What is ADD/ADHD and What are the solutions? Part 1

What is ADD/ADHD and What are the solutions? Part 1

ADD stands for attention deficit disorder, ADHD stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. It refers to the difficulties of paying attention. For its solutions, we need to find answers to a few questions.

Q1. What is attention? - understand its definition.

Q2. Why do we need it? - purpose and usage, why important?

Q3. How to gain it? - methods and processing dynamics

Q4. How to measure? - able to control the processing

What is attention?

Let’s start with what are the synonyms of attention. The answer will be focus and concentrate. When we clearly understand these three words and how they relate we can have a clear understanding of the definition. 

Attention means being present, participating, and engaging in an activity. The opposite word of attention is to be absent, or nonexistent. 

Focus means the center of activity or interest. 

The word concentrate comprises three parts; “con” + “center” + a suffix “-ate.” Con means together, center means the middle of activity or interest, the suffix -ate means causing. Therefore it means bringing related items together to make a connection with each other. This connection essentially becomes learning.

Understanding a clear definition of attention requires deep philosophical reflection. 

Humans are born solitary beings. 

The first proposition is “Humans are born for solitary beings.” No one can be eaten for me, sick for me, or die for me. All things exist, but it doesn't matter until I connect them with me through the faculty of attention. Everyone comes into the world yet, completely separated from the world. That is the status of solitary. The only way to get connected will be to be present at, participating, and engaging in an activity that is faculty of attention. 

Concentrate means the ability to find and assign meaning when connecting objects to objects in numerous worldly objects. Attention and concentration are the cornerstones of learning. In other words, human beings can escape from solitude by connecting with other objects and beings through the faculty of attention.

Humans acquired the ability to survive through learning, not through genes.

The second proposition is “Humans acquired the ability to survive through learning.” Every life in this world gets the ability to survive through their genes, but human beings are born with potential only, and the ability to survive is acquired through learning. Of course, one could argue that animals also need to learn hunting skills. However, the depth, duration, and meaning that beasts must learn to survive is incomparable to humans. The first reason is the time it takes to fully grow physically. In the case of a small animal like a rabbit it takes 4 weeks, and in the case of a large animal like a tiger takes a year. But, in the case of humans, it takes nearly two decades. Learning for humans is a totally different dimension.

Learning means the transformation of being.

The third proposition is “Learning means the transformation of being.” The first purpose of learning is physical survival. But, the next level of the purpose of learning is for the soul level. Learning changes a person permanently. No earthly power can take away what they learned from anyone. Alfred Korzybski defines three classes of life in this world as; 1. chemical-binding, 2. Space-binding, 3. time-binding. Only the human species can manage time in this world. Therefore, in the past tense of the time axis “I was”, in the present tense of the time axis, “I am”, and in the future tense of the time axis, “I become.” This process can be done through learning and learning can not occur without attention. The world will be there as it is without meaning. But, a meaningful world to humans is under what relationships have been made from the world. Therefore, we can define what is learning as “making connections to find meaning” in this world. 

Conclusion

With the faculty of attention, humans can learn, perform, and make relationships with things, events, beings, and be able to live life. This faculty is involved in every part of human activities. The faculty of attention is like a spine in a human skeleton. Attention is the prime faculty of all. 

Please look for the next post for “Why is attention important? - Purpose and/or usage.”

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