Please help

I am currently a junior in college and have been suffering from undiagnosed ADHD since the 1st grade. I was having the same problem as i am currently having. I have excessive amounts of energy that just vibrates throughout me. I start projects all the time and can never find the motivation to finish them. I can't for the life of me focus on anything I'm not interested in. Most of the time it's like when I think, I'm not thinking at all. Like maybe I'm thinking so face I can't follow my own thoughts. And god-forbid i actually force myself to think about something my brain will go completely blank. It's very embarrassing. I forget things too often. For example I could be talking to anyone and right in the middle of the sentence I will get distracted or my mind will wander and that topic is no longer in my mind. I can't remember and it frustrated me a lot. Back in the 1st grade I didn't know what this was so I assumed I was stupid and gave up on school. So my mother thought that maybe it was my friends that were causing me to behave this was. Cause at 6 yrs old how do you explain this to your parents when you don't even understand. So my mother held me back and it was like magic. I started doing better in school but I still struggled with most of those problems. I even started reading at the request of the librarians at my elementary school and then volà here I am enrolling in college and having the same problem 12 years later except I don't know what to do. I have no idea how to maintain my ADHD. My therapist has given me adderall and it pretty much enhanced my ADHD I was all over the place ×3 and was only able to focus on subjects I was already interested in. Then she made me try Vyvanse and it made me feel as if I had bipolar disorder but it did calm me down. Although vyvanse worked too well, I was so mellowed out that I couldn't even motivate myself to do the work I enjoyed. The perfectionist inside of my would cry out because I was missing deadlines, not turning in assignments, and unable to motivate myself to go to class. The reason I am here is because I'm currently failing college from freshman year to now. I can't "experiment" with medication for another year because I now (in 5 days) will have a child that I will be breastfeeding. I have no other option but to seek online help. If anyone has any note, pointers, or anything i will happily try them out. Just please help me learn to manage my ADHD.

Hi diamondoldham

It is my understanding that medication is usually the first line of treatment doctors turn to when managing adult ADD. This said, I think that you need to find a specialist to definitively diagnose you, as the symptoms you describe could be a number of different things. Reaching a diagnosis of ADHD is usually very involved and may take a while.

I have been an active member of this site for more than 3 years. In that time I have received some really constructive feedback and connected with several others with similar challenges to myself. I have also found hanging out in the Games Forums to be a welcome distraction in times of stress... a great way to clear my head, meet like minded others, and have some well needed fun. New members also benefit greatly from perusing the many forums available here...lots to explore. Also after 5 approved posts members have the option to join the chatrooms..or chat one on one with other members. There are many good listeners here diamondoldham.. we're a pretty good bunch.

Should you have any questions on navigating this site, please don't hesitate to private message me or any of the other Community Liaisons who will be more than happy to help. Just click on the screen name above my avatar.

Please be kind & generous to yourself diamondoldham and welcome to P.C

i think you should also get a new diagnosis if that means anything to you, there are so many things out there it could be and a trained professional should be able to help-if you can get one.

I agree with the above posters - a definitive diagnosis would be a good start.

I am currently trying to treat my ADHD without prescription medication. Honestly, getting enough sleep is an important thing for me as well as exercise. It helps to get rid of some of the excess energy I have. If you are trying to do homework or something, fidget toys can be helpful. Lists are your best friend in terms of trying to keep track of things you need to get done during the day. A calendar/planner is good for keeping track of appointments. Sometimes, I just take a piece of paper at the beginning of the day and write down all of the things I have that day, hour by hour. So that I can literally just follow the itinerary as the day goes on.

My pdoc told me that there is some research to show that Omega-3s have shown some effectiveness in helping with inattention. I am not a doctor so I would speak to your OBGYN or doctor about whether its safe to take during pregnancy/breastfeeding but it's a natural supplement that you can buy at any vitamin store or pharmacy. I personally haven't tried it because I'm allergic to seafood but he said that there is literature to support its effectiveness.

Sorry I don't have any magic trick for you. Congrats on your baby though!