Hello,
I'm brand new and I'm getting frustrated with trying to get a diagnosis of adult ADD. I'm 34 and I've had symptoms of ADD my entire life but just figured it was "normal" for me. Last summer my sister was diagnosed and started meds and it has changed her life. My primary physician will not prescribe ADD meds but put me on Lexapro after the birth of my 2nd daughter. I took it for almost 2 years but weaned myself off because I don't feel depressed. I saw a LCSW who confirmed I do not suffer from depression and diagnosed ADD. I then had to see a psychiatrist for an evaluation and for meds. She however, disagrees with the LCSW and diagnosed me hypo bipolar. The more I read about it, I know I'm not bipolar and I know in my heart that ADD is my problem. I have not started the meds she prescribed for bipolar, as I feel that is too drastic a med for having only met with the psychiatrist for 50 minutes. She refuses to address ADD until I do treatment for bipolar for 3 months.
I feel a 2nd opinion is in order. How do I find a doctor that specializes in adult ADD?
THanks!
boy have i been there!! i was on zoloft and welbutrin before finally getting to try some stims. the welbutrin actually caused me to have some strange depression/anxiety/or something episode and so i went to the doctor to try another med and he suggested that i had hypomania. i spent a month in a self-centered state trying to get answers and could not relate to ANY of the bi-polar information. i went back to see him after the meds. were completely out of my system and was able to explain things so much more clearly. we tried adderall but no insurance coverage. i'm currently on immediate release ritilin and LOVE it.
see another doctor. i just went to my primary care physician who is an Internal Medicine Doctor. it isn't necessary to go to a psychiatrist, but since you've already been to one, a regular doctor may want you to see another one for a second opinion.
doctors may want you to try welbutrin because it is an anti-dep. and it works for ADD. i would suggest to be willing to listen to them. it did help my add, but it simply wasn't the right medicine for me. GOOD LUCK.
It is unbelievable that there can be such ignorance in the medical community with Dr. refusing to treat ADD. ADD is one of the most reasearched and validated disorders in medicine and still there are Dr's out there who buy into the urban mythology that ADD is just a result of screwed up parenting.
Hopefully, Dr's of that type is becoming the exception.
The marketing of Stattera really did a lot for educating the public about ADD. Great job Lilly with your excellent marketing strategy! But, poor job with the medication you were marketing.
GO see a "shrink" they are far more qualified than your primary care Dr....Just say DOC I want a refferal!!! I bet if you look through the CHADD.COM site you can find info on DR's in your area who treat ADD. I have not a doubt in my mind my primary care DR would never of given me ritalin even after my 10th missed appointment( he is an old Indian guy if they have Saints he should be one )...what he did do was tell me to call the mental health portion of my plan and go get some...mental health lol
I am 35 and have been recently diagnosed with ADHD. I saw a primary physcian who then recommended me to a Psychiatrist. I have tried straterra, Ritalin and now I am on Adderall. Each of these one month trial drugs where samples given to me by my DR. This allowed me to try the drugs and find out which one works for me.
I am shocked that you DR will not give you the sample drugs to take to see if they will help you. Seek a second oppinion.
One suggestion is to go to WebMD and find a Phsychiatrist. Find out more about the physchiatrist before setting the appointment. Ask if you can speak to the Dr. and ask which top three disorders does he work with the most. You want one that specializes in ADHD. You can also call physicians and ask who they would recommend for treatment of ADHD and why. Each phsychiatrist has one area that they do really well and may have more of an interest. My Dr. is well known for treating ADHD patients in my area. Yours DR may be better know for the treatment of Biplor disorder.
Lastly speak up and stand up for what you believe. If you believe you have ADD let your DR. know how strongly you feel. Let her or him know that you would like to try ADHD medication. It's your life and the life of those you love that will be effected not the DR's.
I hope this helps. I am on Adderall and it has helped in the short time that I have been on it.
It's hard to find a general practician who can successfully diagnose something like that, I fear.Starting in 1994, my daughter was diagnosed, and I immediately had the rest of my family screened. I, too, was diagnosed, but, at 48, the Dr. felt I "had already outgrown it".
After two years, the symptoms became unbearable, and I heard about a psychiatrist who works with ADHD people. For 10 years, he has treated me reliably, with minimal fuss -- but all he does is medical, not psychological, case management. He accepts no insurance, but at least, the Adderall is paid for.
I would like to find a single physician who could address the simultaneous organic and physiological problems of the mind, as well as take into consideration the somatic aspects of the disease, which can affect the way we react to treatment.
After 10 years, I've now gotten a blood pressure spike, have been taken off Addreall, and am back to nothing at all....perhaps forever.
Nice knowing y'all -- by this time next year, I may be a vegetable....
richinnameonly38476.4253587963
Though she probably won't see this post, as her original post was in January... To me the most obvious solution is to see her sisters doctor.