Getting diagnosed for ADHD.

Post Reply New Topic

I'm seriously considering that I have ADHD, specifically of the inattentive variety. And it kind of goes against my very nature, I'm thinking if treatment may actually help for me.

So as an adult what options are there to go check this out? How much does it cost? Should I be fearful of the sort of drugs that would be offered to me?

Since I'm most likely living in a different country, I can only say as much about the medication. First of, there are different kids of medications where I live and I believe it must be like that all over the world. Not everybody with ADHD will reacts the same to the different kinds of meds. It can also take time to put you on the right dose, usually the responsible psychiatrist makes a proposal and then you try it out and see how well you get along with that. Depending on how well you manage and how you feel about it, the dose is then modified.

However, it's useless if you're only put on medication. The idea of giving someone with ADHD meds is that he gets the chance to function well enough that he can cope with his daily life and that, as a second thing, he is able to react to a therapy and learn some more ways of coping, mostly learning to keep things structured. (There are some kids with ADHD that aren't even able to listen five minutes straight to anyone, no matter how much they want to and then meds can work wonders in giving them that chance).

Some people are well off without meds though, some react horrible to it! Of course this can also be the case. It's in individual matter and I advice you to inform yourself well on the internet, read though different kids of sources.

The very best idea would be to ask people with ADD/ADHD yourself and listen to their points of views (in forums for example)!

My former wife (a pediatrician) first 'diagnosed' me when she would say things like, "If anyone has ADD, it would be you!", to me.

I saw a t.v. show with three adult males who were diagnosed and at least one went on meds and his life changed, one found just having the diagnosis helped him change his life, can't remember the third.

After watching that program I decided to check into it. This was in the early 90's.

I was first diagnosed by the military, which is sorta funny since when I was a soldier in the Army no one diagnosed me then (late 70's), but being a spouse of a service member, I was finally diagnosed.
They did tests like the MMPI, WAIS __, and others.

I tried some med that I forget the name of... quit taking it and the whole issue was dropped by me, my wife, and the doc.
I was still feeling kinda weird about the diagnosis and the idea of taking drugs.
The doc wasn't big on follow-up, I guess, and my wife just stayed irritated at my behavior.

Ten years later I went to a Ph.D. locally who specialized in learning disorders, ADD/HD, etc.
I was at my wits end (my wife also), and I really wanted help this time.
I retook the MMPI, a newer version of the WAIS II(?), and others.
I had 2 FUN days taking those tests, interviewing with her, and just general discussion about ADD/HD.
The third day my wife and I went in together for my final diagnosis and explanation.

I finally submitted to meds (after many assurances that they would not change who I am).

First - Ritalin. Started out fairly low and over the next several months gradually increased the dosage. I can't remember what amount I was taking. I never felt anything from it though. I think at the end I did feel some jitters once... sorta like the time I drank several thermos's of coffee in one day on a long drive.

Second - Adderall. Pretty much the same thing as the Ritalin without that one instance of jitters. I did get an upset-feeling tummy during the first couple of weeks I started it.

Third - Stratterra. Again... same as the others... I never 'felt' anything happening. I got this when I left my family doc and went to a psych doc who has dealt with ADDer's.
This doc also eventually tried Lexapro on me for a while during the first year of my divorce.

Overall... I felt like the meds were doing nothing for me. I didn't expect to wake up one day with the sun shining and birds chirping outside my window , I just thought I would see some benefit.
I have continued to try behavioral strategies using gadget after gadget, notebooks, timers, etc. to help me out.
I have success for a while then I start forgetting to use my little devices.

Someone I know gave me a Handspring (Palm) Visor which is an old PDA. So far, for two or so weeks, I have been using that pretty successfully. But even with that, I find I am forgetting to look at it and/or keep it out where I will see it, everyday.
Still, I'll keep up with that because it is the right size for me to carry just about everywhere I go.
It's easy to use.

So Pugly, you might call around to different medical docs (of the psych variety) and family therapists, to see who they use/know for diagnosing ADD/HD.
Check out the counselors at any college around you or if you know someone at the local high school, like a teacher, find out who their counselor uses.

I would stay away from General/Family Medical Doctors/P.A.'s. My experience is that they are not as experienced as someone the likes of the second lady I went to.

Look for someone who specializes in learning disabilities/disorders.

If you have a local Medical Society (a local governing group of the local docs in a specific area, sometimes by county), they may have a list of professionals who can help you.

I can tell you this... it would help GREATLY if you have some people around you, in your life, who are willing to help you out after your diagnosis.
It helps to have an independent observer who can tell if there are changes in your behavior after starting any meds(if you choose to take any).
It can help if you have someone who can act as a 'coach', helping you keep up on your strategies for controlling your ADD/HD.

Even though my wife was a pediatrician... even after my second diagnosis of ADD/HD... she would still get frustrated with me and say things like... "I just don't see why you can't get up in the morning, go downstairs, and make yourself a list of things to do that day... and follow it!".

She did not find my topics of conversation interesting and actually told me more than once that she would just 'tune me out'.
I didn't always know when she was doing it. But the times I realized she was, it hurt.

Support from family, friends, and co-workers is so important.
Prior to my current job, I never lasted longer than 3 yrs (hence, my 40 job history). The hospital I currently work at has been very patient with me over the last 5 yrs.

I'm rambling now, but I do want you to realize it's more than just having a diagnosis, more than having some pill to take (if you remember to), it's having support beyond your own self and your doctor.

I wish you well!

Thanks for the info.

There's nothing wrong with rambling, especially someone's interested in what you are saying.

I'm going to talk with a consoler at my university, I think. I really believe I've been able to overcome problems just with my basic intelligence, so I've sort of fly under the radar. Especially since I am not of the hyperactive variety.

But when I think about how organized, well the really organized people are... it just boggles my mind. It takes so much effort to even set up and plan, it seems like a full time job in and of itself.

Like when I'm cleaning up, every little thing I have to pick up and think... well where does this go. I put it away, and find the place where it should go isn't in complete order. Well either I can just drop it, or organize that thing.

Or let's say making dinner at night, if I am really going to make something that's healthy and quality... it would take an 30 min to an hour for me. Plus the 30 mins it takes to eat. Then the 30 mins it takes to clean up everything. So thats probably 1:30-2 hours to eat. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but it doesn't seem like it.

Do this 3 times a day, then how am I even supposed to get anything done in the day? So I just end up eating out most of the time, or eat quick meals.

When I really think about it, the modern organized on the ball lifestyle... it almost seems impossible for people to live that way.

How good are PDAs? I never really considered one, but I'm starting to see the advantage. It all depends on how easy to use though, I was thinking about planning my day on the computer. But there are way too many distractions on the computer for me. If I had a streamlined, easy to use PDA that was just for jotting down notes and keeping track of what I'm supposed to do... it may just work.

Good for you Pugly!

I agree on your assessment of those 'organized' types... something REALLY weird about them if you ask me!

Here's a sample of my day... a school day...

My schedule has been - 0800 take my daughter to town for school 5 miles South, when she's with me. Then drive 10 miles North to my school. 0830 P.E. class for me. 1000 Business class. 1130 Digital Media class. Mondays and Wednesdays.

So... after getting around 4,5 or 6 hrs sleep, I get up and wake up my daughter. We try to leave the house around 0800 so I can drop her off then drive to school and get to class on time myself.

What happens? Around 0806, I realize we're behind schedule! I tell her to speed up, then I look around to figure out what I still need to do. Perhaps my gym bag needs to be put together. Perhaps I need to bring my laptop to school today and it's lying on the table with every accessory I own still attached, internet open from last night, etc.
So now I'm trying to get my stuff packed up... and I forgot that I need to not only put on my gym clothes (still in jammies), but I need clothes in my bag to change into for classes!

So I go into my bedroom... which is a complete mess... and scrounge around for clothes to wear! I see something on top of a stack of things that looks like it's a clean shirt. It passes the sniff test, I don't care about the wrinkles, and away I go!

Okay... so my bags are all packed but I forgot that I haven't brushed my teeth yet. The clock says it's 0817 and I think to myself..."Hmm, I still have time to brush my teeth. It doesn't take but a few seconds!".
And, while my daughter is walking out the front door to the truck, I'm dashing back to the bathroom to brush my teeth!

We finally pull away from the curb and I remember I forgot to pack some necessary item for school (today it was my CD I needed for Digital Media! But I only remembered after I got to school). I either blow it off, or turn around and go back to get it.
I am still telling myself that it will only take... like... a minute and 40 seconds so this won't dramatically affect our being late already.

I finally drop her off at high school and by some miracle... again... she's made it before the bell.

I head off to school only to realize I have been driving on empty since yesterday and I won't make it TO class let alone back home!
So I now have to spend, "just a couple of minutes!" getting a couple of gallons of gas.

I finally get to class 30 - 40 minutes late, but that's okay since we just do our own workouts.

Sometimes my day gets easier... sometimes not.

This has been my life for... well... my entire life!

I have carried notepads in my pockets, kept them in my vehicles, by the phone, by my side of the bed, in the bathroom/kitchen/livingroom, purchase two digital recorders - the second one I could download the recordings on a computer, kept one of those personal planner notebooks for a year... well I kept it, but I didn't keep up with it, on and on.
Nothing works for very long, or it's so sporadic that the strategy isn't helping me in a consistent manner.

The PDA may very well go the same route. I purchased a cheapo SHARP YO-P20H that looks like a PDA, has some very primitive functions that mimic a PDA, but it only costs $30-something compared to hundreds of dollars.
That didn't work long partly because you can only put in one line of text and it's a bear to work with.

At least the PDA I was given is a lot easier to work with. It's as fast as pulling out a pen and notebook and writing down stuff.
It organizes my calender MUCH better than any paper schedule I've ever written.
I really like it and I hope I can keep this going until it becomes a habit for me... which takes a long while.

If you knew someone with an old PDA they were not using.. I'd suggest you borrow that if you could before buying one.

Again... the most helpful thing I have seen for managing my ADD/HD is to have people around who will help 'coach' you.
At work, everyone I work with in the lab knows of my ADD/HD. They knew of it before they knew about it!

Although I can keep up with my work most of the time, there are still some parts where I tend to lose myself.
Part of it is going from one place in the lab to the next.
If I go from the phlebotomy area to the specimen processing area, I pass by several fax/copy machines, telephones, bulletin boards, shelves, and countertops that have the potential to stop me dead in my tracks and distract me from what I was originally heading off to do.
Another thing is the fact that I have to exit one room, enter the main hallway and take about 5 or 6 steps to the next door of the lab.

In that time, I can see someone WAAAAAYYYYYY down the hall and instantly recall that I wanted to tell them something, then dash off down the hall to do it! Or remember that I needed to go to the bathroom and I've been waiting, so I'll turn and head off around the corner to the bathroom without telling anyone in the lab where I've gone.

I wish I could tell you something positive about all this.. but Pugly... YOU'RE DOOMED! Just like me! get the feeling I like these new smilies? lol

Seriously, I hope you find answers that will turn your life around and help you focus better.

I hope that day comes for me too!

Yeah, life has been easy so far... since so far it's just school. And I can get by... either standards are so low... or I have some good intuition or deep understanding that propels me through the subject. But now I'll be graduating soon, and planning what I should do... I have no idea where to start.

It's a Cliché, and probably doesn't work in the 'real' world... but the image of a a creative yet disorganized husband with a loving organized wife seems perfect . It seems so nice... and the kind of support that can really help those with ADHD.

All my life I've never really had support for any of these issues... people didn't even notice that I have problems. And those who do help me just end up performing the task themselves... I never really learn anything... and I just get used to having things done for me.

I think it can be a reality. Probably as long as the couple realize these things about each other.. and themselves... before things get too serious.
My marriage didn't work partly because I kept denying my problems. I just kept trying to make them vanish, or I would keep trying to do what I saw other people do even if it hadn't worked for me the last 100 times I tried it.
I expected to just 'change' one day and be like everyone else...
My wife expected me to just 'change' one day and be the 'cowboy' she saw me as.
Being upfront and truthful is a better way to start off a relationship.



Yeah, I agree that it's not wanting someone else to do it... it's wanting to succeed at it yourself!

You seem to have a really good attitude with all this... I think you'll do really well!