Hello! It's me, Logan, here to discuss my Stan Has ADHD theory (which I think is very solid), and why I think it's important to talk about neurodiversity and how it impacts characters like Stan, and people who are like Stan in real life. People think that ADHD is just for bratty kids, but older people can really struggle with ADHD symptoms too, and I think that's something we need to be aware of.
For starters, I am not a mental health professional. I do, however, have both ADHD and autism (and I believe that Ford is autistic, which is for a whole separate post). I've done a lot of research on my own, and I feel like I have a good understanding of how untreated ADHD can affect someone throughout their life.
The primary symptoms of ADHD are difficulty focusing, hyperactivity, and impulsive behavior. As we saw in A Tale of Two Stans, these are traits that have been with Stan since the beginning. But, especially if someone isn't diagnosed with ADHD (which Stan most likely wasn't), they will also develop rejection-sensitive dysphoria and low self-esteem.
These are traits that we can see very clearly in the Stan we know and love. He's desperate to be loved, yet terrified to get close to people because he's afraid of getting hurt. He is also incredibly aware of his own shortcomings, due to a lifetime of being told that he isn't good enough but being powerless to stop it.
Also, one of Stan's main character flaws is that he has uncontrollable emotional outbursts. Surprise surprise, this is also a big symptom of ADHD that can cause a lot of problems for people in real life.
I'm surprised that I don't see a lot of discussion about this theory, because to me it seems to answer a lot of questions about our favorite Crime Grunkle. However, I think the reason for this is that a lot of people don't know that adults can have ADHD, or what problems can stem from undiagnosed ADHD.
I'm not saying that Stan is just a perfect innocent angel who was just dealt the wrong hand in life, either. I think that one of the show's core messages is that you can be a flawed person, and make mistakes, and act like a jerk sometimes, and still be worthy of love and forgiveness. And maybe what we can learn from this is that inside every grumpy old man is someone who just wants to be loved.
Edits are by me, with credit to the original poster included in each image.
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Comments (13)
This is a really good theory and you made some very good points. I’m not sure how much I believe it yet, because while Stan does show symptoms of ADHD that doesn’t necessarily mean he has it. Lots of people can have symptoms for all sorts of disorders but it doesn’t actually have it.
I do see your point though! And you seem to know more about ADHD than I do so...
All I’m trying to say is that it’s difficult to really say for certain.
I do agree 100% with your point of ADHD not just being in children. It’s not something that someone just grows out of! On another note, I’ve heard of a lot of children being misdiagnosed for this disorder as well! Which I think is also pretty bad. There’s a difference between being an energetic child with a low attention span and someone with ADHD...
Reply to: Metaphoricaltigers
I see. Yeah alright ^^
He certainly could have ADHD. Though with any kind of disorder definitely doesn’t have to have every single symptom after all.
Oh, really? I didn’t know that, though that also probably has to do with the fact that I’m not so good with history...
Reply to: SpicySnowflake
I'm not super great with history either, but there are certain topics that really fascinate me. :)
Reply to: Metaphoricaltigers
Haha, okay ^^
You make some good points here that now have me leaning towards this. Luckily for me, it makes no difference - I adore him no matter what :grin:
He's perfect just the way he is! :)
This is really cool. A lot of my friends and family think I have adhd, but I never actually cared. Maybe I should. (Also, it would be a good excuse. If there’s something I don’t wanna hear, I could just say I couldn’t pay attention)
I didn't really care either when I was first diagnosed, but a few years later I really looked into it and realized that it actually explained a lot of things that I thought were just..... me being bad at being a person. So maybe that's why I love ADHD Stan so much.
I mean, it is a possibility, a lot of people have adhd.. but maybe it could just be the character too. (I actually used to have terribly bad adhd when I was younger and could not focus at all, I still do but not bad)
I wouldn't say that it was necessarily Alex Hirsch's intention to write Stan as having ADHD. But there are a lot of older adults who grew up thinking they were stupid, when in reality they actually had ADHD that was never diagnosed. It's possible that people and stories like that were inspiration for Alex's characterization of Stan.
I mean, having ADHD is just part of my character/personality, too. It’s just a name given to a cluster of traits/symptoms— that’s what a diagnosis is.
Interesting. :lemon: :lemon: