For those of you who weren’t diagnosed until adulthood (I’m in my late 40s), what was the diagnosis process like? Are you just given a written test, or does someone evaluate you more thoroughly? Do they try to understand your symptoms, or is it more of a checklist? If anyone has personal stories they’d be willing to share, I’d love to hear them. I’m also just curious about what to expect during the appointment. Who do I make it with? A psychiatrist?
I also wonder if there are other related conditions or learning disabilities that I might have, such as dyslexia. Do I need to be proactive in asking for multiple diagnoses? Or will they be able to evaluate me for anything/everything?
P.S. I have dysgraphia, which was diagnosed when I was a child. To my knowledge, no professional ever diagnosed me with ADHD. I’ve tried to ask my mom about this, but she’s being cagey. She says, “we all knew you had ADHD.” I was never given medication for ADHD. The only help I got was for the dysgraphia. All this is to say, if you want to get help for another disability you will absolutely need to be proactive.
Yeah it’s like once they latch on to one disability they refuse to look for other possibilities. But then you become a drug seeker or some shit. It’s annoying. The VA was latched onto PTSD; took until I argued with my regular psych that I needed to seek another opinion because he refused to believe I had ADHD and or bipolar. I’m almost it certain it’s ADHD but now they’re attached to bipolar. It’s hell.
Yeah it’s like once they latch on to one disability they refuse to look for other possibilities. But then you become a drug seeker or some shit. It’s annoying. The VA was latched onto PTSD; took until I argued with my regular psych that I needed to seek another opinion because he refused to believe I had ADHD and or bipolar. I’m almost it certain it’s ADHD but now they’re attached to bipolar. It’s hell.
Yeah it’s like once they latch on to one disability they refuse to look for other possibilities. But then you become a drug seeker or some shit. It’s annoying. The VA was latched onto PTSD; took until I argued with my regular psych that I needed to seek another opinion because he refused to believe I had ADHD and or bipolar. I’m almost it certain it’s ADHD but now they’re attached to bipolar. It’s hell.