I didn’t realize I was under surveillance
If only we applied ourselves.
I do apply myself from 2-6 am until my eyes are dryaf and wont stay open
I feel like if only I had worked up to my potential, my life wouldn’t be a shambling corpse-to-be.
As it turns out, our potential is really high in a select few categories, and that makes it look to authority figures like we’re good at everything.
me explaining to my family that the only thing I actually know is how to formulate a proper search query
I used to feel that was one thing I was good at. But then the algorithms changed as well as the internet. Now I rarely find what I’m looking for and I die a little each time.
Yeah but that’s not a problem with you or the march of time. Search engines have been effectively ruined.
I’d suggest Ed Zitron’s “better offline” pod or Freya Holmer’s latest YT vid on the topic if you want to hear some will developed arguments on the subject.
No, trying harder doesn’t work for us.
I think that’s the joke. I heard this a lot growing up and it obviously didn’t help.
You must not have heard it enough because I heard it seriously all the time and I’m doing great and like sure I can’t sleep and stuff but I’m totally fine and doing great now as an adult and it’s totally unrelated that I’m not employed and super anxious about literally every moment awake because who knows what’s coming but honestly I’m super fine so not to worry.
(That was so hard to write without punctuation, but that’s how it feels)
I’ve yet to get the official diagnosis. But im on track.
Don’t give up, it took me eight years from my suspicions to actually getting a diagnosis. The hardest part was finding psychiatrists, making appointments, going to the first appointment, and then going to the following appointments.
Apart from stimulant prescriptions, what is the benefit of getting diagnosed with ADHD?
It opens up options that your future self may want/need. There are many potential barriers to treatment, you really don’t want to deal with these when you actually need to rely on those services.
I posted elsewhere about this, but ADHD can mess with your emotions. I thought for a while that I was bipolar because of how quickly my moods could change and how strongly I felt things like anxiety or disappointment or frustration. Now that I know what it is, in the moment I’m able to pull myself out of depressive spirals caused by hyperfixation etc. I’m also able to better work with the peaks and troughs of my productivity. Plenty of other helpful reasons too!
Whoa whoa whoa
I’m diagnosed bipolar and I’m just starting to work on potential adhd/AuDHD issues
My Dr appointment with the psychiatrist basically went nowhere. He said that he very rarely diagnoses ADHD in adults because it gets found when you’re a kid so i probably don’t have it since im an adult.
A real fuckin doctor said this to me.
Idk where to go from here…
Find a new one. Find one that specializes in ADHD. You can absolutely be diagnosed as an adult, however the symptoms must have been present before the age of 12 or something, technically.
I had a doctor ask me if I had found jesus when first trying to get help w my issues. For real. It can take some time to find the right fit, but hopefully you can seek out an ADHD/neurodivergent focused therapist for better results
e: i was diagnosed by a psychologist/therapist. I have heard from several folks anecdotally that their psychiatrists are more detached and are mostly just there for prescriptions. YMMV
Your edit seems about right lol
I’ll definitely be looking. I’m on a wait-list for therapy for now, but I’ll try to find someone who works with ADHD specifically. I didn’t know that existed. Hopefully my city is big enough.
I also had a therapist tell me that Jesus could help me once. I didn’t see her again. Lmao
ADHD-tailored therapy.
Meds alone are not going to solve the problems that ADHD causes, especially when it is untreated throughout one’s life. There’s the additional primary impacts like emotional disregulation and alexithymia (and many others), as well as the secondary impacts of emotional traumas from struggling and failing to do things that are simple for neurotypical people and being given no quarter societally for those challenges that are rooted in the physical neurophysiological differences in the prefrontal cortex of ADHD brains.
In addition, stimulant meds are not the only meds for ADHD and not effective for all people with ADHD. They are the first line treatment because they have far greater statistical efficacy than other meds in most cases. Their main useful mechanism of action though, is not really their “stimulant” properties but their action as dopamine/norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors.
The advantage is you’re no longer doubting yourself. Self diagnosis is not sufficient.
That makes it easier to select therapy that specifically suits ADHD. For me, It also lead to me actually using self help practices and trying to read books on it. A diagnosis gave me a framework to base my path to improvement on.
A diagnosis also demonstrates to others, that you’re not just lazy.
Im at the “psychiatrist referred me to psychologist for testing” stage. As of like, a few days ago. Otherwise identical, 7+ years of wanting testing (and having insurance and money to do it), before even making an attempt at getting treatment.
Psychiatrist seemed confident meds would seriously help tho! Although i guess they are kinda paid to say that i guess?
Medication helps most people with ADHD the fastest. It’s just a scientific fact.
No medication can be the goal, the meds seriously help on that path though.
They are not at all paid to say that. That said, the meds were a game changer for me.
Oh. Now i feel like i made an impression and will dwell on that for the next several minutes.
You did. But I won’t remember your username or comment in about 4 minutes
This hits a little too close to home. Still working on the anxiety and depression as an adult, but burnout has been a something I have done my best to put my foot down on, especially after my last job gave me panic attacks.
I almost failed 1st grade because I didn’t understand the concept of homework. I had a huge pile of it stuffed in my desk. Eventually, they called my dad and I was given a chance to do the weeks of assignments and catch up. I didn’t do them because I was bored and spent most of the time in my own mental world. I finished the whole stack in a weekend. I got the dreaded “GT” designation in elementary and was accepted in this “pre-AP” program in middle school. Most people would view this as a mistake, but due to my specific circumstances, the alternative would have been worse.
The burnout bordered on abuse. I had less homework in the actual Highschool AP classes. Hell, I had less homework in University. Apparently, the parents threw a big fit as their kids were staying up until midnight finishing homework several nights a week. The solution was to the lower the requirements to stay in the program. We were fucking 12! My hair was falling out by the end of the year. The first 2-3 weeks of summer I did nothing but sleep as I was exhausted. I have no idea how I managed to force myself through that for 3 years straight, while going through puberty, rapidly declining mental health, and still failing to find the right kind of stimulation.
When I got the diagnosis as an adult, I went through a mourning period at all of the things I could have done better. Once the plastic in your brain settles, doing things as an adult is significantly harder. It is what it is though, and I still have done amazing things with my life.
Keep going and try to apply yourself to the ADHD projects as much as humanly possible, you will expand your attention on the things you get all attention deficity on, and can train to be absorb situations quickly and astutely, the more powerful your ADHD the stronger you can train yourself to absorb knowledge because your attention naturally grabs anything happening, also try not to get distracted by a TV every time one is on, so ignore the meaningless stuff, focus the ADHD on important things, and grow as a person using your “disability” as a tool for success. -you will be exhausted regularly if you are doing it right, that much processing has a cost-
So what you’re saying is I have great potential but just need to apply myself?
If I had a dollar…
I’m deep in phase 2, just building up to phase 3 I think.
ADHD memes do seem to resonate with me, but I’m not sure I experience the deleterious effects to a severe enough extent to really have diagnosable ADHD.
Even if I am, I’m not sure stimulants would be the right way to go, and I’m already doing my best with ADHD style interventions to support productivity et cetera.
Stimulants aren’t the only solution, they’re just the solution with the most obviois results
Stimulants best short term, management strategies and lifestyle changes best long term
Same feelings here
Actually great advice, I need to brush my teeth
Damn, brb, I’m gonna go put some stuff away even if I don’t know where to put everything
That was pretty good. I finally put away things that have been laying around for over a year.
Thanks. I’m going to get out of bed and socialize poorly tonight because of this.
Maybe I’ll report back tomorrow how poorly it went.
I just got back! It went well. I felt awkward half the time, but I got to have some real conversations with some old and new friends.
I have some new friends that I’ve only interacted with in really busy contexts, and it was nice to chat with them in a calmer space. I woulda missed the chance if I didn’t give it a shot tonight.
Happy for you partner!
Good job!
My psychotherapist often say to me (paraphrased) : What is worth doing is worth being done badly.
A thing done imperfectly is better than doing nothing at all.
Serious questions. If I think this is me, is there any benefit to getting an official diagnosis? And if so, what’s the best/least scammy way to go about it?
Maybe some type of med would improve your quality of life, and they are only available over the counter to folks with diagnosis+prescription. Having a diagnosis might give you a mental framework to to ‘get to work’ on improving the least fun things about it :) , like self help tips n tricks, or maybe working with a psychologist to see what might help you the most.
I will point out that, in the US at least, an official diagnosis isn’t required to get those meds. It’s just a lot easier to be prescribed them with it. I’m not officially diagnosed but I do see a psychiatrist who was willing to try them with no prompting from me.
Ultimately though they didn’t work out because of the impact on my blood pressure, I’m on non-scheduled ADHD meds now that have made a huge difference.
What non-scheduled meds, if you don’t mind me asking? I’ve tried a few supplements, but no luck yet.
Straterra is what I found worked for me. It still needs to be prescribed.
It opens up options that your future self may want/need. There are many potential barriers to treatment, you really don’t want to deal with these when you actually need to rely on those services.
Advice depends on location, some systems are harsh. Try to find groups in your area. You will be responsible for your outcome. Health professionals provide guidance and facilitate treatment. Medications can make things easier and enable more reliable behavior, but can be quite user-specific. Professional guidance highly advised.
Try reading this. It’s dense, but extremely informative. https://annas-archive.org/* md5/1a4afb16e9cd8cd7799697ad09c4d08a
I’m now one further in the “incapacitated for years” state
Just got stage 3 last month. Stage 2 sucks :(
I was in GT classes in middle school and my freshman year of high school and I absolutely did not belong there. But, you know, I liked teaching myself things so obviously I should be put in the class that made me do extra boring bullshit work.
Why yes, I did end up dropping out of high school and getting a GED.
Never been evaluated for ADHD, but I have basically all the symptoms my daughter, who definitely has ADHD, has, or had them at her age.
I’ve passed the third section and moved into the fourth, horrible section. “Diagnosed ADHD but no medication will work.”
Went through most if not all of the stimulant treatments 15+ years ago. The most reaction I got was panic attacks for routine stuff at work. In the meantime depression has taken over, with similar lack of response to treatment.
I feel like I’m an onion inside of a Russian nesting doll stuck in a can of worms that tumbled out of Pandora’s box and down the stairs to be kicked around the neighborhood by bored old timey kids before getting stuck in a storm drain and abandoned.
Maybe what you’re experiencing is an accurate emotional assessment of the state of our society.
I’m my case it was an autism diagnosis but otherwise yes.
For anyone reading this who may not be aware, there’s a lot of overlap between the two diagnoses, and there’s a chance you may have both.
ADHD may actually be a spectrum disorder. I’ve seen a few studies over the last few years that suggest this.
It does “feel” like that to me. Some days it helps me do my job better, some days it takes an hour between deciding to brush my teeth and actually doing it.
Not to diminish the struggles of those with ADHD, but this is also a thing for neuronormative folks. Society simply tells us all to be brilliant in order to be useful for others. But the problem is that not everyone of us are the same and if we don’t live up to expectations, we also end up disappointing ourselves. So, we try to keep up to please others, neglecting ourselves, and hence leading to burnout.
Yep. But at least my life makes perfect sense now. Everything just seems so clear now.
Nothing quite like the feeling of a dumpster fire coming into perfect focus around you.
