To wonder if I actually have ADHD after all?

[FlipsFlops]

I was diagnosed with ADHD last year at a private clinic after getting nowhere with the NHS. I did a fair bit of research and went to a named psychiatrist who specialises in treating ADHD and went in with an open mind not necessarily expecting a diagnosis.

Somewhat to my surprise I was diagnosed very quickly (I'd filled in lots of very lengthy forms before my assessment and off the back of that was told I was a clear cut case), and strongly encouraged to try medication (I haven't yet).

It's taken a bit of courage to tell family and friends - some have been supportive, some a bit sceptical ("but you seem completely normal?" "yeah I've seen all those TikTok videos too").

I still struggle a bit accepting the diagnosis and am prone to beating myself up about it (it's not ADHD, I'm just lazy, don't try hard enough, etc...).

Then I've seen this BBC news report today about the "ADHD private diagnosis scandal" suggesting people are being diagnosed by private clinics who don't actually have ADHD.

ADHD: Private clinics exposed by BBC undercover investigation - BBC News

Have I just been taken in by all the TikTok nonsense (even though I don't use TikTok) and exploited by an industry trying to sell me expensive drugs?

Or do I have a genuine neurological condition that's being called into question by journalists looking to turn everything into a some kind of scandal?

I don't honestly know what to think any more.

I haven't even bothered to engage with that poster. She clearly thinks it's Opression Olympics and only the most severe form of ADHD is valid. Thankfully medical professionals don't think this way.

I wonder if she also feels the same about ASD.

...do you mean neurodivergent?

Look, I question my diagnosis all the time, that's why I started this thread.

What you say about other things like being good/bad at languages, art etc is interesting. I use this analogy a lot with my DH. He has no sense of direction at all, can't map read, can't remember a route from A to B. Arguably that's a form of neurodiversity - whatever it is in the brain that helps us navigate, he just doesn't have it. If he's driving the car he has to have satnav on to go pretty much anywhere, even places we've been countless times, or else I need to give him directions. If navigating from A to B was a fundamental daily life skill he'd be in a mess. But it's not.

For me the bit of my brain that doesn't work so well is executive function - unfortunately that IS a fundamental daily life skill.

So I think the reason that lack of executive function is pathologised and lack of sense of direction is not, is because it has such detrimental impact on our daily lives. That was a key part of my diagnosis - it's not just the symptoms but the impact it has. It was something I discussed with the psychaitrist who diagnosed me - I told him about feeling doubtful about whether I warranted I diagnosis. He said "look, you've just outlined all these ways that it's impacting you (I'd been in tears during the interview) - that's what warrants the diagnosis"

Clearly I don't have the level of impairment that your son has, but I don't think it's a competition.

@Shelefttheweb neurotypical doesn't mean average. There are lots of incredibly bright hard working students at many universities. Not all students at Oxford are neuro divergent. ADHD in particular can make academic study at any level incredibly difficult. Do you know many people at Oxford?

Is it really too easy to be diagnosed with ADHD? | Mike Smith | The Guardian

This is interesting; by the psychiatrist who featured in the programme.

I don’t think anyone who gets into Oxford is neurotypical. Yes getting into Oxford is about more than intelligence but you have to have a minimum standard of intelligence to achieve academic results that are beyond the reach of a typical 18 year old. And of course, by being 18 so still having a maturing brain is itself ‘neurodivergent’ from the thinking patterns of a ‘typical’ member of the population at large.

Not even sure where to begin with this. I know plenty of NT people who went to Oxford - it’s really not as special as you seem to think! You need to be good at learning in certain ways (helps if you’ve been to a private school and had these drummed into you, of course) and confidence is an advantage - that’s it. And being young doesn’t make you neurodivergent! 🤦‍♀️

Yes it does - it means what it says ‘typical’, would you agree that learning disabilities are a form of neurodiversity? If so then the other end of the spectrum is also a neurodiversity. Neurodiversity does not stop at ADHD and Autism.

You are being incredibly dismissive of the vast majority of the population. Yes when you have existed within that circle you might think Oxford is easy to get into, a quick visit to Eton and you are there. The vast majority of Oxford candidates hold a clutch of 9s at GCSE - only 6.6% of entries get this grade, and A stars at A level - 14.6% of those sitting an A level (so already selective) got an A star. And of those only a minority get in.

But yeah anyone can get into Oxford and the only neurodiversity we should bother ourselves with is ADHD and Autism!

I think you’re confusing neurodiversity with academic ability. Also, the % of privately educated Oxbridge students is disproportionate - that’s down to education and privilege, not neurodiversity.

If so then the other end of the spectrum is also a neurodiversity.

The spectrum doesn’t have two “ends”:

@FlipsFlops my adhd diagnosis came out of the blue. I’d gone to see a psychotherapist because I wasn’t coping with my sons mental health difficulties. I was in my 40s when I was diagnosed.
I take medication - it has really improved my life for the better. In the morning to mid afternoon I am more focused, get more done, and am less forgetful. I can move from task to task in a smooth and organized way. I love it.
I wasn’t diagnosed in the Uk. I worry about coming back one day. Would I meet the minimum standard for adhd in the Uk? I ‘functioned’ as a SAHM for many years without my diagnosis. My life didn’t fall apart. Yes I had periods of depression and felt overwhelmed many times. But with no family support and a husband with a demanding job I had no choice but to keep going. Now when I look back at many aspect of my life the adhd is clear.
You should have to be ‘not coping’ or badly behaved at school to get medication. In any case girls present so very differently to boys.

Why do you just come back to autism and ADHD?

Do you deny learning disability is a form of neurodiversity?

So much more helpful and nuanced. The Panorama would have been so much better if they’d just interviewed him instead of setting up the totally unrealistic “test” of NHS vs Private diagnosis. I used to think Panorama was a serious documentary slot but the whole thing was formulated more as light entertainment than a credible investigation.

And for the masking/high functioning doubters:

”For people who truly have ADHD, it’s not a case of pulling up your socks – symptoms are present in multiple domains across a person’s life and can cause them major problems. In my clinic, I see people who are unable to hold down a job or relationship, but I also see patients who mask their symptoms expertly, including for example a female GP I recently saw who was able to function at work, but crashed as soon as she got home. Other high-functioning patients may appear to be managing well on the surface, but then have a breakdown because the cost to that individual of functioning well is so extremely high.”

There is no other end of the spectrum. Learning disabilities may be due to neurodivergence but not necessarily.

Typical really does not mean average.

This thread is specifically about ADHD.

I agree, I read the article too & it explains it so much better.

@Shelefttheweb do you know anyone who is at or has graduated from Oxford, or Cambridge for that matter.

I don't think you know much about the entrance process.

I'm just saying that to many (most?) people there is such a thing as mild or severe. A one size fits all diagnosis isn't helpful.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/may/17/nhs-psychiatrist-adhd-underdiagnosis?CMP=ShareiOSAppp_Other

Written by the NHS psychiatrist on Panorama.

I think actually that's a really interesting observation. Many (most) people have little or no idea how ND, and ADHD effects people

https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/news/claiming-pip-for-adults-with-add-adhd

Many adults are in receipt of PIP with ADHD being the main disabling condition.

I know this. My response was to the PP who suggested that people only get the diagnosis because it's 'trendy' and use it to claim benefits. So I was saying that if they really didn't have ADHD they'd be scammers beause you really need to be disabled by it in order to score enough points to claim PIP.

You need a minimum of 8 points, over 12 questions. There is only one question that gives you 1 point (besides 0), the rest are a minimum of 2 points to score and for all of them you need to require assistance to do any of the things. https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/pip-test-form

So ahain, if as PP claimed, these pople really did not have ADHD, they'd have to be liars and scammers.

Why? They have a diagnosis of ADHD.

Why are you assuming they're scammers if they ARE meeting the points criteria based on their self-reporting? Because that's all it is. They self-report but in this case have a diagnosis to back it up. Which as we've seen, may not be an accurate diagnosis at all.

How would you suggest the scammers be separated from the genuine applicants when they have the same diagnosis?

And how could you say that obtaining an ADHD diagnosis isn't a route to obtaining financial, school, Uni/work/social benefits? Plus performance-enhancing drugs.

Because that's the argument many are presenting on these threads, that someone seeking a diagnosis would only do so if they knew they had ADHD.

And when ADHD advocacy groups and professionals say there has been a 400% rise in people seeking an ADHD diagnosis in the UK since 2020, which coincides with the enormous amount of #ADHD videos on social media, half of which at least, contain misinformation about ADHD, how is it that ADHD referrals have not been influenced by that and become a 'trend'?

It's fair to say that if you know you don't have adhd and try to buy/get a diagnosis anyway, you're already a liar and a scammer, whether you want to claim PIP with it or not.

Last time I’m responding because you clearly don’t read. My reply was to someone who claimed to know loads of people with ADHD and claimed to know that none of them actually have it and claimed that they all told her they just got a diagnosis for money. My reply was tongue-in-cheek, questioning how they happen to know so many scammers. But it’s clearly gone over your head. Repeatedly.