[beebur]

I have had anxiety issue for 7 yrs and realized I also have some adhd issues. After losing two doctors who agreed with me and prescribed me addrell and a antidepressant, my new doctor says I probably don't have adhd and it's all anxiety and sleep issue. After years of jumping through hoops and several test and tuning in my meds, this new doctor wants to start the whole process over. Also if later he wants to treat the ADHD, he wants to treat it without addrell and send me to a organization coach. Are most psychiatrist like this??? He seems to be against drugs that are abused he doesn't want to prescribe me Ativan or Adderall. I am going to run out of these drugs soon and do not know what to do, it's so hard to get in to any Psy doctor without waiting 4 to 6 weeks. HELP!!

[sunrise]

If you don't like this doctor, you can always go to see someone else. I know that's not much consolation when meds that work for you are running out. Perhaps make an appointment with another doc to get a second opinion and in the meanwhile, cut your meds in half to make them last longer. (Not all meds can be cut in half, such as the extended release meds, but just in case you have cuttable meds....) Psych NPs don't always have as long a waiting list as pdocs, so you could try a Psych NP. My PNP is very experienced in diagnosing and treating ADHD in adults. I've been seeing her for a year and a half and am very happy with her. A new practitioner will always want to make their own decision on what is the best course for you, and will not just want to automatically prescribe whatever your last doc did. This can be frustrating, but they wouldn't be professionals unless they looked at the whole picture.

If you decide to try the organization coach, I would be very interested to hear how that goes. I take meds for ADHD, but they're not a cure-all. I could probably really benefit from a coach too! (But no funds availble for that now.)

My biggest concern in what you wrote is that your prescription for Ativan is running out. This is a benzo and they can be hard to come off of if you have been taking them for a while. Stopping cold turkey is not recommended. Since your pdoc doesn't want you on Ativan, did he give you a plan for tapering? If not, I think this merits a call to him, even if you hope to continue with this med with another practitioner. You never know if you will find someone in time, so having a taper plan is important, and enough Ativan to get you through the plan.

Good luck.

[kikki27]

Originally Posted by beebur

I have had anxiety issue for 7 yrs and realized I also have some adhd issues. After losing two doctors who agreed with me and prescribed me addrell and a antidepressant, my new doctor says I probably don't have adhd and it's all anxiety and sleep issue. After years of jumping through hoops and several test and tuning in my meds, this new doctor wants to start the whole process over. Also if later he wants to treat the ADHD, he wants to treat it without addrell and send me to a organization coach. Are most psychiatrist like this??? He seems to be against drugs that are abused he doesn't want to prescribe me Ativan or Adderall. I am going to run out of these drugs soon and do not know what to do, it's so hard to get in to any Psy doctor without waiting 4 to 6 weeks. HELP!!

You got to do what you got too like If you not happy with your doctor you have the right to switch .And those meds work then I would go too a doctor who dont mind giving you addrell .Belive me addrell is a good med for adhd it has work wonders for me.And I too suffer from real bad anxiety that they give me ativan as needed .You haveto know your body that works for you huggs keep posting