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Nie Huaisang Has ADHD And I Can Prove It: a thread
i wouldn't say nhs is necessarily /coded/ adhd, not the way wwx is (holy fuck wwx is SO heavily adhd-coded), BUT i do think there's evidence in canon that makes it a valid interpretation of him.
i wouldn't say nhs is necessarily /coded/ adhd, not the way wwx is (holy fuck wwx is SO heavily adhd-coded), BUT i do think there's evidence in canon that makes it a valid interpretation of him.
i'm basing my case largely off of two major aspects of his character that to me are highly reminiscent of my own experiences with adhd: his reputation for laziness, and his typical modus operandi.
nhs is infamous for being lazy and incompetent. he seems to have little interest in traditional cultivation; he has poor sabre skills, consistently skips out on training, and formed his golden core late due, apparently, to lack of effort.
i'm not sure if it's actually canon that he had failed lqr's lessons previously, but he certainly isn't doing too well academically the year we see him.
however! we ALSO know that he has several hobbies that he seems to be very good at--
however! we ALSO know that he has several hobbies that he seems to be very good at--
he's an artist, which takes time and concentration; in fj we learn that he is "the best astronomer in the nie sect", despite his poor performance in school; he has the patience and focus to stalk and catch birds.
in other words, nhs has no problem applying himself to things he's actually interested in, and doesn't do things he's not interested in even when they're important.
quick aside: a very very basic explanation of adhd is that it's a combination of a particular brain wiring
quick aside: a very very basic explanation of adhd is that it's a combination of a particular brain wiring
with a chronic dopamine deficiency. the little dopamine machine in your brain is stimulated by things that are Cool, including things that are New. i don't produce enough dopamine, so my brain is constantly looking for Cool or New things to make up the deficiency.
you may know that low dopamine can cause executive dysfunction--adhders have a lot of trouble starting, continuing, and/or finishing things that aren't Cool or New, because boring things don't provide dopamine and we constantly need SOME outside source to stimulate production.
that's why we get so easily distracted, and why it's really hard to force ourselves to do things that are not Cool or New--even if it's something important, and /even if it's something we genuinely want to do/. i've sat on my bed for HOURS just trying to get up and shower.
unfortunately, this looks a lot like laziness from the outside. i think everyone i know with adhd has, at some point, been in trouble for 'laziness' or 'lack of effort' because "you don't have a problem spending five hours drawing,
you could focus on your homework if you really wanted to".
so when THAT's exactly what nhs is getting yelled at for i get SUSPICIOUS.
now, it COULD be genuine laziness, a deliberate decision made because he actually doesn't care. but it could also be executive dysfunction!
so when THAT's exactly what nhs is getting yelled at for i get SUSPICIOUS.
now, it COULD be genuine laziness, a deliberate decision made because he actually doesn't care. but it could also be executive dysfunction!
and honestly he seems so scared of disappointing his brother* that i think he wouldn't make that decision?
*i will discuss this later bc it's also suggestive
keep in mind also the contrast between his poor performance at gusu and his interest in and skill at astronomy.
*i will discuss this later bc it's also suggestive
keep in mind also the contrast between his poor performance at gusu and his interest in and skill at astronomy.
#1 that SCREAMS hyperfixation to me
#2 the kid who was 'gifted' in high school and then moves away for college and crashes and burns because all of their subconscious support systems are suddenly gone is a REALLY common narrative for adhders and i can't help but see the parallels
#2 the kid who was 'gifted' in high school and then moves away for college and crashes and burns because all of their subconscious support systems are suddenly gone is a REALLY common narrative for adhders and i can't help but see the parallels
data point B: the way nhs manipulates situations.
there's been some good meta (like here: https://cangse-sanren.tumblr.com/post/616397807850520576) that discusses how nhs's main tool for dealing with things is to rely on his ability to think, and then react, faster than everyone else.
there's been some good meta (like here: https://cangse-sanren.tumblr.com/post/616397807850520576) that discusses how nhs's main tool for dealing with things is to rely on his ability to think, and then react, faster than everyone else.
one (of many) reasons adhders come across as impulsive and hyperactive is because our brains work very fast but also not super linearly? NT brains go from A to B to C. adhd brains go fromAtoFtoEtoZtoB, with the result that a) we are capable of making connections
and rationalizing our decisions very quickly, but then b) if you ask us to explain our thought process? can't do it. if we manage to trace our train of thought back, it will sound very convoluted even though it made perfect sense to us.
as a result, our solutions tend to seem kind of off-the-wall, and it's difficult to explain to others why we made them.
(you may recall that the tweet that prompted this entire thread was this one: https://twitter.com/tessen_nhs/status/1304167070188236801
(you may recall that the tweet that prompted this entire thread was this one: https://twitter.com/tessen_nhs/status/1304167070188236801
which like... i was being funny but when you frame it that way, "i'll get someone to raise my friend from the dead to solve my brother's murder" is a REALLY WEIRD DECISION?
my main point here is actually the one about speed at making connections that take NTs longer,
my main point here is actually the one about speed at making connections that take NTs longer,
but also i'm just saying, nhs's plans are all kind of like that, i.e. needlessly convoluted. like what the fuck was up with yi city. what WAS that.)
i also want to take a quick moment to bring up nhs's da-ge issues again bc i think they tie into this too--
i also want to take a quick moment to bring up nhs's da-ge issues again bc i think they tie into this too--
one of the BIG things about adhd that's not always recognized as a symptom but seems to be a pretty universal experience is emotional hyperarousal, which is a fancy way of saying that we feel things REALLY STRONGLY, and it often expresses itself as acute rejection sensitivity;
that, combined with the awareness of how frustrating our inability to Just Get Things Done is to the people around us and a nice cocktail of self-esteem issues from a lifetime of being told we're lazy, is a great recipe for an absolute HORROR of even the thought of disappointing
our loved ones, especially if we also respect them a lot, and while your mileage may vary on this I definitely read some of that kind of anxiety into nhs's reactions to having nmj's wrath invoked at him. i don't think he's afraid of his brother; he's afraid of disappointing him
and intimately aware that he probably WILL.
of course, it's pretty hard to identify whether emotional hyperarousal is a thing that's going on for nhs because we just... aren't really in his head, and frankly most of the times i can think of where he reacted really strongly
of course, it's pretty hard to identify whether emotional hyperarousal is a thing that's going on for nhs because we just... aren't really in his head, and frankly most of the times i can think of where he reacted really strongly
to something he was pretty justified!
i do want to quickly point out the bridge scene in fatal journey, though--we all know the pacing there is kinda weird, and the emotional turnover is almost hilariously fast, aka "he sure got over that quick".
i do want to quickly point out the bridge scene in fatal journey, though--we all know the pacing there is kinda weird, and the emotional turnover is almost hilariously fast, aka "he sure got over that quick".
the thing is... for me at least, and anecdotally for a lot of other adhders i've talked to, we DO get over things quick. i tend to feel things very strongly, but not for very long. sometimes i think of it as that my emotions are so strong i only have room for one at a time!
obviously the bridge scene is a pretty extreme situation so i won't say that the emotional hyperarousal is definitely a factor, but it did ring a couple bells for me.
other minor things that ring bells for me but aren't conclusive:
other minor things that ring bells for me but aren't conclusive:
-the way he latched onto jgy, who made a point of indulging his interests? it's making me Feel Things.
-there's a couple of scenes that were added for cql that remind me of my own massive issues with time blindness, aka "there are only two times, Now and Not Now,
-there's a couple of scenes that were added for cql that remind me of my own massive issues with time blindness, aka "there are only two times, Now and Not Now,
and Not Now is probably fake", aka "what the fuck how is it tuesday night when it was saturday morning literally 3 minutes ago?????".
aka "nah da-ge won't notice if i'm a week late because time is fake anyway! :D"
aka "nah da-ge won't notice if i'm a week late because time is fake anyway! :D"
this thread is.... so fucking long oh my god. and starting to lose coherency so i will wrap it up! i'm happy to chat more about it if you want!
tldr nie huaisang has adhd, because i have adhd and i said so, but also because some of his major character traits are prototypical experiences for people with adhd. and i think that's really neat.
OH HEY ADDITIONAL DATA POINT speaking from actual experience, paper fans? fantastic fidget items!
