Can I take a survey?

I just realized last night that I have every one of the classic symptoms of ADD:

A sense of underachievement
Difficulty getting organized
Chronic procrastination or trouble getting started
Many projects going simultaneously; trouble with follow-through
Tendency to say what comes to mind without necessarily considering the timing or appropriateness of the remark
A frequent search for high stimulation
An intolerance of boredom
Easy distractibility, trouble focusing attention, tendency to tune out or drift away
Often creative, intuitive, highly intelligent
Trouble in going through established channels, following "proper" procedure.
Impatient; low tolerance for frustration
Impulsive, either verbally or in actions
Tendency to worry needlessly, endlessly
Sense of impending doom or insecurity
Mood swings, mood liability
Restlessness
Tendency toward addictive behavior
Chronic problems with self-esteem
Inaccurate self-observation

and I'd like to hear from some of you who have it and take medication.

Which med(s) do you take?
What are the side effects that you experience?
In what ways is your ADD lessened by the med?

And can anyone tell me whether you can even have ADD as an adult if you didn't have it as a child? Is there such a thing as Adult Onset ADD? Because I never had acute bursts of energy in the classroom or when I was a toddler, etc. My mother said I always had a consistent amount of high energy and was a very active, but not overactive child.

Looking forward to your feedback. I'm calling a doc tomorrow to get back on meds for my OCD and I am thinking I should get diagnosed for ADD and see how I should treat that. My mind is in high gear with these two disorders and I want it to slow the heck down before it crashes!

-k.

Get a second opinion, you may not have OCD just ADD, do you have OCD symptoms like having to do a task a certain number of times before you can move on? I was hyperactive as a child but you can have ADD and not have hyperactivity, we do grow out of our HA, if we had it, but not our ADD.

I just got diagnosed, I was scared I has some sort of OCD, but I don't!!!! I've been on ritalin for 2 weeks now and feel great!!!! I'm still not sure how much it is helping with some of the symptoms, but I feel better and can now starting WORKING on the symptoms. I do want to keep the "danger gene" though, I love adrenalin!!!!

I get a little dry mouth, I think, but I should drink more water anyway.

Todd

Hi Todd,

Thanks for replying. Yes, I definitely have OCD. Since I was a child I can remember having it and I'm 38 now. My obsession is that harm or death will come to someone I love or my pets. My compulsion is to touch something a certain number of times (3) to make the feeling go away and prevent the bad thing from happening. It's not debilitating or interruptive to my day-- I've made sure of that-- probably because of the ADD-- I need more interesting stimulation in my day instead of repetative rituals! I also obess over my behavior (did I say the wrong thing? will so-and-so not want to be my friend anymore because I'm blah blah blah?) and if it's something I think will happen, I do my little tapping thing to get rid of it. It used to be a head shake and it started off as a closet door thing, where the door had to be an inch open or something bad would happen. That was when I was 11.

Anyway, I don't want to go on too much about my OCD on the ADD thread, but I'm sure I have both. Today is the day I call a doctor.

So please everyone, give me your feedback on the meds! One thing I don't want is to be jittery or rushed out. I don't want to be on any speed type drug if it makes you feel all coked out like that. I want to be more mellow in life and I want my thoughts to sloooooooooooooow down.

Thanks,
-k.

Well the ritalin is working wonders for me, I feel great! I can sleep! I can focus much better now. I take a very small dose, no more than 30mg a day with 5mg pills. My doc said the purer the ADD the smaller the dose needed.

Anyone else care to give me their scoop? I'm still really convinced I have it, even if my T says I don't... I'm going to get the lowdown from a Psychiatrist and maybe even get some brain mapping done. Don't be shy, peeps. I really need all the inside info I can get on this. I went to a bookstore but only found 1 book on adult ADD and it was only somewhat helpful... thanks in ADDvance (heh heh)...

Hi K... I'm new at this too but like you I have almost all the classic symptoms... I have been on Prozac for years for all sorts of symptoms but the amazing thing is, since I started Adderall XR I don't need it...
I still have some symptoms even being on Adderall but I'm doing much better overall... incredible.. I worry about dependency etc on this drug. When they give me a prescription they act like it's a national treasure and I didnt really understand why. It seems the RX can't be refilled etc...
I can't find a lot of info on the whys and hows of what the big deal is, I guess I don't care but they won't mail an RX or call in it, I have to go get it... very odd...

Peg