Do I have ADD or AD-HD?

Question

I want to know this because I have been having some trouble lately. I find myself clueless even during conversations. When I attempt to do a task I find it hard to keep focused and continue it through. I also feel very impatient. When doing a math problem, I find myself stopping halfway through and starting a new identical one. I also forget instructions quickly, having to ask my teacher or a classmate again, or re-reading them. I have a hard time focusing during school but relaxing classes like health I seem to be more attentive. I occasionally have hard to organizing my stuff. I usually keep school related papers in chronological order until my binder gets so full I am forced to organize them. I constantly am starting and stopping new projects, I don't really finish them. For instance, Google Code-In(Google Code-in is a contest for pre-university students (e.g., high school and secondary school students ages 13-17) with the goal of encouraging young people to participate in open source). If you complete 3 tasks, no matter the difficulty(with the difficulties being easy, medium, hard), you get $100. Something as simple as rewriting a wiki for some program or piece of software, is considered an easy to medium task. You can earn up to $500 from Google! You can even do all easy tasks! It practically money for the taking but I can't seem to commit. Tasks take me longer than I predict them to. I am also a major procrastinator. I do fine socially. I can talk to anybody even though I don't consider myself approachable. I get angry really easily and I feel like hurting myself when I bomb a test or do a really poor job on something. I feel like I am not really going anywhere in life and I have a vague plan for college and my career. I can talk myself up to to do something but this motivation is lost quickly. I feel like I am constantly on edge and I always feel like I am in danger(terrorist attacks, drunk drivers etc). I seem to have a crave for excitement but when I do act on that excitement, I cannot continue what I am doing for an extended period of time. Excluding video games(sometimes I get distracted during these too) and music.

Recently, I have lost some weight. 40 pounds in 2 months. I worked hard this summer to lose the weight. I used to be overweight and after loosing that much, I started feeling a lot more self-confident. This feeling hasn't changed; However, I am unable apply this same effort and commitment to school and other parts of my life. I also have a lot of bottled up energy(or so I think). I usually deal with this extra energy with random noises. Sometimes these happen by habit(not uncontrollably but like how a nose picker picks their nose without really knowing that they are doing it) when I am really excited. This happens quite often(by habit and by choice).

I talked about this with a good friend of mine(he actually has AD-HD), who I have been good friends with for 7+ years, and he thought my situation reflected his ordeal(having AD-HD) very closely. He gave me one of his pills he takes(Vyvanse) and said that I should consider giving it a try to see if it help me. I figured I had nothing to lose so I took it this morning. It kicked in after about an hour, and oh my God! I felt calm, relaxed, and I was focused. I usually yawn, move around in my seat, and find myself staring down the clock with hate while I'm in my AP history class. I have gotten high before and this pill did not make me feel that way(for all those who say that I was high or some stupid crap). For the first time, I felt like I was absorbing everything my teacher was saying. I had no urges to make release any bursts of energy and I didn't feel like moving around in my seat. I felt like I was participating for the rest of the school day. I actually felt like learning and studying for once(and I did by the way!)! Now this might seem crazy after one pill but I seriously feel like it helped. I felt safe and rested as well. I was able to concentrate in my math class like never before. Things came to me quicker and I just felt like I mattered.

So by now you are probably passed out on your keyboard. If not, let me ask it again, is it possible I could have ADD or AD-HD? Fyi, I am currently 16 years old, have a family history of alcoholism and depression, and have a personal history of anxiety issues.

Answer 1

add probably, idk a out adhd, your situation is the same as mine.

Answer 2

I admit ADHD has become a common 'catch phrase' that parents in particular like to USE to explain away bad children who lack parents with the guts to discipline them! BUT if a child & parent truly seek a professional diagnosis and that procedure is gone through properly and THEN ADHD is diagnosed then NO, I don't think that is just a token label for misbehavior under those circumstances. I self diagnosed my son due to my own research and knowledge of HIM and then had to really PRESS the doctor(s) to actually TEST him for what I believed was ADD. He didn't have behavior problems but he had extreme inability to focus and concentrate and he was flunking out of 6th grade! As a result of my efforts he WAS diagnosed and within 6 months was getting straight A's in school! I agree there are plenty of sadly under disciplined children who are wrongly labeled as ADD - but a TRUE diagnosis that comes from the efforts of a medical professional is usually pretty sure & accurate I think too. SO a % is hard to attach to those differences.

Answer 3

ADHD i have the same symptoms and i have ADHD plus i studied lots and lots of books.