Quote:
Originally Posted by Cecily
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And just got ADHD diagnosis, yay [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.] |
Be careful Cec: ADHD is extremely easy to misdiagnose.
Source: There was literally just an article in the news yesterday about how kids born in a certain month were diagnosed with ADHD far more. Was it because being born in that month gives you ADHD? No, it's because that month is the cut-off point for school entry. In other words, the youngest kids in each class were diagnosed with ADHD far more than others, but it wasn't because they had more ADHD, it was because they were younger kids acting their age (as is 100% normal).
Also, I was diagnosed (by a therapist I'd seen for several years) with ADHD at the end of high school. Went to college with Adderall, and at first I was like "this is great, I can finally be productive". But then the side effects began to get to me, so I stopped taking it.
Fast forward to my senior year of college, when I had my first true manic episode, wound up in a mental hospital, and learned that I had Bipolar, not ADHD. If anything the Adderall was making my condition worse, not better, so it's a good thing I stopped taking it.
Even with Bipolar drugs I'm still not perfectly productive. I have many days when I want to do something, but just don't have the motivation to do so, and I
know that I could pop an Adderall and be productive. But that would just make me more likely to have Bipolar swings, and what I really need to do is instead deal with the depression that looks extremely like ADHD but is caused by a different underlying condition. I need to clean, or exercise, or meditate, not pop a pill (and then go to bed at my normal bedtime that night).
Not saying that you don't have ADHD; you very well might. And whether you do or not, I'm not saying that taking Adderall is the wrong solution: it's a really good drug for motivating you. I'm just saying be careful: this your brain, literally the thing that defines who you are as a person. You don't want to fuck it up, and Adderall
can make things feel better when its actually making them worse (just like speed, which it is fairly similar to).
P.S. But at the same time, when it comes to mental health, you
can't self-diagnose, so you do need to trust mental health professionals like the one that diagnosed you. I'm just saying, keep in mind that they're fallible humans too, and don't just think "I 100% have ADHD and it's perfectly fine to take as much Adderall as I want", think "I've been diagnosed with this thing, and I'm going to follow the doctors advice on drugs ... but also be skeptical/cynical and monitor myself too."
P.P.S. If you do have ADHD, Driven to Distraction is a great book. It
will convince just about anyone who reads it that they have ADHD, because it describes the very generic symptoms very broadly, but it's also full of helpful ideas.