[cropmom]

Weighing in here on a few items raised above.

First, I stopped taking my meds about 2 months ago. My counselor knows, but now my doctor. After a year of being on them, with a few intermittent breaks, I didn’t really think they were helping.  I also started to notice I felt ‘wired’ and shaky at times.  It seemed to be getting worse, so I decided to stop and really see how much it was helping.

I suspect I need to try a different medication, but am not ready to do that just yet.  It just takes too much effort.  I’m working on other health issues first. The meds didn’t do what I thought they would do.  In my denial and ignorance, I thought they would make my ADD go away.  LOL  I now know that ‘pills don’t teach skills.’ But the meds didn’t seem to help me implement the skills.  There was just too much overwhelm.

Which leads me to the comments about having 17 projects going at once. (I love how hullupoika described it.) That is totally me.  I have had so many successes, high achieving, etc. in my former jobs.  I was demoted once for ‘lack of soft skills’– which I see was totally my ADD, but didn’t know anything about then.

I can get in such a funk about all of these projects around me, many of them are incomplete.  I don’t work, except for the writing and blogging I try to do and the multiple church obligations I have.  (Ok, I guess I really do work, I just don’t get paid for anything.) I’m actively saying ‘no’ to the new ideas and projects that come my way.  And by come my way, I mean I make them up in my mind (I could do that) or I hear of a valid need (I could volunteer for that).

At times it feels like I am cutting off a body part.  I am living in a lot of angst about ‘not doing.’  I am incredibly bored.  I miss the excitement.  I am being more ‘responsible’ around the house and participating more in chores, etc.  I suppose this is progress.  But I definitely feel like I am fighting myself and my natural wiring.  Maybe the medication would help in some way, especially with the anxiety I am feeling about all of this.

What I really want is for the ideas to stop popping into my brain and to be able to discern what to act on, how to organize my thoughts, etc.  That is probably what anyone with ADD wants.  I want balance in my life.

Sorry if this is off-topic.  Thanks for listening.

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[cropmom]

I can so relate to what you are saying. I didn’t realize many of these things until I started taking medication (what it was like to not have all of these emotions welling up inside).  My husband would always say I took things too personally and was too sensitive.  When I found out about my ADD, it made sense to me. I took medication for a year and have been off of it for 2 months. I’ll probably go back to it.  Still trying to figure it all out.  I do spend a lot of time in prayer and meditation.  That seems to help.  I also journal a lot and see a therapist who specializes in ADD.

Yes, it is frustrating.  Be kind to yourself. I think you’ll find the right balance in time.  You may have to accept that taking medication at a higher dosage than you want is what your body requires.  Curious to hear others comments.

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[cropmom]

I’m new to the forums, not new to ADHD, but new to actually doing something about it. This subject intrigued me, but didn’t read the entire thread, so apologies if I am restating something already rehashed.

From my pre-ADHD psycho-education days of late, I always took my desire to be alone as being an introvert.  I still do.  I’ve tested that way on the Meyers-Briggs Assessment. By definition an introvert is someone who energizes alone.  Like some have said, they don’t like going to social gatherings and it drains them.  That is exactly how I have felt for years.  Finding out that I was an introvert helped me to accept my differences (married to an extrovert & non-ADD).  I learned to navigate through the situations and got my down time later.

As someone who is now putting the pieces together of my ADHD and applying that filter to my life, I’m somewhat confused.  I am questioning just about everything these days.

Are all introverts also ADD?  Or are all ADDers introverts?

Some can be the total life of the party, comedic, etc.  But maybe that is just a mask they use to fit in and then revert to solitude later to recharge. (Watch the webinar “Pretending to be Normal” on 3/17/05 for great information about our masks.)

Also, another note about the idea of being alone.  Having alone time is good.  I prefer it myself.  I need a lot of solitude to process. However, isolation is very detrimental to our overall health.  We need to be connected to others, at least one on one.  ADDers are prone to depression and depression feeds on isolation. Getting feedback and encouragement from others (especially those on the path to wholeness with their ADHD diagnosis) is critical.

If anyone has insight on separating our ADHD from our personality type or about being an introvert, please add your input to the conversation.

cropmom

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