ANYONE | ADHD Information

I would rather have ADD like the rest of my family instead of diabetes (my cross to bear). ADD may be scarry but it is not life threatening, see the doctor. I live with two that are the loves in my life.careful..... I do that too....try to change everything at once? yeah it's too much to handle all at once, choose ONE item that's particularly important and work on that first....

Due process sucks but sometimes It's necessary...

Dear Self,

I’m sorry that I haven’t spoke to you since the first time I saw you the other day in the bathroom mirror. I hope you understand, I haven’t been avoiding you on purpose, its just I was shocked to see you, after nearly 30 years, what a time you picked. You see, I always thought I knew who you were, the ME in the mirror. But since learning who you really are, I have had to come to terms with the fact that I am who you are. I’m scared, I don’t mind admitting that because I know you wont tell anyone, because I know that I have to stop lying to you, I have to be a honest dog to you from now till we die. Do me a favour though mate, if there is any more bombshells like this in the future, either tell me straight away, or never tell me at all. My wife knows who you are and she didnt even tell me, even though you annoy her most of every day. She kept your secret because she loves me. I know what your thinking, that might not always be enough?? just the fact that she loves me?? well I dont even know the answer to that, I suppose I never will, but if I try hard and you help me too, maybe we can keep her around. So stop fooling around all the time, stop lying, stop pinching and hiding her stuff, stop laughing at people who you want to embarrass, stop thinking that the worlds going to end any minute, stop losing everything you own, stop forgeting about the bills, stop fidgeting when she is trying to relax and watch a movie, stop spending all your time on the computer, stop day dreaming when she is trying to tell you about her day at work, try to concentrate on one thing at a time, I know its hard, just try, and try to remember things, she feels very loved when you remember the little things, try to make love to her more often, make her KNOW that when this baby comes out, you can be a dad, not another kid to look after. If you try, she will see you trying.

Im only asking you to try, please Self, try for her.

"jester":

I agree with what Todd said about going to the doctor.

But also, along with Todd's suggestion, what I would do next is READ!

Go to the library and find books about ad/hd in adults and read, read, read, read, and then read some more. These books can help you "find yourself" and also you can find lots of tips in them to help you. (Although, the best help is from your doctor, as he can give you a "personally customized" treatment plan and tell you exactly what treatment options would work best for you personally....)

And don't worry about whether your not you have it. If you DO have it, then guess what? YOU'RE ONE OF US!! WHAT COULD BE MORE GREATER THAN THAT? And then you could come to this forum and chat with us all the time!!! Don't think of having it as "bad" it is actually fun to have it at times!!!

sonya_h38476.3578819444

hello everyone

not sure if this is the right place for me, my wife thinks i have ADHD, we watched a program on it and she said that i was worse than the guy it was about. then i did a questionaire, came back as severe tendencies toward ADHD. since all that me and my wife have been more open and she has told me how much of a nightmare i really am, so i brought my brother and sister-in-law into the topic and, after some persuasion to be totally honest, they said i was a nightmare too. they all agree that i am loved and cared for, but i dont think that is enough for me, i darent go to the doctors cos from what i have read, he is going to say i have it. then i have to admit to myself that i have it. im not sure why im even writing in here cos im not sure what i want an answer to. i feel like a burden to everyone that loves me, they have all told me now how i constantly act like a child, outbursts of humour at the wrong times, impatience, everything, the list goes on. i guess what im trying to ask is, what do i do next??? anyone feel free to talk to me, im pretty nice person.

Zach

If you have the symptoms, and if other people are telling you they think you do also, then why not go to the doctor? It will only make you feel better. There's nothing to be embarassed about. If you broke your leg, or need stitches or something you'd go to the doctor wouldn't you?

Hi Zach.

A scary discovery, isn't it? Soon, however, you will probably find it's a relief to have a reason for all the things that have gone wrong over the years - I know I did. I wanted to go back through time and shout to everybody: "Hey! I'm not an ar**hole after all! I have a disability!"

Forums such as this are a great help, when you can talk to people who can relate to you.

Oh, and don't worry about the doctor telling you you have it - if you're in the UK he'll almost certainly tell you you haven't got it because only kids get it. We have a real fight on our hands to get help for this condition over here.

Mark -

Mark Goode38476.0732060185I don't see my ADHD as a disability anymore.. i did do so at the very start (many, many years ago, when the verges of ADHD were just being touched upon) even if it wasn't called ADHD yet.

I see my ADHD as an asset that helps me in my work, i can process massive amounts of information at mind boggling speeds.. i deal with a large number of VERY large projects (some lasting more than a decade) and am in charge of around 1500 people in my daily work environment.

I complete things at a much faster pace than my direct coworkers, and thanks to the Adderall XR i take, i am perfectly capable of communicating with my engineers.

To become positive about the ADHD situation, you have to determine how it 'enhances' your skills, and then put those skills to work.. trust me, you'll get a large amount of self-esteem and most of all, you'll be able to be very succesful.

All it takes is time and effort.. but, as they say, every cloud has a silver lining, and i discovered that my particular ADHD's silver lining is MUCH bigger than the cloud i used to see.

[QUOTE=Hemmie]I don't see my ADHD as a disability anymore.. i did do so at the very start (many, many years ago, when the verges of ADHD were just being touched upon) even if it wasn't called ADHD yet.
[/QUOTE]

That's about where we are now in Merrie England I'm afraid. I'm surprised they don't try to treat it with leeches here.

Undiagnosed and untreated ADHD is almost always a severe disadvantage for the sufferer. You say with diagnosis and treatment it can become a strength?

I sincerely hope you are right, I'm only about 18 months down the path towards treatment, and there's a way still to go.

Mark -

I guess they're a little easier here in the USA with diagnosis and treatment.. however, i was initially diagnosed with hyperactivity more than 20 years ago in The Netherlands (where i was born and raised).. that resulted in 8 years of therapy at a nut house (i was actually in the same 'classes' as the actual nuts, which i don't mean badly, as these people were well beyond being 'strange').. This didn't help one single bit with my 'condition'.

As said, the doc adviced my parents to try a new medication, something similar to Ritalin.. and man, that worked miracles.. i went through college so easily that it wasn't funny anymore.. and on top of that.. i actually managed to keep girlfriends around for longer than a week :)

The Adderall XR i take now had some MAJOR side-effects in the first two weeks, but they gradually disappeared, and even if i have some 'off-days' now, overall i am doing a LOT better on it than i did on the Ritalin/Paxil combination.

I am sad to hear that the UK is still so far behind with all this.

I have indeed been able (after much 'self-searching' and such) to turn around my feelings about the disorder from feeling sorry for myself to been damned happy that i actually have it. As said, it takes a LOT of time and effort.. and without support from others around you, it's probably pretty much impossible.. my wife has put up with a LOT over the years and stuck by me. She still doesn't entirely understand what is up with me, but she's learned to deal with my lesser quirks.

However, i do feel that without medical treatment, this would have been as impossible as walking on the surface of the sun.. I thank my personal God (science) for those who perform endless research and design medications to help me and others like me. There is no doubt that without those people, i wouldn't be where i am today. (working my dream job, being able to afford almost everything i want, a great wife, etc)
Hemmie38476.1581481481

Hi all

first of all, thanx for all the replies. what i think i have gathered from all of them is this... if i have got it, the doc will probably say i havent. even if he says i have, he wont give me any medication for it. then there is me, little old me, back in this circle of pissing people off constantly and ruining everything, forgetting everything, losing everything, jumping from tiny stepping stones of genius to massive ponds of idiocy without the slightest of an idea which one im going to land on and how long im going to be able to balance on it. is anyone here actually living in UK and on medication?

thanx again everyone for replying.

Jester

If you do get diagnosed ADD and they won't give you meds maybe try strong caffeine. Before I tried Ritalin I drank two cups strong coffee each morning, then I would set up my schedule to do the stuff that ADD made difficult to do during the caffeine buzz time. Didn't work perfectly but much better than without caffeine! Also, don't smoke pot, definitely makes ADD symptoms much worse.

Caffeine didn't help with personal relationship much though. Still have just two maybe three friends. I tend to forget to call back, write back, send cards, etc. All the things that can help forge bonds between people. So a lot of people just fade away when I don't do that stuff. My best friend is sort of like me, in that she doesn't care if I don't call for months,(she doesn't call much either) but when we do talk, it's like we saw each other yesterday. Thank God for easy going forgiving people like her.

Another person on this board( I forget who) also couldn't get ADD meds and found something called Clarocet or Claroset which I think you can buy on-line. It seems to be helping I think.

For myself, like Mark, I was relived that it had a name and was not a personality flaw. Nice to know I'm not a flake or an a**hole either, at least not on purpose!

Good luck and please, vent here any time.

Barb

BarbJ38476.4773148148

Hi Jester,

Do a search on oline tests for ADHD do a couple and get your wife to do a test for you also. That will give you an indication but not a diagnosos. If your tests do show possible ADHD, then learn what you can about it. Go to your GP armed with the info in printed form, actually. Send it to your GP a couple of days before you see them.

Write a letter explaining what you have been feeling and ask him to refer you to a psyciatrist to get a formal test.

See what happens and if not sattisfied get another GP and try again.

Go to www.adders.org Their maybe someone there from you area who has ADHD and will be able to advise you better.

Jester - you make me want to go home and give my ADD husband a big hug....I guess we wives don't do our job well enough sometimes to get across the fact that your ADD is *not* a burden on us....good luck with everything. [QUOTE=sonya_h]

"jester":

I agree with what Todd said about going to the doctor.

But also, along with Todd's suggestion, what I would do next is READ!

[/QUOTE]

Thanks Sonya. I was going to suggest getting a few books and reading about it, but I was thinking he might be like me where he is so cluttered that it's hard to even get through a book!!