I only skimmed this but it has several things that make me suspicious. Mainly that they did not require a diagnosis for ADHD but instead separated participants based on a questionnaire regarding symptoms. Additionally their participant pool somehow contained more than 20% of neurodevelopmental disorders and other mental health disorders which seems very high.
The ASRS-5, while it only has six questions, is actually a very respectable test for ADHD, often used even in clinical research. It's thoroughly tested against more comprehensive tests and the data checks out so far. It's even seeing clinical use as an early screening before going through the full diagnosis, which in adults is very involved, since diagnosis requires a determination that ADHD was present in childhood.
Source: my dad is a clinical psychologist specialising in diagnosis and treatment of ADHD . I kept seeing this pop up in papers so I asked him about it.
ASRS-5 almost ruined my life. I would highly recommend anyone reading this to get a thorough evaluation for ADHD diagnosis before trying medication; or just use audio :)
If someone prescribed you stimulants based solely on ASRS-5, that's malpractice(at least in most the west, I obviously can't speak for every country), and I'm sorry that happened to you. You could have a strong malpractice case if "almost ruined my life" can be well documented. In that case I suggest talking to a lawyer. If what you mean is you did the self-screening and picked ip some adderall on the black market then, then I guess you're outta luck.
And I'm not sure why this is downvoted. Your advice is good. Get properly diagnosed by a professional. Amphetamine or any other adhd medication is not something you wanna take every day unless you have adhd. And even then, only if it's severe enough to seriously worsen your quality of life.
My ADHD is extremely severe. Without meds I tend to end up smoking large amounts of hash and turning my apartment into a garbage dump as I gain weight and my muscles atrophy from inactivity. I've been back on meds for about 6 months now; my place is spotless, I smoke one spliff every 4 weeks(mostly to learn moderation), I'm losing weight, doing cardio every morning, quit smoking cigarettes, and just recently started coding a bit again. For me it's a total lifesaver.
ADHD or not, I would suggest avoiding strong stimulants (ADHD medication) and working on coping mechanisms in conjunction with natural supplements first.
Around half the original pool were excluded, mostly as they quit the questionnaire partway through. It seems believable that process would result in a larger part of the pool having ADHD. It'd also help explain the disparity in musical training.
I think that methodology isn't all that bad, because if they relied on existing diagnosis you get all the variety that is within that data. E.g. people who have been misdiagnosed, people who haven't been diagnosed because they are too functional, etc. While not ideal, it is a legitimate way of running this IMO.
