Richard,

My suggestion is to find an ADHD coach.

A good coach can help you manage your symptoms, work with your doctor, help you evaluate different strategies and results, set goals, follow through, and a host of other issues.

I've found that support from my wife, medication, and coaching are the most important components to managing my ADHD.

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The reason I say this 2 months just isn't enough time for appreciable change from medication and after it wears off your symptoms like evryone raises it head again. I bought the book Driven to Distraction and found my psychaitrist there. Frankly if you felt your doctor wasn't the one to help find another one Cal ask if they take your insurance I would pay them then send in the bill and get reimbursted if I rememebered . You must know that in a psychaitrist office you lead the direction of the conversation so if your silent so will they. I would always open the major concern on my plate for my psychatrist so she always had a plce to start . She also would test me like throw something on the floor and see if I notice. You also know we hyperfocus when we are on if you know what I mean so it feels like we are on high alert when we are in doctor office. Many psychaiatrist if you don't talk will ask you general questions such as if you see any difference , how is home, school, kids etc. And the way you dealt with the trials, conflicts etc .Many stimulant will give a headache as they begin to wear off and I use to get such a carbohydrate craving . Coaches are okay ; but they cost allot sometimes and they will help organize you and ask you if you completed something but I don't know if they are the complete answer you will need to find your place, find the acceptance of certain symptoms that are yours and yours alone all those you share with so many of us. Try the Book Driven for Distraction and they have a list of ADD/ADHD even though I am adult I began with with a child's psychatris (loved her) and I also had a one who paid bills after I left my child Psychaitrist got rid of her quick . I also found another one who appointment lasted approx 15 minutes I so much prefereed Linda a psycholisgist but she couldn't prescribe medsso he would write them. 1 year ago I stopped all my meds because the place I worked need a letter to say I am ADD forget it I told if I want to use them I will and they couldn't stop me. Seriusly some Doctors don't believe in ADD and I hope you find your way. I really do hope I helped (Judi)

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Thanks for the tips!

I think with this doctor it definitely was a case of not being a good fit. After our first session and the questions he asked, I was on a "hyperfocus" kick and wrote out a long description of what I was frustrated about (what lead me to seek a therapist) and what symptoms I have had since childhood that I thought indicated ADHD. I stressed that I wasn't looking for a quick diagnosis, I was only putting down on paper for him all the symptoms/history that I thought would help him in terms of diagnosing me. As I'm sure many on this board will understand, this isn't an easy thing to nail down when you weren't diagnosed as a child (I was 37 at the time I saw this therapist). Anyway - he didn't read it, he kind of shuffled the papers a bit, asked what I wanted him to do with it, and then stuck it in the back of a file. Seriously? A patient comes to you not asking for a diagnosis, and writes a thorough and detailed analysis of what lead to him to seek counseling, and he couldn't even be bothered with reading it?

After the 5th session I stopped going - it just wasn't worth the effort for someone who, to be honest, made me feel like I was imposing on him by being there. Sure, I think he deals mostly with kids, but I asked up front if he handled adult patients and he said yes.

I think the primary thing for me will be to find someone to help keep me on track without making me feel like someone's harping on me. I'd hope for that to be a coach, but I doubt it will come at a reasonable cost. ;-)

I'll keep looking at the resources out there and see what I can find that will work.

Cheers

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Like ADD RN I found Driven to Distraction very helpful and is written by ADD for ADD. I was most surprised at the copyright date.

As a community, I suggest we understand ADD as Attention Deficit Disposition. We hold a double edge sword that is as much an asset as a liability. Our journey began as an effort to solve a physical problem that was truly a minor symptom.

We went through a string of resources between many medical disciplines including CHOP that resulted in as many misdiagnoses before Dr. Barbara Domingos provided a complete neuropsychiatric evaluation of our son and exposed the ADD for our entire family that stood out like the nose on my face. As a professional myself, I felt cheated by the others' incompetence. An individual with the right talent, disposition and compatibility can make the difference.

As an analogy, autism runs the gamut from Asperger's Syndrome to catatonic or pure white to pitch black with all shades of grey in between. ADD can be very illusive and complicated with contributing issues. Both our boys are very smart and have an even bigger heart. This dumbfounded me because I could not understand how someone so intelligent and caring can be so irresponsible. Since then I now understand that they have the ability to out run the heard, but have an iron ball chained to their ankle. They also unknowingly compensated for their liabilities, returned better than average scores and did anything to escape an immediate embarrassment. Since they performed within the heard, no one at school took notice but routinely handed down discipline. I also have many regretful actions and continue to make mistakes. They now perform at the top of their class with little room for improvement.

I haven't found success with the limited therapy I tried and don’t have the desire to invest the effort or expense to find a compatible resource.

As far as a two-month trial, most ADD medication is out of our system within a day and our prescribing MD told us that we should see positive indications for our boys and me within a week. He advised moving on to another if improvement is not apparent after a week and provided a sampling of trial prescriptions.

Ritalin is the granddaddy of ADD medication and, like aspirin, was put to work long before we understood what it does. Its generic Methlphenidate is dirt-cheap. Our MD has noticed some have success with Ritalin but difficulty with the generic. The biggest issue we have is this is gone in three to four hours and for an individual with ADD to keep to that schedule requires leaning on a weakness. This drug has a very long history with significant data resources.

Several forms of Methlphenidate are configured as long acting and we have found greatest success with Concerta, unfortunately one of the most expensive. We also use Methlphenidate as an evening booster and I use it in addition to Concerta when I realize I'm going astray. My boys use sertraline (generic of Zoloft) in combination with the Concerta that helps balance its effects and improves moodiness.

I tried Focalin (Dexmethylphenidate) with no success. It made made me loopy. I'm sure others swear by it.

We haven't tried Aderall and I'm not acquainted with its history.

Mental illness knowledge has come a long way since my Dad struggled with my Mom's schizophrenia in the late '60s and early '70s. With the exception of one general practitioner, he found lousy advice, bills and blame from the church, social services, police and the medical establishment, but no one willing to get their hands dirty. Today we found some that changed our lives, but unfortunately, many others are still there waiting for our money.

For me, life after 40 and after learning of my disposition is much more rewarding than before. I wish the same for you.

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