Going to a psych for initial visit. Any advice?

[DNomyar]

I'm looking for a psychiatrist who is adept at evaluation and treatment of adult ADHD.

I'm fairly knowledgeable about the topic and I'm 99.9% sure I've got adult ADHD. Had it as a kid for sure, but was never officially " Diagnosed." (Went to Catholic school, so we didn't have ADHD, we had "potential.")

I currently have all the classic adult impairments and have taken several self-assememt tests (Brown, Conners, Spencer/Biederman etc) but would really like to sit down with someone and find out for sure once and for all and map out a treatment plan.

Any thoughts for how to approach the initial visit with the psychiatrist? Anything I should be asking HIM in terms of determining is he's the right guy for me?

Thanks all

[Douglas]

DNoymar

You may have the impulse to provide your psychiatrist with a list of all the things you've done/learned to determine your self-diagnosis on that initial visit. You may wish to resist this impulse, unless the psychiatrist asks. A better approach might be to say, "I suspect I may be ADHD," and let the psychiatrist take it from there. This will save time, because the psychiatrist is going to want to probe the diagnosis for herself/himself anyway.

Any competent psychiatrist can formally test you for ADHD. What you really want is a psychiatrist whose familiarity and experience with adult ADHD is more than passing. If your personal physician cannot make a specific recommendation, it is possible you can find someone via your health plan/HMO.

I can tell you this: some psychiatrists take ADHD seriously and some don't. You definitely don't want the latter!

[ridgerunner]

My 4 year old will be seeing her Ped. on Nov 4 for the inital evaluation. I was just about to ask the same thing. What questions do I need to ask? What info do I need to tell him that he may not ask?

I want to have the full test done. My Hubby doesn't. He says "she ain't taking no medicine."

I have decided that We will have the testing done and then see what is recomended. If the Dr's think taking meds will help her then SHE WILL TAKE THEM. If they don't think she needs them (GOD forbid) Then I will be satisfied. But I want an educated opinion. Not just his. Our niece is ADHD/ODD, amd a few other disorder that I can't remember, and until she got an officail dx he said she was just being a kid. My 4 year old acts a whole lot like she did at age 4 niece is now 9 was dx a few months ago. I don't want to waste all those years.

Wow! I'm rambling again. maybe I need to be tested too. Why waste the time I know I'm ADD and I wish I had the hyper.

Thanks for "listening"

Angie

[DNomyar]

First and foremost--- you should try to find a psychiatrist who specializes in adult ADHD-- this is truly a specialty. Perhaps you could try your local CHADD chapter or a local ADHD support group for referrals.

When you do get in touch with a physician, before scheduling an appointment, it may be worthwhile to ask him/her what percentage of his practice consists of people with ADHD.

Another thing worth mentioning--- there is currently no standardized test for determining whether one has ADHD. Diagnosis is based on an interview of symptoms (past and present).

Good luck to you. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Andrea Yellinek
ADHD Coach
www.BalancedADDvantage.com