5 ms·

>Not to mention that by the time you get to your doctor, un-medicated, you will forget to tell about half of your symptoms. This is actually a major problem. I

>Not to mention that by the time you get to your doctor, un-medicated, you will forget to tell about half of your symptoms. This is actually a major problem. I was diagnosed with ADD as a child but gave up the medication in my late teens because it had side-effects I didn't enjoy. Late last year, I thought it might be worth trying it again, maybe with a milder dose. I booked an appointment with a doctor, who referred me to a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist told me there was a two week waiting period and that they'd call me back in a few weeks, and never did. It was two months before I remembered to follow it up. I don't bore you with the rest of the details, but the short version is every medical professional I spoke to (and I spoke to about 5 during this saga) told me to wait and that they would organize something for me, and then didn't. Turns out if you lie to someone with ADD and leave the organization ball in their court like that, they'll never get treatment, because they struggle with the very thing you're asking them to do. It's pretty much the worst thing you can do for them. Anyway, I've just realized I was planning to talk to the doctor about it again 4 months ago to try to get the ball rolling again. It's Christmas now, they won't be back at work until mid January. I'd better send myself an email, wish me luck.

CydeWeys 9y ago
A better system of tracking tasks is useful for everyone, not just ADHD. Try setting a calendar entry for a date on which you'll follow up if you haven't heard anything back, and use something like Google Keep (key point is it has a mobile app and webpage) to organize to-do lists.
- _m7bj 9y ago
  >Try setting a calendar entry for a date on which you'll follow up if you haven't heard anything back Thanks for the advice, but surprisingly I have actually tried just not having ADD. This simple advice doesn't work very well for me, which is why I'm attempting to pursue medication again. The calendar entry goes off, I try to contact the doctor, maybe they're not in today, it's half way through the work day, I go to set another, I spot an email while I'm doing it and start following up on that, and then 4 months later it never happened.
  - CydeWeys 9y ago
    The point of a to-do list (or reminder in Google Calendar) is that it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it. It sounds like you're using one-off calendar entries. I'm not suggesting that "try not having ADD", just suggesting you use mechanisms to remind you to do stuff that are persistent and thus work.
    - chimeracoder 9y ago
      > The point of a to-do list (or reminder in Google Calendar) is that it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it. It sounds like you're using one-off calendar entries. I'm not suggesting that "try not having ADD", just suggesting you use mechanisms to remind you to do stuff that are persistent and thus work. No offense, but from what you're saying, it's pretty clear you don't understand how ADHD works. ADHD is a disorder that affects executive function; the whole problem is that the system you're describing will fail for someone with even moderate but untreated ADHD, let alone more severe cases. Maybe you don't mean it this way, but it's actually rather insulting to say that these mechanisms "are persistent and thus work", or that OP try a to-do list because "it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it". ADHD means that you can't assume that those systems work, and it means that "constantly starting at you until you complete it" isn't actually a viable solution. Hence, that's why OP read your post as "try not having ADD", because you're literally suggesting solutions that presume that they not have ADHD in the first place.
      - CydeWeys 9y ago
        How does a persistent in-your-face reminder that does not go away until completed fail? I suppose severe procrastination or complete lack of willpower would do it, but are these not different from ADHD?
        turtle789 9y ago
        No, those are often core problems in ADHD. This is (much of) what it means to have poor executive function.

CydeWeys 9y ago

A better system of tracking tasks is useful for everyone, not just ADHD. Try setting a calendar entry for a date on which you'll follow up if you haven't heard anything back, and use something like Google Keep (key point is it has a mobile app and webpage) to organize to-do lists.

_m7bj 9y ago
>Try setting a calendar entry for a date on which you'll follow up if you haven't heard anything back Thanks for the advice, but surprisingly I have actually tried just not having ADD. This simple advice doesn't work very well for me, which is why I'm attempting to pursue medication again. The calendar entry goes off, I try to contact the doctor, maybe they're not in today, it's half way through the work day, I go to set another, I spot an email while I'm doing it and start following up on that, and then 4 months later it never happened.
- CydeWeys 9y ago
  The point of a to-do list (or reminder in Google Calendar) is that it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it. It sounds like you're using one-off calendar entries. I'm not suggesting that "try not having ADD", just suggesting you use mechanisms to remind you to do stuff that are persistent and thus work.
  - chimeracoder 9y ago
    > The point of a to-do list (or reminder in Google Calendar) is that it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it. It sounds like you're using one-off calendar entries. I'm not suggesting that "try not having ADD", just suggesting you use mechanisms to remind you to do stuff that are persistent and thus work. No offense, but from what you're saying, it's pretty clear you don't understand how ADHD works. ADHD is a disorder that affects executive function; the whole problem is that the system you're describing will fail for someone with even moderate but untreated ADHD, let alone more severe cases. Maybe you don't mean it this way, but it's actually rather insulting to say that these mechanisms "are persistent and thus work", or that OP try a to-do list because "it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it". ADHD means that you can't assume that those systems work, and it means that "constantly starting at you until you complete it" isn't actually a viable solution. Hence, that's why OP read your post as "try not having ADD", because you're literally suggesting solutions that presume that they not have ADHD in the first place.
    - CydeWeys 9y ago
      How does a persistent in-your-face reminder that does not go away until completed fail? I suppose severe procrastination or complete lack of willpower would do it, but are these not different from ADHD?
      - turtle789 9y ago
        No, those are often core problems in ADHD. This is (much of) what it means to have poor executive function.