What do you tell a Dr. to get them to prescribe medication for ADD? - ADD / ADHD Message Board

iller9 · 07-06-2007, 09:02 PM

I have been telling my dr. about the problems I have paying attention and remembering things but he doesn't want to prescribe me any meds for ADD. I think I have ADD after doing a lot of research on the subject.

What do you tell a Dr. to get them to prescribe medication?

frazzledparent · 07-06-2007, 09:31 PM

Boy, I sure don't know enough about the disorder to give any advice at this time, since I'm still dealing with my daughter's diagnosis of ADHD (as an adult) and just starting a treatment plan. I do wonder what your doctor did say about your symptoms. I know that we had to fill out a long questionairre and there were many more areas touched upon besides inattentiveness and forgetfullness. Did you talk to a psychologist, psychiatrist or general practioner? I'm sure that you'll have many, many responses to your post from people who have ADD and have a lot more insight than I do.

rheanna · 07-07-2007, 01:03 AM

KillerTA,

Short answer: You'll need to shop around to find a doctor who has a clue about ADD and is willing to give you the tests and determine if drugs are an appropriate response.

Long answer: Most doctors are trying to do their jobs the best they can, and the two main functions of their job is to diagnose and treat. Most doctors don't know a lot about ADD, so they can't diagnose it. If they feel that what you are talking about is outside their knowledge base, they certainly are not going to prescribe medicines that they are not familiar with. It would be irresponsible of them to do so. Of course, it would be nice if they said "I'm going to send you to a doctor who knows something about that", but a lot of them just figure that if they don't know about it, it must be bogus. Actually, they are just like non-doctors -- we all assume from time to time that if what we are hearing from someone doesn't fit in with what we already know, then we assume that the other person must be wrong, not that we could perhaps learn something. It's human nature.

You'll need to find a doctor who is familiar with ADD.

--Rheanna

momof3rbd · 07-12-2007, 07:57 AM

I had a dr. tell me to test for add, drink a 16 oz bottle of mountain dew in am, if your symptoms improve dramatically you likely do have add, you will need to see a psychiatrist for accurate diagnosis,they can write you a letter and your family dr should be able to handle it from there.

Kirii · 07-14-2007, 03:38 PM

You should try getting refered to a psychiatrist. They can diagnose and prescribe if necessary. Though you should look into a non medicated help. I was diagnosed with ADHD recently and am not taking medications. It's really up to you and your doctor. I see a psychologist and he can't prescribe meds, but if I wanted them he'd send me to some place that could work with me if i wanted it.