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What country are you in? Having a bunch of family also be ADHD doesn't really change the path to diagnosis, it's just another tick for the doctor. Generally you talk to the GP, say you want a referral to a specialist. You can look around to see if there are any nearby and ask for a direct referral. If you have a choice, always go for someone specialising in adult ADHD over a general psych or child ADHD specialists. If the GP tries to diagnose you (some will say "you can't be adhd you've done X/Y/Z") insist on the psych. Doctors will want corroborating evidence if it exists that you had problems in childhood to rule out something that developed after. That would be school reports, might be asking your parents. They might want to speak to your partner as well. E: in Australia I have to have a referral from a GP to see the psych. It expires every 12 months. It's great.
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Sep 6, 2021 08:15
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Canada. I think the process is a little closer to your experience. I also suffer from severe allergy issues and it basically ended up with a couple minute appointment and then referral out to an immunologist so I gather that's the path but I don't really know. It's very certainly something I can do though which I guess is better than nothing. I will be insistent on a psych for it, though. Thank you!
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Sep 6, 2021 08:26
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Yeah if you ask a general practitioner or similar about it and they say "hm, I don't think you have that," you can still ask that they refer you for a second opinion (or seek one out yourself). Healthcare (mental or otherwise) isn't a system of courts; you don't have to file an appeal and try to convince a judge somewhere that you deserve to plead your case again. You can just... go to whoever you want. You cannot be stopped, it's anarchy out here and you are invincible
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Sep 6, 2021 17:14
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The caveat to the above is if your insurance or healthcare system requires a referral before they'll pay for something, which isn't as common as it used to be but might apply-- for example, if you're in the US and have an HMO insurance plan. If that's the case, you'll have to follow some kind of appeal or second opinion process if your designated primary care doctor refuses to issue a referral. It's an uncommon situation, but not as uncommon as it should be.
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Sep 6, 2021 18:35
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Dr. recently prescribed me ritalin (5mg) and I tried it for the first time today...hooooooo boy do I hate it. It's actually making me feel worse! Very hard to stay focused, mind is racing, very jumpy, just all around a cruddy feeling. I don't think I'll be taking this any more. I have managed to check off a good amount of items from my to-do list this morning, but I'm not sure that the juice is worth the squeeze so to speak.
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Sep 16, 2021 18:33
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sporkstand posted:Dr. recently prescribed me ritalin (5mg) and I tried it for the first time today...hooooooo boy do I hate it. It's actually making me feel worse! Very hard to stay focused, mind is racing, very jumpy, just all around a cruddy feeling. I don't think I'll be taking this any more. I have managed to check off a good amount of items from my to-do list this morning, but I'm not sure that the juice is worth the squeeze so to speak. As with any other mental health medication, I'd suggest keeping on a few weeks, or at least discussing it with your doctor. Sometimes side effects will chill out once you get more used to the med.
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Sep 16, 2021 20:39
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I wonder if all the energy I had as a kid was because of amphetamines, and all this yearning for the energy I had as a kid is just forgetting that I was hella medicated and not as sedentary
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Sep 17, 2021 18:34
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Today I told my dad that yeah I'd have lunch with him but ya know, my memory for appointments isn't great, and I wonder if it's a thing among psychiatrists and psychologists that ADHD patients have a greater tendency to forget their appointments. He insisted that if something was important to me I'd remember. lmao. lol. no
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Oct 3, 2021 05:57
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signalnoise posted:Today I told my dad that yeah I'd have lunch with him but ya know, my memory for appointments isn't great, and I wonder if it's a thing among psychiatrists and psychologists that ADHD patients have a greater tendency to forget their appointments. He insisted that if something was important to me I'd remember. lmao. lol. no Of course it is. For me, figuring out ways to support patients attending sessions (and being on time) is often a bridge to exploring how ADHD affects them and what strategies are most helpful.
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Oct 3, 2021 06:06
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signalnoise posted:Today I told my dad that yeah I'd have lunch with him but ya know, my memory for appointments isn't great, and I wonder if it's a thing among psychiatrists and psychologists that ADHD patients have a greater tendency to forget their appointments. He insisted that if something was important to me I'd remember. lmao. lol. no One time I flaked on dinner with my mum who was, unknown to me, very suicidal. I have no memory of offering to get dinner with her that night at all. I suspect I said "we should get dinner when I'm back in hometown next" a week or two beforehand. That was great, only had like six months of her alternately refusing to talk to me or ringing to let me know it was all my fault she was suicidal. Shout out to the rest of my family who ignored mum being totally suicidal and said I had to fix it. Ok so maybe that was not as lol as I thought when I started typing.
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Oct 3, 2021 07:20
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Eediot Jedi posted:One time I flaked on dinner with my mum who was, unknown to me, very suicidal. I have no memory of offering to get dinner with her that night at all. I suspect I said "we should get dinner when I'm back in hometown next" a week or two beforehand. With the obvious note that it sucks she was in such a poo poo headspace, that sounds manipulative as gently caress of her 
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Oct 3, 2021 13:22
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Yeah don't disagree. One day at a family thing she pulled me aside, we talked like reasonable humans and it was back to normal. Never apologised for it. I think it was a combo of depression, anxiety, undiagnosed adhd & RSD, opening doors to old trauma from her marriage. She couldn't vent at any of my siblings because of grandkids, I right place right timed into the crosshair.
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Oct 4, 2021 02:59
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Started Adderall two days ago as the first stim tried on my ADHD. 10mg x2. Focus is good though getting started on topics is hard. Only thing is I feel a lot more anxious then I remember being. Gonna stick with it, but is this pretty common?
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Oct 18, 2021 05:54
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Straight-up anxiety can definitely be a side effect, and on top of that stimulant medication does tend to produce many of the same physical effects as anxiety (like higher blood pressure and heart rate) which can lead your brain to simply assume you're anxious and helpfully provide some things to be anxious about. If you're still having issues after a while, that's certainly a good reason to try a different formulation or medication.
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Oct 18, 2021 12:00
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Quorum posted:Straight-up anxiety can definitely be a side effect, and on top of that stimulant medication does tend to produce many of the same physical effects as anxiety (like higher blood pressure and heart rate) which can lead your brain to simply assume you're anxious and helpfully provide some things to be anxious about. If you're still having issues after a while, that's certainly a good reason to try a different formulation or medication. It's also worth noting it can be better or worse depending on the med. I started on Strattera (non-stimulant) and had my first ever panic attacks on the stuff, to the level where I ended up asking to be taken off it. Now on Vyvanse and I'm definitely a bit more anxious than I used to be but it's nowhere near that level.
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Oct 19, 2021 11:39
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The anxiety feeling seems to have passed now after about a week. Wasn't expecting the libido drop, nor causing ED. Is this common or something that passes for those that have been on Adderall for a while?
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Oct 21, 2021 14:47
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TheJadedOne posted:The anxiety feeling seems to have passed now after about a week. Wasn't expecting the libido drop, nor causing ED. Is this common or something that passes for those that have been on Adderall for a while? It's a known side-effect and common enough that I remember my psych did explicitly ask if I'd had any issues with libido or ED
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Oct 21, 2021 15:37
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mfcrocker posted:It's a known side-effect and common enough that I remember my psych did explicitly ask if I'd had any issues with libido or ED that is unfortunate. I assume viagra helps with it maybe? or does it go away? Does other stims for adhd have similar effects?
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Oct 21, 2021 17:54
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TheJadedOne posted:that is unfortunate. I assume viagra helps with it maybe? or does it go away? Does other stims for adhd have similar effects? I imagine any stimulant will have the risk of those side effects because by definition they raise your blood pressure. I don't see why ED medication wouldn't help, it's certainly worth asking your doctor about.
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Oct 21, 2021 18:01
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I'm undecided whether I can blame Adderall for something that was a concern before I started meds but the idea of taking Viagra to deal with my lack of libido is funny like giving a fish a bicycle
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Oct 21, 2021 18:24
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Car Hater posted:I'm undecided whether I can blame Adderall for something that was a concern before I started meds but the idea of taking Viagra to deal with my lack of libido is funny like giving a fish a bicycle Just the other day I read an offhand comment by Barkley that stimulants are vasoconstricors, that wouldn't help ED. It really bothers me that I've been on meds for like two years and still find out poo poo my doctor or pharmacist should lead with. Maybe they did and I forgot idk. Like I've been struggling to do things on meds for a while and I couldn't figure it out. If I did engage, I'd be fine, but getting started and engaged was not interesting at all, and I'd do other stuff instead, or do nothing and just daydream while on meds. At times it's been easier to get poo poo done without meds which blew my mind. Even stuff I enjoy. Another comment was about the emotional blunting effect of stimulants. I really enjoy the extra emotional stability from stimulants, but I didn't link the blunting effect to procrastinating until I realised it's reducing positive emotions to a degree, which are really important for getting motivated to do things like paint models. It's not depression, at times it could be anxiety but mostly isn't, just choosing again and again not to do things.
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Oct 21, 2021 22:39
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Uppers dick syndrome is a thing, particularly if there already was some ED going on.
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Oct 22, 2021 14:32
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Has anybody had experience with dosage variability in generics (the generic of extended release adderall XR) I’ve read that generic can be +\- 25% pill to pill. We know 10mg extended wasn’t effective. 15 extended worked port well but it seems like we get occasional days where it didn’t seem to work anymore. +\- 25% would mean we would get the occasional 11.25 day. Increasing dosage probably isn’t an option because of the appetite suppression. It’s this something any of y’all have dealt with?
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Dec 7, 2021 04:52
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The variability probably has more to do with things like hydration, sleep, and if you've eaten than dosage variance in the pills.
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Dec 7, 2021 14:45
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drinking acidic juices like orange or grapefruit can affect the absorption of adderall. Just had that talk with my psych yesterday.
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Dec 22, 2021 19:43
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Well that’s good to know.
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Dec 22, 2021 21:39
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TheJadedOne posted:drinking acidic juices like orange or grapefruit can affect the absorption of adderall. Just had that talk with my psych yesterday. This also applies to Strattera, a fact that has yet to permeate the internet
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Dec 23, 2021 02:51
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TheJadedOne posted:drinking acidic juices like orange or grapefruit can affect the absorption of adderall. Just had that talk with my psych yesterday. grapefruit in general is one you should always check on with medications of any sort. it has a lot of weird interactions. thankfully for adderall you're pretty much fine as long as it's not within an hour of taking it. the same goes for tums, btw, though the effect is different.
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Dec 23, 2021 03:00
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Why does taking adderall make me sleepy and how much can I expect this to help my concentration? I am in hell.
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Mar 19, 2022 20:25
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sponges posted:Why does taking adderall make me sleepy and how much can I expect this to help my concentration? I am in hell. you're taking the pills upside down (common mistake)
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Mar 20, 2022 18:10
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Welp, got an official ADD diagnosis. I’ve suspected for about a year or so, but wasn’t sure what I should do. A story about my dad showing obvious symptoms pushed me over to get checked out. My family filled out some questionnaires, as well. Scored about as high S you can on all the categories. I have a medication appointment for next week. I feel vindicated. Obviously I have internalized some “initially promising, now a fuckup” messaging. I also wish someone had caught it earlier as it’s hard to bot imagine all the wasted time. Regardless, I’m glad to have some answers in-hand moving forward. As far as process goes, I went to a behavioral health clinic. Copay sucked, and they ran two extra tests that were in the hundreds of dollars range. Just be aware and ask questions before you sign anything if you’re State side. I could have gotten meds prescribed through a cheap psych visit, but their front office was bad and I don’t trust them to be able to keep up on a monthly medication renewal. Other than that and a couple weeks to twiddle my thumbs, it was easy.
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Apr 14, 2022 02:27
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ThePopeOfFun posted:I feel vindicated. Obviously I have internalized some “initially promising, now a fuckup” messaging. I also wish someone had caught it earlier as it’s hard to bot imagine all the wasted time. Regardless, I’m glad to have some answers in-hand moving forward. I feel like this is a pretty universal response when getting diagnosed as an adult. I know it was for both my spouse and I. Personally, I find it difficult to get past that mindset of just being intrinsically unable to carry through on stuff, even now that I have a better idea of what exactly is going on.
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Apr 30, 2022 16:48
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Lemony posted:I feel like this is a pretty universal response when getting diagnosed as an adult. I know it was for both my spouse and I. Personally, I find it difficult to get past that mindset of just being intrinsically unable to carry through on stuff, even now that I have a better idea of what exactly is going on. Yeah seems so as expressed in this thread and some friends I have with similar issues. Tons of risk aversion. Not sure how to get past that for myself other than starting with small stuff like making breakfast. As far as a meds update goes, it works. I'm on the Ritalin side of things. I've tried strattera before, but it just made me sweat. My current prescription is night and day. It's like living next to an interstate, then moving out to the country. So if you're a lurking ADHD goon and you are even wondering a little, go get checked out. Super worth it. Obviously, my associated problems haven't been solved in a week, but I've got tools and understanding to make changes.
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Apr 30, 2022 21:54
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Any suggestions on books for dealing with a young kid with ADHD? It's still very early for diagnosis but... poor guy's by far the most impulsive kid in his class and it's hindering his ability to make friends. He can't sustain a game for very long without getting distracted. We're starting the diagnosis/evaluation process with the school district but every little bit helps. Most of the stuff I've seen is aimed at older children struggling with academics.
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May 17, 2022 00:16
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Had a parent-teach discussion about the kids last night. I thought it was interesting. Both kids are on ADHD medicine and Daniel has benefited very much from it the teacher says, it gives him the quiet and concentration needed to focus on a task. It's also helped David, but he has these other issues, he gets hung up on details, he might keep ask the same question over and over again even when he got an answer because he didn't like the answer. He might get hung up on a detail and get so upset over it that it ruins the rest of the class or the break. Such as when they went to the theatre and the teachers had arranged how all the kids were to be seated, but he wanted to sit next to X friend and when he didn't it ruined the whole event for him until they had to take him outside. Sigh...  Towards autumn we will be looking at how David behaves when they start 2nd grade, the kids can grow and mature a lot during summer so we have a slim hope here... They've done so before anyway. If not, we'll be looking at getting a pscyhological evaluation and see what can be done to help him.Daniel otoh is getting more and more involved in regular classes with the other children, starting in art and then in gym class. The teacher said this was contrary to most ADHD kids, who don't take well to those unstructured activities. She also mentioned it was important to not move ahead too soon, when they are brought to a class they must be able to keep up, for their own sakes, they must feel that they are able to do this as well as the rest of the children. It would be very bad for their sense of self-worth to feel they cannot keep up and this was stressed as one of the most important things that they work on with kids who need extra help.
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May 25, 2022 14:02
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His Divine Shadow posted:Had a parent-teach discussion about the kids last night. I thought it was interesting. Both kids are on ADHD medicine and Daniel has benefited very much from it the teacher says, it gives him the quiet and concentration needed to focus on a task. This is a very  post. Your kids are lucky to have parents and teachers who are involved in such a supportive and thoughtful way. They may continue to struggle with aspects of ADHD but you can't underestimate how important even just compassionate recognition of that can be.
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May 25, 2022 15:03
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To be honest it's really the teachers of the public school system and the social care system who are doing all the heavy lifting and who has the expertise to deal with it, we're just along for the ride it feels like and it's as new to us as to the kids.
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May 25, 2022 16:51
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My 7yr old was just diagnosed with ADHD (he's literally a near clone of me, even down to putting baby pictures of me and him next to eachother its crazy). His teacher had a big role to play during a parent teacher conference. He had been acting out, back talking and not focusing at all. His main teacher and spanish immersion teacher then went down a list of behaviors they had kept notes on. Wife and I were like Whoaaaa. Come to find out my son's teacher has a kid with ADHD as well. She delayed getting him diagnosed until he was a teenager due to social stigmas. And then she tried to do everything else except medicate him to address the condition after diagnosis. After two years of failing without medication, she got him medicated at 14. Night and day for her son. Once he knew what his baseline could be for focus and attention, he was able to utilize the skills he had been learning for two years to eventually get off medication in college. So my kid's teacher basically told us "don't delay, get us the paperwork and get him in to the doctor, we'll give a good writeup to the doc. Don't make the mistake I made, kids don't know what that normal 'focused/ontask' behavior is like most of the time. Being medicated helps them learn it and then you can work on behavioral items from there". The teacher didnt know we had already talked to our peds doc about ADHD before the school year start. Our Doc is an authority on ADHD in our county. 2days later we had our son diagnosed and starting medication. Holy crap. Night and day difference in ALL his school behavior. He gets chatty, but he went from failing in reading and only doing well in math to catching up to his class in reading and being on track for 2nd grade. Definitely work with your doc with the treatment plan. Read books, and if needed possibly try a different medication based off your doctor's recommendations. I know i've had to switch to a variety of adderal XR and immediate release myself based off of mood swings I'd get coming down. My son is on concerta XR and its working great for him. Have any of y'all been hearing the studies that folks with ADHD come from Hunter/gathering ancestry? ADHD brains being wired to hyperfocus on our surroundings when hunting? I have some neighbors that the husband and wife are both psychiatrists and were teaching me about this when I did some free computer work for them. Fascinating discussion with them and makes sense for my family. EVERYONE on my dad's side is a hunter/fisher of some sort. Talking with my cousins, we all have been diagnosed with ADHD as adults and finding similar things in our behaviors. Our ages range from 30-60 yrs old on diagnosis, my family could be a case study in their own. Especially my one cousin who started self-medicating.
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Jun 3, 2022 16:02
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Langolas posted:Have any of y'all been hearing the studies that folks with ADHD come from Hunter/gathering ancestry? ADHD brains being wired to hyperfocus on our surroundings when hunting? Yeahhhh this is some pop psych bullshido, I think, though perhaps an admirable attempt to destigmatize the disorder as "difference" rather than impairment. ADHD is an impairment, not a superpower, though I think it can be a big relief to do things that are engaging and trigger dopamine release (like hunting...or video games...or eating). The idea that this was evolutionarily selected for so that tribes of humans would have "specialized" hunters is incredibly dubious to me. Mechafunkzilla fucked around with this message at 17:58 on Jun 3, 2022 |
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Jun 3, 2022 17:55
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Yeah the hunter hypothesis is generally considered inaccurate these days. A thing to keep in mind about theorizing using natural selection is that even purely negative traits only get strongly selected against if they usually kill/sterilize the organism before it reproduces—you could definitely argue that various brainforms (including adhd) have benefits, especially in a premodern society, but the real reason most human traits are still around is probably that it is not actively detrimental to reproductive success—and while humans take a long time to start reproducing, that's still a fairly small portion of our lives even before modern medicine. If you survived to like, 6, even in bad times you could expect to see 70+.
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Jun 3, 2022 19:43
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