbst | Hacker News Reader

Many people here write about trying or hoping to be normal. Do you realize how man founders and extraordinary people have or had ADHD?

How about not getting normal, but finding a life/work that fits to you and your lifestyle.

View on HN

The "be successful without becoming normal" idea possessed me for many years, and for me it was a trap because a significant portion of my abnormalities were genuinely pathological, and I thought they were me instead of just bad and unhealthy habits.

I thought I had to be genuinely inspired to get work done, and chased that fleeting motivation like a mirage for years instead of just learning how to sit down and work.

I thought my sleep was just "different" and my physical and mental health (not to mention productivity) suffered horribly and pointlessly for years until I put my foot down and... just fixed it.

Since fixing my sleep, for example, my productivity went from about 2 hours a day (of solid, focused work) to over 10 hours a day. In the span of ten days. That's not a bad exchange rate for a bit of normalcy, is it?

I can't speak for others but "normal" in the context of this discussion is not a reference to character and behavioral norms, but to productivity and in particular, the ability to complete tasks at a similar rate to non-medicated, non-ADHD people.

FWIW I have no interest in being “normal” but am highly motivated to be “functional” :)

Reply on news.ycombinator.com