ADHD

The other day I was asked if you can join the RN/RNR if you have ADHD.

Never been asked it before and to be honest it stumped me. Anyone know the gen?

Thanks,

TH

 

Sure I`ve served with a few most didnt last long before the went to Deq`s or SNLRed.

 

During my time in Raleigh I had the odd individual who claimed to have ADHD and used it as an excuse to be disruptive. After the first day when they released it didn't wash and they were expected to do "exactly as they were bloody well told," it kind of went away.

As far as I'm aware it doesn't prevent them joining, but might affect their chances of staying.

 

Thanks for the responses chaps. I believe the lad in question is on medication. Don't know what but I suppose that this may affect things?

 

P8 Permanently Unfit Naval Service

 

Another case of beware what label you gives your kids...

 

Bet he would be great at scrubbing flats though!

 

The answer is your are unable to join the forces unless you have been medication and symptom free for 3 years or more to join up. That was the case with myself now i am back on medication and facing a medical board knowing that it will be P8.

 

When I was a kid, the cure for ADHD was a scud round the back of the head

 

Adhd? Snlr? Pdq. Lol.

 

I know a couple of people who work with kids who really do have ADHD in it's worst form, and exhausting doesn't even cover it.

However ADD and ADHD are rolled out as excuses for poor behaviour by parents who, to be honest, can't be bothered to teach their kids how to sit still and behave and as labrum says, people should be more careful about what labels they land their kids with for life.

I sailed as Watchleader with a lass of 15 who had insulin-controlled diabetes and (apparently) ADHD. Her teacher said to me that her parents pandered to her every whim because she had been so poorly as a child. She was overweight, which is clearly bad for diabetes sufferers, refused to watch her diet unless forced to by her teacher, and had never lifted a finger around the house (showing her how to clean the heads was amusing).

Despite her declaration that "she couldn't helm because of her ADHD, something might go wrong", I made her helm on a night watch for an entire hour and she was bloody good once she got the hang of it. It was the first time she'd been able to do anything of the kind without someone hovering over her and was chuffed to bits.

Not only does labelling your kids with illnesses they don't have cause trouble for them in later life, it becomes a limitation to what they can achieve. You tell them to believe they are incapable of doing something, and they will.

 

As observed already in this thread, very often ADD/ADHD is a convenient label appled when it suits, but it has a sticky adhesive when it comes to gaining employment.

Obviously, prescribed medication and/or receipt of benefits can adversely .....Oooh, Look, a blue balloon!

 

How very true and profound. Henry Ford famously said "If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right."

 

Annoyingly the same old bollocks gets spouted whenever this topic comes up.

Whilst I'm sure there are parents who claim their genuinely nasty little sh!ts are really nice kids who just suffer from an attention disorder the reality is that most kids labelled with the disorder, and their parents, wish it weren't so. ADHD isn't a disease or an excuse it's a genuine disorder diagnosed in about 3% - 6% of Western kids and about 2% of children worldwide, it isn't simply 'being naughty' or disobedient although that is often how it is viewed by some when judgementally viewed from afar. I accept that in times gone by those kids would just have been known as naughty kids, we all remember them from school, they probably wouldn't have amounted to much in life and many would have left school with nothing, but that was in the days when it was acceptable to smoke in the same room as your toddlers, drive a car when you were pissed, wear flares and eat lashings of lard and salt because they were considered good for you, the world has moved on thankfully.

ADHD is a term used to describe a set of symptoms all centred around a short attention span and inability to sit still for more than five minutes, it is normally most obviously present in childhood. I am not the sort of parent to label my kids with any name other than 'little bastards' but when his teacher insisted my son went to see the doctor and the doctor said how the hell have you coped with this all this time - he was 14, it made me do some research, speak to some medical professionals and find out just what was going on. My son never slept for more than 4 hours a night as a child, ever! We just thought he was 'naughty' but that is but one symptom of the disorder, a symptom that now he is 23 he still carries, fortunately it is probably the only symptom of any significance that he can't manage, other than the fact he still can't sit still for more than 5 minutes and is easily bored - aren't we all. The symptoms are outwardly less obvious as an adult and obviously they do tend to diminish with age and the reduction of galloping hormones and boundless energy we associate with childhood.

Without ritalin, - evil drug from hell if you believe the hype, and medical/ psychological guidance he would never have achieved his 11 GCSE's grade A* to C, not because he was thick, or naughty but simply because for the two years he took the drug he was able to learn how to manage his symptoms and control his constant urge to move on and do something else less tedious.

Now, the 'label' is a small price to pay to ensure your kids aren't simply sidelined as naughty little bastards and are able to get as good a start in life as other less challenged kids, so when the ignorant, ill informed or shit stirring start their rant you'll understand why parents like me simply raise our eye brows and sigh.

With regards to joining up, as I understand it the disorder isn't so much of an issue as long as it isn't associated with a troubled past and constant brushes with the law - think about it, couldn't the mob do with a few more people who spend less time in their pit, are often fitness obsessed and like to be doing something constructive rather than sitting on their arse playing computer games, it's the medication often associated with it that restricts entry and I believe 3 years drug free is enough for consideration to be given to join nowadays but I'm sure one of the career/ medical guys can clarify that.

 

Yep, 3 years clear of medication & obviously not in receipt Disability Living Allowance, if previously eligible.

The other issue, as correctly pointed out, is the extent to which the condition may have affected the individuals behaviour - it's not accepted as an excuse for the waiver of criminal convictions, for example.

It's a controversial & emotive topic, not helped by those that exploit the "system" to their own ends, as sometimes alleged: BBC News - Unscrupulous parents seek ADHD diagnosis for benefits

What is interesting, is that the majority of sufferers tend to recover from the condition after leaving school/reaching puberty. Those who suffer from Adult ADHD are unfortunately ineligible for military service.

 

Chieftiff, I don't think any of us would deny that ADHD is a debilitating problem and one which I would have thought gets true sufferers labelled as badly behaved, disruptive, annoying and so on. This is clearly unfair on the child who more than likely cannot understand why people get angry with them over something they have no control over. It's like calling a child with dyslexia "thick" or "stupid" when they actually are really struggling because of a condition they have by chance. It's bullying, pure and simple.

Perhaps I'm being unduly critical but having seen that lass believe she can't do this or that because of "her condition" when she was perfectly capable in truth, I tend to err on the sceptical side unless there has been a medical diagnosis, like with your son. Clearly he overcame it and good for him!

 

Sceptical is fine, tainting the way you view people by sweeping generalisation isn't, it's the basis of discrimination and bigotry.

People are different, every one of them guaranteed to have their own foibles. There will always be people who see themselves as victims, seek more attention than others or look elsewhere for blame, we all have our weaknesses but thankfully we also all have our strengths, every single one of us, a few have outwardly weaker characters than others and those people will exist whether or not we choose to label them. Strong people with a desire to succeed have a habit of overcoming what others see as challenges, as they say 'the harder I work the luckier I get'

 

Chieftiff,
I have PM'd you.
JR

 

Wearing flares was acceptable?

 

Acceptable, and even obligatory, back in the days when some here had to wear the uniform version.:-|