So I heard about ChADD sometime last year after trying to find a solution or something to relate to my ADHD problems and after seeing that it's a website/community that also deals with people of this degree I really do want to know everyone's experience with ChADD is it legit? And by that I mean has anyone who's been with ChADD or gotten help how does it all work out for you? And what do ChADD resources offer to help with the solution? I find this to be an interesting and fun site, but I do want to get the full intake on people who've truly experienced it.
Quite frankly I do grow tired of always waiting for help to come for me. I also wanna know when treated how is the ADHD effected then? Do treated ADHD patients truly experience a more satisfying outcome? Or do their effects still come into play? What is it like to be truly cured. I also wanna know if ChADD or any specialist in ADHD does specific therapy online? If that's the case what are the experiences online like too? I've really glad I found this community, but I also wanna know more about ChADD and the effect it's had on you people. So tell me yours. As someone with untreated ADHD things always feel worse for me, especially since I always get denied any actual experience in relation to it. And I always feel moody as well.
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Codebox42
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To be honest I'm just now putting it together that this is a forum through ChADD. I joined HealthUnlocked in order to have some sort of support group for my depression, but when I saw that there was also a group for adults with ADHD I decided to join this group too. I've only been a website member for a couple weeks, but it has been very helpful to get and give advice from and to people who struggle with similar things that I do. While it is very helpful, I don't think these online support groups should be treat as a replacement for therapy or medicine. We're not professionals, but just people with vastly different experiences giving advice so I'd take what you read on here with a grain of salt. But with that being said, I'm glad you're here! It is so nice to know that I'm not alone in my mental health struggles, and it seems like there is a great community here with a lot of great support coming in from all over the world!
With all that said, I've known I had ADHD inattentive type (back then it was just called ADD) since I was 7-years-old. Since then, I've been on a variety of medications and been to many different therapists. It depends greatly on what kind of ADHD you have (either inattentive type, hyperactive type, or a combination type) because symptoms and therefore recommended treatments vary greatly by type. For me, my symptoms mostly manifest as an inability to focus and finish tasks once I've started them. Which makes writing papers, reading books, doing homework, finishing projects I don't care that much about, telling long detailed stories without derailing from the point, or even sustaining long relationships very difficult. I was put on Focalin XR from 3rd-12th grade, and it helped me a lot academically. I got off of it in college because the rush of excitement from starting a new life in a new place meant that I didn't feel like I needed it anymore, but once my grades and my attention span started slipping, I was put back on medication to help combat this drop in motivation. One thing that exacerbates my ADD issues is my recent diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder. The inability to focus and lack of motivation (and sometimes my anxiety too) amps up tenfold when I'm in a depressive (or anxiety) episode, and I've heard that people with ADHD are highly prone to anxiety and depression because of the self-confidence blow that comes from feeling out of control of your attention span or emotions. The medicine that my psychiatrist (who I meet with monthly and helps me understand my symptoms and in conjunction with my psychologist/therapist really helps me understand how my diagnoses manifest) has me on currently helps a ton with managing my ADD symptoms, and really helps me finish assignments, get things done, and for the first time (probably ever) I can actually keep my room relatively clean! I could manage without my ADHD medicine and my mental health team, but it would be a heck of a lot harder.
For a hyperactive type ADHD example, I had a friend who struggled a lot with a combination of hyperactive and inattentive ADHD. I wasn't too close with her, but I could always tell when she was off her meds because she would become very quick to outbursts of anger and impulsivity (her roommates had a sign up that said "NO temper tantrums or throwing things after 11 pm!!" lol). I don't know too much about her other treatment methods, but I know that for her medicine is a MUST.
Another resources that I've found to be really helpful (since I'm a YouTube addict) is the "How to ADHD" YouTube channel: youtube.com/channel/UC-nPM1... The host is very cute and personable and gives a lot of great tips about how to manage having an ADHD brain in a neurotypical world.
As for a "cure" to ADHD, I don't think there is such a thing. From the way I understand it, our brains are just wired differently from birth. I think if you try to "cure" yourself, it would be like trying to find a way to sprout wings and fly away. You can sure try, and you can simulate flying with the help of outside inventions, but we weren't born that way, so it's just not possible to do. However, with the help of modern medicine and therapy, and introspection/self-awareness to become conscious of what is a symptom and what isn't, it is possible to minimize the symptoms enough to where it isn't too much of a problem. But without getting a new brain, I don't think it's possible to get rid of ADHD completely. But managing symptoms and learning how our ADHD can be an advantage is key to living a long, happy, healthy, and productive life. At least, that's what I've learned in the 14 years since my diagnosis.
I long to write a considered response to this, but no time now. Thank you Annabanana0715 for your response to Codebox42—good feedback.
Dear Codebox42, I relate to your frustration! I spent most of my life dealing with anxiety/depression only to learn at age 55 that I have ADHD (inattentive type). It would be so lovely to live without anxiety, depression and ALL the foibles of ADHD! But, it seems the only method is to learn ways (that work for YOU) to lessen the impact of challenges and grow your methods for coping. The challenges remain! ('C'est la Vie').
There is much comfort and compassion available here. In lieu of functional and affordable counseling help, I watch as many ADHD webinars as possible (Dr. Kari MIller, Tara McGillicuddy, LInda Roggli, Bonnie Mincu, and Jessica McCabe’s “How to ADHD” YouTube videos). All these help me learn about ADHD and provide excellent techniques worth exploring. My community has a wealth of folks interesting in children’s ADHD, but not so much for adult (or now-considered-elder) women! I hope you have a bounty of compassionate, good-humored family and friends who LOVE you for YOU—however you are—to help you stay on track to continued self-acceptance while you continue to learn coping methods that work for you.
It may be a challenge for your long-term loved ones to relate to your ADHD since it doesn't change your appearance. I find that I am relieved whenever I learn more about coping with my ADHD, but some loved ones cannot relate to my feelings or challenges since they just see me the way they always have.
I discovered chadd and have been going to a support group meeting once a month for three months now. Where I live it meets once a month every 3rd Thursday and I like it. The first on I went to they brought a guest speaker who talked to us about how to create a financial budget. Another time a speaker came in she recently wrote a book and specializes in ADHD and the topic was on relationships. It’s also nice I got to see other people with the same issues have
It sounds like a fun time. I would love to be in a support group with people of my same caliber. Been trying to register into one in my area, but it's been a couple of months with no answer. Still I'm going to keep trying. I hope it can also help in making new friends as well.
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