I will lose track of time unless I have something telling me there is something needing to be done?
Hanging out with friends and meeting them at 6? Need someone to remind me or come get me.
Different alarms I have:
1) Feed dog
2) Make music
3) feed myself
4) Remember to put that item in your bag taht you need for work.
5)any sort of doc appointment
6) take dog for a walk / let out (he usually lets me know)
7) any sort of obligation I've made to a friend or work. (Carpooling, hanging out, teaching, etc)
Serious question, because (compounded for various reasons) I'm currently at a stage where I am finding it hard to remember to even make alarms. I will think, 'I should set alarms to remind myself of the stuff I need to do.' And then while I'm trying to think of the things I need to do, I've already started to lose the plot. I'll think of something that I need to do, go to set myself up for whatever that task was - grab a pen and paper or whatever - then I won't remember to actually set an alarm at all for anything until I next have that thought 'Gee I should set an alarm to remind myself'.
How do I remember to set alarms? How do I make that as easy as possible? I honestly feel like I'm losing my mind at an accelerated pace.
Have you tried getting in the habit of using Siri (or your preferred assistant) to set alarms all the time? Throughout the day I constantly think of something and immediately so "Hey Siri, remind me in 45 minutes to do this" or "Hey Siri, set an alarm to make dinner at 6:15pm".
Ugh i do the same thing but never diagnosed. How do i go about even starting this process. Im a 21 year old with little support from parents. I have no job currently and am trying become an engineer. Idk what to even do anymore.
I have an alarm to remind me to take my meds. Apparently having them next to my bed and an alarm to wake me up wasn't enough as I forgot and had to get my assistant to take me home from work to get them!
I love alarms i think they are my post it notes (in addition to my post it notes).
How do I know if I have it or not? I am procasinator and I just cannot study until tests are coming up very close. When i try to study in an 8 hour day sometimes I get 30 minutes of work done. I graduated undergrad and masters with a 3.7+ both and in Medical school now but I think I can't cram and I am not sure if it is me being lazy or ADHD for me :/
I spoke with my doctor about 3 months ago. He discussed ADHD with me and recommended seeing a psychiatrist or doing a trial of taking ACT-Amphetamine (Adderall). Don't be afraid of speaking with your doctor if you think something is up, I know I was at first.
I suffered with some of the same issues that you have and I didn't really have any perspective until I was diagnosed and medicated. I couldn't accurately describe what life was like without medication until I started taking medication for my ADD.
This describes my experience 100%. I couldn't see what was happening with me from within my own subjective experience. Once I got diagnosed and started taking something for it, I can "see" the difference between where I was and where I'm supposed to be. Going off my prescription can be fine if I'm not trying to do certain tasks, but if I'm trying to do those tough tasks without meds, it's now painfully obvious there's an issue.
Turns out that when my doctor said the diagnosis and medication would be life changing, that was not an exaggeration.
I have a Master's in Engineering with high grades and was a med school hopeful, but couldn't manage self-planning such a difficult application process.
You can be smart and still have ADHD. I was diagnosed at 26. The only reason I succeeded in university was because of the structure of courses based on their outlines. But I always felt like i was running out of time just to keep up; no part time job, no social life, no nothing.
Hoping meds will help when I get them.
TLDR: you can have a high IQ and ADHD. It's a misconception that you can't. While you're in school, ask to see the psychiatrist.
I accidentally replied to the comment directly above this, then deleted it. Yup, I have ADHD. Anyways, here is what I said above:
Just commenting on your ways to cope with ADHD. I hate my Adderall, makes me feel like a robot and I get crabby at people for trying to be nice or social with me. I think meditation is an excellent choice. As far as alarms go, my Google calendar is decked out with all of my important deadlines with alarms set to go off. My real preference for treating my ADHD is marijuana. If I smoke just enough of a strong sativa, it helps me level off and allows me to actually focus on one thing. Problem with this is that I have a very very high tolerance, so I don't get very loopy or silly from smoking a few hits. A lot of people get absolutely silly from a little marijuana though, so I could see this method being awful for some people. Figured I'd put in my 2 cents.
Background: my family is rampant with learning disabilities and I have been prescribed to take approx 70mg of amphetamine daily for the last 10 years. Gf is a psychologist and says I have the worst ADHD she has ever seen.
Edit: in true ADHD fashion, I was so absorbed in this thread that I am now late for a med check up at my Dr office for my Adderall.
Don't know if you've tried it but I take Adderall XR. It's a slow release so it works through the day and because only a little bit it entering your system at a time, you don't feel like as much of a robot. I take 20 mg every day except for weekends so that my tolerance stays low and I also get a good burst of productivity at work at the start of the week. I've been on this kind of regimen for two years and it's helped me out a lot. Might be something to talk to your doctor about. In Canada at least, it would be a lot cheaper for me than smoking that much pot haha.
Oh god, I have that side effect with my medicine too. If I have just recently taken it, I get so irritated with people, and have to hold my tongue to keep from snapping at people. They are just trying to be nice and strike up conversation, but in my head I'm thinking, "Stop interrupting what I'm doing, leave me alone, let me do this thing. Go away."
I have that side effect even like 6 or 8 hours after I've taken mine. My girlfriend has wanted to cry while on dates with me acting like this repeatedly. I have to remind her that I can't help but be quiet and crabby in that state. She understands now, but at first she thought I hated her or something. Stuff makes me act and feel like a different person.
That was my situation too. I'm doing stuff, girlfriend gets home from work and wants to talk or whatever, and I give very short responses, I get a "You're mean" or "you're being an asshole". I'm not even trying to be mean, I'm just trying to get the conversation over so I can get back to work, it's just coming out in a bad way. On my meds, I'm an irritable person. To help her understand me, (She agreed to all this, she wanted to know how I felt) I let her take some of my medicine and had her work on her art. About an hour or two into it, when I knew it took hold and she was in the zone, I came upstairs and started talking about my day, she'd respond, wait a little bit, then ask a question. She got sooo upset, "leave me alone, I'm busy." But, after that, she understood what I felt like. She's much more understanding now, and doesn't get upset at me about that anymore.
I'm glad you were able to resolve that issue. My gf has taken Adderall recreationally and experiences euphoria so that approach wouldn't work with her, but luckily she is a psychologist and is pretty understanding of the situation. Especially considering how I only act that way on my meds and off them I'm a totally different person.
now i'm wondering if it's to blame for how i've been over the past like 6 months sometimes... i just can't stand irritating people anymore, they grate so much more than they used to
I have pretty severe ADHD and marijuana only makes it worse. It seriously worsens my memory, attentiveness, motivation, and hyperactivity, which ADHD already has problems with. It almost crippled me in life at one point and things got much better once I stopped smoking. Just saying different things work for different people, but I'm so glad you found something that's working. I'm combining Adderall XR and weekly therapy personally, and things are slowly getting better.
Hey there! I don't tolerate Ritalin, Adderall, or Concerta, without nasty side effects. But, I have found incredible success with Vyvanse. My god, the difference on the Vyvanse and off couldn't be more stark for me.
Give it a look. If marijuana helps to tamp down some of the problems, I think you might have success with it. I also take a low dose (150 mg) of wellbutrin. The combination of the 40mg Vyvanse and 150mg Wellbutrin is by far the most successful treatment I have found for my ADD in 30 years of medications.
Ironically enough I used to take Vyvanse (70mg) and Wellbutrin (150mg) daily for about 3 years. I like how Vyvanse affects me more, but the side effects were awful. I'd get about 45min of sleep a day and have hardly any food. I was like 6 foot 3 and 150lbs so it wasn't cutting it for me. Love my Wellbutrin though! Plus, as I stated somewhere else here, my insurance is awful and a bottle of 30 70mg Vyvanse cost me about $340.
God, I hate my Adderall. The medication itself is fine, but the crash leaves me feeling so depressed and worthless.
I tried Vyvanse, which is GREAT if you only use it 1-3 times a week, but after taking it everyday for a week I turned into a huge, raging bitch. I couldn't keep taking that for my fiance's sake.
One horrible crime about ADHD is, for how long we've known about it, and how much we've learned in the past 10-15 years particularly, most primary care and even older school psychiatrists are still quite ignorant about how to treat it.
The simple fact is... most people have to go through a dozen medications at several doses and in different combinations to find the right med for them. The chances of finding the "right" one that does everything you need it to with the least amount of side effects with your first prescription or two is exceedingly rare.
I don't know your medication history, but if you've only tried 3, 4 or 5 medicines, consider trying more, and at different dosages. There might be a med out there that doesn't have this side effect for you.
What strains do you enjoy? I too am trying to tailor my sativas to help me throughout the day. Nebula II is one of my favorites but I'm only starting to get familiar with this realm.
I live in a non-legal state so it's a bit harder to tailor exactly what strain I have access to, but luckily my cough job cough gives me access to a decent variety of medical grade nugs. I'll have maybe 4 top shelf strains at a time.
A good rule of thumb for me is anything that smells like gasoline or skunk. Really, it's anything that isn't indica dominant. Even sometimes a good indica does the trick for me. But most of the time, sativa's.
I think I'd have to say sour Diesel and gorilla glue are my fav straight sativa's for my ADHD (I also like getting ripped off of them too hahaha). I also like just having a little blue dream too. Blue dream has a really mellow background high for me that never really makes me feel like I'm a complete fucking idiot or like I need to take a nap.
Other times I love me some OG Kush to help.
So pretty much it's strong sativa's, or at least hybrids with a taste of sativa. But, if it came down to it just a hit of any strain will have me sitting good.
I also love dabbing, but find it harder to not get stupid high which isn't really a productive method of treating ADHD.
My latest method is using a volcano set around 350°F (rather than around 372° which I prefer for recreational use) and just sipping on a very small bag.
Just to put this into context, I'm also a Chemist. In other words, I'm not so absolutely blazed that I can't do intense math or follow tediously specific directions.
Your volcano tip is essential! Thank you. (Still haven't got a dab rig but appreciate the warning.) Will be sure to try that Gorilla Glue and Blue Dream.
My fiance has an extremely high tolerance and I'm an easy bake oven. We never incinerate our bud (as we save the vapoo for butter) but I'll keep a closer eye on what temp he sets (classic volcano).
It was actually only a couple months ago after having access to a mail order service did I realise I even enjoyed toking. Smoked since high school, never really was my jam despite partaking semi-frequently for decades (hated the sluggishness/paranoia.) Finally tried some sativa and my view completely 180'd. I also heard that women responded to sativa's better.
With the whole ADD addictive tendency, mine's online shopping for deals. Now I research and shop online for which strains will help me best. My current trouble is being sure to toke that baby amount to ensure a productive and focused high instead of becoming blazed as well. It certainly helps to take the edge off dexedrine.
I never really understood the whole "stoner culture" before but now I'm always on the hunt for a strain that can assist my "performance disorder". I even made a menu with Leafly readouts: so I can choose what best helps my mood at the time.
As a fellow ADHDer/stoner, I recommend checking out this article on how different vape temps create different highs. Super interesting read, and after trying out various temps myself with different strains (as low as 330° with a sativa first thing in the morning), I've found an amazing regimen that keeps my focus up, my energy even, and my productivity through the roof.
saved into my saved folder with all my other saves that ill look at in the future and say look at all these interesting saves, ill check them out later.
Real talk, /r/ADHD can be a pretty toxic community as well. It is a fantastic resource for support and info, but the struggles of living with ADHD can tend to breed a lot of resentment and frustration and self-pity. I know that I got into a habit of browsing there wayyyyyy too much, and fixated on wallowing in the shared negativity because I needed to feel understood. Not trying to dissuade anybody from going there, I just wanted to give people a heads up! I just know how easy it can be for us to fall into unhealthy habits when they give us short-term comfort or satisfaction!
I really want to learn how to manage without meds but /r/ADHD seems to believe that meds are the only way to go. My doc recommended Wellbutrin as a less meth-y way to manage things and every post on that sub about Wellbutrin are about how it "just doesn't work" for ADHD symptoms.
I have a 'to do' list of sorts. Each day I add something that needs to be done. And cross out completed tasks.
The end of the day I move all my incomplete tasks over to a new page for tomorrow. That way I can sit and work on something and then let my mind wander then get back to it when the wandering is complete.
This is the o ly way I can do it without using meth.
I went through college without it. I struggled so hard, tried so hard, I was so lucky to graduate with a shit gpa. Come home, see a doc, worked over time to get a medicine and dosage that worked, and it's like night and day. I feel like my brain works now.
Make the jump from adderall to vyvanse, it's a godsend!!! The way the medicine metabolizes is much smoother and less of the side effects than typical amphetamine salts
Well Vyvanse isn't for everyone, I took adderall as a kid and it gave me bad side effects, changed to concerta (What i take now) Still unwanted side effects, but not as bad as adderall. But i did try changing to vyvanse freshman year of college. It gave me the worse side effects which were mainly Heavy deperession to the point to wanting to end it all. So the side effects will probably be different for you compared to him. Good luck!
Yea, plus it is not abusable; folks with actual ADHD prefer to feel normal and with how the lysine compound is attached to the amphetamine it has to go through the liver to activate. This is why Shire, manufacturer of Adderall XR, are phasing out the XR's and trying to promote this rather new medicine
edit: by abusable, I mean you cannot snort it like an adderall XR/IR. It must be ingested
Honestly, go to a different doctor. Find a psychiatrist. You need somebody who will listen to you, give you the chance to explain 35 years of struggles, and then let them guide you through the process of finding what you need. Sometimes, they make people go through the different "non-stimulants," but if it isn't working and you have been able to show to your psychiatrist that you are trying to get better and that you can handle this, then most will be willing to start you on a low dose and see how things go. Also, having weekly therapy sessions (psychiatrists and therapists will usually exchange notes and keep each other in the loop about shared patients, especially higher risk ones) is another great piece of evidence that you're there to get treatment, not get high.
I also have had alcohol issues, got hospitalized 3 times for alcohol induced pancreatitis. I recently got diagnosed with ADHD, the inattentive one. I don't see why they just don't keep it as being called ADD. Anyways I was too scared to tell my Doctor about my alcohol issues so I lied.... I have to go see my other doctor and I don't know what he's gonna do if he sees I got prescribed Adderall because he knows about my past. I have been taking it for a couple months now and it has changed my life. I hope they don't take it away, it is helping so much.
It's an amphetamine, they won't prescribe schedule II stimulants if they deem you to be a risk for abuse. Stratera/Concerta are non-stimulant medicines. I would find a different doctor and let them know.
I remember my doctor wanted to put me on stratera after being on adderall xr for a year. I was in 5th grade I believe at the time.... worst fucking week. I still remember the migraines everyday for that week and I flat out refused to take it (I wasn't one to refuse things outright)
Calmed me down, definitely less agitation, not as likely to cross the line socially but... I feel like its done fuck all for my focus/organisation/procrastination etc
Vyvanse is definitely abusable. I used to get high as fuck on vyvanse, me and my friends would take like double to triple the dose and it would make us feel gacked out.
Adult diagnosis here. I was on Ritalin and Concerta for a couple of years until the efficacy began to wear off and my condition became problematic in work and life again. I also hated how anxious I always was when I was taking those. I'm on medikinet now (I live in the UK) but the anxiety is still there, to an extent. Mindfulness techniques help somewhat but I was never this tremulous or panicky before going on meds at all.
If the anxiety is getting to you then I'd suggest seeing a psychiatrist. Just be willing to actually work with them and not just ask for meds and leave.
I'm currently on an anti-anxiety medication and I haven't had it effect me since. That being said, I also changed a few things about my lifestyle which supplements it.
i'm in limbo right now with my medications. i was on something called biphentin (canada only) and it's basically just concerta that's been reformulated. it helped a lot, until i thought it wasn't working so they upped the dosage, and i started a new job. then over time i started fucking up at work, and it felt like they were coming down on me, i had then convinced myself that everybody was watching what i was doing to get me fired. i was so stressed out i eventually pulled a truck out and ran over a piece of the truck i forgot underneath (it just bent a bracket and i bent it back) but i got fired. i stopped the meds and realized they made me paranoid and made my condition WORSE over time.
so now i don't know what to do. i'm happier and more organized, but i still slip up, forget things, get disorganized, etc. lately it feels like i'm losing control of myself again no matter how hard i try.
Dude tell me more... I've been on Adderall for several years now, and I don't think it does much for me anymore besides make me want to drink to "come down"...
Most people with ADHD also have comorbid disorders. It's typical of anyone with a disorder, it's much more rare to only have one disorder. I was prescribed lexapro to aide with anxiety, it's an antidepressant (SSRI) taken at night before bedtime. It does more good than harm. But as far as adderall vs vyvanse. It works better for me, I don't like to feel anxious or on edge which I know some people like the "tweaky" feeing but I just want to feel "normal". Vyvanse restored my motivation, helped me curb marijuana and lounging and procrastinating and delaying important things that needed to be dealt with
I can only speak for myself, but I am in a similar boat as the person you are replying to.
For me, it's not that it's doing more harm, than good. It's not much different to be honest. However, it's kind of odd when the medication brings out disorders that aren't apparent else wise. Of course, this isn't unheard of in medicine, but I haven't heard of any side-effects of medication causing one to have an increased urge to drink.
Regardless, it's not just Adderall, Ritalin, and Vyvanse all did it too. So basically, I just power through the urges most times, and that's life. I won't try any of the non-stimulant options for a few reasons.
I don't/won't take a medication every day.
I don't have the 8 or so weeks to test to see if it's working or not (in regards to Strattera).
The potential side-effects seem worse than the disorder.
It basically doesn't work for most people. I have even had doctors that refused to prescribe it. It makes sense, I mean, if it has no potential for abuse and worked so well wouldn't it be the first line of medicine to try? Except for many, the latter is the issue.
So, I feel kind of like I am stuck in a medical rut, so to speak.
Man... I might just be weird, but I feel the exact opposite. I am on Vyvanse now and I feel like it affects me far more than Adderall ever did. To the point where I feel like I may need to be on a anti-anxiety med as well. Not to mention I feel nauseous to the point of not even wanting to be at work some days.
Everyone reacts to medication differently, so you should tell this to your specialist/doctor and they can discuss/try alternatives with you. Theirs plenty of different medications/treatments available for people with ADHD so don't worry about not finding something that won't work for you.
Agreed. And I have the appointment to do just that. I just hate that the doc wants to change what I am taking every time I see him. And I don't know about you all, but I have to see my doc every three months. I was OK with taking low dose Adderall/Ritalin whenever I "needed" it, but I understand the tendency for some people to abuse that, so I agreed to be switched to higher dose XR. Then he talked me into trying something else and now I'm taking Vyvanse and I hate it. Instead of going back to Adderall, I guarantee he'll ask me to try Concerta or something. I just wish we could stick with something that has worked for me for years since my career is kind of on the line.
Same here. When I was in the 4th grade, I was given an IQ test. I wasn't told (or I probably just wasn't paying attention) my score, but all I know is that I got placed in a lot of advanced classes with one other kid in my grade. It was just the two of us sitting alone in a classroom learning algebra and such. I couldn't pay attention, and my teachers were really surprised.
I realized that my high IQ was my only saving grace to get me to graduate high school/college. I was a great test taker (using deductive reasoning more than what I learned) , and that was what got me through with a 3.0 in college. Too bad a higher IQ really just means you're good at taking tests.
What are you basing this on? It makes some sense, especially openness.
I do know creativity isn't correlated with schizophrenia but is with bipolar disorder(hypomania) and schizotypal personality disorder.
This could also partially explain the over-representation of people with bipolar disorder(the hypomanic kind) in certain positions like writers(books, movies etc.) and art!
Mmm I have both, but I'm not terribly creative (well unless it is some weird plan, mentally creative, not physically) and I'm a happy conservative, who is happy to talk to everyone from every political spectrum.
I am definitely not disparaging the IQ test, I'm just saying that coupled with my ADHD, it didn't really help me out in school as far as learning goes.
I think of it as the parenting paradigm I recently read about where if you tell your child "you did really well on your test because you are smarter than most" can cause a child not to study because they think they are already ahead of the curve. If you tell your child "you did really well on your test because you really studied and tried hard", then they will see the correlation behind hard work and achievement. I was definitely the first of the two and never tried hard at anything until after college.
Holy crap are you me? I was put into Jr Achiever's, never felt like I should have been there. I was as smart as everyone there if not smarter, but could never finish assignments or write essays or focus at all. Skated through high school barely passing just based on being able to not study for a test and reason my way through all the multiple choice questions super easily.
I tested so high I was placed in cal2 without having to take cal1. funny thing about calculus, you have to do your homework. needless to say, I fucked up
So much this. It was basically my downfall and the only thing that I ever struggled with. Before then, I was able to breeze my way through all the previous mth courses with little to no studying. Calculus hit me like a freight train as a result.
the same thing happened to me, breezed though school never studied, then calculus fucked me up. I was so confused, thought I was stupid.. unfortunately struggled through uni, was diagnosed with hypothyriod and was told for years that my trouble concentrating was related to that. Was diagnosed with inattentive ADHD two years ago at 39 :( I feel like I've lost so much time.
Same. I was diagnosed with it in my mid 30s and did the Adderall thing for a couple years. Stopped taking it for a few years to see if I could continue to function as well without it but about to start back up. I just enjoyed life more and got a lot more done. Sure, the side effects sucked but now I've been off long enough that I'm positive that my life was actually better when I was on than being off it.
I struggled all the way up to Calc 1, which I bombed. Then I got put in Precalc, which I also bombed. I was able to pass Calc 1 and then Calc 2 (but not before bombing that). I don't want to do math ever again. And yet I have a habit of doing mental arithmetic whenever it comes up just to prove to myself that I can.
I feel like an IQ test shouldn't allow you to miss a whole subject. A high IQ doesn't allow you to channel information from the cosmos. You still need to know cal 1 to do cal 2, unless the cal 2 course offers like a crash course version of cal 1.
In my experience many IQ testers wont reveal your score to prevent inflated egos/low self esteem. Also using IQ to place classes seems really wrong and prone to fail
Same thing happened to me. I'm still trying to find the perfect fit medication, but jesus, I still have nightmares about failing out of college, I was so close to not making it. I still get a lot of brain fog though. :/
This is how I felt when I tried dexedrine for the first time (someone else's, years ago when I was a troubled 19 year old taking all kinds of stuff). It was like a veil was lifted and I could do all the things everyone else was doing.
Since then, I've had brief encounters with the same feeling from energy drinks, but nothing as long lasting.
I think there are better and cheaper options than Adderall. Extended release Methylphenidate worked amazing for me. Also getting in the "zone" just before taking the medication helped immensely.
Like I am sitting in a small private room in the library, with my notebooks, and a timer set for 25 minutes. I take the medication and take a break every 25 minutes for 5 minutes, and before I know it its dark out.
Not OP, but I have been on Adderall for about a year now, and while it has made me feel insanely coked up (not necessarily my heart, but definitely my energy levels and that weird feeling you get in your fingertips) and also done a great deal of good in fixing my life (allowed me to focus on school, lose weight, stick to healthy routines) the worst side effect I get from it is erectile dysfunction, to the point where I'm now looking for a different medication.
Which makes sense. It's essentially slow-release meth, and "coke dick" is a pretty common side effect of stimulant use.
I haven't had any heart issues, but it does have side effects. It's an appetite suppressant so if you don't force yourself to eat you'll find yourself getting really tired. but in reality your body just needs energy.
It also makes me extremely unemotional, I turn straight Vulcan and lose quite a bit of my humor and social skills. But my ability to study and do work increase 1000 fold.
It's weird: adderall seems to just amplify my ADHD.
I like how this speaker used the nearsightedness analogy because I use the visual analogy all the time. I also wear glasses and I can read without glasses but it takes a lot of eye strain resulting in headaches. I can focus without ritalin but it takes extra energy to do that which just robs me of energy to do other things.
I used to take Straterra. Didn't help with the focus as much as some other meds, but gave me the calm I had lacked for years. Then I developed a heart issue. Resting heart rate was 120 bpm and I felt like shit all the time. After a bunch of doctors, we do a genetic test. Turns out I can't take ANY ADHD meds without serious side effects, an abnormally high heart rate being one of them. Had to stop taking it. I miss taking ADHD meds a lot, and I do mourn my transition back into disfunction. However, I am now trying harder to find other ways to cope since I can't go back to having those health problems.
Russell Barkley is a big advocate for medication. I tend to agree that while cognitive behavioral therapy, exercise, and meditation can help - proper medication is the most efficient and effective aid.
What do you do if their is no "proper medication?"
I feel like I am in that boat - so to speak.
I have tried various drugs and they all have basically done nothing too helpful. I have laser focus on them - for things I want to focus on, just like I when I was unmedicated. But I still struggle with getting things done, sustaining attention, etc.. It's worked pretty well for me in regards to getting the feeling of wanting to get up every 5 minutes and walk around, but that's about it.
I don't know, I find counseling extremely helpful. I can say that people tend to underestimate how well medication is working. It's important to use external feedback (peers, parent, or teacher) and data (such as grades/attendance) to really understand if the medication is working.
The problem with someone that has ADHD (like me) is that if untreated, the likelyhood that they'll go to the gym on a regular schedule, or even be able to keep their place tidy isn't very high.
People get a kick out of watching me clean. When I worked in the restraunt business in college, my boss called me the Tasmanian devil. I would get all my cleaning tasks done but there was no method to the madness. I'd be halfway through a task and SQUIRREL start another.
Forcing yourself to keep an organized external environment can reflect on your ability to keep an organized internal environment (mental/emotional), and can help reduce the impact of the surprises life will throw at you.
I have found that living in a mess means I can find things when I need them - or at least that's what I would tell myself. In reality I'd find what I was looking for only if I was lucky and it was on top of a pile, otherwise I'd never find it. If I force myself to organize my surroundings, slow my external self down and systematically go through the things one by one to organize them, I have a much better chance later of actually knowing where the thing is. I have to force myself to know when I put something down, because I'm purposefully taking over the action of putting it somewhere on purpose, for a real reason. Not just absentmindedly setting it down and losing track of it for three months.
Similarly, I have found meditation to be invaluable to ordering my internal self, and a lot of that is forcing myself to slow my thoughts down, looking at them one by one. If I just let my mind set them down on its own, I'll forget about them for three months too.
One of the best things I can do for myself is to simply slow down and be more purposeful about what I'm dong. One thing at a time, focusing, and refocusing, and refocusing, and refocusing, and then the room is clean, and all the screwdrivers are actually in the toolbox for when I need them. It takes effort, everyday practice, and a calm mindset - I could let myself be very frustrated at myself for being absent minded, but that doesn't actually help me. Instead, I direct that energy to focusing back on the task itself, instead of all the reasons why I suck as a person for failing to work on the task.
Actually doing it is the trick. It's not just easy, but inevitable that I'll get distracted and not finish organizing. If I got frustrated at myself for ever time I do that, I'd wind up in a ball on the floor. I have to practice being patient with myself, and just go back to organizing as soon as I realize I've lost focus. Speaking of which, I should be doing work right now. No worries; back to it!
This is exactly what I've been doing in the last months. If I can get my immediate surroundings fixed and get close to have a proper routine I might be able to without looking and worrying about the future head to where I feel that I must be.
My son has ADHD and finally at age 12 we put him on medication to see if we can push up his grades and make his teacher's life easier. He was diagnosed several years ago. I always felt, and still do, that ADHD doesn't need fixing, but society does. We only see a problem with it because they're not like us and they don't function like us and why do they have to. My son is brilliant at Math and is the most lovable child you'll ever find. Giving him meds breaks my heart, because he is forced to change so he can have OUR normal life.
The most effective means of treatment is medication. Near the end he talks about different treatment, meds and studies. But finding a correct med and dose is the most effective thing we have.
Adderall is a combination of dextroamphetamine (you got the spelling wrong) and amphetamine salts.
And also - meth is not "technically Dex"; they're two different drugs. You may be getting it confused with desoxyn, which is the brand name for methamphetamine..
If you're trying to say Adderall = meth than you're wrong.
Vyvanse is so amazing. It keeps my ability to focus at its best and then plateaus there for hours before waning. Adderall always peaked and then started waning and then I'd need to wait for the next one to kick in which is so disruptive.
Can't recommend Vyvanse enough. Too bad the VA "isn't allowed" to prescribe it. Piece of shit system.
I posted already about my issue in the area I live. My son has adhd and lives with my ex. One day she gave me one of his pills to try. A vyvanse 60mg capsule. After about an hour and a half I felt very calm, focused and empathetic towards people. It had an interesting effect but I'm not sure if it would get me thinking more about the future. This type of medication seems to be pretty tough to get if you have not been diagnosed at a young age.
Currently in the waiting room to get a refill. I had a week without any and had to reschedule twice because I kept forgetting the appointment or getting the time wrong!
It's not fair.. Everyone talking about how great adderall and vyvanse has worked. I've tried 30mg and 40mg vyvanse, and I've tried 20mg adderall xr and all of those have had literally no effect on me. My doctor is prescribing me concerta now so we'll see how that does...
Avoid language that treats the future like a vague abstract concept. Try to replace "I'll do it later" with "I'll be sure to have it done by Thursday at noon". You want the future to feel like a real, concrete thing, and not an idea like the concept of 'tomorrow', which will never arrive. (It will always be 'today', it can never be 'tomorrow'.)
Re-train your brain to be able to focus on one thing for an extended period of time.
Try to limit yourself to one browser tab at a time.
Try to read a book, chapter by chapter, rather than shorter news or magazine articles.
Watch a movie with your phone off and web browser closed.
Practice a musical instrument.
Humans do not multitask effectively. It makes us feel like we are getting lots done while we accomplish next to nothing. Relearn how to single task, and focus on the whole picture from start to end - prep, execution, finishing touches, cleanup.
It takes about 3 months for an action to become a habit. After that, it's easy.
I was diagnosed with ADHD in elementary school, took a generic form of Adderal every day clear into high school. It turned my life around. However, I stopped taking the medication cold turkey my junior year after finally becoming fed up with the lack of appetite, anxiety, and robotic behavior. I was a great student, but it came at the cost of part of my personality.
But having taken the medication long enough, I knew what it meant to feel "focused". Shortly after ceasing the medication, I found that I was able to emulate that feeling from a sort of self-induced placebo effect to kick my brain into that focus mode. You could say it was like flipping a switch. I've been a very healthy, focused, disciplined and motivated person since, no meds necessary. Just my .02 though. Hope it helps.
I was undiagnosed as a child and at 28 I've already managed to get an associate's degree, and a bachelor's degree. I thank my wife later in life here for helping me through this.
While Berkley states this as not being able to use the tools you're taught, as a person with ADHD needing to solve it to succeed in life, teaching myself the skills needed as my ultimate life failure was the palm to my face Berkley shows right away. I taught myself how to cope with this. Rereading chapters of textbooks and taking mad notes, alarms all day everyday, todolists with a priority labelling theme (which I found out is Eisenhower's Productivity Method).
By doing all of this it worked well... Adderall helps me tremendously, but doesn't FIX the issue, it only helps me to cope much easier. My lists are smaller, my alarms are fewer, and my attitude is better. My work performance is so much better as well.
Depending how bad you have it you may need medication. I went to therapy and nothing they've ever told me helped. Lots of the stuff felt patronizing.
For me it's like treating cancer by talking about it's feelings. Completely useless, I may respond better when I start my medications. My psych says mine is too severe to treat with only therapy.
As someone who suffers from what a lot of people here describe, you can't fix it. (Dont worry, there's help down below) I've tried the Adderall and it worked fantastically for me but not without side effects. I use it well less than once a year now. I still have a lot of trouble all over the spectrum but I've changed some behavior to cope. Here's what I recommend:
Be afraid of medications, but use them if you must (and if you arent prone to addiction). I've had fantastically dialed-in days while using adderall, but effectiveness wanes with constant use. Also, it keeps you from working on behavior modification.
Dont rely on your internal alarm clock, ever. Don't ever think you're just gonna remember to grab that thing before you go or sign up for that event when you get home. Everything you do short of taking a dump goes on the calendar. Give yourself 30-60 minutes to do it too, because you're gonna see the alarm, snooze to take a 5 min brake to change gears, alarm rings again, someone bothers you for something else, alarm rings again, etc. , till you get it done. No item is too small for the system. Seriously, if there's a specific email that you want to read in more depth 20 minutes from now, put it on the calendar. If you share your calendar with your boss or whatever and you don't want to admit that you use it as so much of a crutch, 1. shame on you, you're awesome for struggling through this disability and 2. make it a private event and don't give them full access to that on your calendar.
Never put calendar events as all-day events since you're going to wake up and dismiss them. Don't put them in for 8am when you get to the office either, you'll snooze them while you get coffee, and you'll dismiss them when you're talking to your coworker while waiting for the coffee to brew. Your reminders start at 9-9:30.
While we're talking about breaks, take them. Whenever. You cant force your brain to do something so there's no point it beating yourself over that failure. Take a break and make it happy. 5 minutes of FTL or Beam NG Drive, a walk, pushups, a snack, a deep breath, whatever. You're head is broken and you wont fix it. You've just gotta deal as best you can wuth what you've got.
Fuck, I'm exhausted. If I remember more I'll come back. But those are the big ones.
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Take the lead from #4. Be honest. Say you're burned to yourself or whoever you're working with, and come back with inspiration. I have a #6 in my head right now too, and I'm typing this out hoping I remember what #6 is wgen I'm done with #5. But if I dont then I'll just step away for a sec. Dont be afraid to save and exit temporarily or post reply and edit later.
In fact, develop a sense of humor about it all. Seriously, I'm the funniest guy at meetings because I cant stay on track. I'm always cracking jokes. It functions sortof as cover. I'm losing attentuon, so my hrad is out of that group "circle of attention", I see jokes others dont, I make a joke, and the humor "refills my tank". It's a great and pleasant way to keep in the moment.
What else...
Yeah, thats it for now.
EDIT: Seeing how I have zero upvotes, I'm adding to this list for my sake only. Fuck all y'all.
If you get distracted by others easily, don't be afraid to tell others to hold off. It's time to act like you have a disorder and you need help. No sense trying to 'blend in' with non-handicapped people here. If you're in a wheelchair, you're in a wheelchair. People are happy to help. Worst case, people aren't happy to help, and fuck them. You're quirky. Just be so good at whatever you do that they have to respect you anyway.
If you remember something while you're in the middle of something else, either decide to either blow it off and hope you're reminded later, or DO IT RIGHT THEN AND THERE. Yes, it's totally reasonable to think through things and conclude that it's ok if you totally blow off buying your girlfriend a birthday present only one month out from the date because you'll probably have other external reminders to do it later but right now is not a good time. Unfortunately being effective as an ADHD person requires a bit of selfishness, it is what it is. OR, DO IT NOW. Before you stop what you were working on, leave yourself physical reminders of your progress (checked off items on a paper list)
Paper lists are far better than digital for active tasks. Say, buying recipe ingredients. Are you at the store and remember that you need to grab a redbox movie? Cross off what you bought already on your paper list, run to the RedBox, get a movie, then consult your list. Let's face it, our PADDs just suck at being edited, and if you get a text or call while shopping, you're very unlikely to save any last edits to the list before taking the distraction. Mutli-tools like computers and phones have a huge advantage with calendar or alarm reminder apps, but single-use paper or whiteboards are hugely advantageous for active tasks. Leaving to-do items open on your phone is a horrible idea. FYI, I'm adding this to the list because I'm violating this rule right now. I know, shit happens.
Sometimes you just need to accept that doing something the wrong way is better than never doing it the the right way. Example: right now I'm trying to buy a repair part from Amazon while on hotel internet and on a hotel toilet before showering. I really like using VPN for transactions, but my VPN software is updating before I can use it. I can buy the part now, off the VPN and risk whatever data loss (not likely) or hope to hell that I remember to buy it later. I can't tell you what the right answer is, but I'm just going to buy this part now myself.
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So, with respect to the doctor, here are tons of new skills, some of which you already know, which won't help you because you probably won't do them. Take three things away from this:
Take a sheet of paper from the printer and fold it up for your pocket. Write down this list. Yes, including this step. Cross that out immediately, that shit's done, look at you getting 1/3 of your to do list done so quickly!
Download/make available a calendar app and start utilizing it for to do items that are too far out or too complicated for the paper list. Put 3 things on that calendar that you already know you have to do. Can't think of any? Yep, that's a problem with our performance disorder, and it's ok. Put at least one calendar event to revisit this. Put at least one calendar event for something you're already in a routine of doing. I don't care if it's checking email, it's just something to get you in the habit of doing the calendar thing.
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u/[deleted] May 30 '17
How can I fix it?