Newbie with ADHD | ADHD Information

  So happy for you!

To be oficially dx'd as ADHD, you must have exibited some of the symptoms before age 7. Ask your parents and people who knew you then, to look at a chart of symptoms and tell you whether they noticed any. I would guess that you were active, creative, talkative and very intelligent. Let me know if I am right.

Sometimes ADHD doesn't seem to negatively impact a person's life until college or young adulthood when the stresses and demands on your life change. The fact that you had no major problems with school, which was structured and did have problems keeping jobs even as a teen would fit in with that, whether you quit out of boredom or couldn't handle the job.

I'm not a professional, but I do think you manifest enough symptoms to warrent going to a psychiatrist who is skilled in dx'ing to be tested.

You need to talk to a doctor about this--probably a psychiatrist. Mine was initially willing to try several drugs with me until discovering I have heart problems. Only a psychiatrist or psychologist can officially diagnose you and only a physician can prescribe medication. It sounds like you'd like to give medication a try to see if it will make a positive difference for you.

My recommendation would be to talk to your family physician and go from there.

I actually went to the neurologist that my friend saw and he gave me a couple of tests, and talked to me about my history, etc.  He actually said similar things as you regarding lifes stresses, etc, and said that there probably are cases where it is just not recognized as a child, but surfaces once "real life" begins.  To answer your question, yes, I was very active, though not hyper, and I was pretty intelligent, and very talkative, and always felt I could help people with their problems by just talking to them.  The creative part I don't know about.  Anyways, I told the Dr. about taking an adderall XR and the effects it had on me, but that I couldn't get sleep that night, the neurologist felt that I had enough symptoms to be dx with add/adhd, and prescirbed the adderall 20 MG once a day, so it would wear off by night time, and I have to go to see him again in a month to give him a progress report.  I feel like the person I'm suppose to be so far.  Good luck and thanks for the response. 

When you said that you were self dx'd, we took your  post as questioning whether you should go for an official dx.

Its great that you are finally getting the help you need and want!

 Hello, I am new to the board and also to the adhd world.  I apologize that this is a long post, but if you could read it, I would really appreciate it.  I have read just about every post on this forum, and have to say I really don't know if anyone really knows the truth about adult adhd.  I am a 29 year old male who has just recently been (self) diagnosed with adhd.  I actually did tons of research on it for weeks after I talked to a friend who has had it since she was little and said I should. These are the symptoms I have:  difficulty concentrating on one thing at a time, great difficulty remembering peoples names just 30 minutes after meeting them, difficulty remembering things my wife has asked me to do for her, spacing out whenever someone is talking, or finishing their sentences for them.  Coming home from work in the morning and thinking I have so much to do, but don't know exactly what, and I don't know where to start.  An overall feeling that no matter how much I do, there is always so much more to do.  I have many of the other symptoms that go along with add/adhd, as well, but some are more prevalent that others.  I am a happy person and don't have many of the symptoms that go along with depression, or anxiety other than what is caused by the other symptoms.  I pretty much told my friend that I felt I may have the same thing going on, so she let me take one of her adderall XR's and told me to see what it did for me, then go to her neuroligist and speak to him.  I took the adderall with some reservations, and I have to tell you, it made me feel like I haven't felt in years after just one dose.  It was almost like I was waking up after years of going in circles with my mind.  I immediately started remembering things during the day a lot better.  I started to reflect on my life as being the good life it is, I started to feel like listening to people, and talking while looking at them and focusing while they where saying something instead of just shaking my head and straying.  I felt like I had a plan for every thing I had to do that day, including cleaning the house, errands, etc, and wondered what was so hard about that before.  I was in a better mood, and had a lot more patience with things that normally would have made me stir crazy.  I could go on and on about what it did, but most of you probably already know that.  Here's the problem I have:  I never was diagnosed with adhd as a child or adolecent.  My parents are not diagnosed with add/adhd, though I feel my mom has some of both, and my dad more of the add part, because a big one they do is interrupt people or just space out when you're talking to them, and you can tell they're not paying attention, along with some of the other symptoms, although not as many as me, at least I don't know about them.   Also, my mom has always done things at a million miles a minute.  That could be or not, I don't know.  My dad has the attention problem, and also when I was real young lived on the edge a lot, but has since calmed that part of his problem, for him, the attention is the main problem.  They are both 2 of the best people you could ever meet though and I have been told that many times.  Like I said, I never was diagnosed in the past, and don't know of any history in my family, so I don't know if that part pertains to me.  The only thing I can remember of my school years, is having a hard time with some subjects because they just couldn't keep me interested, and also not getting homework done on a consistent basis due to putting it off.  I also in high school and my early 20's went from job to job enough to break Guiness records I believe.  Now I finally have settled into a career (fire/ems) which in some ways helps the adhd, because even though some times are slow, I never have to worry about doing the same thing two shifts in a row, and never know what is going to happen any given day.  I beleive it actually takes someone with a certain amount of add/adhd to do this job.  What I don't understand is how all the sudden I feel like I have found the answer to whatever problem I have had for a while now, and haven't been able to put my finger on what it was.  Could it have been the drug experimentation while in my late teens, early 20's?  Ecstasy, LSD, opiates?  I have read where mdma and lsd can really affect the way your brain works, so I don't know, if I have had it all along and that just brought it out more, or what.  I only started noticing it after those years, and also after the birth of my daughter 4 years ago.  I really have been a different person since then and I haven't really enjoyed the person that was most of the time.  I feel very bad that there are probably things that I have put my wife or anyone else through what they definitely haven't deserved, and I am looking forward to being able to be the person I really am.  I guess I just don't trust all the medical insight which says you have to have had it as a child or in your family history, because that really doesn't pertain to me, unless I really have had it and just have been able to hide it my whole life or something.  I wish I did more research on this years ago though.  Also, I may just think this because I think I am adhd, but I really don't think there is much wrong with having it, if you can handle it correctly either with meds or counseling or whatever, and also I believe that if more people were educated about add/adhd, they would find they have a lot of the symptoms that go along with it, I know a lot of people close to me have some of it.  lol  Can anyone give me any insight of what I am going through right now?  I realize some will say I couldn't have possibly not had it as a kid, but I really don't think I did.  I believe mine for what ever reason, showed up between ages 18-24 or 25 or so.  Again I am so sorry for the long post, but if you asked anyone that knows me, they will say that this is how I was a long time ago.  Looking forward to anyones input.  Good luck to all with managing your gift.  lol      adhdfirefighter38625.2897337963No, I originally self diagnosed myself through research, but then went and saw who I needed.  Did any one else feel like their eyes were opened for the first time in a long time once they seeked help either through meds or whatever worked.  I feel like I have been sleeping through life the last 5-6 years.  What an awakening.  Whatever the reasons, no one will ever know, but I obviously was missing something in my brain that I needed, and now I can be the person I know I was before I "went to sleep".  Thanks for the posts.

I was never diagnosed ADHD when I was young.  I had a hard time concentrating on cleaning my room.  I would get lost in all the stuff I had stuck in my desk.

As far as school went - I was a straight A student - nobody would have ever thought that I was ADD.  I think that stucture of school really helped me.  But when I was out of school and had to take care of a house, pay bills, take care of kids, run my own business, etc., I have a hard time focusing and staying on task.

The medication helped me like you described.  I felt like I was coming out of a fog, like I was putting glasses on for the first time and actually seeing the tiny twigs on the trees.  It was amazing to me.

Now I use an exercise program that really helps me.  I believe my ADD was caused by my not crawling as a baby.  I had casts on my legs for pigeon toes.  The exercises are supposed to mature a reflex that everyone has as a baby and that some of us mature and others don't.  Anyway, these exercises have helped me sooooo much.  I can even hold a conversation with my husband and COME BACK to what I was talkign about a minute ago.  I remember things!!  It is awesome for me.

You mean I am not lazy, stupid, or crazy? by Kate Kelly

what a great title. hooray. i am going to add that to my list of
books to get.

adhdfirefighter-I am 38 and was not diagnosed til I was 37.  I, too, self diagnosed myself when I started comparing my own behavior to the forms I had to fill out for my students.  I kept thinking, hmmm...I do that and that.  So then for a year after that I thought if I just try hard enough, I can live without letting my ADHD get me down.  A year later, more exhausted than ever I realized that I needed help.  I then went to my doc with my info and she too felt I needed to try meds.  I remember being so happy because finally there was a reason for me!

Now after being on meds for a year, I will never go off them.  I say meds because I also suffer from depression.  A great book I read is You mean I am not lazy, stupid, or crazy? by Kate Kelly and Peggy Ramundo.  In that book, it gave me the best definiton of ADHD I have ever heard.  A person with ADD/HD lives with all of the "raido stations" on at once.  Everything is coming into our brains at once like listening to more than one radio station at once.  Now that I am on meds, I live with managable radio stations. 

So, you are not alone!  More and more adults are discovering that they are ADD/HD.  Take it one day at a time.  We are here for you.

 

You're in good company here!  We all have common faults and common mannerisms but it's always a little different.

I too felt like I was "waking up" after a bad dream.  I reckon it like the "manchurian candidate" in reverse - like I was hypnotised at age 5 and just snapped out of it when put on meds.  Very big difference - I've had to learn things everyday people take for granted.

I agree with barb - the diagnosis of ADHD pretty much requires that you had it before age 7.  You did if you have it now - but possibly you had parents and teachers who were geared to take on and aid a hyper, spirited kid with troubles.  I've seen ADHD kids who would drain my big batteries in 50 seconds flat - who were with parents who seemed totally unphased by it all.  It is a good idea to ask your parents to think about you in your preteen years and see if they can remember you having ADHD symptoms.  It is part of getting your history in order and it does help you move forward.

You'll also find most of us here discovered our ADHD in our late 30s.  I was amazed at first but it makes sense - we tend to be the ones to take the longest time with anything - so why not self discovery? LOL

Welcome - and be sure to take advantage to the nearly bottomless well of resourceful people here.  It sure helps!

 

- Glen

It was an awakening when my husband was finally diagnosed and given meds.  It was amazing the difference in him when he took the medication.  Unfortunately he stopped taking them.  I think the inital buzz wore off after adderall was in his system for a while- so he didn't think they were working, but that was when they were working the best.  I have been trying to get him to go back on adderall but not having any luck - and I just can't quite figure out why he is so against it - well that's my problem - you sound like you have gotten it together - and that is GREAT!!

Keep seeing the Dr and try the meds (even if you have to juggle strengths or types)  they will help you - keep it up - it is so nice to hear someone wanting and determined to make it work - work!. 

 

 

Oh - and your post wasn't to long - how else can you explain whats going on without giving the details - thanks so much for sharing!its incredible how many ppl are not looking more at adhd..
there are many adults out there who are going through extreme suffering and yet believe that its because they are just lazy.. 

at least you are trying to get on top of it...

all the best
"They are both 2 of the best people you could ever meet though and I have been told that many times."

definitely add-ers then!

well done for finding a way to cope with your add.  it is very heart-warming to hear.  i think you are right --- some jobs just suit add-ers and finding them can make all the difference!

ps (there isn't an extra tax for spaces/paragraphs ya know, in case you were worrying about that )


i new here and would like to post more later - i was just recently told by a doctor i have AHDD