If you have dissociation, DBT is going to be of limited benefit to you. You need to get a handle on the dissociation first, or you will spin your wheels.
Every time I think I have my ADHD 'under control' with medication and various strategies, life reminds me that I really, really don't. The moment any amount of stress comes into my life, self-regulation is the first thing to disappear. Which is, in and of itself, also incredibly frustrating! I really wish I could try a combination of medications but my system doesn't really allow it (even in Australia, when it comes to mental health, you've basically gotta be rich to get priority treatment) and, quite frankly, I feel lucky enough to just have access to methylphenidate, at all.
Hi Dr. . I am 49 years old. I am aware that I have low tolerance on minor things and dramatic outburst of temper from time to time. I can't control it with people closest to me. But I have created a new character for work and it never happened. Can my emotional feelings ever improve? Or do I need to control it for the rest of my life? I know that creating a character and never snap out of it works. I doubt any therapist session would help because I think I actually get to the bottom of it. Lucky that my gf have so much patience with me. She just let me vent it until I am tired. Then I will apologize and she will let it go. However, I don't want her to take this responsibility and I really hope to stop it from happening. Any suggestions?
If you had adhd in the 1980s, you might have heard this tired old line, "he has a lot of potential if he would only apply himself." That was such a frustrating thing to hear because I really wanted to do well. I was labeled as the class clown, but I just wanted people to like me and I they didnt understand that I felt like an alien on a strange planet where I could never be part of any friend group. Making the other kids around me laugh was the only time I felt a connection to them. Most of the time I just felt alone, and my teachers kept me apart from the other kids. My desk was next to the chalkboard in the front of the classroom.
This made me feel really bad to read because it gave me a flashback to school. Most teachers don't care enough to take the time to try to identify problems, so they go undiagnosed. Just diagnosed at 24 and about to try my first prescription, really hoping to see an improvement.
Wow this made me 😢 it was the same for me born in 1990 and diagnosed at 13 2003 I was labeled and voted class clown in my 8th grade year, I have heard that term so many times, he's a great kid with lots of talent and potential only if he applies himself and it used to make me so mad like im not doing this on purpose
I just got diagnosed with adhd at 43. We grew up poor and my folks worked hard but couldn’t afford a dr and I had that mindset for too long. Anyways THIS. I didn’t realize until I read your comment how much I heard this growing up and all my life. It’s been such a struggle and frustrating trying so hard to apply myself not understanding why I kept failing
I do but I'm not an aspie. Only ever got diagnosed with ADHD at 24 but it was suspected by many of my teachers. As a kid sometimes continuous eye contact was weird and hard for me with people I was unfamiliar with. This continued up until about middle school for me. Around this age I also had terrible social anxiety, or something of the sort. That dissipated eventually and so did the difficulty with eye contact. @@Unknown-wl7vl
had such a hard time getting therapists & psychiatrist to listen to me about my ADD, even though I was diagnosed twice. They always blame my symptoms on my depression & anxiety. I feel this is SO common with women, just blaming everything on anxiety (not that it isn’t at times).
YES! my psych decided i was bipolar and though he TOLD me he didn't think i was bipolar, yet never tested me for anything else. i had to diagnose myself and find out i have adhd and other things that doctors never got right.
In my case my depression and anxiety were *caused* by my adhd, and when i went on adderall, all my mental health problems started to improve. Glad i found a doctor who listened to me
@@braveheart6816 Thats how I feel too because when I was younger I was able to maintain it a little but when it was time to be an adult, life came at me too fast and I couldn’t really handle the pressure.
The anxiety and depression meds don’t fully help bc the anxiety and depression are ‘Secondary’ in ADHD. (Personally, I was finally tested and diagnosed at a university campus health centre in my early 30s.)
I'm a trans guy and doctors definitely take me more seriously about my mental health now than they did before I was out. Back when I was living as a woman I was told it was depression or anxiety. Now that I'm out and get read as a man, depression or anxiety is never brought up when I talk about thinking I have ADHD. (At least until they realize I'm trans, then all my mental health issues get blamed on that lmao)
I remember being called "lazy" and "disorganized", teachers desperately trying to teach me time management skills and becoming angry with me when they didn't help; I remember getting after-school detention for "excessive tardiness", which predictably didn't curb my tardiness; I remember getting good grades, but behind the scenes I was barely sleeping because I'd procrastinate until the last minute and then stay up all night finishing homework and studying. I can't help but wonder if I'd been a boy, if I would have been diagnosed in adolescence instead of angering teachers with my total inability to manage my time productively. My partner jokingly said something about my chronic lateness being "a disability" and I almost cried because that framing felt so accurate. My whole life people have outright called me "disrespectful" for my lateness, it's ruined relationships and jobs, and none of those people see that I am anxious and angry with myself and constantly STRUGGLING. They see laziness and disrespect. They see flakiness and apathy. I wish people understood it IS a disability, and I'm tired of going around pretending my ADHD is "a superpower" or just another neurotype. Maybe it is, but in this society that neurotype renders you disabled.
I completely understand everything you've experienced here, because I've experienced it all. Most of my symptoms went on turbo speed in college because my parents were not there to help me stick to time frames, remind me of homework etc. Because of this when I went to college I felt like I was drowning even though I only had four courses. I was ALWAYS late to EVERY single class, I walked around lifeless, and always *appeared* disinterested in many conversations meanwhile my brain cells were burning the midnight oil trying to keep up in every conversation, or not zone out , friends were often angry with me for something symptom related. A situation happened that was a turning point for me. I told my parents I needed help ASAP, they got me tested and I was diagnosed. If it weren't for their support and acceptance I would've turned to drugs to cope.. I couldn't take it. That was just a glimpse of college...highschool was an absolute nightmare. I'm trying to build the courage to make a youtube video about my experience/awareness soon. I'm reluctant that people will look at me differently, but if I could just help one person it'd be worth it. Tbh I don't even acknowledge the "ADHD is a superpower " talk. People are patient with superheroes, and are willing to forgive them for their mishaps. Most people still aren't with me and the majority of people in my life don't even know I have it... well unless they see this comment lol...
Oof I relate too well to being punished for something you can't help and then people getting angry that I keep doing it.... I was physically abused by my dad in this way, and I only recognised in recent years that what he did was abuse, but even as I now recognise it as abuse I'm still kind of "eh" about it bc it was so normalised for me. It's so sad and awful that we're punished for how our brains are, it's not something that we can help. Even as an almost 40 y.o. today there are some things that my family can't understand about me and they think I'm just not trying. It's all a bit traumatising.
As a male, I can say that what matters more is probably your Socioeconomic status than your gender. I grew up poor, doctors visits were rare. I experienced the same things you did, always late, detention, not sleeping and procrastinating, sometimes doing homework in the 5-10 minutes before class starts. The bigger problem, from my perspective, is the framing that my struggles, your struggles, anyone who struggles with ADHD or similar executive dysfunctions is a "pErSoNaL rEsPoNsiBiLiTy" issue. We're labeled as lazy, apathetic, full of character defects. As a child, this is internalized and it shapes our worldview and behavior. No wonder so many with ADHD suffer from anxiety and depression! We have a society that's built upon making something that isn't our fault entirely our fault. It's insane, barbaric, and disgusting. I'm sorry you had to go through that. I hope things have gotten better for you.
Why do you think a diagnosis would have prevented you from angering your teachers or allowed you to manage your time effectively? Certainly didn't do any of that for me, all I got was drugs that I definitely should not have been taking.
@@jessiescott7795 I agree that socioeconomic status can play a huge role in the process. I'm happy you mentioned that, it's an angle that should be stressed more. At the same time gender can play an equal role in getting help/treatment for women. Maybe the problem is a combo of social status, exposure to the differences in gender, and thorough testing. On average women get diagnosed at 38yrs because many display mostly inattentive symptoms. Because of the emotional/social impact that many ADHD assessments don't always address, even though it's very much present, women (especially inattentive type) are often misdiagnosed with depression or bipolar disorder before getting diagnosed. Ofc you may know this already, but I was shocked when I found this out a few years ago. I grew up middle class but many professionals lacked the exposure to recognize my predom. inattentive symptoms. I was brushed off multiple times before someone finally stopped to listen and asses the intensity of my daily struggles thoroughly. I completely agree about the internalization. As a child I thought my symptoms were character traits, especially cuz girls are "supposed to be organized and tidy" and I constantly struggled compared to female peers. I'm still grieving being misunderstood and unlearning what's me versus my symptoms. Society often makes light of it or is extremely critical, but tbh they couldn't WALK A DAY in our shoes! Or rather our brains lol.
my ADHD has actually gotten worse, waaay way worse than when i was a kid. my adhd helped me be an excellent student at school but it's turning my life upside down the older i get.
I struggle with cooking as well due to planning and preparing, everything from writing a list, to following recipes. The overwhelm and shame spiral is real.
Being a midlifer, and looking back on my life in the 70/80's, it's easy to get bitter and jaded over our mistreatment. It isn't until my life made me stop/slow down, that I was aware that my brain/body needed help. It's ok to be mad, suffering is horrible...but we have more info available now. Please be gentle with yourself; recovery takes time too. ty doc
Many of us with no hyperactivity didn't struggle in school possibly because the structure school provided. Homework was the one place I showed issues. An example of what happens when I left the structured school environment. Mine didn't become noticeable until I was attending a technical college & later university. Btw you have the best ADHD content online. I use your videos to help explain to people why I am the way I am. Thank you.
Same. I have not been officially diagnosed but a high school teacher once told me I may have ADHD whilst I was opening up about feeing unmotivated. Almost 9 years later imooking into it seriously as my life has been frustrating with a grave lack of focus. I'm even beging to suspect I may be one the spectrum. Anyways, I was just tryi g to agree with you. I think I am ADHD with no hyperactivity as I did great in school when it comes to school work at the school and test. I rarely did homework unless I was reminded or I absolutely needed to in order to not fail. Most of my homework was done last minute whilst on the school bus. I even decwltoped a system of doing 1st period homework on the bus, 2nd while in 1st 3rd while in second and 4th @ lunch / 3rd period.
Agreed! I do wish the trouble with school question for the diagnostic test had the opposite question of asking if you were good at school. I was great at school from 1st grade all the way through college because I loved to learn! The structure was perfect for me and felt very comforting. It's been since I graduated college that I fell into a tailspin of feeling like shit. Sure my job gives me structure, but it feels draining and exhausting. Not the fun of school or the mental stimulation you get from learning.
Vyvanse (ADD amphetamine) had the odd effect of improving my wandering thoughts but worsening my obsessive ones. It helped tone down sudden anger but supercharged obsessive anger, which wasn’t always a therapeutic improvement for me. SSRIs help me regulate emotion by wiping my emotions out, which can be a tough compromise. They may still end up being the best tool for me.
I too experienced obsessives thoughts being prescribed Adderall XR. I used to take it in conjunction with Wellbutrin XL, which may have exacerbated the obsession loops and dysphoria . I now take the Adderall with Zoloft and it's been a life saver!
Use this time and try figuring out your obsessive thoughts. Don't let them control you. Thoughts are just thoughts. When they hit in an out of control bothersome way- practice asking yourself (nonverbally) "are these thoughts helpful".... Over and over til the thoughts disappear... The answer is usually No and it's amazing how asking that question works. Most times it works like a miracle for me... A handful of time I've needed to repeat the question fast over and over to block out intrusive thoughts and that works too. It might also helpful to figure out those thoughts when you are feeling stronger... Sit in those thought when it's safe and learn... Learn to let go of them. Learn your ☯️ Seek balance!
I have a daughter that has ADHD, and we recognised SOOOOO many traits between her and myself, I'm now trying to get assessed, at 37. Starting to understand this complexity, and understand the complications it's caused in my life , now, is very emotional, but very driving to make sure my daughter receives the best we can do for her, so she doesn't go through what I did. If you're a parent reading this and watching this video as you're curious about what the hell maybe going on, please don't be afraid to get some assistance. It could turn your life or your little ones life around.
It is SO HARD to get real help in my neck of the woods. My doctor (and many others I suspect) did minimal assessment and threw both my daughter and I on a stimulant that ended up having horrible side effects. I went back a while later and asked him to refer me into a specialist, but he actually refused and told me I could go through our provincial health care system. So many hoops, and the wait time to get in to see any psychiatrist is at least 2 months, nevermind whether it happens to be an ADHD informed psychiatrist. My daughter is now 18 and good luck getting her to go by herself to get help when one of her major challenges is extreme anxiety. I feel pretty helpless, and we both are really floundering in the meanwhile.
Good luck, mom. I am 66 years old and like you was diagnosed in midlife when my children were diagnosed. Some people still believe you grow out of it. No, you don’t. It is really tough being an ADHD mom with ADHD children. Trying to help your children stay organized and focused is very hard when you struggle with the same issues. Get as much help as you can.
I spent the first three decades of my life undiagnosed, despite having numerous social and developmental problems that still followed me throughout my life, which cause me a great deal of anxiety and depression, eventually leading to my mental breakdown at my job because I couldn't handle tackling all of this on my own anymore. Now I'm on medication and disability, prior I was sobbing at work because I felt trapped there and I had to instantly turn off the waterworks for when customers came in, because I felt I had no control over my environment except for how I acted. I'm still quite depressed some days, I feel utterly alone no matter how much time I spend with other people or what I have going for me, its this constant feeling like there's no one that understands me and I know that's not entirely true, but I can't seem to shake the feeling and it haunts me day & night.
@@M0rbidCuriositea I find when bad and good things happen, there's usually an underlying pattern, a sequences of things that happen in order to get us to where we are. The details might be different, but the story is usually the same, its why storytelling is such a great way to connect with people, since when you tell your story,, then people can relate to it and not feel so alone. Thank you.
Thank you for this great video. I was diagnosed 5 years ago. Even though I was put on meds that worked wonders, I always had my doubts that I really have ADHD, given that I had drug addiction in my past. I now have over 12 years clean. I was one of those people that thought ADHD was a made up disease that was an excuse for children to misbehave. After watching this video I know have no doubt whatsoever. Every single symptom that you mention concerning adult ADHD I have. Thank you for your great work bringing this information to the world!
Similar story here, however, I was diagnosed around 18 (44 now), and self medicated my way thru life, as the idea of meds....well...Anyways, this information really helps me understand myself better so I can look for ways to improve.
What is it about pot that ppl with adhd gravitate toward? Is it the numbing of the racing mind, being able to think through just one thought vs 1000 thoughts a minute? There is something there I feel that works, but so many other things that ultimately stop working and turn against you.
My mom has ADHD, and gets very defensive when reminded of tasks she forgot. I try to tell her I understand she has trouble organizing her day, and I’m not angry…I’m just reminding her. She is always worried that people will be angry. We need more understanding that people with ADHD don’t forget or have trouble listening because they don’t care. She may have emotional dysregulation issues, but it’s also because of lifelong misunderstanding by others, in her case. ❤️
YOUR an amazing child to your mother your understand and compassion is beautiful❣️❤️ I suffer from alot of trauma i get tested this month my oldest daughter is the only one who truly understands me and has Patience with me, I appreciate her more than she will ever know. All of my girls, it's just. It feels good to have someone see you. Actually. Sure, your mother is so very proud of you. She is very blessed.❤️
I've been on my ADHD journey for the past 6 months and there was some great new info for me here, but I was really surprised at the lack of focus on how severely ADHD attacks your motivation. Even so much that many consider ADHD to be an incredibly misleading and ineffectual name.
I think the name should be changed to Executive Functioning Disorder instead. I think that would more accurately define what it is. A disorder of executive functions. I have had this my entire life. I was first diagnosed with ADHD when I was 7 years old, and was briefly placed on Ritalin. Unfortunately, my parents did not feel comfortable keeping me on the medication because of what others thought, and took me off of it. I sometimes wonder if the trajectory of my life would have been different had i continued to take the medication. But my life became a downward spiral ever since. Not being able to follow directions in school, being emotionally immature, not having any social skills which resulted in a life of loneliness and few if any friends. As a young adult i was unable to plan or set goals. I got bored easily and i had memory problems. I could not hold a job for very long because of numerous mistakes that i made or because of poor attendance. Now as a 55 years old woman, I have a lot more self awareness than I had years ago, but my struggle, although not quite as bad as it was 30 years ago, I still struggle. Sometimes I have a hard time just keeping things together. Managing my finances is my biggest challenge right now. Is there any help for me at all? Does it even matter any more at my age?
There is help. Unfortunately it’s difficult to find in our current medical fields. At 46 diagnosed 6 yrs ago, I also still having challenges in critical areas in my life. You matter, you ALWAYS matter. Our self esteem takes major blows at times, but we have to keep trying. Recently I tried to put together the things that worked best for me at times in my life when things just seemed to work better, and reincorporate those habits into my present routines. Please listen to me when I tell you. Eating habits and some form of exercise has made a big difference. I don’t do it for weight loss. I only do it to feel good about myself. I recently tried a different medication that seems to help a little more as well. I’ve recently come across ADD/ADHD coaches. And I think I’m going to give that a try next. I also came across Dr. Amen here on you tube and his recommendations made perfect sense to the changes I was making. I’m considering his supplements although they are very pricey. I’m hopeful again. Something I had not felt in quite a while. It matters, because you matter. You still have so much life ahead of you, and you deserve to have the very best of it.
And yes I agree, it should be renamed Executive Functioning Disorder. Most with ADD/ADHD can pay plenty attention to things of interest with no problem. There is a huge stigma to the name ADHD
Debra: your suggestion doesn't describe or address the impulsiveness and physical activation. You can absolutely have executive functioning issues, acquired and developmental. See a licensed psychologist or speech pathologist to learn how to build those skills.
Remember that you symptoms and issues and YOURSELF are not the same thing. You are not you diagnosis. It is not your fault. You are struggling yes, but that does not make you any less as good or important as anyone else with a normal brain. You are perfectly ok just the way you are even though you are struggling. Remember that my friend, things will get better. Acceptance is important. You are perfectly good the way you are
Correct. Add that usual fact of truth to know you have one is late in your understanding of how long it has taken hold of your life. Next, as I learned that gradually all I used to enjoy was long ago and showing up to parties or social gatherings not nearly myself blinded me to a life of depression and anxiety as long as I slipped on getting by telling myself everything is the same thing I enjoyed. Looking at my true joy was waking up and finding a way to be back sleep for night as fast as I. Could. Keeping seeking your higher power and more than options you used to enjoy. Climbing up from the floor smashed by depression and its weight is constant. Even though it might seem last decade, always be preparing ways to enjoy living life safe as possible on spiritual levels and consistent focus in present of ways positive and healthy for plenty of lifestyle choices to add memories and relationships socially. Isolation is good for short periods of planned space. Doing to much only makes one less person to help notice you need some help to get out a temporary run. Aging on it's own requires a different look at who is in our life and what is best to do to keep the quality joy of life we know hoping to keep growing or at least remain.
All of these are so true for me. As a kid, I was usually able to compensate for my lack of attention because most subjects in school came easily to me, even though I was miserable when it came to buckling down and doing homework. The doctors refused to give me an ADHD diagnosis simply because I wasn't 'failing school hard enough!' But then I had to watch my brother, who was getting C's and D's in school, get medicated right away and I just thought that was so unfair! Once I started college and my first job, all of these problems eventually caught up to me and I finally pushed through to make sure I got a diagnosis and treatment to help me get my executive dysfunction in check. But I sure had to push hard and advocate for myself along the way!
Thank you so much for this. I had ADHD diagnosed when I was 6. I was on every medication they made (Paxil, risperdal, Ritalin, Adderal, celexa, everything) I was hospitalized, group homes, suffered a lot from family troubles and abuse growing up, and it took me a long time to become normal-ish, but I have always suffered from my own mind. I thought I was over all this but now it is clear to me as a 34 year old that I still have a lot of work to do.
As a child, I took Ridlen, Concerta, and Strattera. I was not too fond of the way medicine made me feel. I would often complain that I felt like a zombie and I was going through the motions. When I got to high school, I thought I could finish school w/o medicine and eventually convinced myself and my parents to let me do it. Difficult it was, I managed and maintained the mindset of belief in myself and forcing myself to focus. For over 10 years now, I've maintained myself w/o medicine. I was training my mind to use my weaknesses as strengths. Focusing my excess energy on my work and daily tasks; reading and writing, exercising, anything to keep my body moving with my mind. It was so challenging, and I don't recommend anyone try to live without some assistance in life. Mine was a result of willpower and continual self-belief.
I relate to this a lot. Creating home space (and choosing work spaces) with more time/task flexibility has been helpful for me in learning to adult w/o meds, and I have a trail of fails in my wake butttt it’s getting better and there are lots of good life hacks that can support!
I did that too, but then too many unforeseen life stressors happened at one point in time. Got on meds 1.5 months ago and now I cannot believe how much stress I put on myself, not realizing how much harder I have had to try than others. I just take Vyvanse 30mg M-F, and luckily I can rely on the self discipline I honed without meds for so long on Sat/Sun with little consequence of falling off the wagon
@@deecee7042 , I can relate to the stress you felt. It is incredibly difficult to maintain a focused mindset with 100 different tasks in your head. I know it would be easier for myself. I just refuse to accept that I NEED medicine. I think life is hard for myself and part of it is by choice, but if I became someone successful with all my problems too? So could other people.
Psilocybin saved my life. I was addicted to heroin for 15 years and after Psilocybin treatment I will be 3 years clean in September. I have zero cravings. This is something that truly needs to be more broadly used in addiction treatment.
Psychedelics definitely have potential to deal with mental health issues such as anxiety and depression, I would like to give them a try but haven't found any legit grower to get it.
The Trips I've been having have really helped me a lot,I finally feel in control of my emotions and my future and things that used to be mundane to me now seem incredible and full of nuance on top of that I'm way less driven by my ego and I have alot more empathy as well
Holy hell, I just found this series and I've been watching them for the past hour or so. I'm 35 and was just diagnosed with ADHD last year. This video explains so many of the things I could never make sense of. From ending good relationships for seemingly no good reason to emotional instability. I wish I would have known this about myself in my teens and 20's. My mind is blown watching this.
Medication has change my life ever since I got a diagnosis for ADHD in 2019. But I’ve had it all my life. When I was in school, no matter what level, my grades suffered, bc the class subjects weren’t “interesting enough,” to me. This only got worse in high school, until my parents gave me an ultimatum that if I didn’t get my grades straight, then I would have to go to the local community school, for “troubled kids.” So I “straightened up” and pushed thru my senior year. And I finally got a diagnosis in my second year of adult life. And I got medication for this too, and ever since then, my college grades have been twice as better than I could ever imagine! Same goes for my overall social life and daily life!
Same. I am on Vyvanse 30mg. 1.5 months in so far. I take it M-F to be able to function in daily life (which I struggled with after 5 traumatic events in 2021 causing me to lose all control) and I practice my self discipline/skills on Sat/Sun when there is little consequence of failing. Not sure if I’ll ever get off meds because of how much they help me, but trying to strengthen my skills/habits in case I can.
Dr. Tracey just described my childhood. I showed symptoms, I had a hard time learning in school and felt dumb. My dad was too stubborn and proud to take me to a doctor, he didn't want something to be "wrong" with me. And shrugged it off as a boy being a boy. I found this video to be very helpful, thank you!
I think there can be improvements made on adult treatment. I was diagnosed as a child & told I would grow out of it. Years later I had some things happen then the addition of anxiety and depression which exacerbated my adhd. My adult life wasn't perfect with a car repo, lost jobs & a lot of late fees but the older I got the bigger the consequences for the things I did wrong. I tried medication but that became another issue. I was prescribed meds on 3 month runs so I was locked into a dose for that time & it took almost a year & a half to get that right. In that time I was on the edge of losing my job the whole time, I got behind on certain payments almost losing my house & all of this made the anxiety/depression worse. On top of all of my personal issues I was essential through the pandemic. The assaults/treatment over precautions, employer treatment & loss of benefits due to policy changes didn't help. I'm a problem solver so the demand from work & coworkers gave me a distraction that to me seemed more important than my own issues. I dug myself in so far I spent most of the past few years hoping I didn't make it through the pandemic & now trying to dig myself out there are times I still wish I didn't. The problems I saw with meds was that they only seemed to last for 8hrs but after that I was way worse than my baseline. As an adult it seemed to be a choice of fixing my work life or my personal life. Being stuck on an incorrect dose for 3 months made normal life harder. Therapy isn't a simple solution either. Most places I went just wanted to treat anxiety but that allowed me to just dig deeper with my troubles adulting. By the time I found help that actually helped I was so far in it seemed impossible to get out. It turns out that the anxiety & depression was exacerbated by the fallout from adhd. Trying to navigate the system to get help is not adhd friendly & the way healthcare is run in the US makes it easy to get stranded without help. I also feel a little taken advantage because employers are happy to take advantage of aspects of adhd like being stable in disaster mode & hyperfocus but not willing to deal with shortcomings. Like I got a bonus for going above & beyond helping problem solve pandemic precautions then almost got fired the next day for being late. I had another job that I found I could use math to double my productivity but got fired for 6min late over a 3 month period. I don't have all the answers but feel like life has been white water rapids with no kayak.
You are not alone. How the medical profession approaches ADHD in adults needs to change. My doctor, after explaining how he was diagnosed as a child, expressed a lot of dated and inaccurate views about adult adhd. I knew going in that my anxiety diagnosis was wrong - I knew that my anxiety and depression came from trying to cope and function with an undiagnosed executive function disorder. I was accused of pill seeking, I was told that if I had adhd as a kid - I'd be off meds by now, I was told that ADHD medication will cause massive anxiety (they haven't), and every symptom I brought up was shot down as normal. I can't drive, can't keep a job, never finished high school after multiple attempts, can't get or stay organized to save my life, etc etc. It took a long time, but I got my diagnosis. My doctor didn't know what to do with that information because and I quote, "all the info out there is for kids" . I was asked more about things that other people would notice about me, rather than about things I experience and others couldn't tell. Its all set up for parents who suspect their kid have adhd... and kids can't describe their experiences, or compare themselves to others in a critical way... so all the diagnostics are based on surface level, outwardly expressed symptoms. To top it all off, I was started on a child's dose of medication, when I finally found a doctor willing to treat me.
@@L3adb3lly You have my deepest sympathy. It's hard to feel like you aren't taken seriously. Similarly the adhd meds pretty much erased my anxiety feeling. I probably wouldn't have made it through school either but my mom pushed hard for me. I hope you get things figured out.
There are not enough proper therapists for today’s population. Also, insurance and plow incomes make therapy options inaccessible. Thank you for your video entries. Yours and similar videos from other smart professionals like yourself are how humans are learning and growing.
It’s so so discouraging to have bad ADHD as an adult. There is hardly ANY help out there for adults with ADHD. I don’t know why people think it just goes away. I’m in my 30s and I just found an ADHD coach that will accept me. All the paperwork said “parent, child, school, etc”.
my biggest problem is when ignorant empathy lacking people say "its all mental just do it" "its just laziness" like NOOOO its not why dovyou think im venting?! because it BOTHERS ME! lazy people arent BOTHERED by lazy tendancies. they love it. i dont. i HATE that i freeze up when it comes time for any chores or adult duties i need to do. everything is so much more difficult with the most simple tasks. its frustrating as all hell
This is a great video for ADHD. Not only highly informative but straight to the point and with lots of stuff happening on screen to keep our attention held. LOVE this channel
As a kid, I honestly had hoped ADHD would burn off as I got older, but now I just try to embrace it. It's frustrating, but it's got some upside as well!
As a 75 year old who has had this all my life I can honestly say that it is a real pain in the a$$. My experience is that we generally can “do,” but we are doing it differently than most other people. Of course there are things we should not do because our ability to do them well may be lacking. Thankfully I had a job that provided a sort of accommodation due to my ISTP personality type. In reality I was an ISTP with ADHD. This certainly makes getting routine things done difficult. On the other hand there were difficult things I excelled at.
I gathered up the courage and went to see a therapist a few years ago. She was nice and listened to me ramble on about my internal conflict and such. It became a steady routine to go see her once a week. Around that time, I had an annual checkup with my family physician, and I asked her about potential memory issues. I was only in my mid-twenties, but I couldn't seem to keep anything retained from my university courses. It was especially bad in courses that I just didn't "get"... ones that I wasn't terribly interested in, or couldn't find a way to relate with. My doctor knew I was seeing a therapist and recommended that I get screened for ADHD. Shortly afterwards, my therapist and doctor diagnosed me. A few months later, my therapist told me that she was going to be leaving to practice closer to where she lives -- reasonable enough. Then, she said something I will never forget... "I don't really believe ADHD exists, but if the medicine is helping you in some way then you should keep taking it." I got so embarrassed... feeling like I had somehow... I don't know... pulled a "fast one". I was already reluctant to taking medicine, even though it definitely was helping. And getting diagnosed was certainly not a simple process, especially in a university town. But, that simple statement made me feel like such a fraud. I haven't been to see another therapist since, and I've stopped taking the medicine. I'll just have to keep trying harder to cope with this silly mind of mine. I've found that having a task list really helps -- as long as I remember to check it!
I was diagnosed with this symptom at 45 yrs of age. I am on meds for this and it has changed my life like I never thought possible ! Focus and an even temper have come from this treatment. I’m a whole new human being for the doctor prescribed meds that I take once a day. Life can change for the better at any age.
I am diagnosed with ADHD Combined type. Always had trouble with all of the above since kindergarten and have school records of it. Didn’t get diagnosed until age 30 because at some point you have to submit to needing help if/when life gets too challenging in adulthood. I’ll say this, medication definitely does help with reducing outbursts and emotional disregulation, because it helps to “slow” down your brain or helps you process things more accurately and therefore become more understanding rather than taking in information as it comes and reacting immediately if that makes sense. Everyone is different, but I think a combination of medication, meditation, and a healthy outlet is the most beneficial. Nothing is perfect, but it’s far better than struggling by yourself and living blind stumbling every step of the way. You need to turn the light on to see your path.
I was diagnosed with ADD as a kid and given a medication I don't remember what was called, but it made me lose my appetite so my mom ultimately let me stop taking it so I'd eat. I don't remember when, but at some point it became less I wouldn't be able to focus, but rather I would have multiple stimuli going on to help me focus. Presently, I can't watch a movie or read a book or even play a game and remain interested or focused if it's the only thing I'm doing, I need to have music playing and have a RUclips video with talking or have a book on audible playing so I can maintain interest in anything I'm doing. I thought I just liked multitasking, but given this video I think my ADD may have just changed as I aged. I do also get bouts of unreasonable anger and depression and despite my ability to rationalize it with myself, I can't usually seem to get over it until a certain amount of time.
It might be worth it trying meds again, but while being observed/treated by a psychiatrist. Some meds are better with the appetite and eating protein, drinking a lot of water and having smaller meals can help a lot. I stopped meds for the same reason and the bad, hard crash they gave me, but I know I might need them for real as an adult now. Don't immediately give up and try to find smth that works ;) I hate it how most of us don't get told about all this stuff and have to figure it out ourselves, like on the ADHD subreddit x-x
This is ME all the way! Board games to me are like fingernails on a chalk board! No way, no how could I sit still for that long! The only way I get things done around the house is to watch RUclips videos while doing it! I have a phone stand & have a Bluetooth speaker in every room. I feel so chaotic at times having to make sure my brain is stimulated at all times. I even bought a stimulus pen because it became too difficult switching videos while doing dishes with gloves on 🤣
I wld very much like to hear you speak on the similarities between the symptoms of childhood trauma such as neglect and narcissistic abuse and the behaviors associated with adhd/add.
Thank you! I am so blessed to have recognized what I'm going through. So many people write off this disorder off like it doesn't even exist or can be managed alone. I've been through hell trying to figure out what's going on in my brain and now I finally have the answers. I was having a conversation yesterday with a lady and she was telling me that people sometimes think they have mental health issues and it's really something else, well mam if I don't have then my life makes no sense. I stop listening to people, I'm very intune with my myself and I have the power to heal myself. Stop listening to people that haven't walked a day in your shoes. Know yourself.
I got my diagnose at 39 and by that time it had completely destroyed my life. I've been trying to get help since my early 20's but no one really did anything. It wasn't until my ADHD already had destroyed my family and my ability to work that i started to get help and almost one year later i had my diagnose and soon would start taking medication. Now, two and a half years later, i'm almost as normal as i can be and everything is ok.
You’re so amazing. It’s like you’re seeing past all the story people with ADHD have in their head about themselves and are seeing the bigger picture. Sincerely appreciate all your work and support!
I'm 28 years old and got diagnosed 2 years ago. The best decision I've met in my life, not only my self-steem increased and not longer consider myself "weirdo", but I turned into the overachiever I always would overthink on becoming.
I was diagnosed my freshman year in HS and was treated for 6 months. My Dr took me off my medication for summertime and I was never put back on it. I was never never treated again as an adult despite me begging my doctors to treat me. And none of them ever treating me. Just tossing antidepressants and anti anxiety medication down my throat instead, and not getting very good results. Finally, recently, at 44 years old, I got REdiagnosed with ADHD. And STILL being refused treatment!! Just given an antidepressant, anti anxiety, and, now, a mood stabilizer. None of these are helpful for me and I really don't know what else I can do to get treatment as an adult woman. I've been to multiple doctors. No one will treat my ADHD.
I'm literally crying at the emotional dysregulation part, I feel so understood. My parents refused to get me diagnosed as a kid since I already got diagnosed with autism and they didn't want me to officially have two things, I guess? Therapists kept pushing and pushing but they always refused. Now as an adult, I struggle to get a proper diagnosis and help. My symptoms get worse the older I get. Even watching this 7 minute video without taking breaks was impossible (taking a break to type this comment for example). I impulsively spend most of my money on things that give me a short dopamine rush. I want to get diagnosed, but I can't stay focused for long enough to find someone who would diagnose me so I'll have to live with this chaos in my head and my emotions taking over my rational thinking every day.
I don't have it, but I watch your videos to learn anyway. What I do have is OCD and one of your videos a while back helped me immensely in my understanding of OCD and the different manifestations. I really appreciated that.
Thank you so much for this clarification. I developed this as an older adult and was misdiagnosed for many years. I felt insufficient intellectually because of emotional disregularity. Now I am in therapy using cbt to help me focus and work on my executive function ing and hopefully get back on track to better my life and long term goals.
wow thank you for this video! I am 24 and was diagnosed with ADHD this year and have been taking adderall, and while it has helped a lot I have realized that I also have some learned habits from my undiagnosed ADHD that I need to work through as well.
Hello. Im 68 yrs old,I have addhd and this is me is me to a tee. I wasn't diagnosed until I was in my 40s. I was one of those kids who were considered lazy, inattentive, etc. I was very lucky that I went to work for a lady who was ADDHD, and she saw the symptoms, and recommended a visit to her Dr for a true diagnosis. He put me on meds and my life changed drastically for the good. Later on, I was diagnosed with depression and put on anti depressants, and life is good. Thank you Dr for these videos. I wish some of the doubters would watch these.
As you mention the cause of emotional disregulation being unknown, I couldn't help but think about what may be a factor for myself. Without being able to choose focus, I can find myself focusing on whatever it is that I'm emotionally excited about (good or bad). I think one of the things that happens is my thought processes really connect to that issue. Suddenly, I fall into a self-reenforcing loop that heightens the emotional response. i.e. "I'm angry". "Yeah, I should be angry." "I'm really angry." "Yeah, you should be really angry." "I'm so angry, I should do the thing!" "Yeah! Go do the thing!"
I was diagnosed with ADD at 21. I struggled for years after as well with my problems because of many of these symptoms. Emotional Disregulation was my biggest problem. Recently I finally got medication for my depression, and it helps so much for me! And it is helping my emotional disregulation. I no longer feel drowned by them. But I know the meds arent' the only things that helps. I've been meditating for years. Plus having others around me that understand, RUclips videos and tiktok videos have been helping as well. Thank you!
I was a school student in the 1950s. The teachers said I was not paying attention. I was actually paying attention to lots of things usually all at the same time. As an adult, my mind still races and juggles lots of things.
Thanks for mentioning DBT…a life changer for me. It’s finally more available, but most people still haven’t heard of it and/or practitioners don’t offer it.
Thank you doctor! Hearing you speak it is as if you are actually taking about me. I’m 60 and its only been a couple of years since I understand what my problem is. Having lead a fairy successful life I went through almost all the issues you mentioned. I always accepted them as part of me, however learning and understanding more on this issue my life could have been a lot easier if someone like you would have been around to help me.
Hey Dr! I was diagnosed as a child with ADHD. However, my mother believed it to be false. She did not allow medicine treatment, and never went back to follow up on my condition. At school they denied me assistance at the special help program because I did not have bad grades, despite never paying attention at all. This continued and became much more noticeable later on. In 4th grade I felt myself getting lost in class. Especially when it came down to lists and retention. I could not for the life of me(still can’t) remember the location of any municipalities other than the ones I went to frequently. Save the ones I could attach an idea to. For example the furtherest municipality or the smallest one. Got a horrible grade on Social Studies because I could not retain anything the teachers said that was specific. Trying to study was an absolute hell as I would be unable to would get angry that I was unable to study. I was unable to do most homework and procrastinated until the last possible minute. Unfortunately that meant complicated assignments were never completed. Anyways, when I went to university it did not get any better and I feel it caused me to leave university. When I spoke with the counselor she never took anything of what I said seriously. I told her I felt like I was always distracted and couldn’t follow up on my thoughts unless I said them out loud immediately after thinking it. I also told her I felt like a failure unable to compete and that I did not have enough intellect to even be at college. The counselor said “Oh feeling distracted is normal. I don’t think it merits a referral to a professional.” But then I told her about my low self esteem and she immediately called an ambulance and put me in a hospital for 3 days as a psychiatrist evaluated me for *TRIGGER WARNING* suicidal thoughts. They gave me anti-depressants to try out and an extremely powerful sleep medicine Zolpidem. The anti depressant made me feel somewhat worse. Then when I tried a local psychologist, she ignored the entirety of the explanation and went on a rant that God would cure any ailments. I truly think I should see another doctor who is better informed on ADHD. It’s so difficult to get a good one.
Am sorry you went through this. I hope you can get properly diagnosed. I tried Ritalin and it helped me get through writing boring papers. I don’t take it all the time but only when I absolutely need it. I tried something I heard in Europe where they instead gave kids with adhd green tea or coffee. The caffeine helped. When my son was in High School I gave him green tea to keep in his locker.
My husband has this since he was a child but never diagnosed but it is evident. Unfortunately I can not take this anymore as he doesn't want any help, doesn't accept to go to the doctor , but our marriage is destroyed and now he looks fine with it😢
Thank you Dr. Marks… late diagnosis has changed my life immensely and understanding myself has helped me everyday and improved the quality of my life. Your videos and your presentation are terrific in continuing to improve my understanding of how I tick and how to adapt to situations. Thanks!
I recently watched a video explaining how ADHD is rooted through a coping mechanism developed at a very young age to block out the stressful environment you grew up in usually caused by emotionally immature parents
These are some of the most wonderfully edited-for-understanding videos on abnormal psychology topics. Sincerely, as someone going through the human services graduate track I deeply appreciate you making these! (not to mention personal concerns :) )
Dear Dr. Tracy, Since childhood & now it’s getting worse as an adult Ive been forgetful, unable to memorize, disorganized, a slow learner, learning disability (school/work), fidgety, irritated, mood swings, anxiety, social phobia, fear, procrastination, sensitive, anger issues, dislike noise, inattentive, racing thoughts, brain fog, daydream when reading, thinking or taking an exam, easily distracted, I don’t understand anything no matter how many times it is said or taught. I’ve been switching jobs & careers which makes me more unhappy, hopeless, low self esteem, & not confident. All the dreams that I’ve ever wanted to accomplished has died. The dream (home or condo, car, professional job) everything. I ONLY been diagnosed with anxiety & it’s not calming other that I’ve mentioned & i know I have something more than anxiety. All this holds me back from building my life together with school/work & dating, socializing, building friendships, relationships, family n coworkers. Now, I don’t know what to do & I need HELP! Diana
How simply you explained the whole complexity of this disorder.. Doctor in India they just don't believe in adult adhd.. they provide you SSRI, antipsychotic & cross their fingers 🤞 that you will get better.. I feel like you explaining my Symptoms. Thank you so much Doctor.
I just want to say thank you so much for your ADHD videos. I'm 24 and have probably had ADHD for over a decade, and only started looking into it after watching your videos.
I love how you approach topics in your video. It's very helpful to hear from a psychiatrist about official diagnostic criteria and how that can differ from what the patient actually experiences. I am a female, and I was diagnosed at 32. I believe that my care has been delayed and hampered by how ADHD diagnostics are setup. It's setup for parents who suspect their child has ADHD. The questions asked seem to be geared away from the patients experience, and more towards what other people observe in the patient.
Thank you so much for these clear, direct videos! I'm forwarding them to my college aged son, who was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and took meds for awhile, but stopped due to side effects (insomnia, weight loss). With the increased rigors of college, he again realizes he's having trouble managing his life, and your videos are giving him great ideas on how to do so.
Thank you for this video. I thought a friend of mine had this, but he did well in school, so he didn't think he had this problem. Even his therapist at the time told him he didn't have ADHD. However, he always interrupted people when they spoke. He also had trouble learning anything during work training sessions. He had trouble paying attention to movies. Thankfully he got reevaluated and got treatment.
I also think i have adhd but my sth like 60 year old psychatrist made me do a stupid test on the computer which i was even above average because well, i did the exact same test on multiple job screening tests so i already had experience with the exact exercise and im a children who got a pc since i was 9 being on it every day since than. I did the test with 23 so its round about 40k hours i spend on the pc since the test and of course i would be above average. The test i had to do was pick as many keys with 2 pieces as possible in 2-3 minutes. Obviously someone who has never been on a pc wouldn't even have the mouse aim to be as fast as me and i bet that all these games i played in my lifetime helped me to analyze the keys faster. I will go into inpatient treatment soon because i suffer from depression and anxiety disorder, i hope that they will tell me that i also suffer from adhd because it would explain many things from my childhood till today. You were speaking about your friend and i already see him in myself. I generally did well in school but as a child i would always forget my homework literally always. I generally speak very much even my friends always are frustrated and tell me that most of the times when i speak they won't even listen if it's longer than 10 seconds because im always talking so much bullshit. I also have problems learning anything in groups or verbally, except for maths but i'm quite a genius when it comes to understanding maths fast. If people give me an exercise i always ask them to write it down for me i literally couldn't understand in school how everyone listened to what the teacher said and than started to work while i already forgot on which site the exercises were. I always think about other stuff while watching movies or trying to read a book, i hate books because i already forget what happend in the last 2 minutes of reading because im not really focused on the book rather whats inside my mind. Literally almost everything said in the videos fits to my description im desperate to get it officially diagnosed because i think that many of my problems like depression, anxiety disorder and sleeping disorder come from it.
I was diagnosed as an adult nearing 30. It all made sense and now knowing helps me feel less like a failure knowing that it's not ME but my brain and I was born with it.
I was diagnosed at 6, I turn 25 next month. I'm cis female and my combined type ADHD feels like it just got worse in adulthood due to burn out and experiencing more traumatic experiences in my teens to early adulthood. I got diagnosed as Autistic at 21.
@@neurodivergentpixi6736 I was medicated (still am now) and I didn't accomplish much because even though I had a diagnosis, the education system didn't want to believe I, a female, could actually have ADHD like the males that have it. Pair that with horrible bullying and I didn't end up doing very well at all 😭 Now I'm just a traumatised adult who hasn't done anything with her life and lives on disability 😭
I’ve been looking into vagal tone lately to help cope with adulting - maybe it could benefit you too? Diagnosed ADHD @7, currently 34, suspect but undiagnosed ASD - nervous about formal diagnosis bc cis fem as well. Head trauma at 27 & multiple traumatic events throughout late teens/early adulthood DEFINITELY wrecked my “bounce back”/resilience - major burnout once and smaller burnouts other times The cool thing with vagal tone (from what I understand) is that it isn’t constant, and while trauma can diminish it, we can rebuild it. As I do things i I love (some of which are “productive “ but some are just to rest & digest the madness of life) I find my motivation and resilience increasing again, little by little.
I believe that I may have ADHD-inattentive type. I’ve had all the symptoms since I was a child. My entire life I’ve been called slow and I’ve always felt that something was wrong with me but I knew it had nothing to do with my intelligence. Because of my persistence I was able to get a bachelors degree after many years of failing, but it was not in what I wanted. I’m 37 years old and I always though that I wanted to be a psychologist, but that dream seems to fade away as I age and as I continue to not have much confidence in my abilities. To top it all of, I have no support from anyone. It’s been a lonely journey. I am so happy to have found your videos Dr. Tracey. I generally don’t like doctors (really I stay away from people because I feel that no one understands.) I find that you have a way about you that exudes understanding and compassion, unlike hundreds of others that I’ve seen. Thank you for making these videos and helping many in understanding the mind and awakening an interests Mental health.
I’m 57 so it was pretty much shitty kid syndrome when I was in school. I failed high school, got into drugs and alcohol. Someone at an AA meeting told me after hearing my story that I might look Into ADHD. This was 22 years ago. Of course this answered a lot of questions as I always knew there was something a miss. I use cannabis as it helps me with motivation and emotional regulation but not my memory. I still prefer cannabis over stimulant medication. In many ways they both do the same thing but from different angles. I lose a bit of my………chilledness with stims
Great to hear your story. I was diagnosed at 52 years old 2 years ago. Glad you found your diagnosis to understand your life. There are so many red flags to lead to a diagnosis, it's so sad people are overlooked. 🇬🇧
Hi, I’m 44 years old. I was first diagnosed at 24 with ADHD, PTSD and dysthymia. I didn’t really understand All that at that time. I got diagnosed again at age 34 with ADHD. That time the therapist informed me that I was split or combined ADHD. She said she’s rarely seen anyone with such an even amount of hyperactivity and attention deficit. I’ve been living this way all my life with little idea what was wrong. I do take Vyvanse 60mg daily, (except days off work). I recently found your videos and it’s been so helpful, eye opening really. It’s like you are in my head and actually know what’s happening inside my ADHD brain. I really appreciate what you are doing and think it’s wonderful that there’s been so much more research and information on adult ADHD. Maybe someday, the rest of the world will catch up. It’s tough for me when I constantly have to apologize for forgetting things at work. Please keep up the good work, you are really helping people better understand themselves and why we do and think what we do.
Wow. Just today I heard about emotional disregulation in the context of ADHD. This just dawned on me, heavily. It might be that ADHD might be at the core of more of my problems than I possibly imagined before, including *intense* anxiety and occasional depression episodes, because those always seem to be triggered by minor events (or very indirect brushes with my phobias) which a normal person would barely even acknowledge and yet for me it can easily ruin an entire day or sometimes even week! Also it seems my memories can be triggers in itself, for example if my anxiety got triggered in a certain place, next time I visit this place or even just think of it, I start getting anxious again, even if I loved this place before - and this "emotional contamination" can last for over a year! Any of the poor schmucks here who suffer from the same thing I do have encountered this particular problem?
I do! I was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult and afterwards it explained so much about my life up until that point. When I started therapy after learning about my adhd, she basically casually diagnosed me with GAD and depression. I’m on medication for my ADHD and on those days, it’s a lot easier for me to process my emotions. But sometimes, it could be a memory, or worrying about getting somewhere on time, or even something as simple as dropping a cup of water on the floor and having to pause to clean it up- it can send me into a spiral of self-hatred and doubt. Sometimes, it puts me in a state where I’m just frozen and can’t do anything but think about how horrible things are going to be…But the good thing about therapy is it helped me identify those feelings sooner and I can process them for what they really are instead of what my brain blows them up to be like. But yeah emotional regulation is hard for people who KNOW they have adhd, and before knowing about it I used to think I was just an overly-emotional crybaby. Now I know I’m a overly-emotional crybaby with adhd, which somehow makes it a little better. :>
This video is me in a nutshell. My younger sister who is 30 just got diagnosed and she swears I have it. I get agitated easily, have no tolerance or emotional self-control when my kids (13 & 8) fight, I have no patience, drive angrily (why can't people drive considerately?!) My short-term memory is shocking, I struggle to take minutes in meetings or remember what people say. I wouldn't have said I was inattentive but I totally am, I need to walk away from my computer every 20 minutes, I can't watch a TV program or movie without checking my phone. Time to make an appt to see a psychiatrist I think....
For me, I can’t tolerate fear or creepiness at all. I delved into the Missing 411 cases lately, weird and unexplainable disappearances in North America. I can’t sleep at all for days now, because I keep thinking I’m gonna get whisked away. And this happens with any subject matter of this kind. I’ll also get some weird extreme dread after watching these videos, and I can’t make it go away no matter how much I distract myself. It SUCKS, and now if I come into contact with anything remotely related it will re-trigger me.
I had the same realization as you a couple years ago. I had taken meds in middle school and felt it zapped my personality away so I stopped taking them. I struggled through high school and when college came I couldn’t do it anymore, combined with a full time bank job. I got on Focalin for ADHD, and something for depression/anxiety and my life as completely turned around. I have a much better job with a career plan, I have intentions on continuing my education soon as well. The future is bright and I wish you all the best!
This is very interesting, because I have been on medication for anxiety and depression/ bipolar for years, yet the anxiety never stops, and depression is pretty rare. I was able to recognize at one point that I was a really joyful person who sometimes experiences depression. With ADHD going viral, as it were, I am starting to question whether an ADHD diagnosis was missing all along. 😮
Dr Marks, thank you so much for your fabulous channel! I am in my forties, and was diagnosed with ADHD just 2 weeks ago, I have a huge learning task ahead, so that I can make sensible decisions about how to move forward. Having your brilliant, calm, and lovely, voice giving me useful information at a speed I can process is helping so very much. Blessings to you and your community
Great video Doc, very informative. I have been prescribed concerta 18mg for ADHD, however I am very anxious to take it, so I am currently eating a clean high protein diet and exercising daily... I recently started a weekly DBT group and I plan to restart meditating too, hopefully this holistic approach will help me avoid burnout! It's damn hard living with this disorder!
Stimulants can be very effective, but they have their downsides too. Some people experience a low mood from them. So good luck with your holistic approach it should definitely make you feel better and give you more resilience to avoid burnout. 👍🏽😊
Dr Marks your videos on ADHD are spot on. So many people don’t understand ADHD. I was diagnosed when I was 40years old. I started taking meds and it totally changed my life for the better. I retired 3 years ago at 66 years old and still going strong. I see my doctor every 3 months and a physical every 6 months.
I was adamantly opposed to medication for my son, but his behaviors were so extreme, no therapies or behavioral techniques worked with him. He’s taking a medication now and is now thriving. Definitely be discriminating when it comes to medication but sometimes it is necessary.
No...definitely listen to doctors if they say you need medication otherwise you become the source of your child's problems because you think you're smarter than the doctor.
And now you need big pharma for life $$$$$ to "thrive"...if the drug company disappears ...so does your sanity? 95 percent of kids on adhd meds just need to be engaged differently...not medicated
Thank you - I was diagnosed with BPD but I didn't think that fit - later in my 40's I realized I had ADD but the impulsivity with emotions confused me - now it all makes sense.
This was extremely helpful. I've never been diagnosed but I always knew I have it. My inner restlessness and impulsivity persist to some extent and they generate anger and guilt inside me. My inattentiveness got less exacerbated as time went by.... Not perfect yet but I guess it's enough to survive one day at a time. Thanks so much 💖
I don’t know if my inner subconscious told me to click this video due to curiosity, or some deeper inner knowledge of what I’ve experienced my entire life, but this has raised every flag I’ve experienced in my life, at 40 it explains soo much of what I struggled with. Between school, and countless relationships, and even my own career, everything in my life has had a short shelf life because I couldn’t endure passed a certain point. I’ve never seen a video hit soo many markers for me, that explains so much of my struggles. I’ve been to several therapists before but each one was short lived, and I couldn’t determine why I couldn’t adjust to the process. Thank you so much for making this video and helping soo many people living without a diagnosis. I will be taking new steps in my life, and this gives me a new outlook with a positive perspective.
For years, in fact, all through school, all you ever saw on my report card was “she’s such a sweet girl, but she’s so disorganized… “ every time I cleaned my room and start something moved to something else go with that moved something else it would take me forever to actually get the thing cleaned because I kept getting rabbit trailed… and I would have friends get totally mad at me for interrupting (lack of filter) I’ve learned, through prayer and mindfulness, to be less impulsive and what strategies work for me for cleaning and getting things done … very insightful video… 🧡
Thank you so much for this video. I just had my 3.5 hr ADHD assessment on Friday. Left feeling defeated, tired, bored, and not as smart as I thought I was. But... I'm excited to see what comes of this. I'll find out in 2 weeks. If I have ADHD, it makes a ton of sense to me. I'm 38, so I'm just like... Why did it take so long!
I was tested not once, but 2-3 times as a child. No diagnosis even though the reason I was tested was because teachers strongly suspected I had it. To me, it was obvious as I thought more about it when I got older. But I wasn't diagnosed with anything at all. When I asked my mother why, she said it was because I could keep sustained focus on a task that was given. Which seemed a bit off to me because while yes, lack of focus is a trademark of ADD (as it was known then)/ADHD, I was working one on one with a individual professional and in an quiet environment with no distractions. Unlike a classroom most times. Hyperfocus is also a thing with attention disorders and nuerodivergence. The only diagnosis I recieved was a unspecified math related learning disorder when I was a sophomore in highschool, at the recommendation of teachers because I had failed my algebra math class twice and was typically a decent student. (adhd related ramble- I had always struggled with math but never completely failed it or any class to where I had to re-take it. My mother was a highschool teacher and even she didn't realize until teachers said something. It was just seen as if I was lazy or not putting in effort, and I would be punished and grounded for my grades in math which led to me not feeling good enough and effecting my self esteem. I'm fine in every other subject and am extremely accelerated in english/reading and literature, which I've always been. This is also a common hallmark on my mother's side of the family. She struggled with math but was an English teacher. My maternal grandfather was a english major at Colombia where he met my grandmother & my maternal cousin was also diagnosed with a math related learning disorder- discalculia. Basically dyslexia of numbers, which is what my condition was described as by the professionals at my school who evaluated me, but I wasn't given an official name for it) I recieved an IEP for math only learning accommodations and put into a smaller classroom for math, that had a less vigorous/slower paced or more broken down version of standard math classes so it would cater to my level of comprehension and understanding. It leveled the academic playing field, to put it one way. My grades soared in math especially, but across the board in general after this. I still have self doubt despite this diagnosis and feel as if I was just being lazy and if I had tried harder or studied then I could actually do it and pass regular math, even if it was with a C. (I was expected to be a B student at minimum) I kept thinking about seeking a ADHD diagnosis as an adult when I was in my early 20's. I rolled the idea around in my head for 2 or so years before I went and did it. And sure enough, I recieved one. I matched almost all the criteria for innatentive type. I have a hard time keeping sustained focus on anything. I've always been talkative (clearly lol) I'm I'm easily distracted, even in conversation. I've been impulsive in terms of drug experimentation, in the past. And I've always had several things going through my mind at once, most times, as far as I can remember. Like having several tabs open on a browser and you don't know which one the music is coming from, as they say😆 Getting a diagnosis and confirming what I thought, felt and knew all along was both reliving and also left me with a sense of grief. For the struggles I faced because I didn't know why I was the way i am, and blamed myself for being defective for when in reality it was just the way my brain worked. I was different, not a defective failure. For my family struggles, the depression & anxiety I battled so long for years. I cried tears of both sorrow for this and of relief and joy. I have yet to try medication for any of this because I'm just so scared of side effects and the trial and error process, and of negative accounts I've read from people who've had bad experiences. But perhaps it is a bit irrational, I need to realize this isn't everyone's case and may not be my own. I won't know unless I try. Slowly trying to build up the courage to get on meds now that I have my diagnosis. I recieved it about 6 months ago, at age 25. I've been putting off a psychiatrist appointment for meds even though I've approached it. Classic procrastination, especially for an ADHD'er. Another symptom I frequently deal and struggle with and need to work to overcome. Sorry for the word vomit/info dumping....that has also been a recent development of mine over the past 2 years or so I need to manage and quell. I think anxiety is at the root of that one and triggers it because of a stressful period I went through. Maybe someone will see my story and can relate, idk. I know I'm not alone now, you aren't either. If you've made it to the end of this, thank you for your time and thanks for reading.
@@TR-ju5re I always wonder how do they test... in my mind they probably do some questionairs and I always confused with this kind of stuff. I dont know whether to answer; a)I used to not do that; b)I want to do that; c)lately I always push myself to do that and it worked out but i'm not sure if this really me. lol For example a question like, "When you go to the party do you stand alone in the corner or you go talk to people?" I never know how to answer this. If there's no risk or guilty feeling I definitely would go after the food and dont bother me!! lol. But in reality, I /always/ try to initiate conversation with a stranger. I always remember the feeling is kinda uncomfortable and I'm actually a bit scared to talk to people, but I always push myself to do that. In results, a lot of people know me for being extroverted eventhough I dont think I am that social. This is what keeps me from going to get tested.
@@mainaccount9696 Its honestly a lot of memory tests. Like a shopping list of 20-30 items then after doing something else you have to recall the shopping list as best you can. Same thing with a short but detailed stories and recalling everything you can about it. Also lots of quick thinking mental math type questions. Timed puzzles and pattern recognition. There is some questionnaires but before my test I got to talk with my neuropsychologist and I think that's were a lot of your individual nuance can be discussed/expressed.
I feel like we’re friends by now, but I’ve never commented 😊. I’m so thankful for all the information you give! I’m positive I have ADHD Inattentive Version but don’t know what to do next. I’m 54! Lol. This explains SO much!
My eldest was unofficially "diagnosed" by the staff in preschool (the preschool's part of the public elementary school); this was not surprising to his parents, lol. He got officially diagnosed shortly after he turned 7 and has been on medication since. My god, his ability to read went from a few words at a time to whole paragraphs, even unmedicated, in 2 _weeks_ once he got his first dose! He still bounces more than average when he's excited, even medicated, lol. Both his biological uncles have it too, though more mildly.
@@honey...salguod I'm just going to say it - you don't know what the fuck you are talking about. You are not a doctor and you have not met this person or their child. Besides that, don't judge a parent if you aren't in their shoes. You have NO IDEA what they are going through.
If you think I'm harming him by my language usage, I will listen to suggestions. I'm happy for him. He hated reading until it clicked and now reading is his favorite subject If it's the med you object to, bite me. In our society, a kid needs to be educated beyond elementary school. That's a helluva lot easier for him to achieve with the 8 hours of medication per school day.
@@honey...salguod are you a *qualified* professional in the field?? Degree and training for it?? If not, you honestly have no room to speak. Your experiences and your opinions are you own. Not everyone's. Maybe the majority, maybe not, maybe it's only the minority of what people going through this deal with and have lived. Don't discourage or try to dictate and steer a parent away for trying to do whats best for their INDIVIDUAL of a child.
I'm ADHD, and while there are setbacks, it also has a blessing. There are serious natural skills that come with people who have ADHD, and now unlike in 85 when I was diagnosed there are many ways of learning how to use that gift
No issues as a child. No hyperactivity. Extremely quiet. Not easily angered or distracted ...Completely opposite as an adult. Extremely talkative. Poor time management. Over talking. Change in careers and cities of residence every 2 years. Inability to regulate emotions. Very low frustration tolerance. Generalized anxiety. Began in my early 20s... Getting worse in my 40s so finally seeking help. Like what is going on????
Thanks for talking about this! I thought I would grow out of it, but it’s affecting my finances and relationships. I’m hoping to get medicated and other treatment soon. My moods are also difficult to regulate especially when stressed. I definitely answer questions before they’re finished being asked. When I don’t have something to be excited and hyper focused on I get very irritable and depressed
I was considered well behaved as a child (my mother's words) and never had issues that children with ADHD have. As an adult, I have almost all of the issues adults with ADHD. Having MS exacerbated these issues, especially time management. My previous therapists dismissed me as having ADHD but hopefully my new therapist will listen. This video is very informative.
I was diagnosed with ADHD in early adolescence and I'm currently in my late 30's and this video caught my eye. Impulsivity and emotional regulation were never really my issues. Time management and planning are much more serious problems. I was always the inattentive type... And I must admit as I listened to this video, I did click open other tabs and start looking at random memes when I felt like "I got the gist of it". I can manage my ADHD and function pretty well, but it is very difficult and I always need to be mindful of my own inattentiveness.
@@gopalreddy8754 Spending time in nature, walking, taking breaks, actively writing down what you’re learning, teaching/explaining to someone else can ensure the knowledge is solidified in your mind. Standing, walking, and meditation can help.
OMG... I swear you were personally evaluating me regarding attention/distraction/boredom. Something clicked when watching the video. I was a straight-A student until age 9, which is when my mom died. After that, I always remember feeling fidgety as a kid. I could not remain still for long. As an adult, I get bored quickly. I also constantly interrupt conversations with my answers/input to get to the end more quickly. Wow, what a revelation.
My daughter and I have never sat through an entire movie, and when she was in 4th grade, her teachers told me I needed to teach her organizational skills. It was a sad day for both of us. The way I’ve learned to pay attention in class and in meetings, is to take notes. That way I stay focused. I’d rather we find behavioral workarounds than drugs, as those have no side effects, and you can safely employ them all your life.
Thanks for the video. Getting put on the right meds has completely changed my life. Is it perfect? Definitely not. But I feel like I am finally in control of a lot of things. Btw just something I very very rarely see discussed, but I found a lot of my side-effects and anxiety issues, restlessness on the meds, all attributed to Adderall were actually from caffeine (or, more specifically, it's combo with amphetamine). I had to cut WAY back on caffeine. They're kind of an explosive combination, and NOT in a good way.. In a very uncomfortable, edgey way. But ultimately it hugely helped to cut back on the coffee. I have one cup and fine now. No more 2x pots of it. LOL. Also, all of the classic recommendations... Good sleep habits, exercise, diet, etc... Help the meds work. I have also found that the amino acids NALT (L-tyrosine) and ALCAR absolutely HUGELY help Adderall work, at least for me. It allowed me to even cut back on the dose. Thanks for the video.
I am so glad i found your channel. My elementary school teacher back then advised my parents to take me to check for ADHD and they never did. It was never even in my radar growing up either because I'm chinese and the chinese name for ADHD is just solely "hyperactivity disorder" which does not ring any bell in me since I only have inattention symptoms. I have just recently found out that I have had ADHD throughout my life and all those past experiences and troubles I have gone through that I blamed myself for seems to make so much sense now.
![BLACK BAG - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 14](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Du0Xp8WX_7I/mqdefault.jpg)
WATCH NEXT - Distress Tolerance to manage your emotions ruclips.net/video/puoddnGTAJk/видео.html This includes a Mindfulness Acceptance Template
Would love and appreciate your insight on the cross between ADHD/ADD and C-PTSD.
If you have dissociation, DBT is going to be of limited benefit to you. You need to get a handle on the dissociation first, or you will spin your wheels.
Every time I think I have my ADHD 'under control' with medication and various strategies, life reminds me that I really, really don't. The moment any amount of stress comes into my life, self-regulation is the first thing to disappear. Which is, in and of itself, also incredibly frustrating! I really wish I could try a combination of medications but my system doesn't really allow it (even in Australia, when it comes to mental health, you've basically gotta be rich to get priority treatment) and, quite frankly, I feel lucky enough to just have access to methylphenidate, at all.
Hi Dr Marks
Could you please make a video on psychotic mania vs non psychotic mania and mania with catatonia
Hi Dr. . I am 49 years old. I am aware that I have low tolerance on minor things and dramatic outburst of temper from time to time. I can't control it with people closest to me. But I have created a new character for work and it never happened.
Can my emotional feelings ever improve? Or do I need to control it for the rest of my life? I know that creating a character and never snap out of it works.
I doubt any therapist session would help because I think I actually get to the bottom of it. Lucky that my gf have so much patience with me. She just let me vent it until I am tired. Then I will apologize and she will let it go.
However, I don't want her to take this responsibility and I really hope to stop it from happening. Any suggestions?
If you had adhd in the 1980s, you might have heard this tired old line, "he has a lot of potential if he would only apply himself." That was such a frustrating thing to hear because I really wanted to do well. I was labeled as the class clown, but I just wanted people to like me and I they didnt understand that I felt like an alien on a strange planet where I could never be part of any friend group. Making the other kids around me laugh was the only time I felt a connection to them. Most of the time I just felt alone, and my teachers kept me apart from the other kids. My desk was next to the chalkboard in the front of the classroom.
This made me feel really bad to read because it gave me a flashback to school. Most teachers don't care enough to take the time to try to identify problems, so they go undiagnosed. Just diagnosed at 24 and about to try my first prescription, really hoping to see an improvement.
That was the 90s for me
This
Wow this made me 😢 it was the same for me born in 1990 and diagnosed at 13 2003 I was labeled and voted class clown in my 8th grade year, I have heard that term so many times, he's a great kid with lots of talent and potential only if he applies himself and it used to make me so mad like im not doing this on purpose
I just got diagnosed with adhd at 43. We grew up poor and my folks worked hard but couldn’t afford a dr and I had that mindset for too long. Anyways THIS. I didn’t realize until I read your comment how much I heard this growing up and all my life. It’s been such a struggle and frustrating trying so hard to apply myself not understanding why I kept failing
What sucks about ADHD is it can be so invisible. It can so easily be seen as just a character flaw, and not a pathological disability.
Have you hade that issue you can’t look people in eyes bc of ADHD ?
❤
Yep. Always been that way and still is
@@Unknown-wl7vlthat’s more an Asperger’s thing
I do but I'm not an aspie. Only ever got diagnosed with ADHD at 24 but it was suspected by many of my teachers. As a kid sometimes continuous eye contact was weird and hard for me with people I was unfamiliar with. This continued up until about middle school for me. Around this age I also had terrible social anxiety, or something of the sort. That dissipated eventually and so did the difficulty with eye contact. @@Unknown-wl7vl
had such a hard time getting therapists & psychiatrist to listen to me about my ADD, even though I was diagnosed twice. They always blame my symptoms on my depression & anxiety. I feel this is SO common with women, just blaming everything on anxiety (not that it isn’t at times).
YES! my psych decided i was bipolar and though he TOLD me he didn't think i was bipolar, yet never tested me for anything else. i had to diagnose myself and find out i have adhd and other things that doctors never got right.
In my case my depression and anxiety were *caused* by my adhd, and when i went on adderall, all my mental health problems started to improve. Glad i found a doctor who listened to me
@@braveheart6816 Thats how I feel too because when I was younger I was able to maintain it a little but when it was time to be an adult, life came at me too fast and I couldn’t really handle the pressure.
The anxiety and depression meds don’t fully help bc the anxiety and depression are ‘Secondary’ in ADHD. (Personally, I was finally tested and diagnosed at a university campus health centre in my early 30s.)
I'm a trans guy and doctors definitely take me more seriously about my mental health now than they did before I was out. Back when I was living as a woman I was told it was depression or anxiety. Now that I'm out and get read as a man, depression or anxiety is never brought up when I talk about thinking I have ADHD. (At least until they realize I'm trans, then all my mental health issues get blamed on that lmao)
I remember being called "lazy" and "disorganized", teachers desperately trying to teach me time management skills and becoming angry with me when they didn't help; I remember getting after-school detention for "excessive tardiness", which predictably didn't curb my tardiness; I remember getting good grades, but behind the scenes I was barely sleeping because I'd procrastinate until the last minute and then stay up all night finishing homework and studying.
I can't help but wonder if I'd been a boy, if I would have been diagnosed in adolescence instead of angering teachers with my total inability to manage my time productively.
My partner jokingly said something about my chronic lateness being "a disability" and I almost cried because that framing felt so accurate. My whole life people have outright called me "disrespectful" for my lateness, it's ruined relationships and jobs, and none of those people see that I am anxious and angry with myself and constantly STRUGGLING. They see laziness and disrespect. They see flakiness and apathy. I wish people understood it IS a disability, and I'm tired of going around pretending my ADHD is "a superpower" or just another neurotype. Maybe it is, but in this society that neurotype renders you disabled.
I completely understand everything you've experienced here, because I've experienced it all. Most of my symptoms went on turbo speed in college because my parents were not there to help me stick to time frames, remind me of homework etc. Because of this when I went to college I felt like I was drowning even though I only had four courses. I was ALWAYS late to EVERY single class, I walked around lifeless, and always *appeared* disinterested in many conversations meanwhile my brain cells were burning the midnight oil trying to keep up in every conversation, or not zone out , friends were often angry with me for something symptom related.
A situation happened that was a turning point for me. I told my parents I needed help ASAP, they got me tested and I was diagnosed. If it weren't for their support and acceptance I would've turned to drugs to cope.. I couldn't take it. That was just a glimpse of college...highschool was an absolute nightmare. I'm trying to build the courage to make a youtube video about my experience/awareness soon. I'm reluctant that people will look at me differently, but if I could just help one person it'd be worth it. Tbh I don't even acknowledge the "ADHD is a superpower " talk. People are patient with superheroes, and are willing to forgive them for their mishaps. Most people still aren't with me and the majority of people in my life don't even know I have it... well unless they see this comment lol...
Oof I relate too well to being punished for something you can't help and then people getting angry that I keep doing it.... I was physically abused by my dad in this way, and I only recognised in recent years that what he did was abuse, but even as I now recognise it as abuse I'm still kind of "eh" about it bc it was so normalised for me. It's so sad and awful that we're punished for how our brains are, it's not something that we can help. Even as an almost 40 y.o. today there are some things that my family can't understand about me and they think I'm just not trying. It's all a bit traumatising.
As a male, I can say that what matters more is probably your Socioeconomic status than your gender. I grew up poor, doctors visits were rare. I experienced the same things you did, always late, detention, not sleeping and procrastinating, sometimes doing homework in the 5-10 minutes before class starts.
The bigger problem, from my perspective, is the framing that my struggles, your struggles, anyone who struggles with ADHD or similar executive dysfunctions is a "pErSoNaL rEsPoNsiBiLiTy" issue. We're labeled as lazy, apathetic, full of character defects. As a child, this is internalized and it shapes our worldview and behavior.
No wonder so many with ADHD suffer from anxiety and depression! We have a society that's built upon making something that isn't our fault entirely our fault. It's insane, barbaric, and disgusting.
I'm sorry you had to go through that. I hope things have gotten better for you.
Why do you think a diagnosis would have prevented you from angering your teachers or allowed you to manage your time effectively? Certainly didn't do any of that for me, all I got was drugs that I definitely should not have been taking.
@@jessiescott7795 I agree that socioeconomic status can play a huge role in the process. I'm happy you mentioned that, it's an angle that should be stressed more. At the same time gender can play an equal role in getting help/treatment for women. Maybe the problem is a combo of social status, exposure to the differences in gender, and thorough testing.
On average women get diagnosed at 38yrs because many display mostly inattentive symptoms. Because of the emotional/social impact that many ADHD assessments don't always address, even though it's very much present, women (especially inattentive type) are often misdiagnosed with depression or bipolar disorder before getting diagnosed.
Ofc you may know this already, but I was shocked when I found this out a few years ago. I grew up middle class but many professionals lacked the exposure to recognize my predom. inattentive symptoms. I was brushed off multiple times before someone finally stopped to listen and asses the intensity of my daily struggles thoroughly.
I completely agree about the internalization. As a child I thought my symptoms were character traits, especially cuz girls are "supposed to be organized and tidy" and I constantly struggled compared to female peers. I'm still grieving being misunderstood and unlearning what's me versus my symptoms. Society often makes light of it or is extremely critical, but tbh they couldn't WALK A DAY in our shoes! Or rather our brains lol.
my ADHD has actually gotten worse, waaay way worse than when i was a kid. my adhd helped me be an excellent student at school but it's turning my life upside down the older i get.
Hold the line.
Learn from it. Seek balance and find some zen ☯️
@@SuperEvilC Your user name does not match your message.
@@Catlily5 Never evah judge a book by its cover ❤️
@@SuperEvilC Yet you picked the name I assume.
Trolls like similar names. Hopefully you are not one.
For me cooking is overwhelming. Cooking needs so much planing and organization.
I LOVE cooking but hate doing the dishes… maybe we could live together and be a whole functioning brain 😂
I struggle with cooking as well due to planning and preparing, everything from writing a list, to following recipes. The overwhelm and shame spiral is real.
Being a midlifer, and looking back on my life in the 70/80's, it's easy to get bitter and jaded over our mistreatment. It isn't until my life made me stop/slow down, that I was aware that my brain/body needed help. It's ok to be mad, suffering is horrible...but we have more info available now. Please be gentle with yourself; recovery takes time too. ty doc
Finding quality help is very difficult. That’s what is debilitating to me.
@@SS-in1ts 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
Remember abuse is abuse and its never correct action for those you love.
Many of us with no hyperactivity didn't struggle in school possibly because the structure school provided. Homework was the one place I showed issues. An example of what happens when I left the structured school environment. Mine didn't become noticeable until I was attending a technical college & later university.
Btw you have the best ADHD content online. I use your videos to help explain to people why I am the way I am. Thank you.
Same. I have not been officially diagnosed but a high school teacher once told me I may have ADHD whilst I was opening up about feeing unmotivated. Almost 9 years later imooking into it seriously as my life has been frustrating with a grave lack of focus. I'm even beging to suspect I may be one the spectrum.
Anyways, I was just tryi g to agree with you. I think I am ADHD with no hyperactivity as I did great in school when it comes to school work at the school and test. I rarely did homework unless I was reminded or I absolutely needed to in order to not fail. Most of my homework was done last minute whilst on the school bus. I even decwltoped a system of doing 1st period homework on the bus, 2nd while in 1st 3rd while in second and 4th @ lunch / 3rd period.
Agreed! I do wish the trouble with school question for the diagnostic test had the opposite question of asking if you were good at school. I was great at school from 1st grade all the way through college because I loved to learn! The structure was perfect for me and felt very comforting. It's been since I graduated college that I fell into a tailspin of feeling like shit. Sure my job gives me structure, but it feels draining and exhausting. Not the fun of school or the mental stimulation you get from learning.
Thank you for this!
SAME.
Might be the wrong dose, when you on the right meds at the right does there shouldn’t many side effects
Vyvanse (ADD amphetamine) had the odd effect of improving my wandering thoughts but worsening my obsessive ones. It helped tone down sudden anger but supercharged obsessive anger, which wasn’t always a therapeutic improvement for me. SSRIs help me regulate emotion by wiping my emotions out, which can be a tough compromise. They may still end up being the best tool for me.
Isn't Vyvanse methylphenidate?
I too experienced obsessives thoughts being prescribed Adderall XR. I used to take it in conjunction with Wellbutrin XL, which may have exacerbated the obsession loops and dysphoria . I now take the Adderall with Zoloft and it's been a life saver!
@@lv9265 No, you're taking about Ritalin and Concerta.
Use this time and try figuring out your obsessive thoughts. Don't let them control you. Thoughts are just thoughts. When they hit in an out of control bothersome way- practice asking yourself (nonverbally) "are these thoughts helpful".... Over and over til the thoughts disappear... The answer is usually No and it's amazing how asking that question works. Most times it works like a miracle for me... A handful of time I've needed to repeat the question fast over and over to block out intrusive thoughts and that works too. It might also helpful to figure out those thoughts when you are feeling stronger... Sit in those thought when it's safe and learn... Learn to let go of them. Learn your ☯️ Seek balance!
Concerta puts me to sleep
I have a daughter that has ADHD, and we recognised SOOOOO many traits between her and myself, I'm now trying to get assessed, at 37. Starting to understand this complexity, and understand the complications it's caused in my life , now, is very emotional, but very driving to make sure my daughter receives the best we can do for her, so she doesn't go through what I did. If you're a parent reading this and watching this video as you're curious about what the hell maybe going on, please don't be afraid to get some assistance. It could turn your life or your little ones life around.
Especially the little ones at school - they can have it rough in school without knowledgeable teacher, coach, and a good friend
It is SO HARD to get real help in my neck of the woods. My doctor (and many others I suspect) did minimal assessment and threw both my daughter and I on a stimulant that ended up having horrible side effects. I went back a while later and asked him to refer me into a specialist, but he actually refused and told me I could go through our provincial health care system. So many hoops, and the wait time to get in to see any psychiatrist is at least 2 months, nevermind whether it happens to be an ADHD informed psychiatrist. My daughter is now 18 and good luck getting her to go by herself to get help when one of her major challenges is extreme anxiety.
I feel pretty helpless, and we both are really floundering in the meanwhile.
Good luck, mom. I am 66 years old and like you was diagnosed in midlife when my children were diagnosed. Some people still believe you grow out of it. No, you don’t. It is really tough being an ADHD mom with ADHD children. Trying to help your children stay organized and focused is very hard when you struggle with the same issues. Get as much help as you can.
I spent the first three decades of my life undiagnosed, despite having numerous social and developmental problems that still followed me throughout my life, which cause me a great deal of anxiety and depression, eventually leading to my mental breakdown at my job because I couldn't handle tackling all of this on my own anymore. Now I'm on medication and disability, prior I was sobbing at work because I felt trapped there and I had to instantly turn off the waterworks for when customers came in, because I felt I had no control over my environment except for how I acted. I'm still quite depressed some days, I feel utterly alone no matter how much time I spend with other people or what I have going for me, its this constant feeling like there's no one that understands me and I know that's not entirely true, but I can't seem to shake the feeling and it haunts me day & night.
Are you me, cuz you're telling my story verbatim.
@@M0rbidCuriositea I find when bad and good things happen, there's usually an underlying pattern, a sequences of things that happen in order to get us to where we are. The details might be different, but the story is usually the same, its why storytelling is such a great way to connect with people, since when you tell your story,, then people can relate to it and not feel so alone. Thank you.
Thank you for this great video. I was diagnosed 5 years ago. Even though I was put on meds that worked wonders, I always had my doubts that I really have ADHD, given that I had drug addiction in my past. I now have over 12 years clean. I was one of those people that thought ADHD was a made up disease that was an excuse for children to misbehave. After watching this video I know have no doubt whatsoever. Every single symptom that you mention concerning adult ADHD I have. Thank you for your great work bringing this information to the world!
You're welcome Craig. I'm so glad this was enlightening for you. 😊
Similar story here, however, I was diagnosed around 18 (44 now), and self medicated my way thru life, as the idea of meds....well...Anyways, this information really helps me understand myself better so I can look for ways to improve.
Also, congratulations on the 12 yrs sober, that is awesome
Untreated ADHD can actually predispose people to addiction issues.
What is it about pot that ppl with adhd gravitate toward? Is it the numbing of the racing mind, being able to think through just one thought vs 1000 thoughts a minute? There is something there I feel that works, but so many other things that ultimately stop working and turn against you.
My mom has ADHD, and gets very defensive when reminded of tasks she forgot. I try to tell her I understand she has trouble organizing her day, and I’m not angry…I’m just reminding her. She is always worried that people will be angry. We need more understanding that people with ADHD don’t forget or have trouble listening because they don’t care. She may have emotional dysregulation issues, but it’s also because of lifelong misunderstanding by others, in her case. ❤️
YOUR an amazing child to your mother your understand and compassion is beautiful❣️❤️ I suffer from alot of trauma i get tested this month my oldest daughter is the only one who truly understands me and has Patience with me, I appreciate her more than she will ever know. All of my girls, it's just. It feels good to have someone see you. Actually. Sure, your mother is so very proud of you.
She is very blessed.❤️
Just don't try to take it all on yourself.
I've been on my ADHD journey for the past 6 months and there was some great new info for me here, but I was really surprised at the lack of focus on how severely ADHD attacks your motivation. Even so much that many consider ADHD to be an incredibly misleading and ineffectual name.
Very true
Try “ Minimal Brain Dysfunction” MBD.
I’ll stick with ADHA anytime.
I think the name should be changed to Executive Functioning Disorder instead. I think that would more accurately define what it is. A disorder of executive functions. I have had this my entire life. I was first diagnosed with ADHD when I was 7 years old, and was briefly placed on Ritalin. Unfortunately, my parents did not feel comfortable keeping me on the medication because of what others thought, and took me off of it. I sometimes wonder if the trajectory of my life would have been different had i continued to take the medication. But my life became a downward spiral ever since. Not being able to follow directions in school, being emotionally immature, not having any social skills which resulted in a life of loneliness and few if any friends. As a young adult i was unable to plan or set goals. I got bored easily and i had memory problems. I could not hold a job for very long because of numerous mistakes that i made or because of poor attendance. Now as a 55 years old woman, I have a lot more self awareness than I had years ago, but my struggle, although not quite as bad as it was 30 years ago, I still struggle. Sometimes I have a hard time just keeping things together. Managing my finances is my biggest challenge right now. Is there any help for me at all? Does it even matter any more at my age?
Your life always matters, it is all we have after all. If possible seek help for your struggles
There is help. Unfortunately it’s difficult to find in our current medical fields. At 46 diagnosed 6 yrs ago, I also still having challenges in critical areas in my life. You matter, you ALWAYS matter. Our self esteem takes major blows at times, but we have to keep trying. Recently I tried to put together the things that worked best for me at times in my life when things just seemed to work better, and reincorporate those habits into my present routines. Please listen to me when I tell you. Eating habits and some form of exercise has made a big difference. I don’t do it for weight loss. I only do it to feel good about myself. I recently tried a different medication that seems to help a little more as well. I’ve recently come across ADD/ADHD coaches. And I think I’m going to give that a try next. I also came across Dr. Amen here on you tube and his recommendations made perfect sense to the changes I was making. I’m considering his supplements although they are very pricey. I’m hopeful again. Something I had not felt in quite a while. It matters, because you matter. You still have so much life ahead of you, and you deserve to have the very best of it.
And yes I agree, it should be renamed Executive Functioning Disorder. Most with ADD/ADHD can pay plenty attention to things of interest with no problem. There is a huge stigma to the name ADHD
Debra: your suggestion doesn't describe or address the impulsiveness and physical activation. You can absolutely have executive functioning issues, acquired and developmental. See a licensed psychologist or speech pathologist to learn how to build those skills.
Executive Functioning Disorder is different. One can have that but not have ADHD.
Omg what I would do for a normal person’s emotions. It’s almost impossible to be happy when struggling with mental health problems
Remember that you symptoms and issues and YOURSELF are not the same thing. You are not you diagnosis. It is not your fault. You are struggling yes, but that does not make you any less as good or important as anyone else with a normal brain. You are perfectly ok just the way you are even though you are struggling. Remember that my friend, things will get better. Acceptance is important. You are perfectly good the way you are
Sadly I 💔 🧠💔 🤯🫂🥺😣
@@alexanderfriis1Well said!
Correct. Add that usual fact of truth to know you have one is late in your understanding of how long it has taken hold of your life. Next, as I learned that gradually all I used to enjoy was long ago and showing up to parties or social gatherings not nearly myself blinded me to a life of depression and anxiety as long as I slipped on getting by telling myself everything is the same thing I enjoyed. Looking at my true joy was waking up and finding a way to be back sleep for night as fast as I. Could. Keeping seeking your higher power and more than options you used to enjoy. Climbing up from the floor smashed by depression and its weight is constant. Even though it might seem last decade, always be preparing ways to enjoy living life safe as possible on spiritual levels and consistent focus in present of ways positive and healthy for plenty of lifestyle choices to add memories and relationships socially. Isolation is good for short periods of planned space. Doing to much only makes one less person to help notice you need some help to get out a temporary run. Aging on it's own requires a different look at who is in our life and what is best to do to keep the quality joy of life we know hoping to keep growing or at least remain.
As an adult with ADHD, I really appreciate the style of your videos (and of course the content as well). Thanks for making them!
All of these are so true for me. As a kid, I was usually able to compensate for my lack of attention because most subjects in school came easily to me, even though I was miserable when it came to buckling down and doing homework. The doctors refused to give me an ADHD diagnosis simply because I wasn't 'failing school hard enough!' But then I had to watch my brother, who was getting C's and D's in school, get medicated right away and I just thought that was so unfair!
Once I started college and my first job, all of these problems eventually caught up to me and I finally pushed through to make sure I got a diagnosis and treatment to help me get my executive dysfunction in check. But I sure had to push hard and advocate for myself along the way!
Sadly life is unfair too just so you know.
@@unreleasedsongs1907 oh look, an unhelpful comment
Thank you so much for this. I had ADHD diagnosed when I was 6. I was on every medication they made (Paxil, risperdal, Ritalin, Adderal, celexa, everything) I was hospitalized, group homes, suffered a lot from family troubles and abuse growing up, and it took me a long time to become normal-ish, but I have always suffered from my own mind. I thought I was over all this but now it is clear to me as a 34 year old that I still have a lot of work to do.
I’m sorry you suffered so much as a child.
We all do in different ways
Same friend. We will get there. Don’t be afraid to ask for help
Wow! That escalated quickly!
@@raymeester7883 life isn’t always peachy. That’s just reality. Comments like this don’t help. That’s their life experience.
As a child, I took Ridlen, Concerta, and Strattera. I was not too fond of the way medicine made me feel. I would often complain that I felt like a zombie and I was going through the motions.
When I got to high school, I thought I could finish school w/o medicine and eventually convinced myself and my parents to let me do it. Difficult it was, I managed and maintained the mindset of belief in myself and forcing myself to focus.
For over 10 years now, I've maintained myself w/o medicine. I was training my mind to use my weaknesses as strengths. Focusing my excess energy on my work and daily tasks; reading and writing, exercising, anything to keep my body moving with my mind.
It was so challenging, and I don't recommend anyone try to live without some assistance in life. Mine was a result of willpower and continual self-belief.
I relate to this a lot. Creating home space (and choosing work spaces) with more time/task flexibility has been helpful for me in learning to adult w/o meds, and I have a trail of fails in my wake butttt it’s getting better and there are lots of good life hacks that can support!
I did that too, but then too many unforeseen life stressors happened at one point in time. Got on meds 1.5 months ago and now I cannot believe how much stress I put on myself, not realizing how much harder I have had to try than others. I just take Vyvanse 30mg M-F, and luckily I can rely on the self discipline I honed without meds for so long on Sat/Sun with little consequence of falling off the wagon
Concerta had me mopping the same spot on the floor for almost a hour
@@deecee7042 , I can relate to the stress you felt. It is incredibly difficult to maintain a focused mindset with 100 different tasks in your head. I know it would be easier for myself. I just refuse to accept that I NEED medicine. I think life is hard for myself and part of it is by choice, but if I became someone successful with all my problems too? So could other people.
@@theletgotree You gotta keep pushing yourself and always have a goal to complete. Never give up on yourself!
Psilocybin saved my life. I was addicted to heroin for 15 years and after Psilocybin treatment I will be 3 years clean in September. I have zero cravings. This is something that truly needs to be more broadly used in addiction treatment.
Psychedelics definitely have potential to deal with mental health issues such as anxiety and depression, I would like to give them a try but haven't found any legit grower to get it.
@michealharris3221Is he on insta?
The Trips I've been having have really helped me a lot,I finally feel in control of my emotions and my future and things that used to be mundane to me now seem incredible and full of nuance on top of that I'm way less driven by my ego and I have alot more empathy as well
Does dr.sporess ship?
Holy hell, I just found this series and I've been watching them for the past hour or so. I'm 35 and was just diagnosed with ADHD last year. This video explains so many of the things I could never make sense of. From ending good relationships for seemingly no good reason to emotional instability. I wish I would have known this about myself in my teens and 20's. My mind is blown watching this.
Medication has change my life ever since I got a diagnosis for ADHD in 2019. But I’ve had it all my life. When I was in school, no matter what level, my grades suffered, bc the class subjects weren’t “interesting enough,” to me. This only got worse in high school, until my parents gave me an ultimatum that if I didn’t get my grades straight, then I would have to go to the local community school, for “troubled kids.” So I “straightened up” and pushed thru my senior year. And I finally got a diagnosis in my second year of adult life. And I got medication for this too, and ever since then, my college grades have been twice as better than I could ever imagine! Same goes for my overall social life and daily life!
Which medications? Do you mind sharing
Same. I am on Vyvanse 30mg. 1.5 months in so far. I take it M-F to be able to function in daily life (which I struggled with after 5 traumatic events in 2021 causing me to lose all control) and I practice my self discipline/skills on Sat/Sun when there is little consequence of failing. Not sure if I’ll ever get off meds because of how much they help me, but trying to strengthen my skills/habits in case I can.
Dr. Tracey just described my childhood. I showed symptoms, I had a hard time learning in school and felt dumb. My dad was too stubborn and proud to take me to a doctor, he didn't want something to be "wrong" with me. And shrugged it off as a boy being a boy. I found this video to be very helpful, thank you!
I think there can be improvements made on adult treatment. I was diagnosed as a child & told I would grow out of it. Years later I had some things happen then the addition of anxiety and depression which exacerbated my adhd. My adult life wasn't perfect with a car repo, lost jobs & a lot of late fees but the older I got the bigger the consequences for the things I did wrong. I tried medication but that became another issue. I was prescribed meds on 3 month runs so I was locked into a dose for that time & it took almost a year & a half to get that right. In that time I was on the edge of losing my job the whole time, I got behind on certain payments almost losing my house & all of this made the anxiety/depression worse. On top of all of my personal issues I was essential through the pandemic. The assaults/treatment over precautions, employer treatment & loss of benefits due to policy changes didn't help. I'm a problem solver so the demand from work & coworkers gave me a distraction that to me seemed more important than my own issues. I dug myself in so far I spent most of the past few years hoping I didn't make it through the pandemic & now trying to dig myself out there are times I still wish I didn't.
The problems I saw with meds was that they only seemed to last for 8hrs but after that I was way worse than my baseline. As an adult it seemed to be a choice of fixing my work life or my personal life. Being stuck on an incorrect dose for 3 months made normal life harder. Therapy isn't a simple solution either. Most places I went just wanted to treat anxiety but that allowed me to just dig deeper with my troubles adulting. By the time I found help that actually helped I was so far in it seemed impossible to get out. It turns out that the anxiety & depression was exacerbated by the fallout from adhd. Trying to navigate the system to get help is not adhd friendly & the way healthcare is run in the US makes it easy to get stranded without help. I also feel a little taken advantage because employers are happy to take advantage of aspects of adhd like being stable in disaster mode & hyperfocus but not willing to deal with shortcomings. Like I got a bonus for going above & beyond helping problem solve pandemic precautions then almost got fired the next day for being late. I had another job that I found I could use math to double my productivity but got fired for 6min late over a 3 month period.
I don't have all the answers but feel like life has been white water rapids with no kayak.
People used to be able to make mistakes without being fired. Instead, they would be told how to avoid the mistake. People used to be human.
You are not alone. How the medical profession approaches ADHD in adults needs to change. My doctor, after explaining how he was diagnosed as a child, expressed a lot of dated and inaccurate views about adult adhd. I knew going in that my anxiety diagnosis was wrong - I knew that my anxiety and depression came from trying to cope and function with an undiagnosed executive function disorder.
I was accused of pill seeking, I was told that if I had adhd as a kid - I'd be off meds by now, I was told that ADHD medication will cause massive anxiety (they haven't), and every symptom I brought up was shot down as normal. I can't drive, can't keep a job, never finished high school after multiple attempts, can't get or stay organized to save my life, etc etc.
It took a long time, but I got my diagnosis. My doctor didn't know what to do with that information because and I quote, "all the info out there is for kids" . I was asked more about things that other people would notice about me, rather than about things I experience and others couldn't tell. Its all set up for parents who suspect their kid have adhd... and kids can't describe their experiences, or compare themselves to others in a critical way... so all the diagnostics are based on surface level, outwardly expressed symptoms.
To top it all off, I was started on a child's dose of medication, when I finally found a doctor willing to treat me.
@@L3adb3lly You have my deepest sympathy. It's hard to feel like you aren't taken seriously. Similarly the adhd meds pretty much erased my anxiety feeling. I probably wouldn't have made it through school either but my mom pushed hard for me. I hope you get things figured out.
@@alphafert608 Lucky you.
There are not enough proper therapists for today’s population. Also, insurance and plow incomes make therapy options inaccessible. Thank you for your video entries. Yours and similar videos from other smart professionals like yourself are how humans are learning and growing.
It’s so so discouraging to have bad ADHD as an adult. There is hardly ANY help out there for adults with ADHD. I don’t know why people think it just goes away. I’m in my 30s and I just found an ADHD coach that will accept me. All the paperwork said “parent, child, school, etc”.
Where did find your coach? Trying to convince my brain to prioritize and accomplish things often feels like dealing with a toddler.
my biggest problem is when ignorant empathy lacking people say "its all mental just do it" "its just laziness" like NOOOO its not why dovyou think im venting?! because it BOTHERS ME! lazy people arent BOTHERED by lazy tendancies. they love it. i dont. i HATE that i freeze up when it comes time for any chores or adult duties i need to do. everything is so much more difficult with the most simple tasks. its frustrating as all hell
Find a coach that specializes in adults. Different strategies. Different issues.
@@Cathy-xi8cb that does not exist around me and I’m in a large city too.
@@Texas.Gaming Try online.
This is a great video for ADHD. Not only highly informative but straight to the point and with lots of stuff happening on screen to keep our attention held. LOVE this channel
As a kid, I honestly had hoped ADHD would burn off as I got older, but now I just try to embrace it.
It's frustrating, but it's got some upside as well!
Same
Upsides ?
ADHD OPENS UP POSSIBILITIES , it is not a neurological disorder!!!!
Absolutely
@@HeyAHappyHuman we're typically more creative, overall.
As a 75 year old who has had this all my life I can honestly say that it is a real pain in the a$$. My experience is that we generally can “do,” but we are doing it differently than most other people. Of course there are things we should not do because our ability to do them well may be lacking. Thankfully I had a job that provided a sort of accommodation due to my ISTP personality type. In reality I was an ISTP with ADHD. This certainly makes getting routine things done difficult. On the other hand there were difficult things I excelled at.
I gathered up the courage and went to see a therapist a few years ago. She was nice and listened to me ramble on about my internal conflict and such. It became a steady routine to go see her once a week. Around that time, I had an annual checkup with my family physician, and I asked her about potential memory issues. I was only in my mid-twenties, but I couldn't seem to keep anything retained from my university courses. It was especially bad in courses that I just didn't "get"... ones that I wasn't terribly interested in, or couldn't find a way to relate with. My doctor knew I was seeing a therapist and recommended that I get screened for ADHD. Shortly afterwards, my therapist and doctor diagnosed me.
A few months later, my therapist told me that she was going to be leaving to practice closer to where she lives -- reasonable enough. Then, she said something I will never forget... "I don't really believe ADHD exists, but if the medicine is helping you in some way then you should keep taking it." I got so embarrassed... feeling like I had somehow... I don't know... pulled a "fast one". I was already reluctant to taking medicine, even though it definitely was helping. And getting diagnosed was certainly not a simple process, especially in a university town. But, that simple statement made me feel like such a fraud. I haven't been to see another therapist since, and I've stopped taking the medicine. I'll just have to keep trying harder to cope with this silly mind of mine. I've found that having a task list really helps -- as long as I remember to check it!
I was diagnosed with this symptom at 45 yrs of age. I am on meds for this and it has changed my life like I never thought possible ! Focus and an even temper have come from this treatment. I’m a whole new human being for the doctor prescribed meds that I take once a day. Life can change for the better at any age.
I am diagnosed with ADHD Combined type. Always had trouble with all of the above since kindergarten and have school records of it. Didn’t get diagnosed until age 30 because at some point you have to submit to needing help if/when life gets too challenging in adulthood. I’ll say this, medication definitely does help with reducing outbursts and emotional disregulation, because it helps to “slow” down your brain or helps you process things more accurately and therefore become more understanding rather than taking in information as it comes and reacting immediately if that makes sense. Everyone is different, but I think a combination of medication, meditation, and a healthy outlet is the most beneficial. Nothing is perfect, but it’s far better than struggling by yourself and living blind stumbling every step of the way. You need to turn the light on to see your path.
I was diagnosed with ADD as a kid and given a medication I don't remember what was called, but it made me lose my appetite so my mom ultimately let me stop taking it so I'd eat.
I don't remember when, but at some point it became less I wouldn't be able to focus, but rather I would have multiple stimuli going on to help me focus.
Presently, I can't watch a movie or read a book or even play a game and remain interested or focused if it's the only thing I'm doing, I need to have music playing and have a RUclips video with talking or have a book on audible playing so I can maintain interest in anything I'm doing.
I thought I just liked multitasking, but given this video I think my ADD may have just changed as I aged.
I do also get bouts of unreasonable anger and depression and despite my ability to rationalize it with myself, I can't usually seem to get over it until a certain amount of time.
It might be worth it trying meds again, but while being observed/treated by a psychiatrist. Some meds are better with the appetite and eating protein, drinking a lot of water and having
smaller meals can help a lot. I stopped meds for the same reason and the bad, hard crash they gave me, but I know I might need them for real as an adult now. Don't immediately give up
and try to find smth that works ;) I hate it how most of us don't get told about all this stuff and have to figure it out ourselves, like on the ADHD subreddit x-x
This is ME all the way!
Board games to me are like fingernails on a chalk board!
No way, no how could I sit still for that long!
The only way I get things done around the house is to watch RUclips videos while doing it!
I have a phone stand & have a Bluetooth speaker in every room. I feel so chaotic at times having to make sure my brain is stimulated at all times.
I even bought a stimulus pen because it became too difficult switching videos while doing dishes with gloves on 🤣
I wld very much like to hear you speak on the similarities between the symptoms of childhood trauma such as neglect and narcissistic abuse and the behaviors associated with adhd/add.
Thank you! I am so blessed to have recognized what I'm going through. So many people write off this disorder off like it doesn't even exist or can be managed alone. I've been through hell trying to figure out what's going on in my brain and now I finally have the answers. I was having a conversation yesterday with a lady and she was telling me that people sometimes think they have mental health issues and it's really something else, well mam if I don't have then my life makes no sense. I stop listening to people, I'm very intune with my myself and I have the power to heal myself. Stop listening to people that haven't walked a day in your shoes. Know yourself.
I got my diagnose at 39 and by that time it had completely destroyed my life. I've been trying to get help since my early 20's but no one really did anything. It wasn't until my ADHD already had destroyed my family and my ability to work that i started to get help and almost one year later i had my diagnose and soon would start taking medication. Now, two and a half years later, i'm almost as normal as i can be and everything is ok.
Thank you for the ADHD videos. It took 58yrs to be properly diagnosed. I'm grateful for your videos.
You’re so amazing. It’s like you’re seeing past all the story people with ADHD have in their head about themselves and are seeing the bigger picture. Sincerely appreciate all your work and support!
I'm 28 years old and got diagnosed 2 years ago. The best decision I've met in my life, not only my self-steem increased and not longer consider myself "weirdo", but I turned into the overachiever I always would overthink on becoming.
I was diagnosed my freshman year in HS and was treated for 6 months. My Dr took me off my medication for summertime and I was never put back on it. I was never never treated again as an adult despite me begging my doctors to treat me. And none of them ever treating me. Just tossing antidepressants and anti anxiety medication down my throat instead, and not getting very good results.
Finally, recently, at 44 years old, I got REdiagnosed with ADHD. And STILL being refused treatment!! Just given an antidepressant, anti anxiety, and, now, a mood stabilizer. None of these are helpful for me and I really don't know what else I can do to get treatment as an adult woman.
I've been to multiple doctors. No one will treat my ADHD.
Keep going to a different doctor until you find the right one.
I'm literally crying at the emotional dysregulation part, I feel so understood.
My parents refused to get me diagnosed as a kid since I already got diagnosed with autism and they didn't want me to officially have two things, I guess? Therapists kept pushing and pushing but they always refused.
Now as an adult, I struggle to get a proper diagnosis and help. My symptoms get worse the older I get. Even watching this 7 minute video without taking breaks was impossible (taking a break to type this comment for example). I impulsively spend most of my money on things that give me a short dopamine rush.
I want to get diagnosed, but I can't stay focused for long enough to find someone who would diagnose me so I'll have to live with this chaos in my head and my emotions taking over my rational thinking every day.
I don't have it, but I watch your videos to learn anyway. What I do have is OCD and one of your videos a while back helped me immensely in my understanding of OCD and the different manifestations. I really appreciated that.
Thank you so much for this clarification. I developed this as an older adult and was misdiagnosed for many years. I felt insufficient intellectually because of emotional disregularity. Now I am in therapy using cbt to help me focus and work on my executive function ing and hopefully get back on track to better my life and long term goals.
wow thank you for this video! I am 24 and was diagnosed with ADHD this year and have been taking adderall, and while it has helped a lot I have realized that I also have some learned habits from my undiagnosed ADHD that I need to work through as well.
Hello. Im 68 yrs old,I have addhd and this is me is me to a tee. I wasn't diagnosed until I was in my 40s. I was one of those kids who were considered lazy, inattentive, etc. I was very lucky that I went to work for a lady who was ADDHD, and she saw the symptoms, and recommended a visit to her Dr for a true diagnosis.
He put me on meds and my life changed drastically for the good. Later on, I was diagnosed with depression and put on anti depressants, and life is good. Thank you Dr for these videos. I wish some of the doubters would watch these.
As you mention the cause of emotional disregulation being unknown, I couldn't help but think about what may be a factor for myself. Without being able to choose focus, I can find myself focusing on whatever it is that I'm emotionally excited about (good or bad). I think one of the things that happens is my thought processes really connect to that issue. Suddenly, I fall into a self-reenforcing loop that heightens the emotional response. i.e. "I'm angry". "Yeah, I should be angry." "I'm really angry." "Yeah, you should be really angry." "I'm so angry, I should do the thing!" "Yeah! Go do the thing!"
I was diagnosed with ADD at 21. I struggled for years after as well with my problems because of many of these symptoms. Emotional Disregulation was my biggest problem. Recently I finally got medication for my depression, and it helps so much for me! And it is helping my emotional disregulation. I no longer feel drowned by them. But I know the meds arent' the only things that helps. I've been meditating for years. Plus having others around me that understand, RUclips videos and tiktok videos have been helping as well. Thank you!
I was a school student in the 1950s. The teachers said I was not paying attention. I was actually paying attention to lots of things usually all at the same time. As an adult, my mind still races and juggles lots of things.
Thanks for mentioning DBT…a life changer for me. It’s finally more available, but most people still haven’t heard of it and/or practitioners don’t offer it.
Thank you doctor! Hearing you speak it is as if you are actually taking about me. I’m 60 and its only been a couple of years since I understand what my problem is. Having lead a fairy successful life I went through almost all the issues you mentioned. I always accepted them as part of me, however learning and understanding more on this issue my life could have been a lot easier if someone like you would have been around to help me.
Thank you for not using background music! Your videos are wonderful.
Love,
A combined type ADHD classical musician.
Hey Dr! I was diagnosed as a child with ADHD. However, my mother believed it to be false. She did not allow medicine treatment, and never went back to follow up on my condition. At school they denied me assistance at the special help program because I did not have bad grades, despite never paying attention at all. This continued and became much more noticeable later on. In 4th grade I felt myself getting lost in class. Especially when it came down to lists and retention. I could not for the life of me(still can’t) remember the location of any municipalities other than the ones I went to frequently. Save the ones I could attach an idea to. For example the furtherest municipality or the smallest one. Got a horrible grade on Social Studies because I could not retain anything the teachers said that was specific. Trying to study was an absolute hell as I would be unable to would get angry that I was unable to study. I was unable to do most homework and procrastinated until the last possible minute. Unfortunately that meant complicated assignments were never completed. Anyways, when I went to university it did not get any better and I feel it caused me to leave university. When I spoke with the counselor she never took anything of what I said seriously. I told her I felt like I was always distracted and couldn’t follow up on my thoughts unless I said them out loud immediately after thinking it. I also told her I felt like a failure unable to compete and that I did not have enough intellect to even be at college. The counselor said “Oh feeling distracted is normal. I don’t think it merits a referral to a professional.” But then I told her about my low self esteem and she immediately called an ambulance and put me in a hospital for 3 days as a psychiatrist evaluated me for *TRIGGER WARNING* suicidal thoughts. They gave me anti-depressants to try out and an extremely powerful sleep medicine Zolpidem. The anti depressant made me feel somewhat worse. Then when I tried a local psychologist, she ignored the entirety of the explanation and went on a rant that God would cure any ailments.
I truly think I should see another doctor who is better informed on ADHD. It’s so difficult to get a good one.
Try betterhelp
Am sorry you went through this. I hope you can get properly diagnosed. I tried Ritalin and it helped me get through writing boring papers. I don’t take it all the time but only when I absolutely need it. I tried something I heard in Europe where they instead gave kids with adhd green tea or coffee. The caffeine helped. When my son was in High School I gave him green tea to keep in his locker.
That person you met are not a doctor
My husband has this since he was a child but never diagnosed but it is evident. Unfortunately I can not take this anymore as he doesn't want any help, doesn't accept to go to the doctor , but our marriage is destroyed and now he looks fine with it😢
Thank you Dr. Marks… late diagnosis has changed my life immensely and understanding myself has helped me everyday and improved the quality of my life. Your videos and your presentation are terrific in continuing to improve my understanding of how I tick and how to adapt to situations.
Thanks!
I recently watched a video explaining how ADHD is rooted through a coping mechanism developed at a very young age to block out the stressful environment you grew up in usually caused by emotionally immature parents
No it’s something that is triggered by a chemical imbalance in the brain, not social upbringing
These are some of the most wonderfully edited-for-understanding videos on abnormal psychology topics. Sincerely, as someone going through the human services graduate track I deeply appreciate you making these! (not to mention personal concerns :) )
Dear Dr. Tracy,
Since childhood & now it’s getting worse as an adult Ive been forgetful, unable to memorize, disorganized, a slow learner, learning disability (school/work), fidgety, irritated, mood swings, anxiety, social phobia, fear, procrastination, sensitive, anger issues, dislike noise, inattentive, racing thoughts, brain fog, daydream when reading, thinking or taking an exam, easily distracted, I don’t understand anything no matter how many times it is said or taught.
I’ve been switching jobs & careers which makes me more unhappy, hopeless, low self esteem, & not confident.
All the dreams that I’ve ever wanted to accomplished has died. The dream (home or condo, car, professional job) everything.
I ONLY been diagnosed with anxiety & it’s not calming other that I’ve mentioned & i know I have something more than anxiety.
All this holds me back from building my life together with school/work & dating, socializing, building friendships, relationships, family n coworkers.
Now, I don’t know what to do & I need HELP!
Diana
How simply you explained the whole complexity of this disorder..
Doctor in India they just don't believe in adult adhd.. they provide you SSRI, antipsychotic & cross their fingers 🤞 that you will get better..
I feel like you explaining my Symptoms.
Thank you so much Doctor.
Along with there arrogants and ignorance.
I just want to say thank you so much for your ADHD videos. I'm 24 and have probably had ADHD for over a decade, and only started looking into it after watching your videos.
I love how you approach topics in your video. It's very helpful to hear from a psychiatrist about official diagnostic criteria and how that can differ from what the patient actually experiences.
I am a female, and I was diagnosed at 32. I believe that my care has been delayed and hampered by how ADHD diagnostics are setup. It's setup for parents who suspect their child has ADHD. The questions asked seem to be geared away from the patients experience, and more towards what other people observe in the patient.
Thank you so much for these clear, direct videos! I'm forwarding them to my college aged son, who was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and took meds for awhile, but stopped due to side effects (insomnia, weight loss). With the increased rigors of college, he again realizes he's having trouble managing his life, and your videos are giving him great ideas on how to do so.
Thank you for this video. I thought a friend of mine had this, but he did well in school, so he didn't think he had this problem. Even his therapist at the time told him he didn't have ADHD. However, he always interrupted people when they spoke. He also had trouble learning anything during work training sessions. He had trouble paying attention to movies. Thankfully he got reevaluated and got treatment.
I also think i have adhd but my sth like 60 year old psychatrist made me do a stupid test on the computer which i was even above average because well, i did the exact same test on multiple job screening tests so i already had experience with the exact exercise and im a children who got a pc since i was 9 being on it every day since than. I did the test with 23 so its round about 40k hours i spend on the pc since the test and of course i would be above average. The test i had to do was pick as many keys with 2 pieces as possible in 2-3 minutes. Obviously someone who has never been on a pc wouldn't even have the mouse aim to be as fast as me and i bet that all these games i played in my lifetime helped me to analyze the keys faster. I will go into inpatient treatment soon because i suffer from depression and anxiety disorder, i hope that they will tell me that i also suffer from adhd because it would explain many things from my childhood till today.
You were speaking about your friend and i already see him in myself. I generally did well in school but as a child i would always forget my homework literally always. I generally speak very much even my friends always are frustrated and tell me that most of the times when i speak they won't even listen if it's longer than 10 seconds because im always talking so much bullshit. I also have problems learning anything in groups or verbally, except for maths but i'm quite a genius when it comes to understanding maths fast. If people give me an exercise i always ask them to write it down for me i literally couldn't understand in school how everyone listened to what the teacher said and than started to work while i already forgot on which site the exercises were. I always think about other stuff while watching movies or trying to read a book, i hate books because i already forget what happend in the last 2 minutes of reading because im not really focused on the book rather whats inside my mind.
Literally almost everything said in the videos fits to my description im desperate to get it officially diagnosed because i think that many of my problems like depression, anxiety disorder and sleeping disorder come from it.
I was diagnosed as an adult nearing 30. It all made sense and now knowing helps me feel less like a failure knowing that it's not ME but my brain and I was born with it.
I was diagnosed at 6, I turn 25 next month. I'm cis female and my combined type ADHD feels like it just got worse in adulthood due to burn out and experiencing more traumatic experiences in my teens to early adulthood. I got diagnosed as Autistic at 21.
@@honey...salguod no.
@@neurodivergentpixi6736 ye, that guy was under several comments here ranting on how psychiatry is evil or smth.
@@neurodivergentpixi6736 I was medicated (still am now) and I didn't accomplish much because even though I had a diagnosis, the education system didn't want to believe I, a female, could actually have ADHD like the males that have it.
Pair that with horrible bullying and I didn't end up doing very well at all 😭
Now I'm just a traumatised adult who hasn't done anything with her life and lives on disability 😭
I’ve been looking into vagal tone lately to help cope with adulting - maybe it could benefit you too?
Diagnosed ADHD @7, currently 34, suspect but undiagnosed ASD - nervous about formal diagnosis bc cis fem as well.
Head trauma at 27 & multiple traumatic events throughout late teens/early adulthood DEFINITELY wrecked my “bounce back”/resilience - major burnout once and smaller burnouts other times
The cool thing with vagal tone (from what I understand) is that it isn’t constant, and while trauma can diminish it, we can rebuild it.
As I do things i I love (some of which are “productive “ but some are just to rest & digest the madness of life) I find my motivation and resilience increasing again, little by little.
Why point out you're cis? That was not necessary.
I believe that I may have ADHD-inattentive type. I’ve had all the symptoms since I was a child. My entire life I’ve been called slow and I’ve always felt that something was wrong with me but I knew it had nothing to do with my intelligence. Because of my persistence I was able to get a bachelors degree after many years of failing, but it was not in what I wanted. I’m 37 years old and I always though that I wanted to be a psychologist, but that dream seems to fade away as I age and as I continue to not have much confidence in my abilities. To top it all of, I have no support from anyone. It’s been a lonely journey.
I am so happy to have found your videos Dr. Tracey. I generally don’t like doctors (really I stay away from people because I feel that no one understands.) I find that you have a way about you that exudes understanding and compassion, unlike hundreds of others that I’ve seen. Thank you for making these videos and helping many in understanding the mind and awakening an interests Mental health.
I’m 57 so it was pretty much shitty kid syndrome when I was in school. I failed high school, got into drugs and alcohol. Someone at an AA meeting told me after hearing my story that I might look
Into ADHD. This was 22 years ago. Of course this answered a lot of questions as I always knew there was something a miss. I use cannabis as it helps me with motivation and emotional regulation but not my memory. I still prefer cannabis over stimulant medication. In many ways they both do the same thing but from different angles. I lose a bit of my………chilledness with stims
Great to hear your story.
I was diagnosed at 52 years old 2 years ago. Glad you found your diagnosis to understand your life. There are so many red flags to lead to a diagnosis, it's so sad people are overlooked. 🇬🇧
Hi, I’m 44 years old. I was first diagnosed at 24 with ADHD, PTSD and dysthymia. I didn’t really understand All that at that time. I got diagnosed again at age 34 with ADHD. That time the therapist informed me that I was split or combined ADHD. She said she’s rarely seen anyone with such an even amount of hyperactivity and attention deficit. I’ve been living this way all my life with little idea what was wrong. I do take Vyvanse 60mg daily, (except days off work). I recently found your videos and it’s been so helpful, eye opening really. It’s like you are in my head and actually know what’s happening inside my ADHD brain. I really appreciate what you are doing and think it’s wonderful that there’s been so much more research and information on adult ADHD. Maybe someday, the rest of the world will catch up. It’s tough for me when I constantly have to apologize for forgetting things at work. Please keep up the good work, you are really helping people better understand themselves and why we do and think what we do.
Wow. Just today I heard about emotional disregulation in the context of ADHD. This just dawned on me, heavily. It might be that ADHD might be at the core of more of my problems than I possibly imagined before, including *intense* anxiety and occasional depression episodes, because those always seem to be triggered by minor events (or very indirect brushes with my phobias) which a normal person would barely even acknowledge and yet for me it can easily ruin an entire day or sometimes even week! Also it seems my memories can be triggers in itself, for example if my anxiety got triggered in a certain place, next time I visit this place or even just think of it, I start getting anxious again, even if I loved this place before - and this "emotional contamination" can last for over a year! Any of the poor schmucks here who suffer from the same thing I do have encountered this particular problem?
I do! I was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult and afterwards it explained so much about my life up until that point. When I started therapy after learning about my adhd, she basically casually diagnosed me with GAD and depression. I’m on medication for my ADHD and on those days, it’s a lot easier for me to process my emotions. But sometimes, it could be a memory, or worrying about getting somewhere on time, or even something as simple as dropping a cup of water on the floor and having to pause to clean it up- it can send me into a spiral of self-hatred and doubt. Sometimes, it puts me in a state where I’m just frozen and can’t do anything but think about how horrible things are going to be…But the good thing about therapy is it helped me identify those feelings sooner and I can process them for what they really are instead of what my brain blows them up to be like.
But yeah emotional regulation is hard for people who KNOW they have adhd, and before knowing about it I used to think I was just an overly-emotional crybaby. Now I know I’m a overly-emotional crybaby with adhd, which somehow makes it a little better. :>
This video is me in a nutshell. My younger sister who is 30 just got diagnosed and she swears I have it. I get agitated easily, have no tolerance or emotional self-control when my kids (13 & 8) fight, I have no patience, drive angrily (why can't people drive considerately?!) My short-term memory is shocking, I struggle to take minutes in meetings or remember what people say. I wouldn't have said I was inattentive but I totally am, I need to walk away from my computer every 20 minutes, I can't watch a TV program or movie without checking my phone. Time to make an appt to see a psychiatrist I think....
For me, I can’t tolerate fear or creepiness at all. I delved into the Missing 411 cases lately, weird and unexplainable disappearances in North America. I can’t sleep at all for days now, because I keep thinking I’m gonna get whisked away. And this happens with any subject matter of this kind. I’ll also get some weird extreme dread after watching these videos, and I can’t make it go away no matter how much I distract myself. It SUCKS, and now if I come into contact with anything remotely related it will re-trigger me.
I had the same realization as you a couple years ago. I had taken meds in middle school and felt it zapped my personality away so I stopped taking them. I struggled through high school and when college came I couldn’t do it anymore, combined with a full time bank job. I got on Focalin for ADHD, and something for depression/anxiety and my life as completely turned around. I have a much better job with a career plan, I have intentions on continuing my education soon as well. The future is bright and I wish you all the best!
This is very interesting, because I have been on medication for anxiety and depression/ bipolar for years, yet the anxiety never stops, and depression is pretty rare. I was able to recognize at one point that I was a really joyful person who sometimes experiences depression. With ADHD going viral, as it were, I am starting to question whether an ADHD diagnosis was missing all along. 😮
Dr Marks, thank you so much for your fabulous channel! I am in my forties, and was diagnosed with ADHD just 2 weeks ago, I have a huge learning task ahead, so that I can make sensible decisions about how to move forward. Having your brilliant, calm, and lovely, voice giving me useful information at a speed I can process is helping so very much. Blessings to you and your community
Great video Doc, very informative. I have been prescribed concerta 18mg for ADHD, however I am very anxious to take it, so I am currently eating a clean high protein diet and exercising daily... I recently started a weekly DBT group and I plan to restart meditating too, hopefully this holistic approach will help me avoid burnout! It's damn hard living with this disorder!
Stimulants can be very effective, but they have their downsides too. Some people experience a low mood from them. So good luck with your holistic approach it should definitely make you feel better and give you more resilience to avoid burnout. 👍🏽😊
Dr Marks your videos on ADHD are spot on. So many people don’t understand ADHD. I was diagnosed when I was 40years old. I started taking meds and it totally changed my life for the better. I retired 3 years ago at 66 years old and still going strong. I see my doctor every 3 months and a physical every 6 months.
I was adamantly opposed to medication for my son, but his behaviors were so extreme, no therapies or behavioral techniques worked with him. He’s taking a medication now and is now thriving. Definitely be discriminating when it comes to medication but sometimes it is necessary.
No...definitely listen to doctors if they say you need medication otherwise you become the source of your child's problems because you think you're smarter than the doctor.
And now you need big pharma for life $$$$$ to "thrive"...if the drug company disappears ...so does your sanity? 95 percent of kids on adhd meds just need to be engaged differently...not medicated
Thank you - I was diagnosed with BPD but I didn't think that fit - later in my 40's I realized I had ADD but the impulsivity with emotions confused me - now it all makes sense.
This was extremely helpful. I've never been diagnosed but I always knew I have it. My inner restlessness and impulsivity persist to some extent and they generate anger and guilt inside me. My inattentiveness got less exacerbated as time went by.... Not perfect yet but I guess it's enough to survive one day at a time. Thanks so much 💖
In my mid 50s now & a similar story to yours. Fortunately for me I have a very loving, understanding and kind partner. She must be a saint!
I don’t know if my inner subconscious told me to click this video due to curiosity, or some deeper inner knowledge of what I’ve experienced my entire life, but this has raised every flag I’ve experienced in my life, at 40 it explains soo much of what I struggled with. Between school, and countless relationships, and even my own career, everything in my life has had a short shelf life because I couldn’t endure passed a certain point. I’ve never seen a video hit soo many markers for me, that explains so much of my struggles. I’ve been to several therapists before but each one was short lived, and I couldn’t determine why I couldn’t adjust to the process. Thank you so much for making this video and helping soo many people living without a diagnosis. I will be taking new steps in my life, and this gives me a new outlook with a positive perspective.
Thank you for this video. I was diagnosed at 30....after much damage to my life and mental health.
For years, in fact, all through school, all you ever saw on my report card was “she’s such a sweet girl, but she’s so disorganized… “ every time I cleaned my room and start something moved to something else go with that moved something else it would take me forever to actually get the thing cleaned because I kept getting rabbit trailed… and I would have friends get totally mad at me for interrupting (lack of filter)
I’ve learned, through prayer and mindfulness, to be less impulsive and what strategies work for me for cleaning and getting things done … very insightful video… 🧡
Thank you so much for this video. I just had my 3.5 hr ADHD assessment on Friday. Left feeling defeated, tired, bored, and not as smart as I thought I was. But... I'm excited to see what comes of this. I'll find out in 2 weeks. If I have ADHD, it makes a ton of sense to me. I'm 38, so I'm just like... Why did it take so long!
Please come back here and tell us when you finally get the diagnose!
I was tested not once, but 2-3 times as a child. No diagnosis even though the reason I was tested was because teachers strongly suspected I had it. To me, it was obvious as I thought more about it when I got older. But I wasn't diagnosed with anything at all. When I asked my mother why, she said it was because I could keep sustained focus on a task that was given. Which seemed a bit off to me because while yes, lack of focus is a trademark of ADD (as it was known then)/ADHD, I was working one on one with a individual professional and in an quiet environment with no distractions. Unlike a classroom most times. Hyperfocus is also a thing with attention disorders and nuerodivergence.
The only diagnosis I recieved was a unspecified math related learning disorder when I was a sophomore in highschool, at the recommendation of teachers because I had failed my algebra math class twice and was typically a decent student. (adhd related ramble- I had always struggled with math but never completely failed it or any class to where I had to re-take it. My mother was a highschool teacher and even she didn't realize until teachers said something. It was just seen as if I was lazy or not putting in effort, and I would be punished and grounded for my grades in math which led to me not feeling good enough and effecting my self esteem. I'm fine in every other subject and am extremely accelerated in english/reading and literature, which I've always been. This is also a common hallmark on my mother's side of the family. She struggled with math but was an English teacher. My maternal grandfather was a english major at Colombia where he met my grandmother & my maternal cousin was also diagnosed with a math related learning disorder- discalculia. Basically dyslexia of numbers, which is what my condition was described as by the professionals at my school who evaluated me, but I wasn't given an official name for it)
I recieved an IEP for math only learning accommodations and put into a smaller classroom for math, that had a less vigorous/slower paced or more broken down version of standard math classes so it would cater to my level of comprehension and understanding. It leveled the academic playing field, to put it one way. My grades soared in math especially, but across the board in general after this. I still have self doubt despite this diagnosis and feel as if I was just being lazy and if I had tried harder or studied then I could actually do it and pass regular math, even if it was with a C. (I was expected to be a B student at minimum)
I kept thinking about seeking a ADHD diagnosis as an adult when I was in my early 20's. I rolled the idea around in my head for 2 or so years before I went and did it. And sure enough, I recieved one. I matched almost all the criteria for innatentive type. I have a hard time keeping sustained focus on anything. I've always been talkative (clearly lol) I'm I'm easily distracted, even in conversation. I've been impulsive in terms of drug experimentation, in the past. And I've always had several things going through my mind at once, most times, as far as I can remember. Like having several tabs open on a browser and you don't know which one the music is coming from, as they say😆
Getting a diagnosis and confirming what I thought, felt and knew all along was both reliving and also left me with a sense of grief. For the struggles I faced because I didn't know why I was the way i am, and blamed myself for being defective for when in reality it was just the way my brain worked. I was different, not a defective failure. For my family struggles, the depression & anxiety I battled so long for years. I cried tears of both sorrow for this and of relief and joy.
I have yet to try medication for any of this because I'm just so scared of side effects and the trial and error process, and of negative accounts I've read from people who've had bad experiences. But perhaps it is a bit irrational, I need to realize this isn't everyone's case and may not be my own. I won't know unless I try. Slowly trying to build up the courage to get on meds now that I have my diagnosis. I recieved it about 6 months ago, at age 25. I've been putting off a psychiatrist appointment for meds even though I've approached it.
Classic procrastination, especially for an ADHD'er.
Another symptom I frequently deal and struggle with and need to work to overcome.
Sorry for the word vomit/info dumping....that has also been a recent development of mine over the past 2 years or so I need to manage and quell. I think anxiety is at the root of that one and triggers it because of a stressful period I went through.
Maybe someone will see my story and can relate, idk. I know I'm not alone now, you aren't either. If you've made it to the end of this, thank you for your time and thanks for reading.
Just did that test a week ago and man did I find out how short of a gas tank my working memory has. Focus hard in spurts and then just nothing left
@@TR-ju5re I always wonder how do they test... in my mind they probably do some questionairs and I always confused with this kind of stuff. I dont know whether to answer; a)I used to not do that; b)I want to do that; c)lately I always push myself to do that and it worked out but i'm not sure if this really me. lol
For example a question like, "When you go to the party do you stand alone in the corner or you go talk to people?" I never know how to answer this. If there's no risk or guilty feeling I definitely would go after the food and dont bother me!! lol. But in reality, I /always/ try to initiate conversation with a stranger. I always remember the feeling is kinda uncomfortable and I'm actually a bit scared to talk to people, but I always push myself to do that. In results, a lot of people know me for being extroverted eventhough I dont think I am that social.
This is what keeps me from going to get tested.
@@mainaccount9696 Its honestly a lot of memory tests. Like a shopping list of 20-30 items then after doing something else you have to recall the shopping list as best you can. Same thing with a short but detailed stories and recalling everything you can about it. Also lots of quick thinking mental math type questions. Timed puzzles and pattern recognition. There is some questionnaires but before my test I got to talk with my neuropsychologist and I think that's were a lot of your individual nuance can be discussed/expressed.
Your videos just keep getting better and better
I feel like we’re friends by now, but I’ve never commented 😊. I’m so thankful for all the information you give! I’m positive I have ADHD Inattentive Version but don’t know what to do next. I’m 54! Lol. This explains SO much!
The good news is you can improve. Don't forget that, and you will.
My eldest was unofficially "diagnosed" by the staff in preschool (the preschool's part of the public elementary school); this was not surprising to his parents, lol. He got officially diagnosed shortly after he turned 7 and has been on medication since. My god, his ability to read went from a few words at a time to whole paragraphs, even unmedicated, in 2 _weeks_ once he got his first dose! He still bounces more than average when he's excited, even medicated, lol. Both his biological uncles have it too, though more mildly.
@@honey...salguod I'm just going to say it - you don't know what the fuck you are talking about. You are not a doctor and you have not met this person or their child. Besides that, don't judge a parent if you aren't in their shoes. You have NO IDEA what they are going through.
Does his Dad have it? It can run thru the parents and particularly thru the fathers.
There are studies showing that medicating ADHD kids helps them succeed and that the ADHD meds help lower drug abuse in teens with ADHD.
If you think I'm harming him by my language usage, I will listen to suggestions. I'm happy for him. He hated reading until it clicked and now reading is his favorite subject
If it's the med you object to, bite me. In our society, a kid needs to be educated beyond elementary school. That's a helluva lot easier for him to achieve with the 8 hours of medication per school day.
@@honey...salguod are you a *qualified* professional in the field?? Degree and training for it?? If not, you honestly have no room to speak. Your experiences and your opinions are you own. Not everyone's. Maybe the majority, maybe not, maybe it's only the minority of what people going through this deal with and have lived.
Don't discourage or try to dictate and steer a parent away for trying to do whats best for their INDIVIDUAL of a child.
Hands down the best description of me, and ADHD, I've ever seen on YT.
SUBBED ❤
I'm ADHD, and while there are setbacks, it also has a blessing. There are serious natural skills that come with people who have ADHD, and now unlike in 85 when I was diagnosed there are many ways of learning how to use that gift
Hello Dr Marks,
Can you do a video on the differences and similarities of ADHD and trauma?
@@habanerofire do you have one video in particular?
I’m in this photo and I don’t like it
No issues as a child. No hyperactivity. Extremely quiet. Not easily angered or distracted ...Completely opposite as an adult. Extremely talkative. Poor time management. Over talking. Change in careers and cities of residence every 2 years. Inability to regulate emotions. Very low frustration tolerance. Generalized anxiety. Began in my early 20s... Getting worse in my 40s so finally seeking help. Like what is going on????
Thanks for talking about this! I thought I would grow out of it, but it’s affecting my finances and relationships. I’m hoping to get medicated and other treatment soon. My moods are also difficult to regulate especially when stressed. I definitely answer questions before they’re finished being asked. When I don’t have something to be excited and hyper focused on I get very irritable and depressed
I was considered well behaved as a child (my mother's words) and never had issues that children with ADHD have. As an adult, I have almost all of the issues adults with ADHD. Having MS exacerbated these issues, especially time management. My previous therapists dismissed me as having ADHD but hopefully my new therapist will listen. This video is very informative.
This is so helpful! Thank you Doctor Tracey your fantastic! Hope to see more of your amazingly helpful educational videos here on RUclips.
I was diagnosed with ADHD in early adolescence and I'm currently in my late 30's and this video caught my eye. Impulsivity and emotional regulation were never really my issues. Time management and planning are much more serious problems. I was always the inattentive type... And I must admit as I listened to this video, I did click open other tabs and start looking at random memes when I felt like "I got the gist of it". I can manage my ADHD and function pretty well, but it is very difficult and I always need to be mindful of my own inattentiveness.
I've always noticed the boredom-depressed transition in myself but this is my first time hearing it
3:06 being bored, doing boring/useless taks or having to wait for something physically hurts 👀
How many others got distracted and had to restart this video? 😵💫
Me too distracted 😂😮😢
Any tips for the distraction from studying
@@gopalreddy8754 Spending time in nature, walking, taking breaks, actively writing down what you’re learning, teaching/explaining to someone else can ensure the knowledge is solidified in your mind. Standing, walking, and meditation can help.
OMG... I swear you were personally evaluating me regarding attention/distraction/boredom. Something clicked when watching the video. I was a straight-A student until age 9, which is when my mom died. After that, I always remember feeling fidgety as a kid. I could not remain still for long. As an adult, I get bored quickly. I also constantly interrupt conversations with my answers/input to get to the end more quickly. Wow, what a revelation.
Omg why are you so amazing.
It's like you have known me for years and years
Maybe I have...😊 Thank you Nikolaus!
My daughter and I have never sat through an entire movie, and when she was in 4th grade, her teachers told me I needed to teach her organizational skills. It was a sad day for both of us.
The way I’ve learned to pay attention in class and in meetings, is to take notes. That way I stay focused. I’d rather we find behavioral workarounds than drugs, as those have no side effects, and you can safely employ them all your life.
I was put on drugs as a child, it's definitely not the way to go.
Thanks for the video. Getting put on the right meds has completely changed my life. Is it perfect? Definitely not. But I feel like I am finally in control of a lot of things. Btw just something I very very rarely see discussed, but I found a lot of my side-effects and anxiety issues, restlessness on the meds, all attributed to Adderall were actually from caffeine (or, more specifically, it's combo with amphetamine). I had to cut WAY back on caffeine. They're kind of an explosive combination, and NOT in a good way.. In a very uncomfortable, edgey way. But ultimately it hugely helped to cut back on the coffee. I have one cup and fine now. No more 2x pots of it. LOL. Also, all of the classic recommendations... Good sleep habits, exercise, diet, etc... Help the meds work. I have also found that the amino acids NALT (L-tyrosine) and ALCAR absolutely HUGELY help Adderall work, at least for me. It allowed me to even cut back on the dose.
Thanks for the video.
I am so glad i found your channel. My elementary school teacher back then advised my parents to take me to check for ADHD and they never did. It was never even in my radar growing up either because I'm chinese and the chinese name for ADHD is just solely "hyperactivity disorder" which does not ring any bell in me since I only have inattention symptoms. I have just recently found out that I have had ADHD throughout my life and all those past experiences and troubles I have gone through that I blamed myself for seems to make so much sense now.