ADHD: 6 Months After Diagnosis | chronic fatigue to adhd, how i got diagnosed, medication update 

The "something's wrong with me" feeling that you can't quite define nor explain to someone else but you know is there is such a agonizing thing. Glad you got your diagnosis.

I was really traumatized years ago as a teenage. Got diagnosed with ADHD. Spent my whole life fighting ADHD. I suffered severe depression and mental disorder. Not until my mom recommended me to psilocybin mushrooms treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly. 8 years totally clean. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.

Just diagnosed at 56. Cried my eyes out, felt like I’d been ripped off. Now I’m just excited to see what the rest of my life brings with focus and calm. Haven’t started the meds yet but have had a lot of positive feedback on them. Thanks for the vid. Best of luck with the rest of your gifted life 🙏🏼💕

i was diagnosed this year at 25 and im a woman. i have the combined type, and for a long time i thought i couldnt have adhd because im not “hyper” as an adult, just as a kid. as an adult im pretty mellow and quiet, usually in public. the thing is, hyperactivity can be internalized, and especially women with adhd do this. good example for me was a brain that is always buzzing with noise and NEVER quiet.

Your symptoms are absolutely identical to mine. Especially your chronic fatigue. I have always identified as someone that needed a minimum of 10hrs of sleep a night just to function and I would still fall asleep at 3pm every day without constant intake of coffee. My medication absolutely changed my life that way. I have a calm, natural and sustained energy all day long even after hanging out with friends. Normally an hour long conversation would knock me out for the rest of the day. The reason I started my medication was because of my inability to remember anything because I cant process what people are telling me, it's so embarrassing when you see a friend and cant remember a single detail about their life. Now i find that I can actually hold a conversation and ask relevant questions without long awkward breaks in the convo. It's really life changing.

I'm a psych grad and we didn't cover ADHD in much depth during my degree. I was quite sure my issue was a sleeping disorder (apparently, I had one of those too). As the diagnostic criteria doesn't include fatigue, and that is my biggest complaint....I am just like you re the sleep. I struggled for years being dismissed as my blood tests would most often come back normal. Neuropsychologists/Neuropsychiatrists I think are the only people who really understood, I'm so grateful for them. Anyway, it wasn't until I got a medication that worked that I realised just how much energy I expend on a daily basis compensating. The fatigue is so hard to explain to people who don't experience it unreasonably and completely out of proportion to your day-to-day activities. Thank you for sharing! There seems to be a growing number of ADHDers doing videos on how exhausting it can be to have this condition. More research would be nice.

"if i resolved all my trauma, and if i resolved all my issues these symptoms would go away." i really felt this i thought my ADHD (undiagnosed ahdh at the time) would leave when i "healed my trauma" too. I thought this too - my therapist for 4 years did not catch i had AHDH and had to dig for myself. Thank you for sharing.

The worst part about all of your experiences are that people who don't have it don't understand. Someone told me "you can't just blame your ADHD on everything" I struggle to pay attention to people unless I'm focusing on something else entirely. It's a weird dichotomy where in order to pay attention to someone I completely need to pay attention to something else entirely. Luckily I mostly can manage my ADHD quirks but It sucks where people can't be patient or understanding.

I’m male 45. Been called lazy my entire life. Almost everything you have talked about I have issues with. I’ve flat told doctors I have inattentive ADHD. My son was diagnosed at 6. Even with that the doctors even basically tell me I’m lazy. I don’t know many lazy people who join the Marines, but apparently I did according to them.

I just love the fact that we are so sceptic about taking the ADHD meds at first and then it’s like wow i can do the dishes now 😂 I was diagnosed when I was almost 30, so can relate 100%. Glad You’re doing much better now!

After watching dozens of ADHD videos, yours is the one that rings the most true with me. From childhood memories to alcoholism is college to uncontrollable exhaustion on a daily basis. Thank you for sharing ❤

Just diagnosed at 44. Waiting to get an assessment and meds. Currently, I have no insurance. I've gone through years of treatment for anxiety/depression/ptsd, and nobody even mentioned ADHD. I figured it out and paid for a therapy session and it turns out, Im super ADHD. I met 7/9 criteria.😂

All of your symptoms are identical to what I have experienced my whole life, especially the chronic fatigue, clumsiness, and brain fog the past few years. I am going to look into testing to see if I have ADHD. Thank you for sharing your story!!

Sis, it is UNCANNY how much my experience paralleled your story. I have been formally diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and C-PTSD since 2016, but did not get diagnosed with ADHD - combination type - until 6 months ago. It was super frustrating to have my health team put me on different types of and combinations of anxiety and depression medications. It was so mentally taxing and emotionally unsettling to go through various medications and doses for years without having any of my core problems of lethargy/fatigue, lack of motivation, social aversion, foggy memory/forgetfulness, clumsiness, losing damn near everything (talking about posessions) including my sanity, solved or helped at all. I was listening to biochemical podcasts, as I usually do, and was filtering thru ones related to depression and anxiety and motivation, since those were my diagnoses. In the Podcast it was mentioned that a lack of norepinephrine leads to symptoms of lack of motivation or anxiety or depression, and then They mentioned something about people with ADHD suffering w this. I never considered adhd because my parents always told me my symptoms are due to my lack of self discipline and willingness to improve myself, but I remembered 2 teachers in my life saying they thought I had adhd, but in the 2010s saying that was kind of a meme (kinda like, oh I'm gonna kms lmaoo) so I thought they were just joking/voicing frustration at my behavior (ie fidgeting, impulsively answering or talking over people, finishing class work in 5 minutes and working on next week's stuff in class altho I would lose the work after shoving it somewhere in the void of my backpack). I tried to get an appointment to get diagnosed that would be covered under my insurance, since adhd stuff is so multifaceted and expensive, but all 10 places within 25 miles of me were booked 3 to 12 months out. I took a risk by taking a test online at this sketchy site called adhd online, but I got my results back in 3 days and then took it to a virtual adhd therapist (psychiatrist?) On a service advertised by Aetna, got on Vyvanse, and gOd. The whole world changed. It was like, I was actually present, and able to hear people like they talked TO me instead of feeling like they talked AT me, I could focus on my work and be engaged (before being able to focus I would get so frustrated that I couldn't focus on my work altho I was super interested in it and WANTED to be engaged), and I can actually remember names (well, better than before, which was never remembering names, even 5 minutes after asking them for the 3rd time) and I misplace items less often. Anyway, your story is so validating and your work putting it together is so SO important to us navigating through similar experiences and being failed by doctors/society due to our age/sex/zip code/whatever other biases. Thank you for your effort and diligence qween and I truly hope you continue finding happiness and fulfillment in your beautiful life.

I'm so glad to hear you talk about the exhaustion. I'm also sober after years of alcoholism and addiction, and after I'd been sober a while I was feeling SOOO tired all the time! I figured I couldn't have ADHD because I was able to do good at work and, you know was TIRED all the time! Turns out there's research that is starting to be done about the overlap between untreated ADHD and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Anyway, it was validating to watch your video. Thanks for this and glad to hear things are better for you now!

This whole video is so validating! I'm 29 and on a 6-8 month waiting list for an ADHD consultation. In the meantime, I'm struggling massively with my job, social life, fatigue, brain function, and ability to just DO STUFF. I've heard so many people say meds absolutely turned their lives around, so I'm feeling hopeful. I'm glad you got your diagnosis eventually, even if it did take 26 years!

Just wanted to say that this video popped on my feed randomly about 4 months ago. I had a little extra time that day to listen to your story and journey with ADHD. What I thought would be something different to learn about and fill 20 minutes of my day turned into a revelation about my own life. I wasn’t expecting all the points you hit and that even inattentive ADHD existed. I thought I had my quirks and that I wasn’t perfect at everything. But 4 months ago after watching your video and at 37 years old, I was diagnosed with having Inattentive ADHD. Just wanted to say thank you for sharing your story. It has unlocked a few things for me and helped me let go of the “why am I like this” feelings I’ve had from time to time in my life. So thank you again, you’ve really helped me.

Diagnosed at 32 ✋️ Finally realizing I'm not a bad person for having trouble with structure, routine, building habits... is such a consolation. I understand why I couldn't make myself do certain things and know that I sometimes just need to approach things differently. I'm very happy for you!

I am so proud of you for sticking with the search to find out exactly what was the issue, most that are not diagnosed don't have that drive to hunt it down until there is finally an answer that shows results!

The head feeling heavy is so accurate. Once on the medicine I told my husband my head feels light 😂 my eyes didn’t feel weighed down, I could do things because I wanted to, I had the urge to, when before it was a struggle. Still feeling tired though after the first few days and still want to sleep, so I’ll be talking to my psychiatrist about it to se what we can do to fix it. I too used to sleep ALL the time and got crap over it so much. You’re being lazy, unmotivated, not going to go anywhere if you don’t change, etc. It was never on purpose and trust I would love to not feel exhausted and sleepy constantly. It’s not a fun way to live :( so happy to hear you’re doing better!

Great to hear you got over the alcoholism! I was even later getting diagnosed with ADHD at 34, the Concerta has changed my life.

I am 46 and was just diagnosed yesterday. Your testimony gives me hope . Thank you !

Thankyou so much for being so open and honest. Your helping so many who suffer with shame in silence 🙏❤️

Thank you for sharing!!! I got diagnosed 2 weeks ago and I started Adderall and yesterday I literally cleaned all of my house and did laundry and folded EVERYTHING 😊 Im so proud of you at how far you’ve come!

I just got diagnosed at 26 - just over a week ago :( I feel so relieved yet now confused for the next things in my journey! thank you SO much for sharing your journey & being so honest, really appreciate it and it helped so much xx

"If i resolved the symptoms of my anxiety / depression maybe my symptoms would lessen" this hit so close to home, thousands of dollars in supplements and 5-10 different anxiety / depression meds and 4 years later i'm going to an ADHD specialist in a week an a half, can't barely wait!!!

Diagnosed in my sixties. Like I went through the looking glass into a new reality. Thanks for this.

Thank you for sharing your story. I’ve still been wondering which type I for sure have and your story made me bawl as it’s almost identical to mine. I’m 3 months into the journey and it’s been lonely. My husband asked why I didn’t get into hobbies and why I never felt well. thank you for validating this challenge, my whole family thought I was making it up (as I’m pretty sure both my parents and grandparents struggle with one form or another) you are amazing girl! Thanks for helping me know I’m not alone. Sending you hugs across the miles 💛

Struggled with focus, restlessness and executive dysfunction my whole life. Everytime i tried to express my struggles i just got told to «stop complaining, be better, you are too emotional» etc. Got severe CFS/ME at 16. housebound and bedridden. As ive gotten slightly better my other symptoms(ADHD) got more prominent again. I then stumbled uppon ADHD videos on youtube and i thought i should learn about it since i have it running in my family. Everything clicked after learning about this. Got my diagnosis this year at 28 years old..

I ABSOLUTELY HOW HARD SHE'S TRYING TO STAY ON THE TOPIC , TYPICAL FELLOW INATTENTIVE ADHD'ER ;) THANK YOU FOR YOUR EFFORTS RACHEL ! LISTENING TO YOUR JOURNEY I TOO HOPE TO GET MY DIAGNOSIS SOON ENOUGH , I'M JUST 19 THOUGH :)

Watching how your life has changed makes me want to cry of happiness. It gives me hope that I’ll be able to change my life like you one day. I honestly have so many symptoms and I’ve tried to hide them for so long and I’m nearing 29 and I can’t take it anymore and have decided to get help! I also have alcoholism like you and can’t pay attention to anyone! It’s so frustrating. Thank you for this video ❤

I'm 33. I definitely believe I have ADHD and is currently undiagnosed. Thank you for this video. There were so many of your symptoms that I identify with. And to hear that your life has changed drastically and how productive you have become, I will reach out to a psychologist this week to set up my appointment. The guilt I feel when I don't remember things, or being inattentive during conversations, or neglecting my friends. Everything is so overwhelming all the time.

I’m 49 and just got diagnosed. Thinking back through my life, every screwed up thing that happened can be attributed to my undiagnosed ADHD. I hope parents and schools get better at detecting this. What a waste of life. Things are better now, at least.

Tried depression treatment on and off for years, having been diagnosed with chronic depression in high school. Since graduating it’s been really hard keeping a job for too long. I love working, and put all my effort into it but I get really burnt out and completely shut down occasionally, often just walking out of the job site and never looking back. I started college in 2018, 4 years after high school and immediately fell back in love with learning. Unfortunately I had to withdraw last year after being unable to cope with what I assumed was just a really bad depressive period. I’m 26 and I’m on my second medical leave from work in like 6 months right now. I decided to try treatment again after learning that undiagnosed ADHD can present as depression and started Concerta, too. Giving therapy another shot as well, to unwrap a very stressful childhood that feels really hazy. Still working on it, but for the first few days after starting concerta I felt better than I had in so long. Cooking meals, cleaning my space, all the stuff that I would constantly desire but also despair about not having the energy or focus to do. I’m still in the early days of what will be a very long journey. I’m grateful to have a strong support system at home and realize that not everyone is so fortunate, but if there’s anybody thinking about treatment please don’t hesitate! It can take a long time and it might not always work at first but it’s absolutely worth overcoming anything that’s weighing you down. There are tons of (usually free) mental health resources out there if you look at your local area’s department of health and human services.

The end of your video gives me so much hope. I was just diagnosed at 25 a few days ago and honestly doing the laundry just one time and completing a task sounds so nice I could cry

WOW!! You are describing my childhood and young adulthood. I was diagnosed with ADHD at 40 and my life has drastically changed since getting on medication and learning more about my diagnosis. I have combined type which makes so much sense to me now. I felt so alone and different from others growing. Now, I know that I was different but Thank you for sharing you experience!

Thanks for your video. I got diagnosed at around 39, can't remember the exact date. Explained a lifetime of giving up on things, struggling, getting told off by bosses or just feeling awful about messing things up at work. Also made me understand how much I was drinking to self-medicate my restlessness and insomnia. Now I don't drink really. I did hardcore drinking and drugs in my teens too. Could never sleep well, and still struggle with tiredness, but it's gradually getting better I think. I use a blue light thing to help me wake up each day. I can't take meds as I have co-morbid ocd which it makes worse, but self-help kind of strategies make a big difference :)

Rachel, thank you for sharing your story. In the last few months, three different people told me I have ADHD based on Some of my peculiarities- namely constant distraction, constantly picking up new hobbies and just losing myself in said hobbies (I would always try to "quit" my hobbies to control the distraction only to replace it with a new hobby soon after). When I looked into ADHD, I felt like it explains a lot of my childhood and adult life a lot. As a kid, I was prone to stealing, had a reading obsession (I would reread books 5-21 times straight), and inconsistent grades. As an adult, I still have a lot of the problems I had as a kid like following direction, trusting authority, and submitting and completing work. Weird "tics" (noises and facial expressions) as a child have gone away but I still fidget and pick at my fingers until they bleed. It took me much longer to graduate than it should have (my report cards are basically "bright, but needs to do homework"), and I haven't been able to hold down a job because I can't understand how to behave with authority and I don't know what people expect me to do when I offend them without knowing I have. Physically, I share your experience with chronic aches and pains, fatigue, brain fog, headaches, and a need to nap during the day. Thanks for sharing these symptoms! I'm glad you mentioned these because ADHD really seems to explain everything in my life.

Rachel, thank you so much for sharing your story with us. I have been diagnosed with the predominantly inattentive type (TODAY). I’ve also struggled for my whole life but was always told it was anxiety & depression and so medicated with pretty much everything for 17 years. Glad to finally have a diagnosis at 34 but it’s come at a huge cost. How are so many of us missed and ending up finding out about adhd ourselves. It’s just crazy to me 😔🤯

I'm a nurse, I work in psychiatric clinic. Gt diagnosed at 42yrs old. I made it through nursing school out of fear. I have been on medication for about 10 months and my life has taken a drastic turn. However, I still struggle with my energy, but it's way better.

It's is encouraging to hear the success with medication. I'm excited for my upcoming appointment. I've had education and career goals for years that I just haven't been able to reach because I am unable to focus. I get so bored and feel like physical pain with mundane tasks. Anyway, I resonate with a lot of this. Can't wait to see what happens on meds!

My life completely changed once I was diagnosed and revived treatment. I kept a job and became financially stable. Went to school and was able to complete courses I thought was impossible. I am so resentful and angry that people called me lazy, instead of trying to find the root cause of all my inconsistencies.

OMG you are a WARRIOR - i can tell how hard you are working to resolve your issues like a olympic athlete! you concurred PTSD this is amazing so proud of you :)

ugh you’ve motivated me to get a referral, you’re explaining occurrences my life that i’ve never been able to verbalize. i feel so much relief already. thank you so much

Omgggg! When you read the common symptoms, the part about keeping up with friends, it really clicked in for me! Yes I’ve been struggling, keeping up and in communication with them. Calling/texting back is like sorry to those people! And even at work I jump from task to task and have a hard time completing tasks and prioritizing them. Also it’s been affecting my own passions like being consistent on RU-vid. Then I get so ashamed by not have taken action that I freeze more! Thank you for sharing! Time for me to get diagnosed and see what options can help! 🥰 **Why was typing this comment also hard for me lol & why did I wake up in the middle of the night to research this 😳

When you brought up the clumsyness it really hit home. I haven't been diagnosed with ADHD yet but I remember specifically a while ago I had been constantly spilling coffee and tea everywhere, in my bag, on my books, and even on my electronics (computer/calculator). One day in particular I remember making hot drinks for my mom and I and as I went to grab the sugar I didn't notice a paper towel roll that knocked down on the drink, it got everywhere. I remember I went to my room cried a little about how I couldn't do anything right and then got angry about 'crying over spilled milk'. Luckily my mom tidied up the mess and I remade the coffee, that day was pretty exhausting though, I also stopped drinking coffee for around three weeks due to simple frustration.

Thanks for sharing :) ADHD can look so different between people and I think the more stories that are shared the less people feel like they're alone

also sending you a virtual hug - everything youre talking about prior to diagnosis is so hard and vulverable. thank you for sharing. happy you did not give up searching.

I totally relate to this! I get that overwhelming tiredness and the heavy feeling. When I take my ADHD medication, I feel like a normal human with stable moods and energy again. I got a diagnosis at 14 years old and am so glad I did. I don't really remember much of my childhood because I couldn't focus well and didn't absorb a lot at school.

This video is insane. I literally have the same issues as you did before being diagnosed. I want to talk about this with my psychologist because this thing is making me extremely anxious at work. I can't concentrate on my tasks. I make silly mistakes ALL. THE. TIME. Sending an email takes me legit an hour when it could be done in 10 minutes. I deal with depression and I can't rememeber anything from my childhood... I used to be super anxious to the point of getting super sick as a teenager. It got better until this new job. When I tell yall my hair falls out from the stress... And I don't want to quit my job bc I love everything about it. I think the worst feeling is that I KNOW I can do it, I have the capability to but I can't concentrate. I want to get this checked because it's ruining my work and it's making me feel depressed again... The feeling of "something is wrong with me" is such a mood. I thought it was me being introvert and a drama queen lmao but I feels like there is something REALLY wrong inside. I hope I can figure it out too.

Just wanted to say thank you for sharing your experience. I wiped through most of the video. Felt like i was listening to my life story being told. Also gave me lot of hope. Thank you.

Thank you for making this video! this is honestly exactly what happened to me and I am so relieved to hear someone else with the same experiences. I am so glad you are doing well and enjoying your new focus! I had the same thing happen when I started meds and it was like I had just leveled up in a video game! it's crazy to me that some people have been living this way the whole time 😅

Thank you sharing your story! I also have just been diagnosed this year as a 21 year old woman. I wish I had been diagnosed earlier in my life so I could understand myself and learn strategies revolving life and getting accommodations in school and acknowledgement from peers 😭

I had chronic fatigue that developed into ME as an early teenager and then recently (24) have been feeling like I’m having a relapse, but also keep seeing stuff about adhd that feels so relatable and didn’t realise it correlated with so many of the symptoms of chronic fatigue. Watching this literally gave me the shakes cause I feel like I might’ve figured out why I’ve been finding so much so hard for so long. Gonna talk to my therapist next week and see what she thinks. When you were talking about how much better you feel now, you were describing all the things I want for myself and get so angry at myself for not being able to and put it down to being lazy or just exhausted from trauma but now I’m like omg maybe it could get better?? Thanks so much for making this 💖

My psychiatrist has just recommended that I get tested - I was skeptical at first but the more I read/watch into it the more I identify with all of it. Your video was really useful and also very entertaining haha. Thank you so much, I’m glad to hear that you are feeling much better🥹🐿

Damn, you know your doing MUCH better when you're learning how to code! Happy for you with everything, I just started Concerta as well, it's changing my life. I'm 37.

Yes! I am 45 and am just realizing that I most likely have adhd . I would have never even considered it except for my daughter getting diagnosed and learning about it in order to help her. Thank you for making this video. I relate with so much of it.

Proud of you for persevering and not giving up 💛

I was incredibly angry when I discovered that I had adhd in September 2023. So angry at my parents, the doctors, and all the people who have ever mistreated, misjudged me and insisted that I was choosing to be like this and all the crap that comes with it. I finally was able to get diagnosed and prescribed today. It took wayyy too long for my doctor to take me seriously.

Oh my gosh this video helps me feel understood😭❤️ thank you!! Especially the effects ADHD has on marriage! If you know, you know. Thanks for this video!

I relate so badly to the Chronic Fatigue part especially. I never really felt like I was depressed and even after I found out I was anemic and started taking iron to correct it, I was still tired. Sucks not feeling heard for years but I'm glad I know now, and I'm happy you're life has changed for the better :)

Thank you for sharing!! I was the same way and was quickly diagnosed after noticing I was struggling to do basic everyday things regardless of being on depression/anxiety meds for awhile. I still have some bad habits but I haven’t lost anything since starting meds lol. I went through multiple debit cards, IDs, etc. i finally got my drivers license a couple months after my diagnosis that I put off for 5 years. I stopped maladaptive daydreaming completely. Still trying to find the right dose right now.

Thank you for posting this. This is literally my life story. First day on ADHD medication. Chronic fatigue. That was the worst thing.

Proud of you! Yes there is definitely a feeling of missing out on life ugh. So happy for you 🤗

You talk like me - now I know why! I suspect I have ADHD, the inattentive type as well, and when you said you were chronically tired so many things made sense! I was chronically exhausted in grad school, got tested for anemia, wasn't anemic, and that was the end of it - the doctor didn't care lol. Thank you so much for sharing 💜

I’m 28, almost 29 and I’ve been really thinking about all my signs and symptoms and have a long list. I’ve already been diagnosed with anxiety and depression and adhd runs in the family. I’m going to start the process of getting the diagnosis. So much of what you’re describing is how I’ve been feeling and it’s tough. No one understands it’s not that we want to be lazy it’s just so so difficult to find the motivation to do anything extra some days. Even my hobbies I avoid because I’m just tired and overwhelmed after work. Even on a good day.

I relate so much to this. I’m 27 and was diagnosed with ADHD last month. I was told since my youth that I probably had it because my brother did (why I wasn’t diagnosed back then is a mystery). Can really relate to the part about being tired all the time and sitting on the side lines watching other people. Thank you for sharing this, it was very helpful.

This was great. Clear and straight to the point. Thank you!

I’ve just been diagnosed. It blows my mind that this is a thing. It never occurred that all these struggles had a cause. I’m about to start medication very soon so I’m extremely hopeful. I’m 26 too and also struggle with OCD, anxiety and binge eating.

Oh my god! I have been diagnosed with ADHD this year and nobody, nobody at all mentioned that my pretty chronic fatigue might be caused by ADHD! Somehow, I didn't make this connection either... Thank you so much; your video has opened my eyes!

I relate to everything you said. I was diagnosed with depression but still had all the ADHD symptoms but didn’t know about ADHD and my doctor didn’t bring it up. Now about 15 years later I stumbled onto ADHD and asked my doctor to assess me and she confirmed that’s what I have which makes much better sense. I’m so happy to finally having a diagnosis.

Thank you so much for sharing your journey. This helps A LOT!

“Loosing myself”. Yep Thankyou for summing up what I’ve been trying to explain. It’s so hard I mask right away before I can even express the pin ball machine in my mind

The sad thing is, diagnosis or not, people in the given person's life will never truly believe it. People relate and parallel everything to their own reality and just don't understand how things like this are possible. I am happy that your life has gotten better and hope that others experience the same victory and relief.

Thank you for sharing! I’ve just gotten my diagnosis a month ago and I can relate to so much you’ve just said

thank you so much for sharing your experience! after you were diagnosed, I went to get tested and found out that I had it too!

thank you so much for this video! I’m 20 years old and my struggles are very similar to your story. I think I’ve been able to cope since I was younger but I’ve always felt like I was just coasting and this past year it’s like my coping mechanisms are no longer working. I spoke to my therapist about it (been in therapy for ptsd for almost 2 years) and she suggested that I get bloodwork done, and to explore depression and anxiety if it comes back good. my bloodwork came back normal and she screened me for depression, which it turns out I don’t have. my friends had mentioned adhd to me a few times in the past and I just kinda brushed them off until I came across a ted talk about adhd that really resonated with me. once I found out that women with adhd tend to get misdiagnosed with anxiety and depression, I built up the courage to mention the possibility of having adhd to my therapist. she suggested I get evaluated by the psychiatrist at her practice, so I set up an appointment which was earlier this week. when I told him about my struggles and suspicion, he told me to try drinking a cup of green tea every morning and to go to sleep/wake up at the same time for a month and then tell him if my focus improves. I left the session feeling really invalidated and I figured that I must’ve been researching too much about adhd to the point where I self diagnosed myself when the signs weren’t really there, but then your video came up on my page. after watching I’ve decided that I’m gonna try and find a psychiatrist that specializes in adhd for a second opinion. thanks so much again for sharing your story, it really means a lot :)

It’s so important that you healed your ptsd and depression before you used the adhd meds to cope , im sure you feel like a new woman now! I’m excited to start adhd meds too

i'm soooo happy i came across this video. all of this 100% aligns with me and i think this is finally what is gonna push me to seek a diagnosis

I was diagnosed at 32 an it was such a relief. Not because of the label, but because my treatment has changed so much. I feel understood now.

Wow! Your video is so helpful, thank you so much for being open about the less documented symptoms. I've been googling ADHD for the last couple days and wondering if it's me (internet tests say yes) but your description of feeling like you must have chronic fatigue, and not having the emotional energy to keep up relationships etc is exactly what I've always struggled with. I'm going to bring it up with my psychiatrist in 2 weeks. I'm 39 and I always thought I was just born wrong somehow since no doctors can find physical reasons and anxiety and depression meds don't really do anything. Thanks again!!!

This is so relatable, thank you for sharing! I've been also trying to find out why I'm so goddamn exhausted all the time. Problems in organising myself and with my working memory, lack of concentration and constant fatigue forced me to stop working 5 months ago. I'm depressed and on medication but I just can't get my energy levels up. The brain fog is real. And some other days it feels like my brain is full of angry bees buzzing around and I can't think at all. .... and I've just been told the waiting list to get diagnosed in my country is 2-3 years long 😐

Thank you for sharing. I’m at the point of searching for what’s wrong with me and am down to basically it was to be ADHD, and same, sleep all day, appear to be lazy, dropping the ball at work completely. Can’t focus on listening and have to do something else at the same time. My kids always complain that I sleep all the time and forget so much. I’m ALWAYS late! All of everything you said. I’m 40 though. If I get diagnosed and experience the same life improvement then I’ll feel like I would have lost my entire 30s on suffering from it. You’ve really inspired me to book that psych appointment

Thank you for sharing your experience. It means a lot to us.

So so so relatable! I had CFS/ME, PTSD, suffered terrible postpartum depression, on going anxiety and have been waiting for my ADHD assessment for 2 years now (I’m 34) ADHD makes parenting well kinda impossible and it’s impacting my marriage horribly 😖 your story gives me hope as your comping mechanisms, symptoms and social experiences are pretty darn similar to mine. Thanks for sharing 💙

My son was diagnosed with ADHD @ 21. So, I realized I have ADHD too as he is a copy of me. I have all the symptoms of ADHD. But I'm so happy that I know now what's wrong with me. Now I just need to focus on my super power😊 I am now 54 and excited to see my doctor to give me med for this condition.

Thank you for sharing! There is so much relief with the human connection watching this video!

same with me, iam 26 yrs old and i had missdiagnosed from just dyslexia to ptsd and finally i know why i always get tired, sleeping overday, forget everything, cant read something for just a few minutes, and etc... thx for your sharing... keep going and spirit ❤️

Hey friend. I am 26 years old and was diagnosed about 6 months ago too. Your experience is eerily similar to mine - especially growing up and college life. That fatigue too!!!

Inattentive type here too diagnosed March 2022. Had depression and anxiety, treated for anxiety, but I noticed something else was wrong. Even though I got my anxiety under control, I noticed I struggled with motivation and my new doctor correctly diagnosed me with ADHD.

Thank you so much for opening up about your ADHD journey. I always struggled with chronic anxiety and depression until I went through therapy and don't struggle with those anymore. But that's when the ADHD symptoms really showed themselves... the worst is feeling exhausted ALL DAY for a whole month (sometimes longer) and it's so hard to explain to people why I'm so exhausted all the dang time. Even my psychiatrist thought it was depression. I didn't realize it could be linked to ADHD and that others go through the same thing. I was only diagnosed 2 months ago and just got meds last week. Thank you for sharing and not making me feel alone

Omg this is exactly how I became aware (at 32 yrs old) about my adhd. I completely changed after I quit drinking and started realizing something was wrong, I went from constantly wanting to be out and partying to (after I quit drinking excessively) having basically severe social anxiety, excessively tired after work/or just being around people, forgetfulness, being too tired to do basic tasks etc. this is very validating ♥️

I really truly believe I have adhd at this point (after months of researching and agonizing over it) but I'm so good at hiding a lot of my symptoms that I'm afraid that no one would believe me. I really want a diagnosis because I'm struggling and it's getting worse as I get older. But I know that adhd diagnosis requires interviews with parents and people around me so I worry that no one will vouch for my symptoms since I hide them so well from other people. I'm going to be a high school senior this year and I really wish I could get a diagnosis because I just hope to have this one high school year where I feel like a normal person. thanks for this video, it really makes me feel seen

You so accurately described my experience before being medicated. I just thought I was going mad and didn't understand why I was failing so spectacularly at things other people seemed to find easy.

I got diagnosed at 40, and it felt like a mountain had slipped off my back. Instead of feeling like I had 10.000 faults and no matter how hard I tried, I was never good enough, I discovered that I had one problem that manifested in a diversity of ways, and that there were ways to cope with it. Sharing my experience allowed me to help others around me who had a similar problem. I‘m really grateful for that.

I got diagnosed a couple months ago at age 31. I've been researching adhd and comorbidities like anxiety/depression, c-ptsd and stuff that I ended up self diagnosing all that before I could afford a proper diagnosis. It was so hard to go through all the testing and realize I have almost no memory of my childhood and even teen years due to c-ptsd, but I now know it's normal due to that ._. I just with mental health treatments were a right and therefore free, cause It's really hard to pay for all that =( Thank you for sharing your story ♥ It's nice to be reminded that we're not alone.

Wow. What a journey. I identify with all of that except the ptsd (insert ASD instead). I'm almost 50, and going to get diagnosed next month. ps. You're amazing at replying to everyone. ... Thanks for sharing.

Hi! Im 22 year old girl that is not diagnosed yet. I relate to the constant tiredness and forgetting about alot of things. Im also a litte impulsive which is one of the reasons why I have given me alot of aexiety. Honestly im so tired of trying all the time that i just wanna give up. And when i do give up, i feel worse. I feel stuck. I am so tired. In august it is time for me to see the doctor to get an diagnos, but until then ill probably feel like this🙃 Thank you for talking about this. It is important 💜

I’ve never related to a video more than this one thank you for this!

I’m not diagnosed with ADHD yet but I have struggled with other co-morbidities & I believe I will be. Earlier this year, I really began struggling with what I finally identified as chronic fatigue. It’s horrible and that was actually the final straw that led me to “dig deeper.” I’m kind of new to this aspect of the journey but the struggles suddenly make so much more sense! So far, you’re the first I’ve hear bring up the issues with childhood memories and chronic fatigue. Thank you so much for sharing. I’m feeling so much more understood and hopeful! 👏🏽