ADD/OCD is a deficiency in all 3 brain chemicals, Dopamine, Serotonin and Norepinephrine.

The low Serotonin causes mental rigidity and perfectionsim, while low Dopamine and Norepinephrine cause a lack of energy and prevent the ability to focus and organize. One part of the OCD/ADD brain craves perfection, while the other part has problems tying shoe laces. This imbalance produces a tremendous frustration and internal conflct between that part of the brain that craves perfection and that part that lacks the sufficient intrinsic ability to carry out our desires.

Thank the Gods for medication that have a very high response rate with this type of ADD.

dude, that sounds exactly like me. I am afraid to even go out on dates because i am afraid they wont go PERFECT. I am obsessed with being perfect, but cannot even focus on conversations. what type of medicine helps this add, because I am tinkering on the edge of suicide.

hey eyes (as in open mine),
I'm trying to learn this stuff if you have time can you point out which brain chemical is lacking in OCD vs. the ADD?
I've read there's too much dopamine with OCD which affects seratonin but another site says high seratonin = ADD. Are these both right?


***streetsk8er784,
just read a thread where e-boy writes the following:
http://www.addforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13582 (http://www.addforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13582)

My best advice to anyone in matters of the heart is to really get to know and like yourself, get your life moving in the direction you want, pursue your interests, and invest in yourself (with classes, exercise, therapy, reading, and whatever other form of self improvement you care to pursue). Life is short, and learning to be content and happy with yourself is not only a worthwhile endeavor, but it leads to a better understanding of others, and, quite frankly, people are drawn to folks that are happy. I'm not saying to turn into a narcissist, only that with the low self esteem we often have in our world, we tend to involve ourselves in self fullfilling prophecies, or get walked all over because without a sense of our own value we are helpless and completely unmotivated to defend our own interests.

There is no one I have met on this forum, that doesn't have a great deal to offer another person. It took me 34 years to finally get to a point in life where I can honestly say I am happy with who and what I am. Oddly enough that's when I met the woman of my dreams. Coincidence? Hell if I know. I just wish all of you felt and saw in yourselves the things that I and many others here see. We, all of us, have so much to offer! Life is good, and we are good people, let's treat ourselves well, and LIVE.

***I know it does no good to tell you to just relax and live and don't worry obsessively about dating--like sure it's that easy, right!
So I'm sending you hugs and trying my best to learn about OCD in able to help my now 11 yr-old son. Please share if you learn any coping strategies that help you and I'll share what I learn as well.

I'm ADHD/OCD/PTSD/Depressed and I'm an optimistic soul. Do you know what day in life looks like? I wish someone knew I can't remember 5 minutes ago let alone a whole day.

Right now I'm exhausted mentally, physically and emtionally. I get 3-4 hours of sleep because I'm such a people pleaser that I overstep my limits daily, you had two call in's? well I haven't slept in over 60 hours but hey I'll be right in to work. Forgetting that maybe my sick husband might need my attention, my kids might need supper and baths and help with their homework not to mention my house needs cleaned cause it's never actually clean enough for me. I've cleaned my walls so many times that the paint is chipping, how many people do you know clean the outside of their house? I DO.

Right now my PTSD and depression are kicking my butt. The nightmare and flashbacks leave me feeling vulnerable and overly sensitive and apologetic...your dog died? omg I'm so sorry I should have done something ( I don't know you what could I have done...beats me but there should have been something right?). So, that leads to more ADHD tendancies I can't remember what I'm doing but I can't stop long enough to think about it...just keep moving from one half finished task to another until I fall into bed exhausted with nothing accomplished. WEll, we all hate that feeling so I try and over-compensate with my OCD I've cleaned my house I don't know how many times today, even scraped some paint off the hallway getting handprints that no one else could see off. Sound like fun? OOOOoo it is and what makes it even more fun is to be laughed at now that's just makes it all the more fun and grand. I want to sleep more than anything right now but I can't my house isn't clean enough cause I'm NOT good enough. There you all have something more entertaining to watch and laugh at. This is were my optimism kicks in and I tell myself well at least they notice me.

hey eyes (as in open mine),
I'm trying to learn this stuff if you have time can you point out which brain chemical is lacking in OCD vs. the ADD?
I've read there's too much dopamine with OCD which affects seratonin but another site says high seratonin = ADD. Are these both right?
There is an ongoing debate about the cause of OCD, and there are no clear answers, only that there is a dysfunction in the serotonin/dopamine balance. SSRI's are the best treatment for OCD. Some in the "high dopamine=OCD" school think that the SSRI's increase serotonin therefore reducing dopamine in specific parts of the brain. However, Zoloft which does not reduce dopamine in the brain like other ssri's is still effective for ocd. ADD is thought to be a dysregulation of dopamine (low dopamine), in the prefrontal cortex.

well duplicate post so I will try to 'fill' this empty space with positive copying

Many times we spend hours and hours dwelling and ruminating on the negative and fearful things in our lives. Instead, our focus and attention needs to be on the positive, the good, and on thoughts that will move us in the right direction. Read one of these statements to yourself every day -- and dwell on it.

If you pay attention to the darkness, you'll never find the light.

If you study and relive your past experiences, analyzing them, and "getting in touch with your feelings" you will only reinforce those feelings. If you want to get away from a problem, you should not focus on it. Focus on the good, the positive, the beautiful, the nice.

A happy person is fully caught up in the moment --and is not thinking about the past or the future.

Too much thinking and analyzing just makes any problem worse. Today is a wonderful day – live it in the present.

Why do little children think ghosts, goblins, and monsters are real? As adults, we know they aren’t. Your thoughts aren’t "real" either in the sense that you "create" and reinforce them -- and the emotions that go along with them. Your thoughts are only what you decide to believe in and continually reinforce in your mind. (This one is deep – think about this one.)

For example, you are sitting alone in the dark in your home. You are down, depressed and thinking negative thoughts. All of a sudden the phone rings and it’s a friend you haven’t talked to in six years. You become alert, your mood picks up, and you have a nice conversation. Then, after you’ve hung up, you get blue again and fall back into a depressed mood. Why?

Suggestion: Even though we don’t feel it – we have more power over our thoughts than we think. We can decide to stay "up" after the phone call by doing everything we can to keep from slipping back into the quicksand of rumination and despair. (Cognitive-behavioral therapy gives us the tools to move away from anxiety and depression – and eventually to stay or "be" that way.)

If your thoughts begin to change, you will feel better.

If you act despite your feelings, your beliefs and emotions will follow behind.

There is so much in life I can’t control. But this is my life and I’ve decided to be happy. I can choose to be happy regardless of my other circumstances. It’s not "when I get a promotion, I’ll be happy....." or "when I can speak in front of a small group of people, I’ll be happy....." The focus should be on learning to be happy now. Tap into your inner peace and contentment in the way that works best for you.

Happiness is a result of a decision to be happy.

Your emotions and feelings are created by your thoughts.

Unhappiness cannot exist on its own. It occurs because of thoughts, which can be changed.

Your past thoughts are about events that are no longer real. That bad experience happened yesterday (in the past) and is over. It is gone and exists solely in your mind. Today is a new day, a better day, and worrying about the past just dooms us in the present. It’s how you process it now that makes a difference.

You are a thought-producing machine. When you realize this, you can begin to slow your thoughts down and allow your anxieties and fears to rest.

Your automatic negative thoughts (ANTs) are only thoughts: they are not real. Your ANTS are not real. They do not tell you the truth.

Our tendency is to think TOO MUCH and to paralyze ourselves with our ruminations. We have a choice: Realize what we're doing to ourselves, get up, find a distraction, and do something interesting (positive).

Happy people understand that to enjoy life you live it -- you don’t think about it.

Watch a roomful of preschool children. They are enjoying life because they are focused on the moment and are not thinking about it. They are immersed and absorbed in living.

Analysis creates paralysis.

Anticipatory anxiety killing you? Stop thinking about it, take that step, and just do it.

Thoughts grow with attention. If you focus on negative thoughts, they will grow and grow and become larger. If you focus on your progress and the new thoughts you are learning, they will grow stronger and take "automatic" control.

Even if you understand and know why you have a problem, this will not help you in solving it. Going over and over the reasons for your problem is like pouring salt in an open wound.

The only factor making you unhappy is your own thoughts. Relax, release them, let them go.

When you notice self-limiting and self-defeating thoughts playing over and over in your mind, say "STOP! I will not give you any more power over me! I have better things to do!!"

Thanks abre los ojos!

I'm getting so close to getting this.

I do see a lessening in my son's OCD ritual behavior when I badger him enough to take his 'fishy' pills--within two weeks actually.

With so many people studying these chemical imbalances it seems like we would have more clear cut defenses (as in take this vitamin, eat/avoid this food= no more X brain challenge).
Probably because we are not machines cut from the same mold...but, soon I hope there is more concrete results from studies so that we can all benefit.
Thanks for taking the time to reply!