Seek treatment

[Carmen810]

I am in my 30s and have been diagnosed with inattentive ADD. Have not had any treatment at this time. I struggle with depression anxiety and focus. I have 2 kids and a husband and balancing home and work life is a struggle. I would love to get the proper treatment but not sure what route to go. Have had drs In the past who I did not follow thru with who were not the best fit. Anyone have recommendations or are also getting treatment for add and the emotional sadness and anxiety that comes with it. Would love to feel human again and not so stressed all the time. Just to be able to be there for my family and not feel so frazzled.

[ZimmyB]

II feel just like you. I was diagnosed with the same at 38. Now at 40 I continue to take the meds, which do help with

[ZimmyB]

Well fell asleep while writing that haha. Anyways. .. The meds help some but everyday I feel like I am treading water and it’s exhausting. All the weight is on my wife to do all the little things for my kids and house our family really. I’m the 3rd child and my wife hates me. I routinely dry the ball and all the stress she has to absorb. I got the stress buildup myself but it doesn’t matter since she is the one who has to deal with it. She really wants a divorce and me to move out but since she’s a stay at home mom and we have shrunk our savings to allow for that we don’t have money to afford separate living. My sister is only place for me to go but lives over an hour away. My career has been good but I gotta work a lot harder to keep up with my load and tasks than others do. I feel like I’m spiraling and shrink seems to only be concerned with how the meds are working and suggest that I use therapist for other management. Therapist I was seeing didn’t really help with plans or solutions to better managing my life. I’m in a very dark place and have been for a while. Depression and anxiety are an issue because I have always felt that there was a struggle since I could remember. This has been there forever. I think about how I can stage an accident to end it and the burden I put on my family That would allow them to still get insurance money. It’s so hard to get out of the darkness when you have ruined your support structure to even care. Sorry for the rant. I feel your struggles.

[Carmen810 in reply to ZimmyB]

Thank you for sharing. That is tough. And likely the Symptoms of ADD causing your relationship issues. My husband tries to be supportive I guess you could say but does so by kind of listening and doesn’t know what else to do. I hope with therapy and help you can get back on track.

[sdraine in reply to ZimmyB]

Please don’t end your life. It can get better. Please think about how a suicide will affect your children.

[ZimmyB]

Thanks and hope you’re able to get the tools you need to adjust to the world of “normal “. Our minds don’t quite fit into mainstream thinking I guess lol. Get help sooner than later. 🤞

[sdraine]

Look for a psychotherapist and a psychiatrist that specializes in adult ADD. Best wishes, I know your pain.

[StrongMom in reply to sdraine]

That’s what I’m doing right now! No more general therapists for me; they always take me further away from my goals. Except for one that was helping me with getting away from an abusive relationship, and she happens to also have ADHD so she diagnosed me at the beginning kind of nonchalantly, saying “Oh, I see you have ADD.” I didn’t know I even had it so she educated me on that along with the other therapy we were doing. Maybe I’ll have to go back to her, if I can’t find an ADHD specialist in my area that is taking new patients and is on my insurance plan.

[Eclecticentric77]

Hi there, I have Inattentive ADHD as well and was not diagnosed until my mid 20s. I had no idea there were different subtypes of ADHD since the media does not really give a spotlight to Inattentive ADHD, and the Hyperactive subtype is usually the one most people know. I always knew there was something extremely different about me growing up. I went through absolute hell when I went through puberty at 12 and my reward system (dopamine and serotonin) dropped, along with multiple other neurotransmitters. I was an extremely moody, irritable, melancholy, anxious, emotional person. Music was my one and only escape, I learned to play many instruments and played tons of concerts with 6 different bands. I was almost only happy when I played music, and thank God I had that. My teachers always told me and my parents that I was one of the smartest kids in their class but that I was lazy and did not apply myself (little did I know that lack of motivation and Inattentive ADHD go hand in hand), you have to REALLY LOVE something, to do it in the first place with this subtype. Anyway I thankfully got up to 2 years done in college undiagnosed with no help from medication or supplements. I did the semesters all in my pace, 2 or 3 (sometimes 4) classes a semester because that was all I could handle. After discovering Inattentive ADHD in my own studies in college, I was blown away from how I fit practically every symptom of Inattentive ADHD, because for years I did not think I had ADHD, due to me not being Hyperactive at all, quite the opposite. So I researched medication options and the different types of ADHD for 6 months before I finally went and got myself diagnosed. Started taking a small dose of stimulant medication (10mg Adderall 2x a day) taken with an extremely helpful mix of supplements to fight off all negative side effects and help the medication work to its full potential, and it was a NIGHT AND DAY difference. I finally felt as if someone turned the ON switch on in my brain, and finally understood why people looked forward to getting up the next day, how people did multiple things during the day, how people actually continued with projects and a plethora of other things. Long story short, I continued on to university and graduated and received my Bachelor's degree in Psychology and have been studying ADHD now for the past 4 years and will be doing my dissertation on Inattentive ADHD. I am currently in grad school to become an MFT Psychologist in order to help people with this very condition, who like me, have struggled for years. I am also working on a film and a book to shed more light on this condition and subtype, theres a huge amount of untouched research that I hope to bring to the table in the years to come.

Bottom line, I highly recommend you get yourself treatment. Believe me I was in a similar position for many years in my life. I literally felt like there was nothing left to look forward to in life, then I got treatment and started taking supplements and it was such a major help. It's been a few years now and I believe it is the best decision I've made in my life, I hope you can say the same. I made a series of videos of the struggles people with Inattentive ADHD go through from elementary school all the way to adulthood, check them out if you'd like, there's perhaps going to be some stuff you'd be surprised other inattentive types go through. Inattentive types are usually very deep, introspective, introverted, creative, and sometimes easily irritated people. You will find the link to these videos if you click on my profile picture, and the link will be in my bio.

Stimulants are known to be quite helpful for people with ADHD, especially Inattentive Types, with the stimulant Adderall having the highest success from what I have researched in my studies for Inattentive types. Since you've been diagnosed already I'd recommend you tell your psychiatrist you'd like to give Adderall (or perhaps another stimulant if you'd like) a try. They will give you a prescription and you can pick it up at a specific Pharmacy. You need the prescription since it is a Scheduled 3 drug. The dosage of the medication does not have to be high, I take only 10mg, I've seen some people on here taking 40mg and above. We're all different and your body/brain will be the best judge of that (start small and build from there if necessary). And supplements are a must, I have multiple posts and info on what supplements I highly recommend to take with stimulant medication. Hope this helps

[Carmen810 in reply to Eclecticentric77]

Hello! Thank you for sharing your story. Sounds very similar to mine. Your advice is very helpful. Glad to see you are succeeding on your journey.

[Carmen810 in reply to Eclecticentric77]

Hello!

So just a quick update. I did get treatment 3 wks ago. Was given the adderall 10 mg up to 2 x day. Have been only taking in am. Feel like it may have made me feel more focused somewhat but after the med is wore off have felt the down feeling and flat affect. I did not get treatment for depression and feel that is still a symptom I struggle with. Also I am female so I am sure I struggle with hormonal mood swings lol. Was wondering about the tryptophan supplement you mentioned In your list. Do you feel this would be beneficial for mood? and does it make you sleepy?

Thanks again for the advice!

[Eclecticentric77 in reply to Carmen810]

Hi there, I'm glad to hear that you got treatment and that it's helped you focus more.

To help out the issues you mentioned, I would recommend:

1. The supplement N-Acetyl Tyrosine works with the same neurotransmitters as the medication, dopamine and norepinephrine. Once the medication wears off, these neurotransmitters are low, which brings the down flat or irritable feeling many like yourself go through. For this I recommend N-Acetyl Tyrosine, to be taken 30min to an hour before your medication wears off. I take it 3 times a day.

2. Tryptophan is great for boosting up one's mood and sociability because of the boost in Serotonin. People with Adhd are low in Serotonin, so it should not cause you to feel drowsy, it will relax your body, boost up your mood, and lower anxiety. I also take this 3x a day, with one of them taken right before I go to bed.

3. Mood swings are unfortunately common in a lot of people with ADHD, with one of the main reasons being a lack of the neurotransmitter Acetylcholine. Nicotine mimicks Acetlycholine which is why lots of people with ADHD smoke cigarettes. I highly recommend the supplement R-Alpha Lipoic acid because it helps the brain utilize Acetylcholine in a more proficient manner, and the supplement is one of the strongest antioxidants out there, that fights the oxidation brought fourth from stimulant medication. This has kept my medication feeling fresh and smooth, even after multiple years of use.

I'm writing this in my phone, and the visibility of some posts are limited, so I apologize if I aready mentioned this but, if you click my profile pic, it will take you to my profile where you will find links to a google doc I made of all these supplements mentioned, along with all the ones I take, along with information about them, where you can get them at a good price, and how they help people with ADHD. In that doc is also a description of the schedule in which I take them, since after researching, I have realized that the schedule of supplement intake is really important. Hope this helps.

[Carmen810 in reply to Eclecticentric77]

Thank you for the info! Sounds like you have educated yourself well on what Is beneficial for adhd other then medication. Always good to know what helps one person may help another. Have a great day!

[TayeneG]

This channel in YouTube youtube.com/channel/UC-nPM1... helped me a lot to understand what is adhd, how it affects me and how to improve my life. The Additute Magazine Also has many articles teaching you about adhd and how to live better.

I was diagnosed when I was 25 but the doctor never explained to me the extension of the problem. Nowadays I’ve been learning a lot and trying to improve. I’ve taken medicine for 10 years but honestly still don’t have my life like I wish. “Pills don’t teach skills”

My advice: find a neurologist (not a psychiatrist), start some medicine that can help you (do the pgx test first if you can), and search about adhd and how you can improve your life (already gave two good sources above).

Pills are not going to fix your life. They can help you but you need to learn how ur brain works to live better.

[Carmen810 in reply to TayeneG]

Thank you for sharing. Very helpful.

[AMatureGal]

Hello

I share your struggle and I don’t think there is any one right way to tackle this sucker. I’m 57 and the absolute only thing I console myself with is the realization I must be extremely creative and persistent to get to where I am today. I’ve always been told I’ve got anxiety and depression. Fair enough. I’ve worked my ASS off to maintain a routine of good eating, exercise and yoga. I’m maybe 40% consistent and successful with these efforts. The energy expenditure is massive. I follow a “nootropics expert” site and take many of the supplements described there. Especially important to address the norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin deficiency’s with our brains.

Carry on warrior!

[StrongMom]

Adderall has helped a lot with the focus, and also has some side benefits like curbing hunger and giving me the energy I need to get through the day, as I am a single mom with a high stress job, and also have adrenal fatigue, thyroid problems, and allergies that all make me tired. On the other hand, the side effect I hate is that it can cause anxiety.

I take Gabapentin and Buspar at the same time to counteract the anxiety effect of Adderall, and hope to find a counselor or dr. soon that will help me with better solutions so I can get off the meds.

Good luck! I hope this info. was helpful.

[Hidden]

I‘m so sorry you feeling this way. I am only mid 30s and decided to go the holistic path. I suffer from depression, anxiety and burn out for many years. Nothing seems to work expect the holistic treatment which of course, you can only do that if you have money. In Germany it’s not covered by the health system unfortunately. It really helps but needs constant attention. I do feel better after each treatment but having multiple struggles (with my dad being an alcohol and heavy smoker). I was also recently diagnosed with Asthma. It all comes together.

I used to take anti depressants a few years ago but wasn’t happy with it. Now, I know a lot more about what to do with my depression but it sometimes gets the best of me. I started an oxygen treatment with my holistic practitioner which seems to help.

Have you heard about the tapping solution app? It’s a tapping technique to reduce stress. It’s really good. Do you meditate? Helps with anxiety too. Takes you mind off things. I also recently bought a daylight lamp on Amazon which is good for people with depression. Helps promote the vitamin d during the winter months. Let me know if you want a recommendation. 😊

[Carmen810 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you! I’m not familiar with the holistic approach. I know yoga and meditation is helpful. My ADD and motivation or lack of also seems to be a huge issue for me. The lamp I have thought about trying too. Take care and good luck with everything.