Re: It's a Two-Fer. And they're both pretty bad (sources are the reason)

[Anonymous]

Yep, have also collected depression, borderline, and bipolar diagnosis. (Also young female presenting for mood symptoms.)

After 6 years of trying different treatments (while holding down a full-time fire-fighting job, training and licensing as a paramedic, and getting into medical school) I finally figured out that the only med that worked for me was Wellbutrin, and only when I was depressed in the far-north wintertime. SSRI’s really messed me up, impulsive mood swings/spending/eating/alcohol/suicidal. Took me years to figure out that it was the anti-depressants themselves that made me feel so weird. Of course the answer was always to up the meds, but my symptoms only improved when I stopped them.

Of course I had a classic family history for “some-kind-of-mental-illness-god-knows-what”

Finally heard about ADHD in third year medicine during a (very difficult) psychiatry rotation. (I skipped all the classes on ADHD in the first couple of years. ) It was hard to stand on the other side of the fence during psychiatry and I was saved by a talented and rational teacher who really helped people. Not a single doctor had ever suggested ADHD as a diagnosis when I was seeking help despite a near-perfect history of ADHD symptoms. In fact, I ran into my old psychiatrist the other day and when I told him happily that I had finally figured it out, he said that he had suspected it but didn’t think I needed to know.

I think that most doctors, and psychiatrists know very little about ADHD. Because they aren’t looking for it they don’t see it when it stares them in the face. If our coping mechanisms are out-of-whack, unhealthy, or overwhelmed we can present with classic symptoms for other disorders.

It all came full circle when I treated a young female in the psych ward for an impulsive suicide attempt. The psychiatrist had labeled her as borderline and was putting her into the standard outpatient therapy on discharge. She was bright, talented, and had a very functional history despite her recent admission (which had occurred under VERY stressful circumstances.) It just didn’t fit. I asked her if she had ever lost her cell phone. Answer: 27 phones in three years. It felt really good to suggest that she discuss and consider ADHD along with other diagnosis in followup.

Its a journey, but I am very glad that I had my problems with diagnosis and treatment prior to studying medicine. I know how it feels to be labeled, and to get the wrong treatment. I really hope that makes me a better doctor in the long run.

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