But I am back!

I have included a link to my blog on Psych Central – Mental Health Discoveries where I am a contributing author.  The link takes you to my most recent post on the subjects ADHD and college students. 

See link below.

 https://blogs.psychcentral.com/discoveries/2018/12/3-truths-on-college-from-my-adhd-brain/

The post New Post on ADHD and College at Psych Central Blog -Mental Health Discoveries appeared first on Life Conquering Blog.

STEP 1:

Day One

At my first appointment, my Psychiatrist discussed the side effects of Adderall.  I almost always read the pamphlets the local pharmacy hands out with prescriptions.  The symptoms of the new med mirrored some of the other medications I was taking.  These are a few of the side effects, you may experience while on Adderall:

• anxiety,
• a headache,
• weakness,
• dizziness,
• a terrible taste in your mouth,
• diarrhea,
• constipation,
• nausea, and
• hair falling out.
• These are not all the side effects known about this medication.

Psychiatrist

STEP 2:

The Pros 

I told my Psychiatrist this stimulant has revolutionized my life!  Once I got the Adderall in my system, the sleeping and the attention issues faded away.  The energy I am experiencing is amazing, too!  However, I did learn that I could not rely solely on this pill that I swallowed every day four times a day.

The Cons

But, everything was not perfect. I had moments when I felt like a zombie.  The old habits came back!   I started again to fall asleep at inappropriate or dangerous times. I knew I needed the Adderall. But something had to change.

This all culminated in a moment of sheer brilliance. Once the Psychiatrist showed me, I realize my poor sleep habits were affecting the drug!  I was not getting enough sleep at night.

• I had to rethink when I took my evening meds.
• Also, I needed to rethink when I should take my new medicine during the day.
• And thirdly, I needed to go to bed much earlier.

Psychiatrist

Affecting My Writing

Likewise, I would get a few minor glitches with the Adderall working on the ADHD. As a person diagnosed with ADD, it is normally strange to have an attention span greater than a gnat.

Weird things began occurring with the new medicine my Psychiatrist prescribed.  For instance, an entire blog of 1,000 words or less took me the entire day and into the evening to write. Before when I was at my best, I could write something much quicker.  Such as, only taking the morning to write a blog.

Psychiatrist

So, I wanted to scream “this is taking me incredibly too long to write anything!”  “I’m wasting time!  I’m wasting money!”

Since I could not stay focused on my work.  I wound up wasting valuable resources by editing my drafts one thousand times too many.  The first draft of a blog is now cut so much that it looks like I’m chopping up a word salad.  I am trashing half of the first draft due to so many words that make no sense.

STEP 3:

My Psychiatrist is Willing to Figure this Out

It sounds as if the Psychiatrist will take each medicine at a time in order to figure out the real problems.  None of the other four previous psychiatrists ever stopped to do that.  I’m thankful for my psychiatrist!

Psychiatrist

Call To Action

If anyone is interested in learning more about what a psychiatrist can do for you, please go to https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/psychologists/reasons-to-choose-an-online-psychiatrist/

Life Conquering and Psych Central (Mental Health Discoveries)

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adderall

http://www.alaskasleep.com/blog/narcolepsy-definition-symptoms-causes-treatment

https://www.healthline.com/health/what-is-a-pulmonologist

https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/diagnosing-narcolepsy

http://www.alaskasleep.com/blog/what-is-a-polysomnogram-test

http://www.efpa.be/psychologist-psychiatrist.htm

https://www.rxlist.com/adderall-side-effects-drug-center.htm

Going Further

Mental Illness: Making a Decision, Heads or Tails

ADHD in Adults – The Truth behind the Mystery

The post 3 Steps a Psychiatrist Can Take to Help You Discover Which Meds are Best appeared first on Life Conquering Blog.

ADHD Symptoms

ADHD is a tough disorder to deal with as a kid as well as an adult.  If you are an adult with ADHD who has been recently diagnosed, you need to find a therapist ASAP.  See the link above to obtain more information.

This mental illness is not the same for everybody who has it.  However, there are some symptoms which overlap and mirror other symptoms.  Here is an abbreviated list of the symptoms you may encounter.  If you are not touched by the disorder yourself, here are some signs so you may help a loved one or a friend.

• Unable to concentrate
• Unable to pay attention
• Difficulty getting organized
• Inability to plan
• Difficulty solving problems
• Inability to control your own emotions

ADHD – organized

I HATE ADHD!

I had no idea I had ADHD until my psychologist brought it up.  Apparently the complaints I had like: unable to plan; lack of concentration; paying attention; and the inability to solve problems were sure signs of this disorder; as well as not capable of reading a book or watch TV.  I was a walking advertisement for Adult ADHD.

For me, concentrating is one of the hardest skills to do with this mental illness.  The lack of concentration crept up on me when I worked  desk jobs and now as a writer.  The inability to pay attention has many similarities to that of concentrating.  It does not matter the activity.  I can talk on the phone, work on the computer or talk to someone face to face, I go space cadet or fall asleep.

The importance of a therapist

Adults with ADHD find it extremely difficult to stay awake, alert, sufficiently aroused and activated to continue their concentration when things are not interesting or no immediate excitement or payoff.  This in turns causes them not to pay attention.  Having these brain issues that might slow you down at home or at work, your therapist will be able to give you coping skills to compensate for the loss of focus or concentration and the inability to stay organized.  In order to find a therapist near you, go to the link above, and take a look around on their website for information.

ADHD – alertness

Organization

The difficulty to organize is liken to climbing Mt. Everest with a goat on your back. It can be done, you just have to work above and beyond to achieve your goals.  Try to see your therapist as your trainer/coach for the climb.  He or she will give you ideas to respond when the ADHD gets out of control or tries to take over.

When I was a teacher to middle school students, I was the Queen of Organization.  Nobody could beat me in the organization relay race among the teachers and staff.  Toward the end of my career, though, as a teacher I started losing that organization relay race as the ADHD grew and developed in my brain..

ADHD

Where do you turn?

Like I said at the beginning, having ADHD is really, really hard.  Many times family and friends cannot understand or grapple with the ADHD you are experiencing.  If you have a mental illness, such as ADHD you need professional help  With my mental illness, I try to go to Jesus first for help and comfort.  He sticks closer than a brother.  He will never leave me nor forsake me.  If he doesn’t take the symptom away, He will walk with me through it, never letting go of my hand.

You could also go to your therapist  If you need help finding a local therapist, go to the link at the top of this page.  Sometimes when my ADHD ramps up, I believe it is time to see my psychiatrist and let him adjust my meds.

Comments

Please post comments in the section below or email me at: [email protected].  I would love to know what your experiences have been with Adult ADHD.  And how you were able to cope.

References

“Taking Charge of Adult ADHD” by Russell A. Barkley, PhD with Christine M. Benton

Going Further

https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/adhd-adults#1

https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/10-symptoms-adult-adhd#1

https://www.additudemag.com/adult-test-for-add-adhd/

Life Conquering and Psych Central (Mental Health Discoveries)

The post ADHD in Adults – How do I find a therapist near me? appeared first on Life Conquering Blog.

ADHD is a tough disorder to deal with as a kid as well as an adult.  If you are an adult with ADHD who has been recently diagnosed, here is a short list of the symptoms you may like to review.  If you are not touched by the disorder, here are some signs so you may help a loved one or a friend.

• Unable to concentrate
• Unable to pay attention
• Difficulty getting organized
• Inability to plan
• Difficulty solving problems
• Inability to control your own emotions

AD/HD

Objective

The objective is to get AD/HD discovered and treated.  Next, lessen the issues it causes every day,

I HATE AD/HD!

I had no idea I had AD/HD until my psychologist brought it up.  Apparently the complaints I had I like: unable to plan; lack of concentration and paying attention; and the inability to solve problems were sure signs of this disorder.  I was a walking advertisement for Adult AD/HD.

Now my husband has put limits to my driving. This is only for my benefit or the other driver(s) benefit. With my  inability to keep my attention focused: I am not allowed to drive at night, I cannot talk on the phone or otherwise while driving (this includes the passengers), cannot sing to the music nor can I text at stoplights,

If you take a look at the image above, you will see words like planning, business, finance and clients.  These are basic 101 college introductory level business terminology.    Everybody should know these vocab.  Yet, there are people who know what the words are.  But still, do now know how to perform them successfully.

Concentrating

Concentrating, I feel, is one of the hardest skills to do with this disorder.  The lack of concentration happened to me when I was working a desk job and now as a writer.  If I am doing something tedious, boring or it drags out, I totally lose concentration.

Adults with ADHD find it extremely difficult to stay awake, alert, sufficiently aroused and activated to continue their concentration when things are not interesting, no immediate excitement or payoff.  This in turns causes them not to pay attention.

ADHD

Unable to Pay Attention

This symptom has many similarities to that of concentrating.  It does not matter the activity.  I can talk on the phone, work, talk to someone face to face or watch a movie, I go space cadet.

My mind starts thinking about dinner, notices the dogs and wants to play with them, if music is playing, I will begin to guess the artist and the name of the song and which decade it was introduced in.

One thing to remember is that this disorder is not about paying attention.  Instead it is a problem with organizing over time to prepare for the future.  Without being able to plan for the future, that messes with one’s whole entire life: finances, family, food, shelter.  At this point, all organization has flown out the window.

If it were not for my husband, I would be homeless.  I know that is what my fate would initially be.

Organization

When I was a teacher to middle school students, I was the Queen of Organization.  Nobody could top me in the organization relay race among the teachers and staff.  Toward the end of my career as a teacher, I started losing that organization relay race.

When I became  paralegal, I broke so many laws of organization it was not even funny.  I could not find files.  I could not keep accurate notes on instructions given to me by the attorney.

ADHD

Where do we turn?

Like I said at the beginning, having ADHD is really, really hard.  We need help.  With my bipolar which includes ADHD, I try to go to Jesus first for help and comfort.  He sticks closer than a brother.  He will never leave me nor forsake me.

You could also go to your therapist or psychiatrist for help.  For instance, my AD/HD has been getting worse.  I believe it is time to adjust my meds.

There are your close friends and family you could go to as well.  Your sports team to talk about your frustration.  What about your book club group? The church family where you attend worship.

Call to Action

I encourage you to friend me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lifeconquering/.  This way if you get in a sticky situation with your AD/HD, you can send me a message.

Please post comments in the section below or email me at: [email protected].  I would love to know what your experiences have been with Adult AD/HD.

References

“Taking Charge of Adult ADH” by Russell A. Barkley, PhD with Christine M. Benton

Going Further

https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/adhd-adults#1

https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/10-symptoms-adult-adhd#1

https://www.additudemag.com/adult-test-for-add-adhd/

The post ADHD in Adults – The Truth behind the Mystery appeared first on Life Conquering Blog.

When I first started, the side effects were few if any.  Many of the items on the list were symptoms I have with my other medications and from the illness itself.  For instance these are a few of the side effects you might experience while on Adderall: anxiety, headache; weakness, dizziness, a terrible taste in your mouth, diarrhea, constipation, nausea and hair falling out.  This list is just the tip of the ice burg.

This stimulant has revolutionized my life.  Between the narcolepsy, AD/HD and the bipolar, I was going out of my mind mad!  Once I got the Adderall in my system, the sleeping and the attention issues faded away.  My energy can be amazing, too!  However, I did learn that I could not rely solely on the pill I swallowed everyday four times a day.

I had moments when I was like a zombie.  I started again to fall asleep at inappropriate or dangerous times. I knew I needed the Adderall and understood that the medicine and my behavior should work together for optimal satisfaction.  This culminated to shine a light on my poor sleep hygiene habits.  The medicine’s poor performance  pointed to the facts that I was not getting enough sleep at night.  And I might need to rethink when I should take my medicine during the day.

Likewise, I would get a few minor glitches with the AD/HD.  As an example, not being able to have an attention span greater than a gnat.  I want to scream “this is taking me increasingly more time to write anything!”  I cannot stay focused and the results are cutting about half of the first draft because I have so much crap in the article/post that it makes no sense.

Writing and editing is getting more and more difficult to do

For me to be a successful writer, I need to be awake, focused and have my whits about me.  When I write,  I do so with as much time that I can to squeeze every second out of the day.

For me, the outside distractions are minimal. It is my internal distractions that wreak havoc on my writing.  I may have a sick dog and another dog to tend to.  Laundry.  Phone calls.  Then the bipolar and the other mental health issues that come along for a ride are ready to muck up the waters.

Then it starts.  I have brain freeze, next a starring contest with my monitor, I can’t figure out a title or the subject, don’t forget wasting time on writing something that does not fit in the first place, I lose interest once I get frustrated and I am not being productive, forgetting that one word that would be perfect, and…inability to spell.  YES! SPELL!  Then I look at the clock and I react:

“Now it is quarter-to-one?!” 

“All I want to do is take a nap.” 

adderall

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adderall

http://www.alaskasleep.com/blog/narcolepsy-definition-symptoms-causes-treatment

https://www.healthline.com/health/what-is-a-pulmonologist

https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/diagnosing-narcolepsy

http://www.alaskasleep.com/blog/what-is-a-polysomnogram-test

http://www.efpa.be/psychologist-psychiatrist.htm

https://www.rxlist.com/adderall-side-effects-drug-center.htm

Going Further

Mental Illness: Making a Decision, Heads or Tails

ADHD in Adults – The Truth behind the Mystery

The post Adderall Review appeared first on Life Conquering Blog.

Bipolar Depression

Have you ever experienced that sinking feeling between your esophagus and the pit of your stomach when you take a ride on a roller coaster?  That punch to the gut as the roller coaster descends at lighting speed from the apex of the crooked steel girders is what I usually feel when a bipolar depression moves in.

The extra fun I have with bipolar depression, is my psychotic episodes.  Usually I experience auditory hallucinations.  I hear people talking, male and female.  Radios play unidentifiable tunes that drive me batty.  Visual hallucinations are also common for me.  For instance, I will see people or my pets in places they shouldn’t be.   My favorite are the paranoid delusions.  I believe someone is out to get me, my heart beats out of my chest and I refuse to go upstairs.

Editorial Calendar

My plans today were laid out like a preschooler’s clothes on the first day of school.  Early this morning, I designed a “fool-proof” editoral calendar.  An editorial calendar is a calendar where an author plans either by the month, week, day or hour the writing projects he/she will work on at a given time.  The author might set word count goals for their book, blog post goals for the week, article topics to begin a rough draft or wrap up and even work on marketing.

Adult AD/HD

My editorial calendar was “fool-proof” because I had all my major projects listed even with time to read, research and study.  I should be able to look at the clock and say it is 11:00 a.m. on a Tuesday therefore, this is the time that I work on articles.  But my lovely AD/HD kicked in and I jumped from sending emails to Facebook to Linkedin to deleting batches of emails to checking Google Analytics to writing a blog to adding things to my blog site.

As soon as I (you think I’ll say “got bored”) I jumped to the next shiny object.  That isn’t the case for me and my Adult AD/HD.  I have difficulty staying focused for a long period of time.  Just yesterday evening my husband was talking to me about one of his hobbies.  I did find it interesting.  But as he talked on, my focus was slipping.

When this happens, I feel helpless to put blinders around my eyes and sharpen my focus.  I’ve been at a desk job working on a document and have the humongous need to stop and do something else.  My boss didn’t allow for that.  He wanted me to start a task and carry it out to completion.  That is not how I operate.

Winning the battle with bipolar depression and adult AD/HD

Some symptoms I can feel at the very beginning and thus able to manage myself against the harsh effects of bipolar depression and adult AD/HD.  For instance, today I felt that sinking feeling which always means a slide down, down, down.  I was able to catch the bipolar depression at the beginning and start practicing coping mechanisms to get through the episode.

Adult AD/HD is completely different.  I do not see that one coming at all.  It hits me over the head and I’m smack dab in the middle of it before I know it.  But, that is okay.  I have to learn to slow my motor down and pick one thing that I want to focus on for the next period of time.  Notice, I did not even put myself in a box by designating how long it should take me to complete my writing task.  I am learning that my life has to be open ended in order for me to cope with my bipolar disorder.  That is a BIG change for me since in my younger days I was  Ms. Control Freak.  I am glad I am no longer her and I’m relatively more relaxed.

Going Further

https://lifeconquering.org/category/adhd-in-adults/

Depression Valleys Light Up with Faith

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