r/adhdaustralia

Hi all.

I’ve recently started stimulant medication and was surprised to find that, although it helps me focus, it isn’t a magic bullet. I’m still getting diverted, and I’m realising there are behavioural patterns that probably need to be addressed as well. Dissapointing.

I’m curious whether others have had a similar experience: medication gives you greater attention, but not always attention directed towards what you actually want to do, and some behaviours persist.

Has anyone found ADHD-specific counselling or coaching useful as an adjunct to medication? I’d be particularly interested in recommendations based on personal experience rather than just coaches suggesting themselves.

Please comment with any observations, or send me a DM if you’d prefer.

Thanks

I've had to cold turkey unsupported and I've been going through hell.

I was diagnosed with ADHD in November last year after struggling for two years with executive function following a new allergy to alpha gal.

Official copies of my medical records from him show no personality issues, no depression and just tipped into mild anxiety.

Initially it was a life changing miracle after the doubled the dose as initially it put me to sleep.

By April my ADHD Coach and Psychologist expressed concerns about my medication levels and to bring forward my 6 month review and 2nd appointment.

I was having trouble sleeping and I no longer found joy in my lifelong hobbies (mostly exercise and sports) plus music.

My psychiatrist told me that was normal and how most people felt about exercise and and to find new hobbies. He prescribed medication for sleep and noted in severe ADHD a small dose of dexemphetamine can be used.

He handed care over to my GP but didn't note any of my concerns.

June, I feel burned out and it's like my ADHD is ok but my dyslexia is preventing me doing anything. I feel like an engineering god though.

Early July, I'm in emergency with difficulties pooing and urinating and blood coming out my arse. CT and bloods fine but confirmed these are side effects of dexemphetamine.

Emergency told me only my clinical psychiatrist can alter my meds.

Trial stopping dose a day or two and symptoms eased. Gastroenterologist cancels further tests as cause established.

I spend 10 days from 8 July trying and failing to stop taking dex as stopping puts me in physical and mental pain with high muscle tension. Take more dex then run into those other issues. And mass mental fog.

ADHD × 10

Spend two days calling psychiatrist clinic and emailing them and get confirmation he is aware of the issue. In those two days I call all medical support I can find including drug rehab clinics and get told only my clinical psychiatrist can help.

On day 2 I'd woken up at 4:30am in pain from tense muscles and have to get up and move. I find my movements gated and I stutter. 5 hours later my impulse control is shot, and I'm irritable.

Online GP and addiction help line I drop in to see psychiatrist.

Reception tells me to go to emergency. I reply emergency told me only he can help. They tell me to take a seat and wait.

He refuses to see me despite his patient leaving and instead emails me from the room next door, to restart my Dex and see if my symptoms settle of a week.

I lose my shit and throw my phone on the floor with the email, stumble with gated movements and stiff left leg over to reception and fall over.

He comes out and asks me what's going on, I explain and I see realisation on his face and think he is going to help.

He said take a seat and he'll be back.

He comes back and said I've had a fall and he's called an ambulance.

No ambulance arrives, just the police.

He calls one into his office and they come back with a letter.

I get Section 22 apprehended and taken to hospital. On the way in the police car he emails me banning me from the clinic.

My wife starts messaging me madly, he told her I'd violently attacked his staff and was with the police.

Hospital asks me what's going on then discharges me saying they don't agree with him and give me a discharge letter and go through it with me.

They refer to his letter, he is claiming I was vocalising suicidal ideation and that he had been treating me for in addition to ADHD, depression and borderline personality disorder. His own records confirm negatives on all but ADHD and I'd seen him for a 1hr ADHD diagnosis and 30min medication review.

The hospital psychiatrist explains they can't treat me or alter my ADHD medication as only he could do that, but since he banned me I needed a new clinical psychiatrist.

So nothing new there, emergency can't treat me.

His letter also claims I presented to his clinic "in extremis" and immediately demanded to see him and the police were called. Ignores I sat in his waiting room for 20 minutes until I lost my shit being told to restart the medication that put me in emergency after trying to see him for 2 days because of it.

"in extremis" medically means close to death. Yet somehow the first thing I did before waiting 20 minutes was organise them to reverse a charge as they'd charged me twice for my last appointment, the reverse charge is on my bank records.

My official records from the clinic alter the letter to not have mention of BPD or suicidal ideation. It also claims I requested they call an ambulance.

The next day the muscle tension is so bad breathing is an effort. That might I wake up in sweats and struggling and my watch blood 02 saturation reads 88% but comes up when awake. For the next 24hrs it crashes down when I sleep and I have tense chest and throat off the Dex.

I take myself to emergency but get told again, they can't alter ADHD medication as it needs to be a clinical psychiatrist. Since I didn't have one now, it is going to be hell but I'll get through it.

Day 5, I went to a funeral and a wake, but was shocked at feeling joy again. It felt intense but what was most intense was the realisation that it had been missing so long.

The next week I barely remember. Just brain fog and struggling to organise myself to leave the house.

The next week, tried to do work but couldn't remember to do basic tasks I'd done for 25 years. Not the tasks I did, just the parts I forgot which included loading half my equipment into my ute before driving 2 hours where I needed the equipment so had to pay my neighbour to bring it to me.

But on Thursday morning I woke feeling amazing and was stunned to realise I'd had a dream. Not stunned by the dream, the realisation I'd not dreamed in months.

Next week, lost pissed off clients and business being impacted.

I'm still having nights I can sleep, tonight it's 3:30am and my muscle tension is really bad, legs, neck, jaw and curled fingers. It comes and goes depending on the day.

However my ADHD levels are back to what they were before the allergy developed and my allergy IgE has dropped from 13 to 1.

I've in the last 3 weeks seen two other psychiatrists who have to rediagnose ADHD first. $869 with the first, then won't proceed without my primary school reports from 43-35 years ago. Money gone.

Next guy ($750) rediagnoses and prescribes 30mg of Ritalin, 10mg 3 times a day. New clinic rings next day and says he left suddenly. I Google him and he's in ABC and sexually assaulted two women. I'm back to no psychiatrist and lost $1619.

Tried 10mg of Ritalin, initial relaxation then spaced out with jitters, resting heart rate up 15bpm and blood pressure spikes to 140/80 from 125/70. Buggers me the rest of the day. A single shot expresso now does the same.

At peak allergy and no meds, I could do three coffees a day. Pre allergy I was sensitive to coffee and same as I am now.

Seem to be sensitive to stimulants now, like normal pre allergy.

GP has no idea what to do. I'm looking to seek help from drug withdrawal clinic. Each week I think I'm good, the next week I look back and realise I wasn't. I'm still not right.

I've basically been unsupported since 21 July when I got medically abandoned.

Looking more online, my psychiatrist seems to have loads of complaints about over medicating and trying to have people committed. His LinkedIn profile also has posts of him complaining about being complained about. I've screen shot all his posts and made a stat Dec with them and a JP has verified them as true copies. I've also archived is posts on a secure server.

I'm exhausted, under financial and professional stress.

Not sure what to do...

Hey team,

I have gone through the process with a qualified nurse practitioner (who my GP referred me to go to). We have had 2 appointments, and she had given me the diagnosis of ADHD.

She has then referred me to the psychiatrist that she works with and I will have a telehealth appointment to confirm the diagnosis and prescribe me medication based on her report.

Only thing is, the closest appointment is over 10 weeks away. With my partner expecting a child in November, I was hoping to have all my medications nearly sorted out, but won't look likely following that time line.

I have contacted my nurse practitioner, and she said that she is happy for me to go to another psychiatrist if I can find one that can fit me in.

What do you think I should do? Should I just wait it out and be patient, or find another psych?

The estimated cost for the psychiatrist appointment is around $230.

Just a bit lost as to what to do.

Cheers!

Been taking dexafetamine (25-30mg daily) for about a month. Noticed the meds make me more blunt, and passive aggressive in certain situations.

I find my in-laws unbelievably irritating to the point where talking to them without meds gives me physical pain, and muscle tensions across my entire arm. With meds, I only find them annoying. My partner told me that I've been a bit more passive aggressive, and blunt towards them. (I agree with her) I do get along well with them for the most part, they're not bad people. Feels like the medication removes my need to please other people, so I'm more willing to communicate negatively when people are being objectively annoying/dramatic.

Just wondering if any else has noticed this as well, and how they got about managing it?

TBF I'm not sure if I should even bother managing this lmao. Very nice people just irritating af. Kinda feel like it's only a (minor) problem because of the change from not reacting to a normal reaction.

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Had a 1200 dollar adhd consultation 2 weeks ago and the DR said she will do a follow up call after she looks at my report cards and I get my blood results back. All that was provided last week and there still have not let me know what is going on... you'd think paying 1200 dollar they could at least give me a verdict on my adhd diagnosis, a quick email on what the conclusion was would be fantastic so I'm not sitting the guessing what is going on.

Hey everyone,
I’m based in Sydney and suspecting I might have ADHD, but I’m hesitant to take the jump because the private diagnostic pathway here can easily run $1,000–$2,000+ i don’t have Medicare . I’d love to hear from locals who have gone through the process.
My main symptoms are
Urgency-driven performance: I struggle to start tasks until absolute panic mode sets in right before a deadline.
I perform much better when there’s an urgency.
External accountability dependency: If my boss sets a strict, expected turnaround time and is watching, I perform remarkably well. Without external pressure, I freeze up or delay endlessly.
Task initiation paralysis: Physical and mental resistance to starting even basic or high-priority tasks.
Heavy reliance on systems: I literally have to set reminders and alarms for everything to function reliably and don’t have to remember things.
And FEW OTHERS. I don’t want use the term “ADHD” because it’s getting common for people to use this casually but looking at some patterns, I feel might have this thing.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

I have suspected ADHD for a few years now, after a therapist recommended I be assessed after seeing him for unrelated issues. I am F, and am receiving a late diagnosis.

Last week I had my assessment done by my GP who is still in training for the NSW endorsed program but is qualified to diagnose as of a month ago. She said she has done about 5 other assessments before me.

I completed all of the paperwork, which included questionnaires for myself, mum and partner and 3 reports from primary school which I believed showed symptoms.
I sat the interview and answered everything as honestly as possible. The issue came after the end of the interview and my doctor said that in her opinion I met all of the interview criteria, and everything pointed to yes for a ADHD diagnosis. She said “I can’t diagnose you because I’m not sure that the evidence you’ve provided has met the childhood criteria”. HOWEVER, she can if she gets a second opinion from a psychiatrist herself, and they agree that my evidence is enough.

She was understanding that my mum doesn’t believe in ADHD and that girls often don’t display ADHD symptoms at school before the age of 12. My high school reports don’t have teacher comments either.

I find out on Tuesday whether the psychiatrist says yes or no, but I have no evidence from when I was a child other than self reported symptoms. She says if I get called in for another appointment it means I am diagnosed and we are discussing medication, and if she calls me herself it’s a no.

Am I right being nervous and quite scared at the possibility that I may miss out on being diagnosed because of a lack of evidence from my childhood?
Opinions?
And is it worth me going through a psych to try another assessment? Or is it her lack of experience (in this area still being in training) and she genuinely doesn’t want to give me a legal diagnosis before she gets a go-ahead from a specialist?

Hello,

Looking for feedback from others around non-stimulants. Mainly after feedback or experiences with clonidine.

Currently due to other co-existing mental health diagnosis’ my team (who I trust a lot and know me well) are not comfortable prescribing stimulants (and I respect and agree with this, please do not provide advice regarding stimulants it’s not something I am considering right now) but we are considering non-stimulant options, with clonidine being the one being considered the most.

I have been diagnosed for several years and never explored medication for various reasons despite knowing that there are benefits.

hi, looking for a recommendation for a dietician who does telehealth? i have been struggling with my appetite a lot and am on a glp1 and the more i learn about adhd eating habits the more i would like to see someone who is well versed in neurodivergent eating habits rather than glp1 help. after someone who can just help restructure my diet and give me some tips on how to balance things out a bit more. any help is appreciated!

I'm a nurse and I haven't done night shift in 3 years, I was diagnosed with ADHD 18mth ago. I'm thinking of going back to some night shift and I have questions!

- How do you manage your medications around night shift?

- How do you manage your sleep schedule?

- Do you remember if it was easier to cope with nights after you were diagnosed and medicated?

- Any other insights, tips, tricks you care to share?

​

I've recently been late diagnosed (56) and started on dexies and I've been getting a few periods of palpitations. They have been in the evening once in the evening about 5 hours after my midday tablets, and in the morning on the day after I didn't take any for a day. Blood pressure is fine, heartbeat is on the low side around 54 bpm. Is it common for palpitations when they are wearing off? I've only been on it for about 3 weeks and just started on 2x5mg twice a day.

Is skipping a day or two occasionally a good or bad idea?

I've heard of concerns with palpitations while using dexies but are they common when it's wearing off?

I did have quite a significant reaction to Clonidine with very low blood pressure and slowed heartbeat.

Other than that I'm not getting any adverse effects, sleeping has improved and anxiety reduced, except for over the palpitations lol

Just had my initial psychiatrist appointment in the hopes of getting diagnosed and finally starting to feel better. It’s been a long process to get here due to severe anxiety, self doubt and a number of factors. All seemed to be going well, the doctor seemed quite caring, until the end of the appointment when he asked if I had any knowledge of ADHD treatment. I stupidly said that I knew it was treated with medication, because my brother has been diagnosed with ADHD and last year on Christmas Day when I was in tears and unable to stop ruminating and hyper fixating he gave me one dexamphetamine tablet to try. Stupid I know to mention trying drugs that aren’t prescribed for me but the psych made me feel like this was a safe space to tell the truth. Anyway he completely lost it, said that it was offence to share restricted drugs, that my brother could have his prescription cancelled and he wanted me to give my brother’s details. I declined. He completely changed his tone and character, it was really scary to see someone switch like that, and I left in tears without any resolution. I paid $700 for the appointment, and am now back where I was at the start of the process. I’m exhausted and don’t know if I can face going to back to the GP for a referral to another psych, and having to explain everything all over again. It’s so disheartening. Don’t know what I’m looking for in this post, not sympathy, because I know that I’m entirely at fault for taking someone else’s meds and then being stupid enough to tell a doctor about it.

I’m 35 years young and genuinely need help at this time of my life because it feels like my brain is running me in circles. I cant make a decision and stick to it . I’m not sure why it seems to be getting worse more so lately. ive heard it’s expensive and time consuming as in it it’s a long process. I’m also not considering stimulant medication because many years ago now when i was dabbling in recreational substances i had several drug induced psychosis episodes. definitely not something i want to risk experiencing again. has anyone else been diagnosed at a later age? and I might add the reason why im fairly confident about having adhd is not only the traits that i have but also the fact several of my children have been diagnosed.

Hi all, just wondering if anyone has gone through the process of transferring their care from their psych to their GP now that they can prescribe medication?

My medication which has been out of stock for ages has just become available again and I asked my GP if he can prescribe it, he said he can but needs a transfer letter from my psych.

I emailed psychs office to ask for the letter but because I haven’t seen them since late last year the psych wants me to make a review appointment to assess whether transferring care is ‘clinically appropriate’ which I’m not sure I understand? I know which medication works for me and was never irresponsible with it.

One of my main reasons I want to switch to my GP for care is the cost of the psych, at times I was paying $450 per appointment with her and was seeing her monthly to 6 weekly. They were very quick appointments usually just a ‘how’s things going? How is your day? How is your medication working? Do we need to make any changes’, and I just can’t justify paying that monthly anymore for 20 minutes catch ups just to be given access to my medication.

I’m now worried that for whatever reason the psych won’t transfer me or will still want to be involved and I won’t be able to afford to get back on my medication. Has anyone navigated this? Any insight would be so helpful.

anyone here who has adhd med prescribed alongside a z drug for sleep instead of clonidine like for people who have actual problem falling asleep even if they had no energy to the point they probably end up falling asleep past 3am

Hi all, not sure if this is the right sub for me to post this but fuck it. I’m moving over to Melbourne from Ireland soon and I’d really appreciate any advice on getting medication sorted over there. I’ve combined ADHD and I’ve just started concerta last week. As far as I know I’m only allowed bring a month’s prescription with me along with the appropriate documentation of course 😅 the plan is to register with a GP anyway - I think ? Jaysus please help me sort the head so I have some idea for when I get there. Thanks a mill x

Hi all

I have diagnosed ADHD (combined hyperactive) and a long history of delayed sleep phase (grew up before devices and the internet etc)

Currently not taking meds for ADHD but took them for 10+ years

Already booked in to see my old prescribing GP but won't be free until late September as they're a specialist GP

During my current raw dogging phase, I needed some help with school performance anxiety and was prescribed Lexapro

Familiar with the med, does nothing for my ADHD in fact I get a bit worse but... Nothing too crazy and then the lex tends to make you more stress resilient and chill overall so it's like... In a way you care less about it

So it was all going good and then I got stuck in this weird sleep pattern where I was wide awake until 9-10am which has never happened to me

I go to the same doctor who prescribed the lex and saw another at the practice and no one mentions that lex can cause sleep latency issues and have a negative effect on sleep architecture

So I find this out after seeing them and just using AI

I don't have time to waste I have to attend classes or I can lose my place at school

So I taper back a lil and voila the first night my bedtime shifts back and I now go to bed at 4-6am

Still too late for me. I have classes and my normal rhythm was 11pm-1.30am bedtime with 9am wake

So I then call a Nurse Practitioner cause they give excellent patient education and I wasn't getting anywhere at the GPs

They tell me about Clonidine and some others like Seroquel and Mirtazapine used off label for this circadian rhythm issue

So I go online and start researching clonidine

Turns out this is prescribed off label for insomnia and also is an approved drug for use in treating certain ADHD sleep related issues

When I go to the GP they say they are unaware of this being used for anything besides hypertension and migraines

So I ask if there's someone else who has experience with ADHD and DSPD etc there and they said they'd ask around

All good

The ADHD guidelines that are endorsed mention Clonidine is approved for use in ADHD

It's an S4 anti hypertensive that anyone can apparently prescribe off label

However... This is a private prescription cause it's off label

So I'm wondering who here knows about Clonidine and might know a GP who is familiar with ADHD and delayed sleep phase and has prescribed Clonidine

I think that's the issue - im seeing GPs who aren't trained in ADHD or these issues and they're doing the right thing by not prescribing stuff outside of their area of knowledge

So it's just about me finding a GP to start my clonidine trial now, fix the issue that is affecting me right now and my schooling

And next month I'll go back to my old prescribing GP and get back on my ADHD meds and talk about Clonidine and Guan as secondary treatments

Cause I plan to keep taking the lex, it has been effective but it's just this issue of my sleep cycle also being pushed way out

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated

Hey all,

I am based in Sydney , travelling to Korea, flight on Monday , and made the mistake of not checking before whether I can carry vyvanse without any issues, turns out you need to get an import permit which takes about 10 business days to be approved, I emailed the department in Korea and they responded back saying that I have to leave meds at home , either postpone the trip or find alternative, so clearly there is no option, I can’t postpone the trip as I have booked everything and tried asking my doctor for alternative but he refused. I am currently on 40 mg and have been on it for a year , I tried giving it a break before but got really depressed and now my flight is in 2 days , traveling solo without vyvanse which will make it difficult for me to enjoy the trip , any tips ?