Living And Loving The Truth

Living And Loving The Truth
The First Step Toward A Spiritual Understanding of AD/HD

In my personal (an ‘ADDer’) and professional experience (counselor) I have found that living in the truth is the cornerstone of mental and spiritual health. We may not like the truth, but if we are aware of the truth we can stop the hopeless battle of wishing, wanting, desiring things to be otherwise.

Take for example, a diagnosis of AD/HD. Once a person is confronted with a diagnosis-a cascade of questions results. But the most fundamental question must be:

“Is it true?”

Is it true is a question for two levels:

On the external level:

Does AD/HD de facto exist? There are my people profiting from promoting bad information about AD/HD, even to the hyperbolic position that AD/HD is a ‘made up’ diagnosis. The first truth that must be embraced is that AD/HD, while a label, also summarizes a set of behaviors and symptoms that affect lives. Knowledge about AD/HD is far from complete; but the preponderance of scientific and historical research verifies the existence of AD/HD as a real disorder.

On the internal level:

Assuming a professional diagnosis the question then becomes, “Is it true for me?” There is an advantage to being diagnosed as an adult. An adult can reflect and see the debris, the failures and frustrations that the disorder has perpetrated in their life (that no amount of ‘free will’ could overcome). Couple that reflection with the testimony of those closest to you and the truth should be evident.

Yet, many fight it.

I understand that if ‘the pieces don’t fit’, that is, if people who know you well don’t agree or you can’t see the pattern in your life then the diagnosis should be suspect. But if the pieces come together, the diagnosis–the truth-can be liberating. To love life, to love yourself, you must see yourself as you truly are.

Mystics from many traditions might inject a spiritual element here: To start on the road to happiness and a spiritual understand of who you are you must begin to see you, the AD/HD you included, with no judgment. Not good, not bad, but “yep that’s me,” or “I do that.”  We must do this simply because it situates us in the truth-as it is. We are conditioned to feel that this about is good or that about is bad.

Stop the conditioning.

How do you stop the conditioning? Well, that’s a subject for an upcoming blog.

Begin by accepting and living and loving the truth of who you are-as you are. This is the first step toward a spiritual understanding of AD/HD.