5 ms·

There are many things that could result in what you're describing. If in USA, you should visit a psych MD to discuss your concerns. I have experienced similar

There are many things that could result in what you're describing. If in USA, you should visit a psych MD to discuss your concerns. I have experienced similar issues and received medication for [underlying condition], which has helped immensely.

regainmemory 2y ago
May I ask what condition you had/have and what medication helped?
- keiran_cull 2y ago
  Regrettably, it's a cocktail of highly interrelated psychiatric issues: 1. cPTSD 2. ADHD 3. Depression 4. (Relatively mild / high-functioning) autism spectrum disorder Likely combined with aftereffects from mild traumatic brain injury (i.e. a high number of concussions), but this part is largely speculative. Would not recommend attempting to research your way into a solution without the help of a trained practitioner.
  - regainmemory 2y ago
    I've been diagnosed with cPTSD, GAD, Depression, and ADHD. Ketamine therapy has helped to grow awareness & understanding but little in the way of behavioral change. I've avoided stimulants thus far as I don't want to resort to that path just yet. What helped you? Traditional psychotropics? Psychedelics?
    - acchow 2y ago
      How much content do you consume? I’d say start your day off with absolutely nothing. Just go outside and go for a walk with no phone. No music. No technology. From the moment you wake up, try a one hour walk like this (map out a route that takes about an hour so you don’t need a clock with you). Let your mind fly, then after the hour is up, write down some notes about your thoughts. Try this for a week.
      - regainmemory 2y ago
        I consume a lot of content as a coping mechanism for what feels like an insurmountable stack of issues with no clear path to addressing them.
        acchow 2y ago
        Then I think you already know the solution to getting unstuck.
    - 800_db_cloud 2y ago
      > I've avoided stimulants thus far as I don't want to resort to that path just yet. I'm interested in knowing why you're reluctant to try stimulants. what you describe in your OP sounds a lot like the symptoms of ADHD and stimulant medication helps many people with the exact symptoms you list with little to no side effects. why leave that on the table?
      - regainmemory 2y ago
        Mainly cardiac concerns. I tried stimulants for a short stint and my baseline heart rate was noticeably elevated.
      - hirvi74 2y ago
        Isn't that somewhat of a survivor bias? People with ADHD on stimulants would typically have little to no side-effects because if they had moderate to severe side-effects, then I doubt a medical professional would keep them on stimulants. I treat my ADHD with stimulants, and I would say there are definitely side-effects, but the side-effects are mostly manageable. While I do benefit from stimulants, I personally believe the benefits are exaggerated, and apparently the Cochrane Library does not disagree with me: https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD009996.pub2/full#:~:text=Amphetamines%20were%20associated%20with%20a,to%202.00%3B%2010%20studies%3B%202155 https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD...
    - keiran_cull 2y ago
      In terms of medication, my own personal experience has been: * Ketamine was life changing (for depression symptoms) * Stimulants help me a lot. The first time I took adderall, I cried, because I had never experienced such a relaxed state of calm or peace. I haven't been able to get any due to the longstanding shortage, and my quality of life has suffered as a result. Other drugs help me to control my focus, but they don't tend to help my memory or emotional regulation much. * I also take antidepressants that are slightly helpful. * Diet, exercise, and sunlight make a huge difference.
      - andoando 2y ago
        Adderall was great at first but literally a week of daily use and I felt like all it was back to normal. Felt like Im just damaging my physical health for no good reason
    - trivialcode 2y ago
      For ADHD, stimulants like Ritalin have the opposite effect. Your brain goes... quiet. In a really good way. You can focus on what you want to, with ease. If you have a diagnosis don't be afraid of exploring medical treatment. Just be aware that while it does solve the problem of being able to stay focused and on task, it does not solve the problem of figuring out what to focus on. Also some people react differently to different medications. If Ritalin doesn't work, Elvanse or one of the others might work better. It can take some trial and error to figure out.
      - _o5dr 2y ago
        I want to add, try starting with lowest dose! For me 3.1mg Adzenys or 10mg Vyvanse (both lowest dose possible) have a clearly noticeable and beneficial effect without overriding my core personality and preferred mental tendencies (though this along with a low/moderate dose of NDRI and SSRI)
    - HKH2 2y ago
      Do you do caffeine?
    - Yawrehto 2y ago
      There are some nonstimulant medications available, generally less effective. There's a good overview from a medical article published in a seemingly legit journal by seemingly legit authors: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3000197/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3000197/.
  - Syntonicles 2y ago
    If you don't mind me asking, what was the source of the concussions? I have a similar profile, along with seizures in childhood that led to repeated head injuries. Cause and effect was always an open question for me.
- throwaway657656 2y ago
  Please make sure you put in the work before you start taking meds. I'd like to share a personal story in the hope that it helps you. My brother turned me on to Dr. Amen. We both took his on-line test for ADHD[1] and both tested positive for multiple forms of ADHD. He agreed that my results were much worse. My brother used that as an immediate excuse to take meds. I instead signed up for his on-line course and lost count of the number of times he said "this practice has been found to be just as effective as medication". I put in the work and it made a major lasting difference in my life. My brother didn't bother with the work, the course, or the recommendations and is still searching for that magic pill or mushroom that will "fix" him. As an aside, the powerful realization while taking that test is how bad it made me feel. I had flashbacks to all the people I disappointed over the years. It's like every question was "are you also shitty in this way ?". It made me realize: 1) I didn't want to be shitty anymore, 2) with good practices and habits I can fix/mitigate my flaws, 3) and failing meant being dependent on big pharma and doctors who might not have my best intentions. Please ask yourself sincerely: Have you put in the work ? Do you really care about improving ? Is there a single _simple_ new habit you know would improve your life ? Are you going to start right now working on that one simple habit and writing yourself an email daily/weekly to check your progress ? No one is coming to the rescue. Don't waste your money and a coach's time if you can't even do the bare minimum. [1] I believe this is the test (I took it 5 years ago) https://theaddquiz.com/ https://theaddquiz.com/
  - BrianHenryIE 2y ago
    I learned recently the "OHIO method" – Only Handle It Once. If something is easy to deal with right now, just deal with it immediately. For me, it's been dishes, trash, and organising (e.g. keys not in the key-bowl; cables not in the cable drawer) where it's helped most. I'd say it's a 30% improvement, which doesn't necessarily sound great, but it's all about things that require almost zero effort. I'll take a look into your reference soon!
  - arresin 2y ago
    To someone else reading this who thinks they may have ADHD, I really implore you not to waste your time with non pharmacological routes. You can’t wish or think or really want your way out of this. You need a leg up, and it has to come from within yet also without you. Speaking from experience. Advice like the kind I’m replying to wasted so much of my time. For some reason everyone is an expert on this particular topic. No, the experts are (ignore pop psych shysters also).

regainmemory 2y ago

May I ask what condition you had/have and what medication helped?

keiran_cull 2y ago
Regrettably, it's a cocktail of highly interrelated psychiatric issues: 1. cPTSD 2. ADHD 3. Depression 4. (Relatively mild / high-functioning) autism spectrum disorder Likely combined with aftereffects from mild traumatic brain injury (i.e. a high number of concussions), but this part is largely speculative. Would not recommend attempting to research your way into a solution without the help of a trained practitioner.
- regainmemory 2y ago
  I've been diagnosed with cPTSD, GAD, Depression, and ADHD. Ketamine therapy has helped to grow awareness & understanding but little in the way of behavioral change. I've avoided stimulants thus far as I don't want to resort to that path just yet. What helped you? Traditional psychotropics? Psychedelics?
  - acchow 2y ago
    How much content do you consume? I’d say start your day off with absolutely nothing. Just go outside and go for a walk with no phone. No music. No technology. From the moment you wake up, try a one hour walk like this (map out a route that takes about an hour so you don’t need a clock with you). Let your mind fly, then after the hour is up, write down some notes about your thoughts. Try this for a week.
    - regainmemory 2y ago
      I consume a lot of content as a coping mechanism for what feels like an insurmountable stack of issues with no clear path to addressing them.
      - acchow 2y ago
        Then I think you already know the solution to getting unstuck.
  - 800_db_cloud 2y ago
    > I've avoided stimulants thus far as I don't want to resort to that path just yet. I'm interested in knowing why you're reluctant to try stimulants. what you describe in your OP sounds a lot like the symptoms of ADHD and stimulant medication helps many people with the exact symptoms you list with little to no side effects. why leave that on the table?
    - regainmemory 2y ago
      Mainly cardiac concerns. I tried stimulants for a short stint and my baseline heart rate was noticeably elevated.
    - hirvi74 2y ago
      Isn't that somewhat of a survivor bias? People with ADHD on stimulants would typically have little to no side-effects because if they had moderate to severe side-effects, then I doubt a medical professional would keep them on stimulants. I treat my ADHD with stimulants, and I would say there are definitely side-effects, but the side-effects are mostly manageable. While I do benefit from stimulants, I personally believe the benefits are exaggerated, and apparently the Cochrane Library does not disagree with me: https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD009996.pub2/full#:~:text=Amphetamines%20were%20associated%20with%20a,to%202.00%3B%2010%20studies%3B%202155 https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD...
  - keiran_cull 2y ago
    In terms of medication, my own personal experience has been: * Ketamine was life changing (for depression symptoms) * Stimulants help me a lot. The first time I took adderall, I cried, because I had never experienced such a relaxed state of calm or peace. I haven't been able to get any due to the longstanding shortage, and my quality of life has suffered as a result. Other drugs help me to control my focus, but they don't tend to help my memory or emotional regulation much. * I also take antidepressants that are slightly helpful. * Diet, exercise, and sunlight make a huge difference.
    - andoando 2y ago
      Adderall was great at first but literally a week of daily use and I felt like all it was back to normal. Felt like Im just damaging my physical health for no good reason
  - trivialcode 2y ago
    For ADHD, stimulants like Ritalin have the opposite effect. Your brain goes... quiet. In a really good way. You can focus on what you want to, with ease. If you have a diagnosis don't be afraid of exploring medical treatment. Just be aware that while it does solve the problem of being able to stay focused and on task, it does not solve the problem of figuring out what to focus on. Also some people react differently to different medications. If Ritalin doesn't work, Elvanse or one of the others might work better. It can take some trial and error to figure out.
    - _o5dr 2y ago
      I want to add, try starting with lowest dose! For me 3.1mg Adzenys or 10mg Vyvanse (both lowest dose possible) have a clearly noticeable and beneficial effect without overriding my core personality and preferred mental tendencies (though this along with a low/moderate dose of NDRI and SSRI)
  - HKH2 2y ago
    Do you do caffeine?
  - Yawrehto 2y ago
    There are some nonstimulant medications available, generally less effective. There's a good overview from a medical article published in a seemingly legit journal by seemingly legit authors: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3000197/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3000197/.
- Syntonicles 2y ago
  If you don't mind me asking, what was the source of the concussions? I have a similar profile, along with seizures in childhood that led to repeated head injuries. Cause and effect was always an open question for me.
throwaway657656 2y ago
Please make sure you put in the work before you start taking meds. I'd like to share a personal story in the hope that it helps you. My brother turned me on to Dr. Amen. We both took his on-line test for ADHD[1] and both tested positive for multiple forms of ADHD. He agreed that my results were much worse. My brother used that as an immediate excuse to take meds. I instead signed up for his on-line course and lost count of the number of times he said "this practice has been found to be just as effective as medication". I put in the work and it made a major lasting difference in my life. My brother didn't bother with the work, the course, or the recommendations and is still searching for that magic pill or mushroom that will "fix" him. As an aside, the powerful realization while taking that test is how bad it made me feel. I had flashbacks to all the people I disappointed over the years. It's like every question was "are you also shitty in this way ?". It made me realize: 1) I didn't want to be shitty anymore, 2) with good practices and habits I can fix/mitigate my flaws, 3) and failing meant being dependent on big pharma and doctors who might not have my best intentions. Please ask yourself sincerely: Have you put in the work ? Do you really care about improving ? Is there a single _simple_ new habit you know would improve your life ? Are you going to start right now working on that one simple habit and writing yourself an email daily/weekly to check your progress ? No one is coming to the rescue. Don't waste your money and a coach's time if you can't even do the bare minimum. [1] I believe this is the test (I took it 5 years ago) https://theaddquiz.com/ https://theaddquiz.com/
- BrianHenryIE 2y ago
  I learned recently the "OHIO method" – Only Handle It Once. If something is easy to deal with right now, just deal with it immediately. For me, it's been dishes, trash, and organising (e.g. keys not in the key-bowl; cables not in the cable drawer) where it's helped most. I'd say it's a 30% improvement, which doesn't necessarily sound great, but it's all about things that require almost zero effort. I'll take a look into your reference soon!
- arresin 2y ago
  To someone else reading this who thinks they may have ADHD, I really implore you not to waste your time with non pharmacological routes. You can’t wish or think or really want your way out of this. You need a leg up, and it has to come from within yet also without you. Speaking from experience. Advice like the kind I’m replying to wasted so much of my time. For some reason everyone is an expert on this particular topic. No, the experts are (ignore pop psych shysters also).