The lighter side of ADHD
I have a doctor who’s a friend. He specializes in, and has written papers about diagnosing adult ADHD. He pokes fun at me for my undiagnosed ADHD. Little comments like “gee, I wonder why…” while I’m telling stories.
He sees it. But I cannot get my fucking doctors to even talk to me about it. Whenever I ask about how to get a diagnosis, they just put me on another antidepressant.
Why can't you get a diagnosis from your friend? Genuine question, idk how that works.
It's unethical to diagnose, and treat, a friend/family member if you are that close.
Also given that one of the Frontline treatments for ADHD is a controlled substance - it would be a very bad look.
That said, if this is the doctor's specialty - it is very odd that they do not know of a colleague they could refer to.
Different systems and we both have personal and professional lines we respect. I absolutely know I could but he also freely admits that among people our age it’s hilariously common and those who’ve gone untreated have their own inbuilt strategies.
He’s never short on advice, he’s a good dude.
Conflict of Interest, maybe?
And it would probably be a bit weird for your friend to also be your medical practitioner.
This was my situation exactly. I knew that antidepressants only treated the symptoms but the underlying condition isn't addressed. I was buying ADHD medication on the dark web and that stuff actually worked. Ended up going to a psychiatrist and paying for a diagnosis. Honestly amongst the best decisions I have ever made. Many of my life outcomes made sense when viewed through the lens of ADHD. The project for the remainder of my life is undoing the damage that was done in the first 47 years.
This is how it happened to me, but instead of writing a movie I was scrolling instagram, and instead of undiagnosed, mine is undiagnosed.
LMAO I "found out" when I was sobbing at the bench press about how I couldn't even exercise properly because I had gotten up to do dishes mid set. I saw some memes about ADHD brains and I was like, oh maybe that's what's wrong with me...
instead of undiagnosed, mine is undiagnosed.
You said the same thing twice. Do you mean yours was diagnosed?
No, that was a joke.
I also did not get the joke. What is the joke?
OP is riffing on the concept of how relatable the story is.
Social media got me thinking about it. The more I looked into it, the more I recognized myself in it, so this year, at 41, I was diagnosed. I started taking medication last week and feel like a new person.
How has your life improved?
In general, a lot of things from my past now make more sense. Even my perception and character traits. With the meds, I can tackle and complete tasks more easily, concentrate much better and generally feel much more relaxed. If the constant earworms disappear now, I'll be almost perfectly happy. However, I am still at the beginning of adjusting the dosage and hope that everything stays that way or gets even better.
That sounds pretty good actually, especially the part about feeling relaxed. I relate a bit too much too these memes and my girlfriend has AuDHD but isn’t taking any meds for it, and I think she seems completely normal, she’s very similar to me. So maybe yet again I’m not like most people?
I’ll bring it up with my psychologist. (Just hope it will not end up with me being discriminated against, the system here is very ableist).
Just an FYI, in case you didn't know, psychiatrists are the ones who prescribe drugs. I do not believe that psychologists, generally speaking, can.
Thank you for the info! My psychologist would be who can refer me to an evaluation, or at least let me know how many years of waiting I’m in for.
I wish you and your girlfriend all the best!
What film is he talking about?
Its gotta be Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. Evelyn clearly struggles with it.
That makes more sense than a dead Daniel Radcliffe. Thanks
With me it was asking a coworker a question and literally zoning out in the middle of his face to face explanation and having to ask him to repeat himself. A pretty 'wtf dude' moment from him, and I then proceeded to apologize and said it happens a lot...which got me thinking. Yeah, didn't take long after that.