I have my first appointment with a Doctor to find out if I have ADD. Its just an initial appointment. They said I have to make 3 appointments. first is just an initial appoinment.The second is for the test, and the third is a test follow up. Does this sound typical?
Its with a pchycologist (excuse spelling) so he cant prescribe meds but they told me he regulary does adult ADD testing so I guess its a good start.
I just hope I can relax and answer questions honestly. It seems alot of online tests are obvious as to what answers are the right ones to be positive for ADD and I wonder if subconciously, since I do believe I have ADD, I might answer the (right) answers rather than the honest answers. Am I making sense?
Anyway wish me luck
Pat

I do wish you luck and hope that you get your questions answered.

Hey there, The 3 apointments sound pretty typical. You are very right that the online tests are very easy to answer in a manner to test positive for ADD. Many people who do not have ADD will test positive with the online tests. A good psychologist however will do more in depth testing to insure a correct diagnosis. Of course you can get an ADD diagnosis without truely having ADD, usually this is because it is another problem that is misdiagnosed as ADD. If you have read the symptoms though, it would be pretty easy to get a false diagnosis if you answer in a way to get the diagnosis. Tons of college kids do this so they can get ritalin scripts to use for all night study sessions and to sell. Is there some reason why you WANT to have ADD? Would you have reason to make others or even yourself believe you have a problem thats not really there? What you should do is look very closely at your history. Try to remember if you had these symptoms when you were younger. A child would not fake these things nor would they yet have the ability to self prophasise such a disorder. Please mention this thought to your psychologist. He or she may be able to help you work through these feelings. It is very important that your psychologist knows about your doubts of whether or not you are really ADD. They will be better able to make sure the diagnosis is correct.

Good luck!

Please keep us updated on how things are going for you.

I took a 100 question online ADD test. I printed it out and took it to my first appointment with the shrink. We used it as a guideline for discussion. In the one hour appointment he confirmed my fears and prescribed Straterra. I have 20 minute follow-up appointments once a month now.

Why not use a psychiatrist who can prescribe medications? In the long run this should save you time and $$$.

How did it go? I have my own appointment (initial) with a neurologist on 5th December and I'm "sh***ing bricks" so to speak. I had the same problem with these various online tests but then when I re-did them again consciously trying to be 100% honest, even scaling down all answers 1 grade from the initial gut instinct (say I thought "That's a 3 out of 5" so I chose 2, not 3) I still got the same results.

However it's always difficult to judge yourself liked that, after all how on earth do you know what's "normal"? And how do you know how MUCH your behaviour is "Not normal" (i.e. is it 1 out of 4, is it a 2, 3 or even a 4)?

Which is exactly why , even with all honesty in the world, you still need someone like a psychiatrist or a neurologist who specialises in these problems, because he or she will be able to tell you how "real" your perceived problems are, and should be able to clear up your confusion about whether or not you are being honest with yourself!

I know the feeling though, after I got the appointment I went through a burst of being able to have most things "under control" to some degree - which I have for a few days a month, guess hormones play a role there as well - and trying to tell myself I didn't really need it after all :rolleyes:

Is it a "Big Day" or a sad day? It seems to me that you have diagnosed yourself into the belief that you have some type of mental problem called ADD. Have you thought about the bogus research that is posted on the web concerning ADD? Do you have the monies for the out of pocket, after insurance monies, for long term medication and medical/mental heath costs? Do you realize what personality feelings change and other medical condition can exist with using psychotropic drugs. It may be a sad day.

Bogus Research ?

If you are referring to the "AD/HD is a fraud research", then yes there is some bogus research/claims out there.

I remember my "test day". The psychologist testing me told me that I may be "marginally" ADD apparently because of my "success" in repeating the long numbers that she was giving me (ADD'ers are known to "rise to the occasion" when under pressure) but I made her aware of my high school days (I was 53 when I took the test) where they put me in the "accelerated" classes but I couldn't concentrate or finish reading a chapter in the book. Writing exceptional in essays but accused by the instructor of "cheating" because he didn't think I was attentive in class. Eventually, she agreed and I went on to be treated ending up with Concerta. It was like putting on a pair of reading glasses after being out of focus for all these years. Good luck to you and be prepared to set the course for the rest of your life when you put on these "glasses" that will enable you to focus. Zman88

Zman88,

That's a really good point. Many people aren't aware that some AD/HD individuals (usually ones with a higher IQ) easily test normal (as not having the disorder) on 'classic' AD/HD tests. This is especially true with adults that went through their childhood compensating, but also common in highly intelligent children. The AD/HD attention test, such as TOVA (or any test), can actually stimulate their frontal lobes when taking it, this is thought to be due to the person being "put on trial" while taking the test.

What's ashame is many individuals take the classic attention tests, test normal, and the diagnosis of AD/HD is put behind them as they go through many other "classes" of medications, along with many doctors, and still are without relief from their symptoms, or to a true understanding of what actually is wrong.

In a proper diagnoses procedure, they will spend ALOT of time simply talking with you about all aspects of your life past and present, including talking to others that know you well, such as parents, spouses, maybe even grown children. Depending on age they will also talk with teachers. If you really think that you have ADD, then you are doing the right thing by going to get evaluated. As far as the online tests go, have your spouse or mother take it for you, ADDers are notoriously poor self observers and it can make a world of difference to include those that know you well as part of the diagnosis process. Some people seem to be coming down pretty hard on you for whatever reason, but I think you should be applauded that you are seeking help for yourself. I myself have been diagnosed with Inattentive ADD and my first step after finally deciding to get help(after 2 years of realizing that ADD may be what was wrong) was making an appointment with my family practitioner who I trust very much and who was a son with ADHD. I took the Amen Clinic's online test and sub type test and printed out each page with my answers and results and took it with me to my appointment, that can be a valuable tool as well. Good luck with everything!

the one thing that we ADD'er discover early on is that we are so good at guiding others and giving advice but find it somewhat difficult in guiding ourselves. Thank God for Concerta.