Beyond ADHD by Jeff Emmerson
Author:Jeff Emmerson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: undefined
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Published: 2012-04-16T04:00:00+00:00
Looking Back
Looking back on that experience is both concerning and disheartening. Rather than await the psychiatrist’s treatment suggestion, I suggested to him that I try Adderall as a “magic pill” to help me focus more, to somehow stay on track with goals, and to be more stable in general. In what medical world does the patient call the shots on what he wants to be prescribed, unless he’s a doctor himself? The world of ADHD, as it turns out.
Without batting an eye, the psychiatrist said, “Sure,” and wrote me a prescription on the spot. There was no discussion of behavioral, creative, or compassion-based therapy, and no ruling out of anything to do with my traumatic past. I don’t even remember an official checklist being used, though I was given tests (checklists) by my own general practioner (GP) during the process to rule out bipolar and bipolar-II, as well as hypomania. So at least there was some “ruling out,” a vital step. Yet, we only had a rudimentary discussion that, I realized over time, glossed over the issues with which I was dealing.
Right now, as I write this and think about that period of time, I feel myself becoming physically and emotionally angry. I’ve already shared the prescription part of it. Here’s the rest of the story.
I now believe my doctors in 2010 and 2011 were at a loss to figure out the causes or contributing factors to my issues. I was one of very few to even have access to an entire team in the first place, and they still stuck to surface features. That pisses me off. They left a ton of things on the table that could have been ruled out, but instead they were not discussed at all. They proceeded with the checklist-ADHD diagnosis, and left it at that.
In my case, so much was missed that would have benefited me beyond a prescription. My deep fear is that millions are in this exact same boat. Furthermore, unlike me, most don’t have access to a team, and/or they can’t afford it. Even with access to a team, you can see just how easily childhood trauma and the resulting self-esteem issues can blossom into full-blown anxiety, as it did for me. The identity crisis that followed as a result of having a criminal record all but destroyed my career ambitions, followed by my subsequent suicide attempt.
When I truly hit my bottom, my crisis point, when I was more open than ever to finding out what was wrong and to work toward healing it, what did my team of specialists offer up? ADHD—with a prescription.
Today, my diagnosis and the reasons for it make some sense. This is why I speak out like I do, to make people realize that we must dig deeper into the inconvenient truth behind mental health “diagnosing,” such as the driving force behind this rush-to-ADHD environment in which we live.
It took me some time to realize something odd: if the doctor had never seen me before,
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