• You are currently viewing our forum as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community, you will have access to additional post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), view blogs, respond to polls, upload content, and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free, so please join our community today! Just click here to register. You should turn your Ad Blocker off for this site or certain features may not work properly. If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us by clicking here.

[NF] NF and ADD

GZA

Resident Snot-Nose
Joined
Aug 13, 2007
Messages
1,771
MBTI Type
infp
I sincerly hope this has not been posted before, if it has, I apologize.

I've heard that NF's often get diagnosed with ADD. Apparently this is because most systems (such as work environments and school) are set up more for ESTX types or something of the like and the NF behavior is just too foreign to this system, so people have created something to try to "fix" these people. Essentially, many beleive ADD is not a legitimate disorder at all.

A lot of people tell me I have much less ADD than most people, yet when I look at a list of ADD symptoms, especially the ones related to school settings and work, I fit almost all of them, but I know I couldn't possibly actually have any disorder as, when I work on my own time and my own terms, I get a lot of very good work down on things I care about.

What are you're thoughts on NF's and ADD?
 

Sahara

New member
Joined
Jul 14, 2007
Messages
927
MBTI Type
INFP
Whenever I read the ADD description I keep wondering if I had it but undiagnosed when I was at school, as it fits me so well.

The adult description of ADD also suits me completely, so I don't know, maybe you have a point, I will wait for the bigger brains around here to lay out their theories though. :D
 

cafe

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 19, 2007
Messages
9,827
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
9w1
It isn't unusual for people with ADD to hyper-focus on things that are very interesting to them, is it?

I was diagnosed with it a few years ago and would take medication for it if . . . Hey! I've been gaining weight. Maybe they will let me take medication for it now.

Anyway. A lot of times when people think ADD they think hyperactive and most INFs are not hyperactive. I don't know if either type of ADD is a true disorder, but both can make it very hard to function in today's society.

It's almost impossible to opt out of society completely, and being chronically unable to function in one's environment is not a fun and might as well be a disorder even if it's just a normal variation.
 

Totenkindly

@.~*virinaĉo*~.@
Joined
Apr 19, 2007
Messages
50,187
MBTI Type
BELF
Enneagram
594
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I don't know about NFs... In fact I've never heard of someone correlating NF temperament with ADD.

Usually, it does seem that many of the attributes for ADD fit in with an xSFP mindset, however. This was one of the concerns with medication being prescribed so carelessly in the early 90's and onwards -- perhaps there was nothing "wrong" with these children, they simply were not being given an educational environment suitable for their temperament.
 

celesul

New member
Joined
Jun 14, 2007
Messages
190
MBTI Type
ENTP
I think ADD may have more to do with P than NF. I've also been diagnosed, but taking meds has helped a lot. I want to be able to get off of meds when I get older though... Studies have actually shown that activity in the brain is different in people with ADD. Although it's a normal variation, the brain chemistry is a bit different, and that makes functioning quite hard. Some people are more ADD, some less so. I'm moderately, but I know someone who is severely ADD. His is not a common 'he's always distracted blahblah blah'. He is on an absurd amount of meds, but he is still not very functional socially. He does fine in school, but his impulsiveness especially drive people away. Off of meds, I do not think that he would be able to finish school, get a job, and stay out of prison.
 

Kaveri

New member
Joined
Aug 18, 2007
Messages
183
MBTI Type
intp
I have suspected that I might have ADD without H. Dunno if it has anything to do with NF.
 

The_Liquid_Laser

Glowy Goopy Goodness
Joined
Jul 11, 2007
Messages
3,376
MBTI Type
ENTP
Rather than NF, I think being an NP can make you have traits similar to ADD. I think this is especially bad for ENP's, because Ne is the trait makes one's mind flutter all over the place. I took an online test that said if you score above a 10 you might have ADD. I scored a 37, lol. I don't think I have ADD though, because I have no trouble focusing when motivated. Rather I believe that I have a heavy dose of Ne.
 

prplchknz

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
34,397
MBTI Type
yupp
I think ADD exists. I also think not as much as people believe. I've met someone who had ADHD and you could tell just by watching her. She's my age and still bounces off the walls over nothing. Then I've met people who were just randomly diagnosed with ADD (I'm sure it wasn't random actually). And they were more focused then myself, hmmm I don't have ADD. Because when I need/want to I can focus. I just prefer not too.

So yeah, It's a real disease, I just doubt as many kids diagnose with it actaully have ADD. I'm actually wary of all learning/mental disorders, and if people diagnosed with them actually having it. Or is it so they can have answer or feel special about something?

I think what I'm trying to say is. Not everyone can be a drugged up depressed shut in who can't focus. If so I refuse to except it.
if you have ADD you are not nessercily a drugged up depressed shut in--Just thought I'd clarify.
 

maidenhair

New member
Joined
Jul 10, 2007
Messages
11
MBTI Type
INFP
It seems everything one does or feels is correlated to a syndrome/disorder these days. I don't know if this is because doctors and researchers are better equipped to group and diagnose symptoms, or if disorders are created so people can give their problems or quirks a label. Meanwhile, medical personnel and pharmaceutical companies cash in....

My guess is that ADD is more likely the product of environment than personality type. If one's environment is extremely rigid, ADD could be a backlash against it. If one's environment is very lax and unfocused, ADD could mimic it. How people respond to their environment is influenced by personality, but I wouldn't say that there's a direct correlation between type and ADD or similar disorders. ADD could also be the product of different neurological programming or chemical imbalances. I can only speculate because it seems researchers can't agree on the cause. My grade one teacher believed all children had ADD and thought every student should take Ritalin.

Like others have experienced, my mind flits from one topic to another randomly, yet I have no difficulty focusing when I need and/or want to.
 

ptgatsby

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 24, 2007
Messages
4,476
MBTI Type
ISTP
It seems everything one does or feels is correlated to a syndrome/disorder these days.

A lot of that has to do with people misunderstanding the results of the studies. If you take 100 people with (x) and find a correlation with (y) (say, personality), it doesn't mean that the gap between (y) and (x) is narrow. It simply means that (x) probably relates to some sub-factor or common causal factor in (y).

So, for example, while OCD might correlate to J quite strongly, it doesn't mean that Js will correlate strongly to OCD.

As such, it's easy to find a relationship between factors for any problem - if you take everyone who has a problem and look for factors... you'll find them. That's the reason the studies are done. They investigate to build up a sort of picture of what factors are also present with the disability... It is not meant to say that those with the factors will have the disability.

(Having said that, it is not always the case the studies are done like this. But you see it with MBTI and the like... A classic example is that ISFJs make up over 2/3 of the nurse positions. It is easy to read more into that statement than is really there... Nursing is dominantly correlated to ISFJs, but the ISFJ do not need to dominantly correlate to nursing.)

--

As for the OP, the factors i'd think the most correlated traits for AD(H)D are ExFP, with an emphasis on the P. Just remember that it is not the same thing to say NF -> ADD as it is to say ADD->NF. (And of course, a large part of ADD is from neurotic behaviour.)
 

prplchknz

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
34,397
MBTI Type
yupp
I did terribly academically. Doctors and teacher's all tried to label me by second grade, if they had asked me what I thought about school. I would have said I hated it. I don't think my bad grades was my inabilty to focus or unable to grasp the concepts. I think I didn't care enough to do the work. I also had bad test anxiety. I would never study because I'd inevitably forget the answers. My desk was messy, as was my back pack. My parents were even told in middle school to get me a laptop for all my notes and homework. I refused, I didn't like being the odd one out. My point is not all children who do bad at school have some disabilty. maybe they can't see the point of half the crap.
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
I'll guess that ADHD correlates with ESxP while non-hyperactive ADD correlates with INxP.
 

ygolo

My termites win
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
5,988
So, for example, while OCD might correlate to J quite strongly, it doesn't mean that Js will correlate strongly to OCD.

Sorry to pick a nit here pt, but what defenition of correlation are you using?

I tried to find a website regarding social research, incase it was different from what I was familiar with.

Correlation

Unless you're working in a system where commutativity doesn't hold, it seems to me, that you can swap x and y in the formula for r, and get the same answer as before.
 

ptgatsby

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 24, 2007
Messages
4,476
MBTI Type
ISTP
Sorry to pick a nit here pt, but what defenition of correlation are you using?

I tried to find a website regarding social research, incase it was different from what I was familiar with.

Correlation

Unless you're working in a system where commutativity doesn't hold, it seems to me, that you can swap x and y in the formula for r, and get the same answer as before.

Correlations remain intact within the data set, yes. So, you are correct in the sense that if you take 100 data points and it turns out that it is perfectly correlated, then it should be perfectly correlated in reverse. However, this only remains true while the relationships exist. Think of it like having multiple datasets - the exact correlation only exists within the data. If there is bias in one of the sets, the corelations will be skewed from the others.

An obvious example would be to get a whole bunch of teens together, seperate the ones that have had sex, then ask if they think sex at their age is ok... It's safe to say that "teens that have sex think having sex is ok!"... not so safe to say "Teens think that having sex is ok!" just because they came from the "Teen group". However, the correlation does remain, it's just diffused.

If you take 1000 data points, eliminate 900 of them because they don't fall in what you are measuring (ie: 10% of Js are OCDs, but take only the OCDs for analysis), then see is those 100 are highly correlated to OCD, it is easy to conclude that Js are likely OCDs. In truth, OCD->J might be 100% predictive while J->OCD might only be 10% predictive.

The correlation remains, yes, but the sample is biased (the key word being "strongly" in my OP that you quoted - the correlation is diffused when you consider the master group.)
 

cafe

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 19, 2007
Messages
9,827
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
9w1
OCD and ADD are not mutually exclusive and I will not say how I happen to know that. :whistling:
 

Siúil a Rúin

when the colors fade
Joined
Apr 23, 2007
Messages
14,037
MBTI Type
ISFP
Enneagram
496
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
What are you're thoughts on NF's and ADD?
Specifically ADD (not ADHD) sounds a bit similar to who i was when younger: the daydreaming, compliance, overpoliteness, etc.

Even now i'll run an errand to Target to see if they have a bigger size of a really cute shirt i picked up at another location, will start analyzing something in my mind while driving, manage to find a decent parking space, get out, and realize I'm at Macy's. :huh:

Sometimes my absent-mindedness gets really frustrating.
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
OCD and ADD are not mutually exclusive and I will not say how I happen to know that. :whistling:



I know, I have both. :frown: Fortunately my OCD isn't of the extreme "washing my hands every 5 minute" type.
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
Specifically ADD (not ADHD) sounds a bit similar to who i was when younger: the daydreaming, compliance, overpoliteness, etc.

Even now i'll run an errand to Target to see if they have a bigger size of a really cute shirt i picked up at another location, will start analyzing something in my mind while driving, manage to find a decent parking space, get out, and realize I'm at Macy's. :huh:

Sometimes my absent-mindedness gets really frustrating.

:yim_rolling_on_the_
 

Vortex

New member
Joined
Aug 29, 2007
Messages
277
MBTI Type
WOLF
I don't think I have ADD, but looking over the symptoms list I recognize almost all the points. I can also see how it'd correspond to others in my social circle I believe to be NF.

Without any data or anything to back me up I believe that a lot of people are misdiagnosed. It seems to me that one could easily turn distinctive character traits into an illness, when one consults the list of symptoms.
 

celesul

New member
Joined
Jun 14, 2007
Messages
190
MBTI Type
ENTP
ADD isn't just having certain traits, it's the degree that one has them. If you have all of the traits but can function perfectly well in society, then you don't have ADD. It's ADD if you show enough symptom at home, with friends, and at school or work. If you only show symptoms in one situation, then it's probably just your personality. Or if you only show symptoms at school or work, then you're probably bored.

About all disorders rely on situation and degree. If your symptoms don't interfere with functioning, you don't have whatever the disorder is that requires it to interfere with functioning. (ex. Most people can be pretty obsessive, like maybe after they scratch one arm they feel they have to scratch the other in the exact same spot. A bit odd, but not OCD. It in no way interferes with funtioning.)
 
Top