Richard Sherman is an expert on ADHD (not)

It’s one thing to take a professional athlete’s quotes out of context. That’s unfortunate. It’s another thing to take what a professional athlete says about, oh, science, and assume without question said athlete knows what he’s talking about.

We are alluding to the curious case of Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman – and it’s curious for many reasons.

It started last season when Sherman was suspended for allegedly taking Adderall – a drug used for ADD and ADHD patients that is banned by the NFL without a doctor’s prescription. Sherman’s suspension was overturned upon appeal. Sherman adamantly denies ever taking Adderall. And since he obviously doesn’t know why NFL players might use Adderall as a “performance enhancer,” I tend to believe him.

Sherman appeared on NFL Network’s “NFL AM” Thursday morning to explain that a Vancouver newspaper had taken his quotes out of context when he said “half the league” takes Adderall.

That’s fine. We get that he was exaggerating. Problem is, he went on to explain to “NFL AM” that the reason players take Adderall is because it helps them get ultra-focused, thus enhancing their performance. This is wrong on two levels.

For starters, people with ADD and ADHD do not take Adderall to get ultra-focused. For these patients, Adderall is not a “performance enhancer,” but rather a performance enabler. I know this because my 12-year-old son has a severe case of ADHD. He takes a different drug, but it’s in the same family as Adderall. It helps him stay focused enough to get by. It doesn’t give him an advantage over his peers. It merely gives him a chance.

But here’s the real issue: Adderall has a different effect on people who don’t have ADD or ADHD. Adderall is a stimulant. Instead of asking Richard Sherman about it, maybe ask a doctor… like the psychologist who’s been treating my son for years:

“When people without ADD or ADHD take these meds, they act as a stimulant, like speed.”

Speed. Yeah, that’s always been a popular performance-enhancing drug for professional athletes, right? That would make it easier to understand why many players might want to find a way to have Adderall prescribed.

There’s no simple medical test for ADD and ADHD, so it’s conceivable an athlete can talk his way into an Adderall prescription. The resulting perception is not that it’s a growing epidemic; the perception is that many ADD and ADHD patients don’t really need medicine but use it to get an edge. That’s a terribly unfair depiction for someone like my son, who would not be able to keep up in middle school without the drug, let alone play organized sports at any serious level.

But go ahead, sports media, let the athletes have their say and take what is said as gospel. That’s good for business.