I was recently diagnosed by my PMD with ADD-Inattentive & was started on Strattera.....I saw a psychiatrist today to discuss this diagnosis.....I have been reading alot of the forums here & have started reading a couple books about ADD.....its hard to concentrate but I can see where I fit the pattern of ADD....I have also taken a couple of the online ADD tests & passed with flying colors....I also see where there is an impairment in my life.....there was in school.....the impairment in my job is that I get bored easily & switch jobs alot....there is a big impairment in social & familial relationships......

I was referred to this doctor by my therapist.....I'm not sure how much he knows about ADD....no one in my immediate family has been diagnosed as ADD but I can see traits in my brothers.....since we're not very close I couldn't say that there is a genetic trait in my family for ADD.....but there is a hx of depression & substance abuse......the doctor kept focusing on depression & anxiety....I'm taking Effexor XR 150mg & this helps to stabilize my moods.....I told him I don't feel depressed & he said that he observed that I appeared depressed.......he wants me to stop the Strattera & increase the Effexor XR to 225mg/day......he said that if I'm not depressed then I will do better in other aspects of my life [concentration/social & familial relationships/
boredom/proscratination].........he also wants me to cut waaaaay back on caffeine [I drink about 6 24oz diet coke/day]......

I don't agree....I've had alot of these symptoms for many years & never correlated them with depression......I know how I feel & act when I'm depressed & I'm not depressed right now......I'm gonna call my PMD & talk things over with him....I need to talk with a professional & my therapist has just been dealing with substance abuse issues [I have 19 months clean tomorrow]........Guess I'll just keep trying to find the right therapist or psychiatrist.....I probably need a life coach also.....I've got a lot to learn :D

Nick

Be patient. It takes time to fully understand how ADD has affected every...and I mean every area of your life.

There are so many resources out there. Read all you can get your hands on.

What Moody Blonde said- be patient.

I too pass all AD/HD tests with flying colors (lucky me, eh?) but my psych is not convinced- she is going on the theory I'm just really depressed. (Funny, I don't *feel* sad) So she wants to up my dosage of Prozac. My HMO provided doctor (and I use the term 'provided' very loosely) thinks along similar lines but pays more attention to the test he gave me. So the jury is out as far as my medical providers go. It will get cleared up, but once a week for one and once a month for the other makes for a very time consuming process.

Do your own research, but listen to those whose profession is to get you better too. They are supposed to know more, but sometimes they miss something. That's when your own research comes in handy.

Be well,

Craig

Hang in there.

Please keep this in mind: online tests aren't valid diagnostic tools because they're not standardized.

What that means is that there's no normative sample group by which to compare scores and no statistical measures to tell you if the scores are significant or not.

For "fun" and entertainment purposes, they're okay, but you can't "hang your hat on them" as meaning anything about whether you do or don't have ADHD.

Even computerized Continuous Performance Tests (CPT's) like the TOVA for example, aren't valid diagnostic instruments for diagnosing ADHD, when used all by the themselves.

For the CPT's, the problem is a high rate of "false negatives (you really are ADHD and it misses you)."

There's a lot of info that goes into an adult ADHD eval. I hope you can find someone who understands ADHD and keeps up with the research.

Good luck
mctavish23(Robert)