[sideblinded]

I was diagnosed with ADHD (combined type-impulsive/hyperactive) by one pdoc and one therapist BUT I do not believe that any of my other doctors or new therapist believe that I either have it OR they just do not care.

Reasons I believe that they do not care:

1) I am not in school.
2) I have depression/ generalized anxiety/ insomnia.
3) I am an older adult.

I am one of the unlucky ones who still has the hyperactivity component.

Ritalin IR...... (lasted too short and the crash was hard)
Adderall IR and XR....(IR- madderall for me)(XR-I hyper-focused and lost track of time)

I am still untreated.

DX: Depression, GAD, PTSD, Insomnia

Are you having a hard time getting help for Adult ADHD?

I've been trying to get my PCP to diagnose and treat mine so I don't have to wait so long for an appointment, get to know the pdoc, etc. He concurred it would take too long and my hyperactivity is interfering with my sleep. I was diagnosed when I was 18 but being older now, I'm being met with resistance. I tried Ritalin and had *horrific* side effects. Anyway, the answer I got was "take it or leave it". So its left. Pdocs here are booked 6 months out, so..I feel for you and am sorry you're having a hard time

[sideblinded]

Originally Posted by KaraD

I've been trying to get my PCP to diagnose and treat mine so I don't have to wait so long for an appointment, get to know the pdoc, etc. He concurred it would take too long and my hyperactivity is interfering with my sleep. I was diagnosed when I was 18 but being older now, I'm being met with resistance. I tried Ritalin and had *horrific* side effects. Anyway, the answer I got was "take it or leave it". So its left. Pdocs here are booked 6 months out, so..I feel for you and am sorry you're having a hard time

Wow, do you have the hyperactive/impulsive type? Why are doctors so against treating adults with ADHD? I had it since I was a child. I got overlooked as far as a diagnosis. Now it is ridiculous to find a doctor who wants to treat it.

I am sorry that you are having trouble getting help. It is such a shame.

Yep my regular doc diagnosed me as ADHD compounded with hyperactivity disorder. Not sure if that's different from hyperactive ADHD but..*shrugs* I think because its not profitable for drs to treat it or maybe they just don't care. Good caring docs are hard to find. Then again, I look for the conspiracy theory in a lot of things keeps me entertained. Not really sure why its hard for drs. Maybe its because they aren't familiar enough with it?

[sideblinded]

ADHD is the big word.

ADD is just the inattentive type.

ADHD (combined can be any of three attention, impulsivity or hyperactivity) (DSM)

Dr. Daniel Amen has done some brain imaging on ADHD. Many docs and therapists think he is a quack. I am just glad that some docs are taking an interest in ADD and ADHD.

He has broken ADHD into 7 subtypes. His link is below.

Attention Deficit Disorder ADD/ADHD - Amen Clinics

Gotcha. That explains why it says ADHD and not the whole thing written out on my Dr's notes

[ombrétwilight]

Originally Posted by sideblinded

Wow, do you have the hyperactive/impulsive type? Why are doctors so against treating adults with ADHD? I had it since I was a child. I got overlooked as far as a diagnosis. Now it is ridiculous to find a doctor who wants to treat it.

I am sorry that you are having trouble getting help. It is such a shame.

Yes the p-docs here seem resistant to diagnosing adult ADD as well. I was brought to see one when I was 5 for ADHD but he was away on lunch break so I didn't ever get diagnosed. All my life I've wondered why I was "different" and somehow lesser than my peers and now I think of what my life could have been if I had been treated early. My ex-T and current T both told me to get checked (for other MI as well) so I got a referral from a GP to see a p-doc, but he MISSED OUT the ADD and wrote BP and OCD instead, the latter which I already know I have. At the p-doc I mentioned that he was supposed to write ADD rather than OCD but she ignored me and re-diagnosed me with OCD and BP I asked my T who was there with ome whether I should bring it up again and she said no, so up till now I still don't know for sure if I am ADD.

[sideblinded]

ombrétwilight, Are you still fairly young? Your story really makes me angry at the ignorance that most professionals have when it comes to ADD or ADHD. We really have to be assertive with doctors when it comes to this disorder. I am positive that I have ADHD as I have the tell-tale signs. I just have to be assertive with my NP this week. I am not going to give up and neither should you.

[ombrétwilight]

Originally Posted by sideblinded

ombrétwilight, Are you still fairly young? Your story really makes me angry at the ignorance that most professionals have when it comes to ADD or ADHD. We really have to be assertive with doctors when it comes to this disorder. I am positive that I have ADHD as I have the tell-tale signs. I just have to be assertive with my NP this week. I am not going to give up and neither should you.

I'll turn 19 this year (so I'm fairly young!) I've always had the mortal fear that my Ts will see me as fishing for a label, so I could never be assertive enough with the p-docs. I'm afraid of being viewed as an attention-seeker who suggests dx and the like to gain sympathy or something. I guess it has to do with not wanting to seem needy, which means I find it very hard to ask for help or accept what's offered to me.

The GP was actually quite empathetic because he shared that he too suffered from depression, but that was perhaps why he got caught up with the depression part and missed out on the ADD. He diagnosed me with depression and wrote suspected BP on the letter. How the OCD came about was that I was explaining that my OCD ironically prevented my second attempt, but he said "Well we'll see about that." and wrote OCD on the referral letter (because I think he thought I self-diagnosed).

The p-doc frankly intimidated me quite a bit. She seemed like a foreign doctor from India because we lack mental health professionals here and kept asking me questions to things I did not say. I lied after I realised that she wanted to call my parents. WTF?? I am an adult and I told her as much, but she said that I was only legal when I turned 21. I had the good sense to give her my number instead of my mum's and she said she would call again in the afternoon when no one answered, but she never did because I think she realised she wasn't supposed to in the first place.

Well sorry for rambling but I wanted to illustrate the fact that I completely agree regarding the incompetence or nonchalance of professionals. You should not even join this field if you have no genuine interest in the welfare of your patients! I feel like a lot of these doctors become increasingly sceptical as they grow in experience. I have a nagging feeling some believe adults who seek an ADD diagnosis are just lazy but want to justify themselves.

[sideblinded]

wow ombrétwilight, you actually have an empathetic GP. That is great. Sorry to hear about your pdoc. Yeah, I hear you. I agree that docs are not well read or versed when it comes to ADHD or ADD. I am not so sure that docs thinks we are lazy, I think they think that we just want to use the stimulants to get high or use them to lose weight. Isn't that sad.

[Trimethylxantine]

Hello side, dont think I'm a spammer please :/ ( as i commented a lot today) but I dont think its correct for your "other docs" not to care or examine ADHD further, as many of us present insomnia and anxiety problems just as you, in fact my self took for a serious period of time melatonin to cope with the sleep issues, and i know many others that still do it.

So, they might be influed in some way by the fact people are worried about over diagnosing, and over medication, which i still dont understand, leading to more and more doctors not to give a f*** for actually people affected with this disorder.
So in many legit cases, as your self, doctors just dont want to sign up a paper for an ADHD medication, because that can be identified as "non serious medical practice" because this media issued i said before.
Talking about your experience with ritalin and amph, those frequently help, but, there are other options such as atomoxetine, but if you have liver problems you should forget about what i said. In case of farmacological approach being a failure ( due to your age, as you descrbied) you should consider herb and supplement aid, it is far less effective, but it has been shown to improve somewhat ADD issues.
Sorry for being an spammer and hope any doc to take seriously your ADHD problem, as it can be very problematic and frustrating for the patient :/

[Trimethylxantine]

reading more about your problems with psychiatrist who dont want to listen to what you have to say, i have to tell I once got in a verbal fight with one of them, because he was clearly humiliating me, treating me as a junkie who wanted to perform better at college, and who was not suffering any condition at all. It takes TIME and effort, in a way that goes beyond what it is fair, to find a good doctor, never give up, may some day someone take seriously what you have to say, but it takes money, time, patience, and re-telling your story over and over again, until you finally find someone who is willing to help.

[sideblinded]

Originally Posted by Trimethylxantine

reading more about your problems with psychiatrist who dont want to listen to what you have to say, i have to tell I once got in a verbal fight with one of them, because he was clearly humiliating me, treating me as a junkie who wanted to perform better at college, and who was not suffering any condition at all. It takes TIME and effort, in a way that goes beyond what it is fair, to find a good doctor, never give up, may some day someone take seriously what you have to say, but it takes money, time, patience, and re-telling your story over and over again, until you finally find someone who is willing to help.

Thank you very much. I see my new prescriber tomorrow and I am going to bring up my dx of ADHD and I will see what happens. At the moment I am a little depressed but hopeful that she will listen to what I have to say. I will keep you posted.

[Trimethylxantine]

I truly wish you have luck in your appointment

[sideblinded]

New prescriber (NP) accepted my ADHD dx from previous pdoc. Yeaaayyy!!

I took in the prescription bottle so she gave me no trouble.

This is such good news. I believe that she knew I was not seeking stimulants as I told her my symptoms and let her decide what to prescribe me. After she ok'd the previous prescription that was Adderall 7.5 IR, I asked her to lower the dosage and make it XR and she agreed. I told her that the 7.5 mg IR was too strong as it made me a little irritable and it lasted too short of time so she wrote a script for 5 mg Adderall XR. We will see if I need 5 mg IR for the rest of the evening. Since I am an older adult I only need a low dose.

Great news!!

[Trimethylxantine]

Great news. Keep going, ADHD is an everyday fight, im glad to hear your new doc trusted you, the hardest part it is done, now you have cleansed the path to improve. Im very happy for you

[pinkflower17]

Originally Posted by sideblinded

I was diagnosed with ADHD (combined type-impulsive/hyperactive) by one pdoc and one therapist BUT I do not believe that any of my other doctors or new therapist believe that I either have it OR they just do not care.

Reasons I believe that they do not care:

1) I am not in school.
2) I have depression/ generalized anxiety/ insomnia.
3) I am an older adult.

I am one of the unlucky ones who still has the hyperactivity component.

Ritalin IR...... (lasted too short and the crash was hard)
Adderall IR and XR....(IR- madderall for me)(XR-I hyper-focused and lost track of time)

I am still untreated.

DX: Depression, GAD, PTSD, Insomnia

Are you having a hard time getting help for Adult ADHD?

Have you tried any of the non-stimulant meds for ADHD? Strattera, Wellbutrin? The Wellbutrin might treat your depression as well. Your doctors aren't crazy for being hesitant to prescribe an older adult stimulant meds. They're rough on the heart among other things. There's tons of literature out there on this. The reason so many docs are hesitant to prescribe stimulants are because they are commonly abused, very, very commonly. Not saying you would, but don't fault your doctor for being cautious.

[sideblinded]

Originally Posted by pinkflower17

Have you tried any of the non-stimulant meds for ADHD? Strattera, Wellbutrin? The Wellbutrin might treat your depression as well. Your doctors aren't crazy for being hesitant to prescribe an older adult stimulant meds. They're rough on the heart among other things. There's tons of literature out there on this. The reason so many docs are hesitant to prescribe stimulants are because they are commonly abused, very, very commonly. Not saying you would, but don't fault your doctor for being cautious.

Thanks for your comments and concerns as I have not necessarily decided that a stimulant is right for me. I have insomnia and some of the AD's like Wellbutrin and Strattera can cause sleep issues. I am only giving Adderall 5 mg XR a trial. I am well aware of the side effects as I was in medicine and I researched stimulants. I am ready to try something else if the stimulant is not right. My docs trust me and I really haven't had much problem about just letting me try it except for one pdoc who was more worried about increased HR and I can understand that.

[pinkflower17]

Originally Posted by sideblinded

Thanks for your comments and concerns as I have not necessarily decided that a stimulant is right for me. I have insomnia and some of the AD's like Wellbutrin and Strattera can cause sleep issues. I am only giving Adderall 5 mg XR a trial. I am well aware of the side effects as I was in medicine and I researched stimulants. I am ready to try something else if the stimulant is not right. My docs trust me and I really haven't had much problem about just letting me try it except for one pdoc who was more worried about increased HR and I can understand that.

It's nice to see someone who's willing to try something other than stimulants. Just as a side note, a lot of stimulants cause insomnia as well. I don't know if you've thought about immediate release or shorter acting meds, but they may help you avoid the insomnia associated with the stimulants. Good luck. I really hope you find something that works for you. It seems like you have a great team, and you're willing to work with them to find the right med combo.

[KEB1990]

ADHD as a Adult can be a living nightmare. Funny thing is I think its got worse for me in the teams I can't focus and get mad easy. I got a bad habit of not taking my meds right. Mine's from pure forgetfulness . Anyway I 'm glad you found a good combo that works for you.