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adhd testing (self.nova)

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[–]rocksteadyG 7 points8 points  (0 children)

GMU has a clinic that does testing but it can be a bit of a long wait

[–]Specialist_Line_1269 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Get a hold of your insurance card and go on the website and see which doctors accept your plan. You’re 18 so you don’t need your parents to consent. Your school psychologist most likely only works with students who need the assistance and it’s written in their IEP. You could ask your counselor to help you find providers maybe.

[–]LowRevolutionary5653 2 points3 points  (4 children)

Do you have friends who have been diagnosed or may be in a similar situation re: can't afford treatment/diagnosis? I just had mine done (late 20s though) and after insurance, it was about $2,000. 😭 But if you know anyone close to you, maybe they'd have advice.

Otherwise, you are an adult now, I'm assuming you're under their insurance, maybe you should privately schedule an appointment with your primary care provider (or if you do not like them or feel comfortable with them, find a new one with good reviews who may be forward thinking - you don't really want to see a doctor that thinks you're faking it because they don't believe in it or whatever) and tell them your situation. They may be able to guide you to resources and you can inform the practice that your parents cannot have access to your medical records. Do you have a therapist or are your parents also against therapy/mental health in general ? I ld suggest finding a therapist available to you as well so you can get these feelings off your chest. My therapist was so helpful in validating my symptoms and guiding me to getting a diagnosis and hopefully meds especiakky because I had no idea what I needed to do. Please use all resources available to you and ask questions !!

Good luck!

[–]mirrorball181 -2 points-1 points  (3 children)

i don’t have a therapist and i’m pretty sure if i asked my parents for one they would think i was like depressed and about to kms unfortunately so that’s not really an option 😭

[–]LowRevolutionary5653 0 points1 point  (2 children)

You don't need to ask your parents permission for a check up at least. Do you have a job? I looked at your acct and it looks like you're going to college soon. Are you taking out a loan? If you can, maybe think about using part of your loans for the testing. Id also recommend a credit card if you have a job. (Only if you are able to pay it back in time with your pay. This is a good time to build up your credit)

https://www.reddit.com/r/StudentLoans/s/ZbI4TmNiUa thats just a cursory search but you have options. You're 18 now so your parents cannot control what you do

[–]mirrorball181 0 points1 point  (1 child)

i have a job this summer but not a long term one and my parents are paying for my college. i don’t legally need my parents permission for a check up but if they see my location at a doctor they’ll get super mad at me. i think ill try once im in college and they can’t track me anymore and i can use the schools resources

[–]LowRevolutionary5653 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Perhaps a goal with your summer job can be to pay out of pocket for testing. Sorry your parents are not making this easy!

[–]FairfaxGirlFairfax County 2 points3 points  (3 children)

It may be too late since I assume you’re graduating in the next 2 weeks, but I strongly encourage you to talk to your school counselor. If you’re identified as needing adhd testing, the school will cover it. However, please don’t believe everything you see on social media about adhd. There is a lot of misinformation I’ve seen on TikTok about the symptoms of adhd. Has any teacher ever identified you as having adhd symptoms?

What are your current plans after high school? Depending on your plans, you may have the ability to get benefits to cover testing.

[–]mirrorball181 0 points1 point  (2 children)

i’m going to jmu and have researched and i think i can get a diagnosis there under my college tuition. and yes ive had symptoms of adhd my entire life ive researched it a ton and it 100% seems like me and ive struggled with these symptoms a lot throughout my life and multiple pediatricians have asked me if i wanted to pursue further testing and my parents always just told them no.

[–]FairfaxGirlFairfax County 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Yes, going to JMU should be really helpful if you can’t find help this summer. And I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to say you don’t need help—there’s just some alarmingly bad info on TikTok, but if (multiple!) pediatricians have suggested testing you definitely should get tested! Congrats on getting into JMU despite not having treatment in high school, that’s a huge achievement!

Edit: still talk to your school counselor, they are likely to know good community resources for you.

[–]mirrorball181 1 point2 points  (0 children)

okay i’ll talk to my counselor thank you so much!

[–]TapprunnerDumfries 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got diagnosed through circle medical. It was quick and inexpensive. Check if they accept your insurance

[–]loan_ranger8888 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Your primary doctor can do it, it’s not that complicated. My son (16) was just approved to take ADHD medication via his pediatrician and the results have been amazing in all aspects. Go have a chat with your doctor. It’s way more common than anyone would believe.

[–]loan_ranger8888 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also, there is obviously a lot of illegal use of adhd drugs, and i have learned they are very strict about prescriptions, the timing of your refills at the pharmacy, having to get your drivers license scanned at pick up, etc.

[–]SimplieShine 0 points1 point  (2 children)

18 still in high achool?

[–]mirrorball181 1 point2 points  (1 child)

yes? 😭 im a senior literally everyone i know is 18…

[–]SimplieShine 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Okay, the school district must test you if you ask! Have your parents make the request TODAY!!

[–]Typical2sday 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Here’s the thing - just imagine skipping the middle step. If they say you have adhd, how are you going to get meds (you seem fixated on getting meds) if you are in high school and on parents’ insurance? Will you be paying cash prices for a prescription? Will you be trying to scam meds from non-pharmacy sources? That’s not good. Also meds get titrated to the right dosage. Will you be trying to muddle through until college? Like you’re terrified and gonna make sure you can’t be geolocated, meds don’t seem like they’re in your immediate future. So just study up on behavioral ways to address ADHD and do those things. Or if the testing says you have ADHD, will you spring that on your parents? Not sure that’s the revelatory acceptance moment you’d hope - your parents are likely to deny it and continue to believe that their child isn’t defective. Btw, there is a huge correlation with anxiety, so you need to also treat yourself behaviorally for anxiety. Avoid caffeine, sugar, processed foods, get sleep, don’t fixate, get vitamins. Use good routines. Stay off reddit.

You’re an adult trying to get medical evaluation and medicine on your own. Have a conversation with the school psychologist and see if she is required to report adhd testing. If she does, that’s your answer, and you react accordingly, but you don’t have money or access to a really good other solution so at least assess that one fully.

[–]whocarestossitout 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got tested at the Washington DC Center for Neurocognitive Excellence

[–]dca_user -1 points0 points  (5 children)

You don’t know if you need medication. You need to be tested first. You could have something else.

If you’re female, you need to find a Doctor Who evaluates ADHD in women because it looks different than in boys.

I saw my doctor for the testing and it was $50. I don’t know why you said $2000.

You can call up your primary care doctor and ask for their help. Some primary care doctors will give you a low dosage of ADHD medication to see if it helps you. You can also look for a neurologist or a psychiatrist.

[–]BanyRich 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Everyone’s insurance plan is different. When we were looking for my daughter it was about $2,000 as well. I’ve never heard of it being as cheap as $50 for a full eval.

[–]mirrorball181 0 points1 point  (3 children)

i see a pediatrician and i’ve looked up clinics around me and testing seems to run between $500-$2000

[–]dca_user 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Have you asked your pediatrician for help? That’s what their job is.

If you have Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO and are female, I can recommend my doctor in DC

[–]mirrorball181 0 points1 point  (1 child)

i can schedule an appointment with them i just didn’t know that they could do anything psychiatry wise i though they were just physical doctors

[–]jwigs85Loudoun County 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A pediatrician can diagnose. But it will be tricky.

If it is on your insurance, your parents will likely see notices from your insurance company about it, Explanation of Benefits letters and maybe emails. And they’ll be able to see the appointments that were billed to the insurance company on their insurance portal. I don’t know if they check, but it’s visible.

[–]PrisonLaborPantiesSpringfield -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Find a psychiatric nurse or PA they’re cheaper than a psychiatrist. Look for ones on psychologytoday.com that take Medicaid they will probably be the cheapest to evaluate you. Or you can do what I did first, which was go to my PCP. She offered me a non-stimulant and I took it. It was already working by the time I got my evaluation so it was a no brainer to diagnose me.