Hi,

I recently saw an advertisment on TV highlighting the symptoms of adult ADD. It raised my interest as most, if not all of the ones they described sounded a lot like me.

After spending a couple of weeks researching the subject, I have to say it sounds *EXACTLY* like me.

My question is: Where do I go from here?

My situation is slightly complicated due to the fact that I'm from the UK, but have recently (and temporarily) relocated to the USA. I'm back in the UK every month or two for roughly a week at a time.

I'm not really that keen on my doctor in the UK, and suspect that there's a kind of pervading anti-add attitude among the medical professsion there anyway. Can anyone from the UK confirm or refute this?

I haven't been to see a doctor in the US yet either - I don't really know the attitudes of doctors here - if I walk into the surgery of a doctor I don't know and ask to be tested for a psychological disorder, what is the reaction likely to be?

My final option is self referral to a clinic. I live not too far away from one of Dr Daniel Amen's clinics. Has anyone had any experience of these clinics? Is it worth the money? What are the followup treatments likely to be?

I need to get myself sorted out sooner rather than later. I'm 25 years old, and while I've managed to do OK for myself, I've never fulfilled my potential and live with the constant fear of being 'found out'.

Any advice greatly appreciated

Flamin Mo~

Congratualtions on reaching out to the kind folks here at the ADD Forums! :D You'll find lots of caring people here who will be able to help, as many of them have been or are currently in your same "pre-diagnosis" situation. Be sure to check out the UK section on the Forums if you've not done so already.

My question is: Where do I go from here?

Where in the US are you? Depending on where in the US you are temporarily relcoated, I would definitely pursue making an appointment with a psychiatrist who is knowledgeable about and comfortable with diagnosing adult ADHD. If you're in an area near other Forum Members, perhaps they could give you suggestions/references for doctors. I believe that websites like CHADD.org and add.org have referral lists of doctors. You might already know about this site, but http://www.adders.org/ is a UK site about ADHD. I haven't had any experience with Dr. Amen's clinics, but he does have a great "self-diagnosis" checklist at his site. You can search this site for any posts about Dr. Amen by clicking the "Search" button across the top of the web page.

If you approach an "ADHD-qualified" psychiatrist about wanting to be evaluated, they should be very willing and welcoming. Public awareness is rising--albeit VERY slowly and with much controversy--that ADHD symptoms (and therefore the associated struggles) often continue into adulthood. I wasn't diagnosed until 28! There are lots of links to helpful ADD-related sites that have been shared in the various threads.

I hope I've been helpful...I could go on for days about your options, and I'm sure there are many other bits of information that will come your way--the Members here are absolutely a blessing! Please let me know if you have questions about what I wrote, etc.... :D

Oh, and WELCOME to ADD Forums!

Welcome to the ADD Forums! :) Smooch makes some excellent suggestions. You might also try www.addconsults.com.

As Smooch suggested, if you let us know where in the United States you are, we should be able to provide more localized resources for you to check out.

Thanks guys.

I'm about and hour and a half south east of San Francisco.

On the subject of the UK, apparently the incidence of ADD is much lower in Europe, and that's one of the reasons why the medical profession and people in general there don't understand it / recognize it as much as they do in North America.

There are a number of theories as to why. I like the one that suggests that ADD people, being the explorers and risk takers and adventurers that they are, are the ones who were most attracted to colonizing (and conquering) the New World. We are all their descendants...

Hmmm....that maybe one of the reasons - it's certainly an interesting one!

Unfortunately, I think - in the case of the UK at any rate - it has more to do with the state of the national health service. Any referrals to a specialist (like a psychiatrist etc) must be done through a GP (General Practitioner).

GPSs are reluctant to do this due to budget contstraints. As well as that, you can expect to wait months, in some cases years, to see a specialist if you don't have private medical insurance.

I'm speaking as someone who spent the best part of 4 years having anti-depressants thrown at them (for what was probably add) without ever seeing a psychiatrist.

Incidentally, if you do go to Dr. Amen's clinic, I would REALLY appreciate a report on how the experience was for you. I have just read his book "Healing ADD", which I found VERY good and highly recommend it to you. There is a thread discussing the book in the Books section here at this site but the long and the short of it is this: he uses brain scans to help determine the physical reasons for ADD and the appropriate therapies for it, and subdivides ADD into six different categories which have different symptoms and treatments... he is very in depth.