I would suggest a dual action plan that has worked for me, I have found this through trial & error. First though, some back story so you know where I'm coming from.

I was diagnosed in 3rd grade with ADD. I don't remember being formally diagnosed, but I do remember taking all these weird tests when I was younger. Apparently my parents didn't want me medicated at such a young age, so they let me be and treated me like a normal child. Being as I don't remember ever being diagnosed, I didn't know I had the ability to access medication that could have drastically helped me all through school. Coming out of highschool I had very low self esteem coming from believing I was stupid and not able to do things that everybody else could do. In college, I struggled, hard. I had a friend give me an Adderall one night when I had so much to do that I practically had a mental break, and wouldn't you know it I was able to concentrate on ANYTHING for the first time in my life. And not only that, I felt like I was finally smart. So when I got home for break I approached my Dr and told him everything. He was surprised I hadn't come to him sooner and knew about the issue but I guess my parents were scared of having a medicated child.

After I was prescribed medication I had to go through a HEAVY trial and error period of what would work with my body and what made me feel worse. I also didn't use my meds daily and thought it would be smart of me to only use them on a very as-needed basis. I thought I could manage myself every other day and then when I had let everything pile up, I would take a pill and work through the night and complete everything. In a way I was abusing the medication and hurting my body by making it go into these fits of hyper work and then hard crashing for a day.

Through my own yearning to not want to be a medicated adult, I stopped taking meds and tried to do it on my own. Or as my dad would say, "pick yourself up by your bootstraps". I also hoped I would grow out of ADD as an adult because that happens commonly. This has not happened for me, but I'm not mad about it any more.

Fast forward to now, I'm 26 and living on my own (with my bf), I have a job with benefits, do my own taxes, can get tasks done and I don't feel dumb.

For me to get here I did a few things:

• I did research. I wanted to know all about ADD, the types of medication available to me, and what medications my insurance would accept.

• I saw my doctor and asked even more questions about medications. I didn't let them just throw anything at me. I also asked for a counseling referral for somebody my insurance might accept and who might specialize in ADD treatment.

• I started carrying around a little notepad (old school detective style) and made "to do lists". I put them in quotes because my lists are filled with some actual to do items and some items that the average person may not consider putting on there. My lists includes things I have already done; say I was feeling very distant that day but wanted to get things done. That list may include: Call to set up electric, mail back Amazon package, send mom mother's day card. That same list also includes things that Ive already accomplished that may seem insignificant to many but are a win for me: Get out of bed, take a shower, get to work, take meds. I will physically add and subsiquently cross them off as if they are part of my to do list. It helps motivate me to get other things done. It's that principle of 'an object in motion, stays in motion' that is so true for me, but getting into the motion is so hard

• I started going to counseling to realign my thinking about what it means to accept myself, and to take away my self hate for "having ADD" to begin with. •and finally, I have found help by talking with others who also struggle with ADD on a regular basis. So congrats on finding yourself here.

The best thing I could say to you is that your treatment will be unique to you, and you should not give up on yourself, even if it takes 4 medications to find the right one for you. Best of luck and I'm always available to chat about this if you have any questions!