Get tested, if possible. I was diagnosed with ADHD after: A psychiatrist administered tests involving puzzles, numbers, and one involving hand/eye coordination. An MMPI (personality inventory). MMRI (being in a magnetic tube that booms around you. Afterwards I got to see a picture of my brain. Neat!). A detailed childhood history, mailed directly to him, by my mother (describing my behavior as a child, with a history).

After all the above, my psychiatrist put me on Ritalin, and basically let me choose my own dose; he also allowed me to try Adderall and all of the other stimulants. I liked Ritalin best.

If you really have ADHD, stimulants will have a paradoxical effect on you and calm you down. It's complicated.

I took 80mg of Ritalin daily for years (60mg daily is the highest recommended daily dosage). I built up a tolerance quickly, as I do with all drugs, and took myself off of stimulants -- except for coffee, which I still consume in large amts -- a few years ago. They calmed me down and focused me, but were not good overall over a long period of time.

But they are definitely useful for awhile, if you have ADHD.

Most people with ADHD have a mind like a hellish, frantic carnival; constant distractions accompanied with bizarre periods of hyperfocus and intense concentration. Very uneven and chaotic. But you learn a lot when you have 200-300 passionate interests, so it isn't all bad. Mike