Skip to main content

Simone Reveals She has ADHD After WADA Hack

Recently, a hacker group with Russian ties hacked the World Anti-Doping Agency, revealed test results from four time Olympic Champion, Simone Biles and tennis player sisters, Venus and Serena Williams, posted on their website.



The group, known only as "Fancy Bear" hacked the WADA's database and posted the results on their website, revealing that Simone's sample tested positive for methyphenidate, aka "Ritalin" a medication prescribed to treat attention deficit hyper activity disorder or ADHD.  Simone took to her Twitter account to shut down the haters and explain that, yeah, she takes meds for her ADHD. So what?







Here's what you need to know about ADHD... coming from an adult, who ALSO takes medication for ADHD. It's a common neuro-behavioral "disorder" according to Web MD. (Personally, I don't think of this as being a disorder, I think of it as being neurologically different.) ADHD  people are afflicted with inattention, hyper activity, disorganization, etc. etc. etc.  It's more commonly DIAGNOSED in boys than girls, which is another reason, it's good for Simone as a female to show that this does affect females as well as males.  However, the reason boys are more frequently diagnosed as ADHD than girls is boys may often times show up with the more obvious "hyper activity" aspects of ADHD. Girls more frequently show an "in-attention" or day-dreaming which is why it's easy to be overlooked.

Stimulants are prescribed to treat ADHD because it actually "calms" down the brain of an ADHD person, basically the opposite effect of someone who would be considered "neuro - normal." However, some ADHD people choose not to take medication and instead, use various coping mechanisms to navigate in a "normal" brained world.

One trait that ADHD people possess is the tendency to loose attention and get bored easily. Simone's coach, Aimee Boorman has described in the past about how Simone could get bored easily with more mundane parts of gymnastics training like, perfecting her skills. To cope, Aimee described strategies and coping mechanism that help keep Simone's interest during training.  Simone is very lucky to have an ally like Aimee on her side that understands the inner workings of her brain. It's important to also understand that like Simone, people with ADHD tend to be incredibly intelligent, with often above average IQ levels.

For more information:
http://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd#1

CHADD (Children and Adults with ADHD)- National Resource on ADHD. Has lots of information on ADHD and coping mechanisms. Also provides links to local support groups so fellow ADHD-ers can have a space to talk, share coping mechanisms and gain greater understanding.

Dr. Daniel Amen is a psychiatrist and has written a ton of books on the subject. Find his works on amazon.com

Source:Hackers Release Drug Test Results of Simone BIles & Serena Williams


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Elise Ray Officially Named Washington Head Coach

Elise Ray, 2000 Olympic Bronze Medalist,  US National Champion, NCAA champion, has been named the head coach at the University of Washington's gymnastics program, following the retirement of longtime head coach, Joanne Bowers.

Gymnastics Biggest Bad-Asses

While listening to a podcast about badass people (nearly all of whom were men), I decided it was time to celebrate the badass-ness of women. Since this is a gymnastics blog, this article will focus on bad asses in the sport of gymnastics, particularly women in gymnastics. These women are tough for their perseverance, their bravery, and just generally being awesome.

Oklahoma @ Arkansas Live Blog

For my first NCAA Gymnastics live blog of 2019, I'm following the Oklahoma at Arkansas meet. To follow along, refresh the page every 10-15 minutes or so...