ADHD? Depression? Bipolar? How can they be confused?

[tgoofymom]

I had been treated for depression for 7 years only to be told a month ago that maybe the med's were not working because I was not depressed! So I was put on Adderall (sp) for adult ADHD. I spent the best of 4 weeks in a migraine coma! I have never been so miserable. Now I am on day 2 of Dexadrine. I am sick at my stomach, my hands are all jittery and I feel all anxious. The Doctor told me this med had little to no side effects! Anybody else had any problems with this? I guess the next one to try would be Ritalin. If these didn't do the trick, he wanted to try the treatments for Bipolar. How can the three of these issues be so confused?

[Jennita]

Your symptoms are definately side effects. Perhaps some people have less trouble with them but obviously you are not one of them. If some people can eat peanuts by the handful while others will die from just one then clearly people have sensitivities to things they ingest or breathe in. Peanuts are just an innocent food, so just think how a powerful drug could cause a reaction in some people.

Your doctor shouldn't judge your reaction according to others who don't have such a sensitivity.

Your med may not be working because of tolerance after 7 years. That doesn't mean you have bi-polar, although SSRi's can cause mania, even as a culmative side effect. You could simply have antidepressant burnout. Sometimes people have better luck with nature, like fish oil, regular vigorous exercise and tryptophan foods for depression.

[nzkiwi]

depression, bipolar, adhd all can have over lapping symptoms, some time it is hard to know which disorder it is. Some researchers believe that difficult to treat depression is a form of bipolar. It could be possible that your doctor thinks that untreated adhd is causing your depression. It is difficult for doctors to determine what is going on with a patient as symptoms overlap and disorders co-exist. Be patient and perhaps make suggestions on what you think might help, some doctors like the patient taking an active role in managing the disorder/s.

[loveshinesthru]

you may want to research bipolar II , my brother was diagnosed with adhd and depression and recently was diagnosed with bipolar II. he no longer takes his adhd meds, he took himself off them as he feels he no longer needs them after getting on a good dose of lamictal. he says he feels no anxiety anymore either. he loves it.

[cstep]

The simptoms of bipolar and add are very similar [removed]. I was diagnosed with bipolar type 2(a year ago)-which is a less severe type of bipolar, I started out on lithium and reacted very badly to it, so my doctor switched me to depakote-which has worked great! No side effects-I usually react very easily to any drug I take, so low doses do well. I also take welbutrin 150mg. Recently my doctor diagnosed me with add and I started taking 15mg of adderall xr-no stomach aches though, it works great for me. Everybody is different and what might work for one may not work for another. It sounds like your doctor is hesitant about diagnosing you-you may need to get a second apinion and tell another psychiatrist your situation. Once you have a diagnoses, then you just have to find the right meds, or the right combination and dosage that works best for you. good luck.