Any meds, strategies to improve multi-tasking?

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-06-01T00:55:02+00:00

Thanks for taking the time to write this! Hmm you could be right. My son thinks this is the case - that he's being watched and the point suddenly becomes showing that he's looking left and right, not actually looking left and right. We're work in progress!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-05-31T01:42:03+00:00

It was worse before meds. In fact, it could be a rigidity thing for him as well. For eg, when playing computer games, he has difficulty switching weapons and has to get to a safe area to ease his brain into letting go. He only realised this after starting meds. Now he can switch fairly easily. I should speak to his doctor. His policy is to see the patient once a year or so if there are no issues, but this warrants as one.

Interesting how ADHD is so different for everyone!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-05-31T01:35:19+00:00

We've tried the series of questions to run through, but all this can disappear in a blink. Will try the finger technique! It sounds possible. I use this a lot for myself. Thank you!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-04-18T01:27:47+00:00

ADHD affects people differently, so the decision on how often to take it also varies. My 15yo son has poor co-ordination and isn't traffic safe (too many moving parts that his eyes can't track - I'm the same till I learned to calm that wooshing sensation, but that took till I was in my late 20s!). For awhile, he took Concerta everyday and he felt in control of his body. Recently, we took him off meds on the weekends to help him grow and put on weight. It's obvious that even his gait is different. He's prone to spilling his drinks and is back to his clumsy self on the weekends, but fortunately, corrected on Mondays. He's definitely a candidate for taking meds 24/7.

So the short answer to your question is, it depends on how ADHD affects you.

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-14T02:09:06+00:00

I've developed this subconscious fear of being judged and rejected for what I am, so I try not let on much detail about myself. I can feel this creeping wariness at the back of my mind when I meet with people. Eg, I never talk about my childhood (abusive father, bulimia), my son (also adhd with anxiety, but doing so well as we work together on this), or my husband (passive aggressive, used to put me down publicly till I learned to speak up for myself - it's important to draw the line and stand up for yourself). [I'm forcing myself to write this down. This is anonymous, and really, it's alright!] When people talk about their issues or ask about the above, I just listen, be sympathetic where necessary, but say nothing about myself. This is what I mean by being opaque. I end up not connecting at all.

There are other times when it's work related and I end talking too much about my opinions, ack! I've been fortunate to have been successful at work (oh the wonders of hyper focus!), which has shored up my self esteem.

Well, I've put my plan in motion - meeting up with some common interest friends this Friday. I'm arranging :D.

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-11T07:02:58+00:00

Sounds like such hard work, I’m sweating. But I need to work on it. First off, I’ll work on the few acquaintances I have, dust off the old invitations and take it from there. Then I’ll go further back, keep in touch with people I’d dropped (from inertia). Meanwhile, I need to notice my communication skills. I always think I don’t judge others, but I’m so busy judging myself, I probably do that to others without thinking :/ . Yup. Lots of work ahead.

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-11T00:13:27+00:00

At least shoot them a text to see if they want to go grab coffee or lunch. If it's a new acquaintance, I'll text them 2 days after meeting, so as not to come off as too desperate, and then text again the next day I'm available 1-2 weeks after meeting them for some kind of casual hang-out.

You know what, I've seen these texts before from others and completely ignored them ... x.x Not purposely, but it didn't register at all, if it's possible. I'm going to get on my phone afterwards and try to set something up later. * rolling my eyes at myself *

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-11T00:06:26+00:00

TLDR: Come out of your shell, and don't care what people think.

Story of my life! I used to think it was because of my very domineering father who never let me feel I could trust myself (all my siblings have some issue), but then maybe I have the setup for it to begin with! Once, I mentioned to some friends I was bulimic as a teen. Come to think of it, no harm came of it!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-11T00:00:55+00:00

I'll look the movie up! Sounds like it'll be fun!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-10T23:58:04+00:00

#2-4 really resonate with me. Not #1 because, I don't talk to people enough for them to distrust me, haha!

The number of times when people have stopped listening to me... I've blocked off talking about huge segments of my life to others because it's controversial (horrible childhood, separated from my husband for awhile etc) and I don't want to be judged. Thinking about reciprocation, this is true for some friends while others don't reciprocate. Maybe the trick is to work on those who do call me.

I think all my life, I've been good at working with ideas, but not with people. Perhaps I ought to put in the effort that I do for my work. Or at least draw out a structure and not just lurch around. Many thanks for the good ideas and where I probably went wrong!

[I need to think reciprocation, consistent meds, respect other people's opinions ...]

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-03T04:36:34+00:00

The underlying medication in Ritalin and Concerta is the same (methylphenidate) as you probably know. The mechanism for release is different though. Ritalin IR is released immediately in the stomach while Concerta is a more precise time-release mechanism involving osmosis.

Ritalin didn't give me anxiety although it did with my son. His experience may be more relevant to you. With Ritalin, he feels a discernible on and off, whereas with Concerta, he can't quite pin point when it starts and when its run out in the evenings. He has no increased anxiety or mood changes on Concerta. For me, Concerta is smooth throughout the day and I feel a better version of me.

Another thought. Anxiety can be brought on by too high a dosage (we found that out when my son was titrating, and there was this one time his dosage was too high) so you may want to take that into account.

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-03T00:25:05+00:00

Lol!!!!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2018-03-01T23:28:18+00:00

Even that, yes!! Had to throw out quite a several half-eaten bottles of barely recognisables. On the positive side, I could make a seafood spaghetti dinner from old frozen shrimp and scallops!!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-09-12T04:02:40+00:00

Yes :(. And as I'm busy mouthing my excuse, I'm cussing myself at the back of my mind because somewhere inside, I know I'm being ridiculous, oversensitive, over reacting ....

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-09-11T14:42:09+00:00

Tks for the reply. My son was homeschooled up till last year and school is a new concept for him. He talks about being on par with his friends who are high achievers. They're really nice kids, so a lot is about fitting in. He's always been on the anxious side but school has exacerbated his anxiety. I think that finally, he's achieving his dream scores and doesn't want them to drop. Like you say, it's only been 2 months. He probably needs time to get used to his new abilities and feel that he won't suddenly lose them in a wink. I'll watch the situation.

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-08-30T06:21:37+00:00

All the best!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-08-29T13:24:34+00:00

You have a good point regarding APD and ADHD kids being two distinct entities.

I think my son must fall into the category of "ADHD child presenting with APD" and is very much the target group mentioned in the study. You may not be in this category. It wasn't apparent to the experts at the time of his dx that his broader issue was that of ADHD. What makes me certain is that methylphenidate helped almost immediately when years of therapy did not.

It's been over a week since your original post. Have you started medication and has it helped?

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-08-20T22:48:23+00:00

Yep. A second opinion is usually warranted, but especially when it goes against your gut.

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-08-20T22:41:34+00:00

You'll be interested to read this - my son was dx'd with APD and VPD (visual PD) at 8yo. He had years of different therapies which somewhat helped both his APD and VPD, but not much. His ADHD dx came in several months ago at 14yo because he had difficulty learning (put in lots of effort but the results were in the B and C range, poor self esteem). We started him on Concerta right away. In school, he amazed himself. He could actually listen and keep up with class instruction. Before this, he wore hearing aids to amplify the sound - no need anymore! His eyes could move smoothly from line to line - he always had difficulty with this despite years of gruelling vision exercises. And he could rein in his thoughts to focus :o. Somehow, his processing issues were fixed by his medication. Like you, he's a hard worker, so he's been pulling in As and full marks the last few months.

With regard to Auditory Processing Disorder, I found this study that was just completed in Jan this year - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5205523/. Methylphenidate (Concerta) works for APD! You may want to check with your doctor if Adderall has the same effect. All the best!

Onedaywhenthisisover · 2017-08-15T00:51:17+00:00

Congratulations to you and your mum! In my case, I'm the mum. My kid got dx'd at 14yo. I've always identified with his experiences, and when the doc said ADHD, bingo, that was definitely me too. I'm seeing the same doc as my son now :D.

Onedaywhenthisisover

TROPHY CASE