Re: New Diagnosis = Light at the end of the tunnel

[Anonymous]

Raven and JayBird, right on. The hardest thing for me was the fact that like DogFather, I did NOT have any idea I could have ADHD. No way! I was an academic superstar, right? I knew only the myths and thought, “No way,” even though a psychologist had pegged me. Only after one failed marriage, another dubious relationship, and added responsibilities causing my lack of organization to impact more than my cat did I read more. Then I tried Ritalin. That day, I took out the Rachmaninoff piano piece I “quit on” years ago and played it all the way through for the first time. Then I sat and sobbed.

The problem at that point is that there is a period (and Rick has so rightly labeled it an instance of “denial”) when one thinks “Wowee! I’ve been slogging through knee-deep mud my whole life, and this medication has removed the mud! It will FIX me!” But no, it won’t. The medication has fixed many things – temper outbursts, career-change-o’-the-week restlessness in my job, irritability…and it has provided that all-important ability to, before the next dumb impulsive act like involvement with the taboo-off-limits-wrong-guy, DECIDE NOT TO DO IT wow-what-a-concept! However, I am still working on the forgetfulness, the overwhelm, the disorganization – all made more interesting by now being a single mom of two small children (who didn’t emerge from careful, considered decisions either – but no regrets there!).

No matter what, the medication plus understanding, helpful others make a big difference. The people on this forum are wonderful.

REPORT ABUSE