Re: How did YOU find the help you needed? What's your story?

[Anonymous]

1. How did you first find out about ADHD?

I was diagnosed in 1967 at age four. This was prior to beginning school which is unusual but I had a pretty determined mother who just KNEW that there was SOMETHING. When I was around three, she decided that she would hold me until I wanted to get down. She broke before I did. What I find interesting is that as an adult, I can’t stand to be held for long. I’m a hugger but I have some limits. The official diagnosis in 1967 was Minimal Brain Dysfunction. I was medicated with Ritalin… and virtually every other drug that became available or popular. 90 day trials were popular back then and I got quite the cocktail. Once I hit puberty, I was taken off medication entirely because it had supposedly gone away.

I went back to school as an adult in 2003. I was re-diagnosed then with ADHD through six hours of full spectrum testing that included Executive Functioning as well as standard ADHD tests. I was put on Adderall.

2. How and where did you find a clinician to diagnose you? (Website? Word of mouth?)

I don’t know how Mom found the pediatrician who made the first diagnosis (history plus EEG). The doc that ratified the 1967 diagnosis was with our local county hospital. (I’m in the US)

3. What type? (Psychiatrist? Psychologist? G.P.?)

My first doc was a Pediatrician, my next diagnosis was with a Psychiatrist, my GP currently manages my medications.

4. How long did you have to wait between first referral and a first appointment? Anything happen in between?[This one I’d really like to know.]

Unfortunately, I don’t know the answer. I know my Mom had to search in order to find someone who would even look harder at me. I was able to get in to see the Psychiatrist within a week of requesting the referral. My GP didn’t even bother waiting on anything- he’s known me both as a patient and as the partner of a patient. He has a good grasp on ADHD and recognized me long before I asked him to manage me on medication. I feel very blessed.

5. What exactly was the diagnostic process like? (Questionnaire? Brain Scan?) How long did it take?

The original diagnosis was cemented with EEG. Hyper kids do tend to have a specific abnormality on an EEG. We have greater difficulty achieving deep sleep states. For me, that did not change with adulthood.

The second diagnosis was six hours of testing in a windowless room.

6. How long afterward to get a prescription? (If you went that route…)

As a kid, they started Ritalin at around five. As I said, the scrip changed fairly frequently as different meds were trialled. Ritalin worked best for me. As an adult, I saw the psychiatrist about a week after testing and walked out with a scrip for Adderall.

7. Any specific counseling or coaching? Did you have to go elsewhere?

I have chosen to do talk therapy over the years but it took a long time to get willing to do that. I had sought treatment for whatever was wrong with me in my late teens, early twenties- if it wasn’t ADHD, it was SOMETHING- and played anti-depressant roulette. I finally got sick of trying and refused to speak with anyone who had the ability to diagnose or prescribe. Outside of online forums, I am not seeing anyone but wish to start. My biggest challenge is finding someone who understands ADHD along with end stage caregiver challenges (my partner has terminal cancer)

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