<p>Lately I've been wondering if I might have ADD, but I don't know how to get tested for it.
My parents don't really pay attention to me that much because I am considered the most independent of my siblings. My little brother already has a LD and I don't want to make them worry about me.
I am a pretty good student in school and I take a lot of AP/honors classes, but lately it's been hard for me to focus and I tend to overthink things. I've always had these tendencies, but they didn't faze me too much in middle school and I just dealt with it.
Now that I'm a junior in high school though, things are starting to give me trouble. I have a hard time focusing in class a lot, I procrastinate a lot with school work, and worst of all I think too much.
Yes, I "think" too much, I dunno if this is a symptom but I tend to let my mind wonder, it ruins my train of thought when writing essays, taking tests, you name it. It especially gets annoying when I try to go to sleep because my constant thinking keeps me awake unless I have tired myself out to the point of exhaustion earlier in the day. </p>
<p>Can anybody tell me how to get evaluated for ADD and if it sounds like I might have it? I really hope I don't have it, but I need to put that possiblity to rest.
Thanks.</p>
<p>I was diagnosed with ADHD a long time ago and it's pretty pointless. They put you on retarded meds that basically screw you up when you get off of them. I suggest just dealing with ADHD like i do. </p>
<p>bwt, i sympathize with you so much. Nobody else seems to understand that insomnia can by a symptom. i find myself lying in bed until 4am sometimes just waiting to fall asleep. Sometimes i feel completely alone in this because in the middle of tests (even the ACT) im the only one completely zoning out just staring across the room watching other ppl work really hard (and struggling lol). And its the most annoying when ppl finish the test and they say "yo man i couldnt stay awake during that test i just zoned out" and they really have no idea what it feels like to just not pay attention. I can't even take notes in class because i just plain fall behind. I can be staring right at someone and trying hard to listen and before i know it im not paying attention. I'm a snior in HS now and i've come to a point where ive just given up. I sleep during class and study a bit for tests and hope than my intelligence will get me through. My grades are suffereing and my teachers hate me. </p>
<p>Apparently thats what happens when u dont dont take meds, but im really apprehensive about taking anything for what seems like just a personality thing. I'm arrogant enough to believe that my smarts will get me through school even if i dont study. </p>
<p>now im just venting...sorry...its just that its so hard for ppl that dont have this problem to ever understand how difficult it can be for ppl like us.</p>
<p>qozon
I swear you read my mind because that’s the exact same way i feel, especially in geometry and when i take quizzes. Don’t get me wrong I’m pretty good at math but all the words and vocab just get confusing and i start zoning out and what feels like 1 minute later it has already been 15 minuets and i missed the entire lesson and the class is already on book work!! </p>
<p>P.S. I’m not dumb I’m just in 9th grade so thats y im in geometry</p>
<p>You have a legal right to request a formal evaluation by the school psychologist. Talk to your counselor about your struggles, and ask for a meeting with the resources team. Students who are very smart often are identified very late because they manage to compensate for their learning differences for many years. I have friends who were diagnosed very late with dyslexia (halfway through a Ph.D. program) and ADD (halfway through college). In both cases, identifying their learning differences made huge improvements in their lives.</p>
<p>Not everyone who has ADD is a good candidate for medication. Each person reacts differently to the available treatments. Don’t be afraid to seek evaluation because you don’t want to take meds. A good counselor/therapist can help you learn organizational and time-management skills that may be as effective, or possibly even more effective for you than medication.</p>
<p>I was diagnosed with ADD my Junior year of high school because I had the same symptoms as you are having, which placed me as a perfect candidate for the disability. Since many disabilities implicate each other, it may be hard to find the proper diagnoses for your exact condition. There is testing that your school’s psychologist can do to identify your problem. Talk to him/her about testing options but don’t completely rule out other disorders. Unfortunately, ADD is what my parents assumed I had, so they played on the fact that I exhibited symptoms of having ADD when it was really not the case at all, hence not getting extensive testing. A lot of psychologist will simply test for a disability that you list as being tested for.</p>
<p>When I was 19 I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. Many of he symptoms I had were simply due to paranoid. I’d zone out and worry about aspects of my life that would disrupt my concentration, especially if it was during a test or a lecture.</p>
<p>I’m not on medication and so far I’ve learned to manage my time efficiently and cope with my racing thoughts. It took time, a few years, and a good understanding of my problems to really pull through my disabilities. Sometimes I still find myself dozing off during class but I have to remind myself to stay concentrating. It’s possible to train yourself over time.</p>
<p>Even still, I’d go see a psychologist before making any assumptions. Get an extensive study to rule out any other potential disabilities.</p>
<p>dude you sound jjust like me. idk if i have add or not i wanna get tested but my parents ( mostly my dad )dont think i have it. my mom and dad got divorced and my stepdad put me on add meds but i was too young to remember if i got tested. since my mom and dad got back together i havent been on the meds. im pretty sure i have it. i tell my parents that i think i have it and thats why i dont do great in school but my dad says no. and hes threatining to take my car and he frequently gets mad when i dont have good grades. i dont want to get them mad but i need to get tested.</p>
<p>I think I have it, and I have been told by multiple people that it do, but my parents don’t really care about me cuz I’m the oldest and I should be the perfect child. But now that im in highschool and even in middle and elementry school I’ve struggled with staying focused and sitting still. Even today. I zoned out in the middle of my forengin language class for close to a half an hour.</p>
<p>hey, i’m 15 and i’m from a country called malaysia. in my country, ADD isn’t really something well known so if i tell someone that i think i have ADD, they just dont know and dont care. I’m 99.99% sure i have it but i dont really have any proof. I am always zoning out and have a REALLY hard time concetrating on mostly anything. even conversations. i’m always daydreaming in class and i just cant control things like tapping my fingers or shaking my feet and stuff. so i have a really hard time staying still.</p>