[SingDanceRunLife]

I'm bringing this up for a few reasons, one of which is that when I saw my T today, for the first time ever in the time she has known me (about 6 years), she said my attention difficulties might be bipolar related, but they also might actually be ADHD. The second is that I am seeing my pdoc tomorrow, so the timing is actually great.

Let me just say, FINALLY my bipolar isn't being blamed as the one and only culprit. It gets really annoying when everyone just thinks that is the reason for pretty much all my mental health issues without even considering other possibilities.

So...my question is, how do I bring this up and talk about the possibility of trying medication to improve my attention span and reduce my fidgeting? I'm actually kind of nervous about it because I don't know how my pdoc will react, especially since it will probably seem like it is coming out of the blue, and my most recent bipolar episode was a mixed one...

Any suggestions?

Thanks!!

[pegasus]

Hello SingDanceRunLife,

Well, you can say that you had therapy recently and tell him that your therapist has suggested that it might be the case. Then you can talk about your symptoms. It might help to take this quiz and print out the results to show the psychiatrist Adult ADD Screening Test and there are other tests here Psychological Tests and Quizzes

Good luck.

[SingDanceRunLife]

Thanks. I have taken this and other quizzes before and I score fairly high on them. Too bad half the symptoms also fit with bipolar episodes, both mania and depression...all too often I get "it's because you're depressed/manic." I feel like though if it's all the time, it's probably not because of depression or mania.

[Restin]

If your T isn't allowed to write prescriptions, the procedure is for you to tell the Pdoc the recommendation and the Pdoc calls your T for collaboration on the meds. I wouldn't be worried at all about telling the pdoc as they generally don't care a flip about mental stuff, don't want to talk about it very much with you, and will prescribed what your therapist recommends.
If you go to a mental health clinic to see your T, the clinic usually has a special nurse that writes all prescriptions for bi-polar, and such.

[SingDanceRunLife]

My T can't write prescriptions, and my pdoc is nothing like what you said!!

Both my T and pdoc are independent, but they have worked with each other for many years. The reason I have this pdoc is that. My T recommended her to me when I needed a pdoc in town, not in the city where I went to college.

My pdoc not only spends time talking and listening, she also doesn't push any meds on you and lets you have a say in your treatment. A good example of this is how I'm no longer on Viibryd and am on Zoloft. I specifically asked to be taken off Viibryd and she asked if there was any particular med that I wanted from past experience, and there was. My T has literally nothing to do with my meds! she just knows what I'm on and how much. Beyond that, she doesn't touch that zone at all.

[cool09]

I can really relate. I've had a mood disorder since my teens and I've had issues with concentration (scattered and poor), distractability, oversensitivity, irritability. I never knew if any of this was related to the mood disorder (and no Dr ever questioned me about this stuff).

I told my Doc several yrs ago that as a Junior in college I had problems taking tests and got two D's and two F's that semester. My Doc asked me some other questions about my reading, etc. He carefully thought about it and prescribed some psycho-stimulants (adderall, ritalin, etc.) to improve my irritability. Recently, I've had a really good response to ritalin and it feels like concentration, mood have fallen into place.

Tell your Dr about anything that is troubling you and causing inner turmoil. Manic-depression overlaps with many other disorders and Doctors usually overlook this.

I'm assuming you did actually see your pdoc, but I'll offer this:

I'm not sure what insurance you have but if it is covering psych stuff, it may cover a neuropsych assessment if you are referred properly. If you are really sure there is something else going on but your pdoc isn't so convinced and you reach an impasse, maybe see if you can be referred for a neuropsych exam.

It may clear up some things.

[SingDanceRunLife]

I did see her, and she brushed it off, blaming the BP. Oh well. It would really matter if I were in school full time, but since I'm not, I guess I'll just continue with things how they've always been.

[bmoe73]

My tdoc recommended that I be put on adhd meds. She wrote s letter to my pdoc explaining why. My pdoc reluctantly put me on the adhd meds. Well...it was a disaster. My bipolar started to act up on both fronts. I came off of pretty wuickly

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[pegasus]

Hello bmoe73,

I presume your doc put you on a stimulant which is possibly why it affected you the way it did. There are other treatments for ADHD see here >>>> Medications Used in the Treatment of Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder | Psych Central

and also Medications to Treat ADHD - ADD/ADHD Center - Everyday Health

Talk to your pdoc and T again and see what they can come up with, sometimes you have to try different things to find the right combination.

[bmoe73]

My pdoc didnt want to put me on it. I asked her to switch me to adderall but she said I needed to be stabilized with the bp first. I will b switching pdoc soon and may try some different combo then. My current pdoc doesnt want to switch my meds especially since I refuse to take seroquel

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