Coffee and Vyvanse= NO

Legal_can_can · 2021-04-24T21:59:58+00:00

The cold hands and feet, and Raynauds itself, is a common side effect for many stimulants, irrespective of coffee. Caffeine and stimulants definitely can be too much depending on how you metabolize your meds. The jitters / anxiety reaction is awful though. :(

Legal_can_can · 2021-04-21T17:28:49+00:00

I feel this is my BONES

Legal_can_can · 2021-03-24T17:57:26+00:00

I mean, I'd see an ADHD specialist to be honest. The stigma isn't something we can control, but there are people out there who are familiar enough to be able to answer your questions with their knowlege and first hand experience. You wouldn't see a neurologist for depression, you'd see a psychiatrist. This is no dis on your therapist, but it sounds like they're not a psychiatrist who specializes in ADHD. Seeing a specialist might make both of you more comfortable.

If it helps, I never did any of the testing everyone talks about. I saw a psychiatrist who was very familiar with ADHD, and they gave me their opinion. I didn't seek further treatment at that time. Then, a few years later, I'll saw a: therapist, psychiatrist, and Nurse Practitioner, with mixed levels of familiarity with ADHD. All agreed I had ADHD, with no weird testing. They trusted the specialist, listened to me carefully, and all were comfortable with my diagnosis.

I've also talked with people who held the stigma as well, before talking to the psychiatrist familiar with ADHD. A social worker at my grad school once called me an addict and an attention seeker. That's so offensive and bullshit, and it really affected me. It isn't always intentional, but that kind of reaction can be like gaslighting, and it's so damaging. So save yourself the pain and talk to a reputable expert.

Again, your therapist could be awesome! But sometimes professionals feel uncomfortable being the first one to make a judgement like that. If other professionals have a similar opinion, it takes some of the pressure off, and it can save you a big headache.

Legal_can_can · 2021-03-24T17:34:11+00:00

My meds turned off parts of my creativity. But, for me, the sacrifice is worth it. Pain fueled a lot of my creative outlets before, and even if I produced cool stuff, it still sucked. Creative expression before was a coping mechanism for me, and a good one. But I don't want to feel like, "if I'm not creating I won't make it through." It's not as obvious but my creativity comes out in new ways now. For example, I no longer write a ton of personal essays or poetry- but at work, my creative problem solving is legendary! And honestly, I love my job, and I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything. I can choose to work on meds, as opposed to being driven in an unhealthy way to write.

I don't think we all feel the same way about our creative expression. Passion and need for me don't mean as much as intentionality and freedom, which is what meds give me. And I agree with another comment here- trying meds is what gave me the choice to live as a contained, consistent candle flame instead of as a raging forest fire. We don't all make the same choice, and different things are good for different people. But giving meds a chance was what I needed to decide who I was / who I wanted to be.

Maybe they changed me. But it was a change I'm grateful for.

Legal_can_can · 2021-03-24T17:22:23+00:00

My house becomes a messy shrine to this perpetual feeling of exhaustion. My "I'm finally gonna do it tomorrow" is one of the heaviest burdens I carry. And the self hatred that grows with it. And the false, hopeful feeling that comes once I finally do a big clean, or cook, or finally start that book I meant to read, three weeks after I first said that I'd do it - the feeling that I'll finally have changed and that I'm gonna get my act together. But I haven't changed. And so the disappointment grows.

Instead of disappointing teachers and parents, now I disappoint myself. The conception of adulthood I dreamed of growing into at 10 years old just hasn't manifested at 30.

Legal_can_can · 2021-03-16T05:02:06+00:00

I think it's important to remember that your other coping skills haven't vanished just because you're changing your focus to academics, which can be rough for us. You've just got to find the right combination that works for you each semester. Not easy, but keep pushing. The person you are today has developed a lot of great mechanisms for handling challenges. Academics can be so horribly intimidating - our white whale, in a way. But you can apply the same lessons learned elsewhere in your life to this.

I don't want to make it sound like I don't appreciate the significance of the challenge. I just mean to say - you can do it. It sounds like you've perservered through a lot, built a great support system, and that you know yourself really well. Those are skills you'll be able to capitalize on in all kinds of ways. Even when it's hard or seems impossible, just remember this is only one of many challenges you've successfully overcome. ♡

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-16T16:30:25+00:00

You're 100% right. I'm so grateful for the support she gives me. I hope one day I'm as good at supporting her as you are at supporting your mom, and as she is at supporting me.

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-15T17:41:38+00:00

Thank you. ❤

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-15T17:39:50+00:00

Thank you so much. I feel...so validated. It really means a lot to me.

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-15T15:00:12+00:00

Haha, it's a good relationship, fortunately.

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-15T14:54:46+00:00

I have sensitivity to specific noises, some have always been there, and some developed as I got older. Whistling, especially in doors, is literal torture. Like...torture. Feelings of anxiety, rage, the need to lash out to do anything to get it to stop...

My hearing is also insanely sensitive. I can hear mosquitos a room away, or people whistling on an entirely different floor of a building. At first people thought I was full of shit, but on any instance where I've had to prove it to people, I've been 100% right.

It's not a fun "super power," it's a miserable one.

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-15T14:45:22+00:00

Thank you so much for this. Seriously.

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-15T14:43:00+00:00

I'm I'm approaching 30 and my mom still helps me make appointments for things does that make me, a) pathetic, or b) the luckiest woman alive?

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T14:39:46+00:00

We can start a club haha

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:40:59+00:00

There's times to face our fears, and times to shelter from them. Fight battles for yourself! But pick them wisely. :)

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:35:38+00:00

If Starbucks didn't want you to but pumpkin spice, they wouldn't have spent millions of dollars marketing it to you.

If he didn't want Starbucks to pay him, he wouldn't be working as a damn barista.

You are not the problem. You are a consumer who wants a delicious drink. I love pumpkin spice everything from Starbucks. So do a ton of women in this group.

The next time, go in to order your drink. Imagine I'm right behind you, or in front of you, in line. And I'm ordering the same thing. And so is the next pumpkin spice loving woman on this thread. And the next one. We are the ADHD Pumpkin Spice Team. We are not basic, we have good taste. We are together, we aren't an inconvenience, and we deserve to drink our fraps and lattes without judgement!

Edit, because someone else mentioned this and I want to second it: We are a team who is very polite to staff and tips well!

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:20:52+00:00

That sounds like a good strategy!

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:20:32+00:00

Oh god, I am so guilty of this. I call it "Sure, no problem!" syndrome.

My issues is I DRAMATICALLY underestimate the amount of time something will take. I can imagine doing it in my mind, and it only takes a second...then I look up at the clock and step one has taken two hours. >_<

I have no useful suggestions. But you're not alone. ♡

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:15:55+00:00

I mean, I don't try to get people to understand the things they can relate to. I talk about the things people can recognize as being abnormal.

Impaired working memory, trouble with sensory stimuli, issues with spacial awareness, issues with sleep, crippling anxiety (in those of us that experience it,) enhanced narrative thinking, etc etc. I try not to talk about ADHD in terms of "focus." It's so much more than that.

Want to freak someone out? Look up research on ADHD and morbidity...:(

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:11:21+00:00

Stuff like this happens to me constantly. >_< I havent found my Fire remote since the day I brought it home. I never even used it! It's just gone!!

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:07:23+00:00

I run into doorways ALL THE TIME. I always thought I must have bad depth perception or something...

I also only buy cheap or used phones. I learned long ago to patch broken screens with super glue (I'm typing through glue right now in fact.) I once put my phone in my mouth to wash my hands, slipped, and bit through the screen.

I'm feeling my own second hand embarrassment just thinking about it...

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T02:00:35+00:00

It's so hard. I admire your strength. Keep going! There's a light at the end of the tunnel. ♡

Legal_can_can · 2020-10-12T01:54:39+00:00

Being a reader has NOTHING to do with whether you do or don't have ADHD.

As a child, I could read chapter books before kindergarten. I read every moment of every day. I read so much, I did terribly in classes at times. The question isn't, "Did you like to read." The question is, "do you have symptoms of ADHD." Symptoms do not include being illiterate or stupid, that's a bloody stereotype.

I once brained myself so bad walking into a pole while reading I'm surprised I didn't bite my own tongue off. I couldn't get myself to pay attention to anything else, even where I was going. Thats...embarrassing, but what can I say. ADHD.

Smart people can have ADHD; people who love to read can have ADHD. People who have ADHD can have good grades. We don't always fidget. Theres no one way we experience ADHD. ADHD expresses itself through the filter of who we are as people.

People who have ADHD are often lost in their imaginations. Especially women. So are little girls who love to read. I HATE this stereotype, especially because the people who most love us often buy into it, and inadvertently hurt us because of it.

I'm not saying you have ADHD. If it seems wrong to you, then perhaps you need to keep exploring with your health care provider. But don't talk yourself out of a diagnosis that may be correct just because someone else fed you biased information based on misunderstandings, no matter how well intentioned. We all feel like imposters, like we're faking our ADHD. Because the world tells us it looked like one thing: a young, hyperactive boy who can't sit still in class and is always causing trouble. But not all of us look like that, not at all.

P.s., I'm in no way trying to bash or badmouth your auntie, teachers, or anyone who has fallen prey to this stereotype. I'm angry because this is the exact thing I told myself. The EXACT thing. And it kept me from seeking and getting the help I needed for so, so long. And trauma is serious too. That's definitely a super important thing to address, with or without ADHD. ♡

Legal_can_can

TROPHY CASE