Re: ADHD Journeys and the Unbelievers

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone, I’m new here and have only just done the self diagnosis test. I began finding out about ADHD 2 years ago because I thought my son might have it, then chickened out and hoped starting school might help him. It hasn’t. I started looking into it again and with a growing realisation that the criteria didn’t just fit him, but fitted me.

I too have had the light bulb moment today when I did your test. I was laughing out loud every time I hit the yes button!

Feeling somewhat elated, I emailed a psychologist friend and told her. Her response was ‘I can categorically assure you you and your son DO NOT have ADHD.’ She then went on to explain that she was sceptical about whether it wasn’t just a construct of the pharmacutical companies working in cahoots with doctors. She said I was unnecessarily labelling myself and my child.

Since I’ve had her reply, I’ve vacillated between elation that I have found ‘the truth’ and this site with so many of you recounting (largely) similar feelings and experiences, and disappointment/worry about going forward and getting properly tested.

Ultimately, I want to help my son. I’m sure by me having similar issues to him (everyone says he is a ‘chip off the old block’ and yes, my parents laugh that me having him is karma for them having to put up with me!) I am not dealing with his problems in the appropriate way – whenever is screaming, crying, sulking and ignoring a child appropriate….but equally I’m worried he will be stigmatised and labelled (in a negative way) if he is diagnosed. Confused!!

I want to help my son so he doesn’t have the same teen years and adult life that I have. Several of you have talked about coping ‘strategies’ – add to those, heavy alcohol use/misuse, risky drug taking, risky sexual behaviour (not any more – happily married now), bulimia/compulsive eating and relationships with abusive people. Although none of these might not seem like ‘coping strategies’ they were – they all in some way deadened the symptoms of ADHD and allowed me to ignore that I wasn’t quite, er, normal. I don’t want my son to go through 20 years of that.

But what do I do if no one takes it seriously like my ‘expert’ friend did?

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