Does a "diagnosis" help with teenager's mild-moderate ADHD?

[LemonsOranges]

Wondering whether to go down this route with my teenager aged 13?

If it was more severe I wouldn't hesitate. However I think unlikely that DD would get support at secondary school and also we have to go through a few (stressful) hoops to get a proper consultation. I am not sure it is severe enough for medication, yet any diagnosis will go on her medical records, and a label for life.

Quite unsure what to do .

I have a similar conundrum. My boy is 9 his school teacher brought his behaviour to my attention, I just thought he was quirky. However I did take him for an initial assessment and am waiting for an anonymous class room assessment. Not sure how much further I would take it if they identify a learning difficulty. On one hand I don’t want him labelled, on the other he would get help that suits his learning style which we may not get otherwise. In business we recognise that not all people learn in the same way but that’s not how it is in school, maybe we should take advantage if that recognition?

If you read accounts by adults diagnosed in adulthood you'll find almost a consensus of wishing they'd been diagnosed sooner.

If your child was struggling to learn because their eyesight was crap you wouldn't hesitate to see an optician and choose glasses. In fact, it would be negligent to ignore it or worry about wearing glasses for life.

OP why are you concerned about the 'label for life'? Jennie - you also refer to not wanting you child 'labelled'.

ADHD is not a label to be ashamed of. It is not a dirty secret. My child has ADHD and I'm very glad that we had him diagnosed as now we understand him better and can give him the proper help and support that he needs and make sure that he is happy and makes full use of his potential. If I suspected that he had diabetes, asthma or any other condition I wouldn't hesitate to seek a proper diagnosis and I see no reason why a mental health condition would be any different. A child who's parent's choose not to seek a formal diagnosis will still have the condition - the difference is that they will have to deal with the condition by themselves.

You both put a different perspective that I hadn’t considered before, thanks!

This TEDx talk is amazing:

It may be true that DC won't get any extra support at secondary school, but DD was diagnosed at university, having struggled all through secondary school. (I queried that there was something wrong, but never got anywhere) Nobody has ever said to her, whether its mild/moderate/severe, but she gets 25% extra time in exams, extra time for course work, and a learning mentor, to help her with organisation, study skills, etc. Last year, they assigned her a post grad student to show her what was crucial for her to revise for the exams, and what was peripheral. She was also given a dictaphone. The learning mentor completed the DSA form for her, after she lost several.

As for labels, apart from the medical professional who diagnoses it, who will copy in the GP, who is ever going to know, unless you or DC tells them? This information is certainly not passed to consultants for example, in any other field of medicine in our experience!