I think I have adult ADD

[MummaSue]

I tick 90% of the boxes for a diagnosis of adult ADD.

There are ways to self help which I am going to try, but man, it feels a relief to see that I'm not just a scatter brain who can't concentrate or remember conversations.

Does anyone else have ADD?

[Lulu]

I think you have high anxiety and that's a little different.....but easier to treat xoxoxo

[MummaSue]

Hehehe, yeah, I do have that Lulu. VERY high anxiety. All the time. *sigh*

[Lulu]

I can help you with that, just not right now xoxoxo

[Fleur]

So, where do you find the boxes to tick?

I think I'm just a scatterbrain :/

[Persephone1]

I've got anxiety issues too, so I know how that feels. The counselling I had during my pregnancy (cognitive behaviour therapy) helped enormously, I still use the techniques every day.

As for the ADD, a friend of mine was diagnosed in high school and struggled through uni. She would often start projects and not finish them, and she used a lot of techniques that helped her personally. She had "backwards" ways of finishing assignments but they worked for her.

xxx

[MummaSue]

I work in mental health and one of the psychiatrists I worked closely with had a chat with me about it one day. He agreed that from what I told him and from what he had observed in my day to day work, I more than likely had characteristics of it - along with my anxiety.
It seems to feel worse to me since having DD but that is probably a mixture of being a bit sleep deprived and my anxiety about being a mum etc.

I struggle to finish projects, bore easily and flit from idea to idea, amongst other things.

[*Sparklez*]

i dont have it but my son has adhd... n even though it can be manages its still such a hrad disorder to deal with...
i think my dh has it too..
look up add adults ull be suprised how much info is out there... its an organisation based in ryde, nsw, all u have to do is type in add australia n it will b in capitals ADDadults or something similar **BUG HUGS HUNNI***

[LionsandBears]

I was dx last year whilst doing mental health testing for depression after a m/c. My GP was describing how someone with ADD cleans a room and I piped up, yeah but that's normal. So I did the test, saw the shrink, had it confirmed, refused meds. Read a couple of books (read bits of books). Bought some CDs from a woman who runs a site called Thrive with ADD. Listened to part of one then put them away. I guess I'm not ready to deal with it yet.

I'm going to have to though. I start a novel writing course in a few weeks. The only way I'll get through that is by hyperfocussing.

When I first read about ADD I was very distressed. I felt like I'd been told I had brain damage, that I was abnormal. Then I realised it's how I am and I get through life OK. I wish I'd known earlier, as it may have made study and finishing work projects easier. Deadlines are a panic inducing challenge for me. But then part of me thinks, meh. I'm alright. I always knew I was different, so what? I've learnt to live with it - I have work arounds. It now just feels easier having a name to call it. I dont know how else to be. It's the rest of the world that aren't normal

I just wish it didn't come out as an internet addiction and I could turn my brain off sometimes....

Anyway, welcome to the club. We're the big thinkers of the world. The NT types are there to do keep paperwork filed

[Fleur]

I struggle to finish projects, bore easily and flit from idea to idea, amongst other things.

Check one box for me.

Actually I did a bit of (internet hehe) research... I tick most of the boxes, although I'm not hyperactive and I do generally have good attention to detail. Pretty much everything else fits. Not that it really matters I guess, I don't need a dx to tell me that I need to do something to get my shizz together but I suppose it would be nice to understand it better. Gah.

*insert nice redface smiley* Sorry, didn't mean to crash your thread Mummasue but I would love to hear those ideas on how to manage it as well....

[MummaSue]

Then I realised it's how I am and I get through life OK. I wish I'd known earlier, as it may have made study and finishing work projects easier. Deadlines are a panic inducing challenge for me. But then part of me thinks, meh. I'm alright. I always knew I was different, so what? I've learnt to live with it - I have work arounds. It now just feels easier having a name to call it. I dont know how else to be. It's the rest of the world that aren't normal

I just wish it didn't come out as an internet addiction and I could turn my brain off sometimes....

Anyway, welcome to the club. We're the big thinkers of the world. The NT types are there to do keep paperwork filed

You are describing ME - right down to the internet addiction. I think this is where I am channelling my energy at the moment - apart from looking after DD. The minute she is asleep I'm on the net.

I got through uni by doing every single assignment the night before it was due. I'm amazed that I got through with distinction too - dunno how that happened. I knew what I wanted to do but just really struggled to do it when everyone else breezed it.

Can I ask how your GP described how you clean a room? All my life I've had comments on how I do certain things, often the butt of the jokes - not malicious ones but just enough to get me thinking that something isn't quite right.

Thanks for your input Tashybabe.

Fleur, I don't have the hyperactivity, but I am impulsive. I don't do dangerous things but I can be impulsive with money etc. Not so much now that I am on maternity leave and don't have my *own* cash to be impulsive with.

Thanks everyone xx

[AnyDream]

Ladies there are some very particular (and relatively easy) things you can do to help yourself. My DH was diagnosed as an adult too and got through a very intensive study period by using a long chain fatty acid supplement called Efalex, and by doing brain gym exercises religiously to switch his brain into the right mode for study. It really works.