5 ms·
Quick questions, apologies if they're too sensitive: - Regarding your co-morbidity, how did you know/decide to seek ADHD treatment and diagnosis? Was it before
by Mezzie 4y ago
Quick questions, apologies if they're too sensitive:
- Regarding your co-morbidity, how did you know/decide to seek ADHD treatment and diagnosis? Was it before or after your bipolar diagnosis?
- Was there any concern about med interactions?
I live with my sister, who's bipolar and we think she MAY have ADHD, hence my curiosity.
- kayodelycaon 4y agoAlways happy to talk, but I’m not sure how helpful I can be. I was diagnosed ADD as a child (~6 years old) but I wasn’t correctly diagnosed with bipolar until I was 33 after voluntarily seeking treatment on the recommendation of my primary care doctor. As far as treating the ADHD, my psychiatrist didn’t bother with a formal diagnosis. She just decided to treat the executive function issues I reported. Medication is trickier. I can’t use the traditional stimulants (or caffeine) without risking mania and panic attacks. So I’m taking Wellbrutin (an NDRI) which is both an antidepressant and a stimulant. It helps with ADHD, Anxiety, Depression, and sexual side effects from antipsychotics. I don’t have any major side effects to report than increase in sexual function and keeping me awake for the next 10~12 hours. (So no afternoon naps to recharge.)
- Mezzie 4y agoThanks for the reply! This was helpful. I'm glad that you were able to get the diagnosis and treatment you needed. And yes, very concerned about giving her any stimulants/mania inducing things. I'm glad to hear that Wellbutrin/NDRIs don't seem to have the same impact on bipolar people as SSRIs do, we'll look into that a bit. (Ironically, I had a terrible Wellbutrin experience. Bodies are weird.)