Is it worth being assessed for ADHD as an adult?

[Brainscramblies]

Simple as the title says. I suspect I have ADHD.
I have general anxiety and got therapy for that a few years ago, and found it really helped. Maybe my ADHD-like symptoms are down to my anxiety (although my anxiety is under control so I don’t feel like that’s the case).

I just wonder how helpful it would be to be assessed for it? And how would I even go about getting a diagnosis?

I’ve NC for this.

I was diagnosed at 52 and it was helpful to understand why I was the way I was. I was diagnosed when my teen daughter was which is a classic situation for parents for whom a diagnosis was not available. It’s especially true that girls and women are missed even nowadays.

You’ll need to go private for the assessment which is around two hours with a psychiatrist. It’s pretty thorough and if you meet the diagnostic criteria you may be offered meds such as Evanse and/or coaching. The diagnosis of ADHD could be either Inattentive, impulsive or hyperactive or a combination and they will be on the lookout for comorbidities such as depression, anxiety, autism, dyspraxia among others.

There have been a few threads @Brainscramblies on MN lately about adult diagnosis. There may be recommendations of where to go on those threads. I know there is a good place in Oxford.

You can get a GP referral for a private assessment now.. I used Psychiatry UK.

Meds didn't work for me but others say they are a game changer.

I was diagnosed recently through the NHS. I contacted my GP 2 years ago and explained the ways in which I fit the diagnostic criteria. She gave me a questionnaire designed to filter out people who had similar symptoms due to anxiety or depression (but it's worth bearing in mind that many people with ADHD also have depression and/or anxiety, because living with undiagnosed ADHD is so stressful). After a 2 year wait I had two appointments with the local adult ADHD clinic where I was diagnosed, and have been sent back to my GP for health checks before being prescribed medication.

I found the diagnosis incredibly helpful in explaining to people that there are some things that I find incredibly difficult, and that if it's important that I be on time/focussed/tidy/organised/carrying out complex tasks that I will need to take a lot of non-standard action to make that happen, and even then, sometimes I won't manage.