I have my first appt with the doctor next week, then there's a 45-day waiting period while they go over tests, questionnairs, etc. I'm pretty sure I'll be diagnosed, especially after going over all the notes my grade/jr/high school teaches used to send my parents. Yes, my mom saved them all in a scrapbook as if to say, "Here's a snapshot of your crappy school career, enjoy!" I was constantly getting into trouble, disrupting class, etc.

I'm wondering if ADHD will be a constant battle, even on meds? I know medication affects each person differently, but I've been reading posts in all the different sections of this forum about counselors, day planners, mind mapping, etc. Do most of you find your life is much improved just taking meds, or do you find that you also have to make lists, carry a day planner, meet with a coach, etc? I'm just curious if being diagnosed will make my life better or more complicated?

Speaking for myself, its a yes/no kind of situation. Meds help A LOT, but it is still something of a battle. For me it feels like this: Without meds I was swimming upstream, during a flood. WIth meds, I'm crossing a normal river, I still have a fight the current and it's tiring but it's not so overwhelming powerful that I can't make it.

Hope that makes sense. :)

Medication did not eliminate my struggles but allowed me to more accurately determine exactly what was creating them. After the exact cause was determines I was better able to implement and actual use simple systems to over come many of them.

Medication helped me to better remember and focus on things I am supposed to do that I am sure most people have to do like keeping a dayminder, makings lists etc. Yes I still struggle daily. Maybe I always will. I am actually wondering lately if I am better off with the meds or not and have been cutting down. I can't tell that much difference except that I am bored with everything again :faint:

I think for me learning to deal with the ADHD in life experiences has helped much more than anything else. Also, of course finding this board and people who struggle with the same thing and knowing I am not some weirdo like I used to think (at least not because of the ADD anyway :D )

Speaking for myself, its a yes/no kind of situation. Meds help A LOT, but it is still something of a battle. For me it feels like this: Without meds I was swimming upstream, during a flood. WIth meds, I'm crossing a normal river, I still have a fight the current and it's tiring but it's not so overwhelming powerful that I can't make it.

Hope that makes sense. :)
Excellent analogy, I like that one. Everyone's response sounds like my experience too. Why won't you people get out of my head?!? Oh ya, cause I finally found people that don't think I'm crazy for being me! :)

I'm still figuring out the med thing but no matter what I am taking it is only a way to clear things up a bit...I still struggle with daily activities and getting things done. It hasn't changed me, just helps to point me in the right direction. It is still my responsibility to stay in the right direction and that takes a lot of work, even with meds.

Helps A LOT.

My biggest manifestation through my life of ADD has been the eating disorder. And the Adderall helps soooo much with that. It's hard to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it, the obsession - and it's not about weight control - but the Adderall seems to be that last bit of support, after all the mental and emotional and behavioral stuff has taken me most of the way out of it, that last residual impulse that remains, seems to respond to the Adderall. It's like in the movies where the hero remains at normal speed and everyone else slows down and he has time to step in and do things? It's like that, I can now see time in between the impulse I feel, and acting on it, where before I just went from impulse to action, with no space for thought, until afterward, when I'd be all "Now why did I do that again?"

I'm just curious if being diagnosed will make my life better or more complicated?
No guarantees of course when messing around with your brain chemistry, but for lots of people the combination of knowing more about why you are like you are and some meds, may well make your life better.

As for complication my experience on meds so far (a month and a half of strattera) fits in what what others are saying. I still feel like the good old ditzy me, but in a more controlled way. I was a bit worried that I'd loose my energy or enthusiasm, but instead what I seem to have lost is the haziness and confusion, and I am beginning to enjoy being me a bit more. So things are less complicated in the bad sense of the word, but still plenty complicated enough in the interesting sense...

Hope that helps.
-g

Meds don't teach us the skills that we haven't learned. In many cases they do help us learn them and make them become habit though.

Meds help A LOT, but it is still something of a battle. For me it feels like this: Without meds I was swimming upstream, during a flood. WIth meds, I'm crossing a normal river, I still have a fight the current and it's tiring but it's not so overwhelming powerful that I can't make it.

Excellent way of putting it!

Is it an uphill battle? It can be. But as the others have said, meds make it easier. Before I was on meds, I had fifty million (well.. maybe not THAT man :p ) day planners, sticky tabs, etc. to help me keep track, without much success. Now that I am taking meds, I am actually using all those tools to keep me on track. In other words, I am actually getting stuff done.

Meds makes organizing and getting things done easier, but they don't actually do the work for you.

Thanks everyone, that really helps! I'm kind of afraid of taking meds - worried I won't feel like myself on them. I'd like to be myself, but a clear-headed self. But it sounds like that's exactly how most people feel on them though, so that makes me feel a whole lot better.

The other very frustrating thing about ADD medication you have to keep in mind is that it's not at an all or nothing kind of situaiton. It may be that you have to try several kinds of medication at various doses to find what's right for you. And personally, I find ADD meds REALLY hard on the stomach. Those are hurdles which may turn people off, but trust me, the pay off is so awesome.