Hi, my name is Robin (that IS a guy's name), and I'm 16. I am fairly sure that I have ADHD, but I have not been diagnosed. I never had the slightest idea what ADHD really was until about a year ago, and from when I found out I've always been sure. I've talked to my old school counselor and my father and they have supported my judgement, but my counselor wasn't very knowledgable about this sort of thing, and my father knows absolutely nothing about it, except that I might have it. He therefore doesn't see any need to get me officially tested for it, especially since I live in Japan, and we still aren't fluent in the language. So for the past few months I have just kind of tried to shove it to a corner of my mind.

But now, after I've been brooding on this for so long, I've noticed a few disturbing things. First, I hope I do have ADHD. I don't want anybody to know, but I want to have it. I know that if I got tested and it turned out I didn't have it, I'd be disappointed.

Second, my symptoms, which did exist but weren't painfully obvious when I first found out about ADHD, have gotten much worse. I am CONSTANTLY fidgeting with my fingers. I spend half the time of an exam answering questions, and half moving my desk around.

I feel like I need to get tested now, so I can either be sure that I have it and move forward from there, or know that I have been convincing myself of it, and put a stop to that. But I can't. I don't know where to go to get tested. The new school counselor has said there's only one place in the whole country that can diagnose it, and I'm pretty sure my parents won't pay for a trip to see a doctor about this, since they know nothing about the symptoms and don't see the seriousness of it. What should I do? Am I clearly just inventing it in my mind, or does it sound like I actually have it? Is it worth testing for it if I have to go to another city?

Hi Robin-
The essential feature of ADD/ADHD is a persistent pattern of innattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that is more frequent and severe than is typically seen in individuals at a comparable level of development. Typically these syptoms have been present prior to the age of seven, but not always! And they are typically problematic in at least 2 settings (home, school, work, social settings, ect). Briefly:
Inattention:
can't focus on details, makes careless mistakes, can't sustain attention, difficulty listening, fails to finish tasks, difficulty organizing tasks, easily distracted, forgetful, loses things, avoids and dislikes tasks requiring sustained attention.
Hyperactivity:
fidgets with hands or feet, squirms in seat, leaves seat even when expected to stay sitting, runs or climbs in inappropriate settings or situations, has difficulty engaging in tasks quietly, talks excessively, always "on the go"
Impulsivity:
blurts out answers, has difficulty waiting turn, interupts or intrudes on others.
Do you see yourself in these discriptors?

Oh, by the way, there are are three different types, (combined ADHD), predominantly innattentive, and predominantly hyperactive. Usually 6 or more features are necessary for a diagnosis.

First of all, I think you're in the right place by asking these questions here. There's a lot of information and tons of resources you can access via these posts.

Second, I suggest you try some of the self-assessment tests you can find online at WebMD.com and Amenclinic.com. See if your parents are willing to take the tests, too - both for themselves and answering for you. Sometimes it helps to see things from an outside perspective.

Third, books: "Healing ADD" by Dr. Daniel Amen is an excellent resource to learn about the 6 types of ADD and methods of treatments that go beyond medication. It's available at Amazon.com and in most bookstores (in the US, at least).

If, after going through all of this, you are still convinced you are experiencing ADD/ADHD, getting officially diagnosed may be necessary.

I hope this helps. Best of luck to you.

Mike

Mike- There's ADHD NOS (not otherwise specified) in addition to the other three, what are the two types I am missing? I'm confused!

Remember, there can also be co-existing conditions, ie AD/HD and Bipolar....not to get you too worried. Just take one at a time and when you have found what works for you don't let anyone talk you out of it unless they have a degree in psychiatry.....

I took the tests at amenclinic, and got this:

Your results indicate that you may have adult ADD.
ADD Combined Type Not Probable
ADD Inattentive Type Highly Probable
Cingulate System Hyperactivity May be possible
Limbic System Hyperactivity May be possible
Basal Ganglia Hyperactivity Probable[/url]
Temporal Lobe System May be possible

I've taken another test online before with my father, a checklist where if you have more than 20 things checked, you probably have ADHD. When I did it, I got 28. When he did it for me, he got 17.[url="http://www.amenclinic.com/ac/addtests/temporal.asp"] (http://www.amenclinic.com/ac/addtests/basal.asp)

Okay, just another thought... it makes sense that you would score yourself higher than your father would score you if you are predominantly the inattentive type, because those are INTERNAL processes that are not necessarily observable by others, as oppossed to hyperactivity, which is more external and observable.

When I took the tests to decide if I had AD/HD I took the test and then my wife took it for me. Her score for me was higher than mine. I think that the observations of your closest relatives are a better judge of what your real symptoms are than your own personal observations. Everytime there was thought for a possible change in diagnosis, I brought my wife in to help. I believe I got a more clear diagnosis that way. Just something for you to think about.

Meh, yeah my mom rated me higher when I went to be tested than I did. Which ever test I was given I scored 19/20 and 17/20. Ha. Yeah, but I think you can only self-diagnose yourself or look up things online before you have to decide if you need to go see someone or not.

My parents basically made me go but I'm glad they did.

I know when I first discovered I had ADD was when I was taking a test given to me by the doctor. If you had..I think it was 10 out of the 20 symptoms then you basically had it, and should see a doctor for more information. I had 19 out of 20.

hey binro buddy,
trust me when I got diagnosed I had highly consistent symptoms whereas my parents rated me close to as 4 on a scale of twenty and that's when the psycologist told me ur parents dunt believe it and I was like I know what it's been to come through till here.
PM me for support buddy, I'll just be having finals this week but after that I'll be at a greater ease to respond to your questions.

I'm back...it's been a while.

I'm still in basically the same boat. I still haven't gone to any doctor to find out if I really have ADD or not. I took amenclinic's online test a couple more times throughout the year, and each time got the same results: Inattentive Type = Highly Probable.

Some stuff has changed though, and I really feel the need to rant, so here goes. The new school counselor basically refused to talk to me about ADD. It sounded like he's not a believer that it exists. I explained to my father how serious I was about wanting to be diagnosed, and kinda forced him to get some information so he could learn about ADD and asked him to join the forum...he never did. I don't think he believes ADD really exists, or if it does, he doesn't think it matters whether I have it or not.

Late in the school year I experimented with my appearance and personality. The result was that I suddenly became much more accepted by people. My friends actually respected me, I finally got a girlfriend, and my name was no longer associated with "loser" in everyone's minds. But things fell apart quickly. First my girlfriend dumped me because we could never have a decent conversation. We would be talking about something but at the same time I'd be counting out loud the airplanes that flew by. After that I let my personality slip and because irritated with everyone, which lost me the respect from my friends. I got depressed, stopped eating, and started losing weight very fast. I was already unhealthily thin (130lbs, 6'2"), so this was very dangerous. I actually told a couple people about my concerns that I have ADD. One of them was an old "friend" who I knew had it himself; he laughed at me and said ADD doesn't exist, even though I know he's on Ritalin. The other was a better audience, but only confirmed what I already knew: I'll never have peace until I know.

At the very end of the year I was really depressed, and did some stupid stuff that ended up making everyone hate me and not helping me feel better at all. Now it's summer, I'm away from the people for a while. And I really think I need to know. Maybe it wouldn't be correct to blame all of this on ADD (especially if I don't have it, but again I'm pretty sure I do), but guilt over who I am and what I did probably isn't helping me recover. I would feel much less guilty if I knew for sure I have ADD and there are others here who face similar things. Or, if I don't have ADD, then it would "give me peace", I could move on. Right now I have no idea where to go, and I feel like I'm at a fork in a road. Both paths could lead to recovery, but I can't know which to take until I get diagnosed. Instead I'm sitting here rotting.

My problem though is that I don't know where I can go. My counselor won't help. My father won't help. I live in Japan, and I don't have a clue where I could go for this. The only option seems to be to wait until university and get it checked there, but I still have one year of high school left, and I don't know if I can handle it like this.

Do you have a primary care doctor? It wouldn't hurt to give them a call up and ask them if they know anything at all about it. I understand it's hard where you are, not only because in Japan adult ADD is less known about, but because of the family situation. I was only diagnosed after I was in college because my mother wouldn't listen to me or get me help either, and she still doesn't believe me.

As for some of the stuff you've gone through, it's not fair to "blame" it on ADD or thinking you have ADD or beat yourself up over it... you're just trying to discover who you are, and it's hard, for anyone. Just know that you have support and friends here who understand. :)

I would start my calling your regular doctor and seeing if they know about adult ADD and if they are willing to meet with you. You sound very informed about some of the "noticable symptoms" so it'd be good to bring them up, and maybe a copy of an online test you took. If not, and you have to wait until you're in a univeristy, just think, it's not the end of the world, it'll be a chance at a new beginning once you're out of high school.

Until you find peace of mind, you have us here for support...

Pigeon

Hi Binro!

How long have you been living in Japan? The shock of finding out about ADD plus living in a new country could be a real double whammy.

I live in Japan too. I did the online test you mentioned, and got the "highly probable" for inattentive type like you did. I was led to that test as I was researching ADD for my son.

This was a big revelation, because I had no idea this type of ADD existed... I've got an ADHD cousin and the kid is literally "bouncing off the walls," and I'm nothing like that.

After I found out about ADD, I also noticed my symptoms were a lot worse. I thought of a couple possibilities: They were always this bad and I hadn't noticed them, or finding this out kind of blew away all the coping mechanisms I had built up over the years. I figured it was probably a little of both.

Japan is kind of a tough place to have ADD... Mental illness in general has a huge stigma, and the idea of medicating what they think of as laziness is seen as a symbol of everything wrong with the US. I was even on a Japanese chatroom for LD/ADHD and they were ragging on Americans for popping a pill to solve all their problems... :rolleyes:

Anyway, I'm still new to all this as well, so I don't have a lot of info, and I'm about twice your age, so our situations are a bit different. But I can say this with confidence: hang in there -- it does get better!

I've taken another test online before with my father, a checklist where if you have more than 20 things checked, you probably have ADHD. When I did it, I got 28. When he did it for me, he got 17.
I tried this: I answered myself for all the "internal stuff" like "You feel like everything is going to come crashing down," and used my wife's answers for "external" stuff like losing temper easily, impatient, fidgety etc.

When I did that, the score was off the wall... It's funny because I never really thought of myself as having a short temper or being fidgety, and she always thought I was very confident...

I think that over the years I have become a pretty good actor. I learned to "fake it" in school by picking up in lecture the things I hadn't read from the books... I'm respected in my industry but they'd probably tar and feather me if they knew about all the flake-outs I've pulled... :D

Just a couple thoughts to chew on :)

When you've felt like you just "don't fit" most of your life, it's got to be frustrating to think you've found an answer, but the avenues for helped are blocked wherever you turn.
As to diagnosis, it's questionable whether there are any benefits to having ADD, but if you do have it and can't get treated.... what a waste of a young man's potential! Research has proven major negative consequences throughout the life span. (Problems in school, poor or inappropriate social interactions, lower education levels, more accidents, poor job history with lower economic outcomes.....Try a Google search/ I used ADHD, Japan and diagnosis and found a few things. Maybe you could start a file /
collect info, diagnosis providers, cost and benefits of treatment,etc. Maybe if your parents /counselor knew more about where to find help and why it's necessary, they will be more open. Don't give up, the stakes are too high.
Joan
JRJ

Wow, 3 quick posts! It didn't realize this forum was so active since only a couple topics have posts in the last month.

Pigeon: I don't think I have a primary care doctor, but I'm not sure I know what that is...When I'm sick I usually always go to the same doctor, but that's because he's closest, not because we have any relationship like family doctor with him that I know of. If a new doctor opened up closer to our house, we'd probably switch.

Uminchu: I moved to Japan 8 years ago, so luckily I don't have to worry about both shocks at once. Have you been able to get diagnosed? I've noticed the same things as you. I have a friend who is diagnosed ADHD and he tried to exlain it to some others, and they replied, "So...you're lazy?"

JRJ: The problem is, they will not believe the stakes are high. This is where I have my only doubts about me having ADD. I actually do relatively well in school. I get C's and B's and even a couple A's. But the teachers of ALL my classes are disappointed and say I should be getting A's. They say I'm inconsistant, or I'm not working up to my potential, or I'm lazy, or I need to get organized. Those all show up on the online tests I took. I have a natural gift for mathematics and logic, and my English is better than most people here, so I do better than many people in school, even though I can't "work up to my potential." When people see me getting a report card with a B average, I don't think they will believe I could possibly have ADD, even when they know that I'm "smart" enought to get straight A's.

One option that I do have, but am afraid to use: my friend I mentioned who is diagnosed with ADHD. He's Japanese and he was able to get diagnosed at an early age I think, and he could be a valuable resource and we could support each other. But my worry is that I will offend him. He's 23 and a high school dropout who can't get a job for more than a few weeks. I'm 17 and further along in my education than he is, passing nearly all my classes. If I try to say that our circumstances are similar, that could hurt him, and I don't know if he'd believe me anyway. So I guess the problem is, I can't go further in looking for help until I've convinced myself 100% that I have ADD. But I can't convince myself 100% until I get help...vicious circle!

just a note on "primary care" lol... I only concider myself to have one because I LOVE mine so I go to her no matter what, no matter where I am and no matter what my promblem is innitially... once you find a doc you love and trust THAT will be your primary care physition, lol... :D

on the rest of it, just keep truggin' you'll get through, :D

Pigeon

Uminchu: I moved to Japan 8 years ago, so luckily I don't have to worry about both shocks at once. Have you been able to get diagnosed? I've noticed the same things as you. I have a friend who is diagnosed ADHD and he tried to exlain it to some others, and they replied, "So...you're lazy?"
I haven't been diagnosed. I will be traveling to Tokyo in September, and I think I will try to get diagnosed then at the Tokyo Clinic (http://www.tokyo-clinic.jp/mental/mental16.html).

Quick question: Are you in a Japanese high school?

Personally, I nearly flunked out of high school. I was getting the "if you only tried harder/at all" bit since about the 3rd grade. Until then I was the dumb kid so expectations were low :). But rather than get better, the more homework we got with each higher grade, the worse I did in school.

I barely squeaked by HS with a C average -- and that's just because you needed a C average to play sports. Even so, I had to go to summer school to make up F's every year. I didn't get to graduate on stage because I needed to make up another F in summer school to get my diploma...

I did very well in college though, with a 3.9+ GPA at a fairly prestigious school. That was after 5 years in the military in between... I'm hoping my son won't need that to get his act together.

One option that I do have, but am afraid to use: my friend I mentioned who is diagnosed with ADHD. He's Japanese and he was able to get diagnosed at an early age I think, and he could be a valuable resource and we could support each other. You could try to be circumspect. You know, just get him talking about how he was diagnosed, what kind of treatment he got, etc. Then you could ask "By the way, where was it that you got diagnosed?"

I'm (fortunately) not at a Japanese high school. I go to a small PreK-12 international school with about 200 total students (50 in high school). My parents are teachers there. My dad is my math teacher. I think this is part of why I end up with not such bad grades. In middle school I got Cs and Ds, but my teachers had very easy access to my parents and just told them anytime I didn't turn in an assignment. This was very annoying at the time, but I guess it forced me to find ways to get stuff handed in, even if it meant doing a half-hearted job. If I hadn't had my parents at the school, Fs might be a lot more common and Bs might be a dream.

I'll see if I can talk to my friend about it without...talking to him about it. Might be strange though, because he lives a ways away and we only see each other once a week, so we usually don't have time to talk about anything serious, especially with the age gap.

I'm (fortunately) not at a Japanese high school.
:D

My son is also in an international school. It has 300-400 students.

My parents are teachers there. My dad is my math teacher. I think this is part of why I end up with not such bad grades. In middle school I got Cs and Ds, but my teachers had very easy access to my parents and just told them anytime I didn't turn in an assignment. This was very annoying at the time, but I guess it forced me to find ways to get stuff handed in, even if it meant doing a half-hearted job. I can see how annoying that would be -- but I agree that it probably helps you do better.

Good luck with your friend!

lol Well I can see that Uminchu has found you all by herself, we have a good bunch of people here Binro you will learn a lot, any questions you have feel free to share them if we don't know the answers we have probably felt that way a time or two and can at least support you thru it.

Hugs,
Cherity

lol Well I can see that Uminchu has found you all by herself
... Or all by himself, as the case may be :)

Gender correctingly yours,
Uminchu

Well Ummmm well in my defense :o ....



Ok theres no defense for crazy. :rolleyes:



but, honestly how was I to know? I've only just read posts by you this morning and I'm inattentive OK OK I'm just pulling excuses out of my hat here now. :p


Sorry to hear your a male, well I'm one up on ya there. *laughs hysterically

ps Nice to see a father taking an active role in his children's dx and tx. :D

Well Ummmm well in my defense :o ....
No problem -- I'll take it as a complement that you thought I was a woman:)

ps Nice to see a father taking an active role in his children's dx and tx. :D
Thanks. He's my little dude.
Now that I know we both probably have ADD, it makes us feel a lot closer.

I know what you mean. At least I have an idea of what my kids are going to face in life and how they feel about it, my husband has no clue whatsoever poor guy he really wants to understand.

I took the time to talk to my mom about this for the first time today when my dad was gone. Before this I just let him tell her about it because he said it wasn't likely she'd believe me. I guess he was wrong, because she was much more supportive. She said my dad is really against giving me the "label" of ADD thats why he didn't look hard into getting a diagnosis. But we are planning on going back to visit people in California this winter and she'll try to set something up so I could go get diagnosed. She rejected the idea of me needing Ritalin or any other medication without me even bringing them up, but she says we'd just be going so I'd have peace of mind about it, and so I could get strategies for studying better. It's really cool that she's at least trying to help me, but I don't think she quite understands...the ideas that she suggested to get through the last year of high school were like taking notes in class, or sitting somewhere where theres less distractions. But I already try to do those things, my notebook is on my desk most classes that I remember to bring it and I usually don't sit next to a window. But I end up tracing the patterns on the desk or something instead of taking notes. But its a start anyway, and hopefully for the second half of the year I'll at least finally know for sure.

I'm glad that you are getting a bit more understanding at home. That's very important.

She rejected the idea of me needing Ritalin or any other medication without me even bringing them up
I can kind of see her point. I would be very leery of giving medication to my son (granted, he's a lot littler than you). Even if it were to help him function better, I'd want to go the non-drug route if at all possible. Even having him held back a year in school probably wouldn't be enough.

Anyway, once you get a diagnosis, who knows what her mind in this will be? And besides, in a very short time the decision will be yours to make anyway. Just getting the diagnosis should change a lot.

You can treat ADD with behaviour modification, therapy, yoga, etc ,etc but the success rate is much higher with meds and other forms of therapy in place. That said some things to thry while in class is catching how many time the instructer says a certain word.

My son likes "and, it, the" the best. What he does is while taking notes (which he doesn't really need to do since he is only in the 6th grade but it helps keep him focused as well) everytime one of his chosen words are said he circles it. This has helped him concentrate so I follow up with an incentive to keep him interested in paying attention when he brings his notes home at night I count up the circled words if he has 25 words circled he gets an extra 30 minutes of television.

He's learned that squeezing a stress ball has benefits as well. Find what works for you and use it until you get an actual dx then let the doctor speak to your mother about the benefits of meds.

You could also ask her to join the forums where members can help make her comfortable with the different diagnoses and treatments before you diagnosed which should make the whole process easier for you and your family.