Man with ADHD disorder finds career path through art

mountainpear

Today 02:53 pm JST

A photo of his products or a link to a website where we can see what he makes would have been nice!

There is on the original article from 2 days ago on other news sites.

But I imagine on an English site posting photos of a product obviously copied from the Coach brand in design look and colour would not get favorable comments.

Sorry but I did find his products and they are Coach in everyway but the name in English

A photo of his products or a link to a website where we can see what he makes would have been nice!

It is a nice feel good article.

Now my downer BUT.

But it is sad to see so little advances since my day and it isn't just in Japan.

Now I am in my 60s I was diagnosed ADHD way back in elementary school ( just called hyper active back then).

But by high school no one knew what to do with people like me, yes they sent us to special places like this guy.

But like this guy they look and still look for alternative things we can do.

In upper education they make very little changes, do the minimal effort to accommodate, make getting these "accommodations" more difficult than jumping from a 40 story building in a glider passing through 6 hoops on fire and landing on a 10 yen coin.

So upper education is still a rarity.

Strange that decades apart this guy over 30 years younger than I am is in a "creative" business he had to build himself. Sounds familiar because I have been there/am there and so are several others I know with ADHD.

While my niece in Canada is attending university she jumped through all the necessary hoops, to get the needed accommodations for her ADHD she is also required to remain on meds as part of the deal for those accommodations.

Meds that are to help her "focus" but also cause weight loss discomfort and general malaise.

But if she wants to be an engineer and get a university degree this is what is often required.

Note that this route was discouraged by all the so-called experts saying she would be better off in something "creative" over 40 years since I was in school and that is still the default position of these so-called experts.

letsberealistic

ADHD is no longer considered a 'disorder' or a 'dysfunction'. It is a brain 'type' 

This is so true. It reminds of when homosexuality was considered a disorder or dysfunction and was a diagnosis.

ADHD is the same, some people will struggle with their life, and require help but others grow, and thrive, and may never be diagnosed.

I have a very mild form of this, so I was put in a special class once a week at school for a year. My classmates were all cool. We were lucky, the teacher was like a caring mother.

Shoichi Nakajima, 28, who lives with the developmental disorder ADHD, always knew he was different.

Definitions of neurodiversity and the autism spectrum tend to be in flux.

Culture may have a large part to play, especially in Japan.

But when the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, or Johnny Depp confess they are ADHD, it is hard to describe it as a "disorder".

I’ve written to the editor to ask them to correct the title to “man with ADHD” as the acronym stands for ‘attention deficit hyperactive disorder.’ So they’ve effectively said disorder disorder. Adding the second mention of ‘disorder’ draws attention to ADHD in a pathologizing way. Furthermore the article should specifically state that it is a neurodevelopmental disorder. The only good I can see coming from this article is that it does spread awareness that adult ADHD is real and not “just a phase.” Maybe one day Japan will get a full range of stimulant meds instead of just one option.

Very inspiring story, not only because Nakajima perseverance and strength that allowed him to become a productive member of society even with his condition, but because of the support he got from the center that let him find a way to do it instead of forcing him to adapt to the standards of society or just be abandoned.

Unfortunately not all people with ADHD can say the same, nor find in art a way to make a living, so it is even more important to have some kind of support system for them. As the article closes, getting something positive out of the disorder is a worthy goal to aim for.