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Post by kittyteacup on Aug 18, 2018 1:33:26 GMT
Ok, so I'm having a bit of a dilemma. I'm currently on a waiting list for ADHD (I called the clinic last month to check on the progress and they said there would be another 12 months of waiting :c ).
However, I'm wondering if I actually need another ADHD diagnosis, as I was diagnosed as a child, then I started going to a over 16's clinic for ADHD (where I'm certain I was diagnosed again). I was on medication until 18 - when I began university I was ashamed of my condition and completely stopped taking medication. I'm now 24 and am now wondering if there would be any way to just access, somehow, my old adult diagnosis (I would have thought it would be on my file but apparently its not???) and just begin medication again straight away? If that makes sense?
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Post by ADDZ on Aug 18, 2018 12:47:55 GMT
That’s really surprising how it’s not on your medical record! I would expect my full medical history to be stored, especially if it’s all the NHS? That would also be frustrating as hell!
Good luck
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Post by vagueandrandom on Aug 19, 2018 7:07:58 GMT
You’ll have to see another ADHD specialist if you want to start meds again
as your GP can’t prescribe them. This could also include another assessment,
so they can understand how ADHD is affecting you currently in order to treat you appropriately.
The waiting list is likely to be the same, even if they accept your previous diagnosis,
as it’s just the wait to see a specialist.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2018 15:00:57 GMT
If you were prescribed stimulants at any point in your life, there really should be a record of that somewhere? ADHD is a lifelong condition. Being put on another waiting list for another diagnosis is a pisstake of the highest order. Yet another example of society being directed by fear instead of growth. Another example of extreme waste. Are people who can't see properly being put on a 12 month waiting list for glasses? Are people who can't walk being put on a 12 month waiting list for a wheelchair? It's laziness. It's ignorance. It's discrimination. How long would they last if they had to walk a mile in our shoes? In my humble opinion, you should not need another diagnosis. I hope you get something sorted reasonably quickly
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Post by vagueandrandom on Aug 19, 2018 17:25:47 GMT
I agree with you @boost Unfortunately there aren’t enough services available. It’s possible for a general psychiatrist to initiate prescribing of ADHD meds before handing over to the GP under shared care, but this presumes they know about meds, which isn’t always the case. I was diagnosed over 3 years ago and I’ve now had 3 diagnostic assessments (2 NHS and 1 Private) due to moving house during meds trials. I have all my paperwork: diagnosis and meds tried. Stimulants didn’t work for me. I saw a general psychiatrist at the beginning of June who agreed to try me on atomoxetine, but he’s not allowed to initiate prescribing because the CCG only fund assessment and not treatment for new patients so my GP has to apply for funding and no-one can tell me how long I’ll have to wait. The system’s messed up. They’d put me on antidepressants in the blink of an eye with no 2 hour assessment and no thought to cost. They don’t believe ADHD is real, or debilitating, or cost-effective to treat and they’re scared the local paper will find out they’ve been ’handing out’ ‘speed’ to attention and drug-seeking adults with no real problems apart from being lazy and forgetful. . . .it makes me so angry and sad.
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Post by JoshA on Aug 23, 2018 10:22:53 GMT
Share the frustration over getting diagnosed.
10years ago - I went to a GP specifically to ask for an ADHD referral. Got told I was an addict.
6 yrs ago got told by an occupational psychologist I had brain damage first then was just unable to function at a high level
Absolutely no question that the US “pumping kids full of drugs” narrative totally floods our entire country.
From my best mates to everyone I talk to; it’s considered to not really be a problem which is invented by the drug companies.
However - this seems to have changed professionally - but I believe NICE only adopted adhd for adults in 2008, and the NHS has been cut to ribbons with mental health services taking the brunt.
A 4hr assessment by a trained specialist psychiatrist is not an easy or cheap diagnoses requirement.
Worse - 80% of people diagnosed with adhd, which could be 3-5% of the population, are going to require daily medication potentially for the rest of their lives... and again, in the UK, meds are much easier to get then any other support from NHS as much cheaper for then to provide.
But adhd isn’t seen as important to medicate as eg epilepsy.
Even latest NICE guidelines have moved Dex from first line treatment for adults to last case, despite specifically stating they know it is more effective for more people with less side-effects.
This is solely cos the age dose is £80 per month vs £60. (Dex has apparently gone up 800% in price recently so must have been same cheap before & some companies are clearly on the profit hunt)
Can’t blame the NHS though. Blame the voting public..
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