Nurses with ADD/ADHD?

[Metron]

Hey all! I was wondering if there are any nurses with ADD/ADHD out there who want to comiserate and support each other? I know I need the help/advice. It might also be a place for "regular" people (I hate the word normal) to come and read and understand what its like for us. Or ask us ?'s.

I'll start with an intro:p I'm 29, and I've had an official diagnosis for less than 2 years, but have been trying to find the answer (for what's up with me) for MUCH longer than that:uhoh21: :) I currently work night shift at a drug rehab and on call at a nursing home. I have a lot of trouble in staff meetings - sitting through them, being treated like a brat because I actually show some emotion. I had much difficulty in school, (I didn't know back then), not with grades but with social stuff. I almost got kicked out of school because of the problems I was having.

But its not all bad. I'm funny and creative and often am able to connect with my patients in unique ways.

So we'll see how many of us there are out there?:)

[newrn05]

This is such a great topic. I wonder if this can be made into a sticky note. I am not sure if that is the offical name. The type of thread that stays at the top and we can continue to post. THis topic IMHO is too important for it to be buried at the back of the list. Dawn:nurse:

[Swanee]

We could start our own 12 step group lol. I'm suppose to be finishing up a few notes from last week and here I am still writing. This is pathetic. Time to make the donuts. (shoot, he died this week)!

[ansturge]

I only interrupt because if I don't I'll forgoet what my point was that I wanted to make and everyone (those unafflicted with adhd talk way too slow ). By the time they finsh what thier saying, I've already had 15 other thoughts

omg that is so me....

I was diagnosed in 2003 a year after i finished my BS. My 1st grade teacher recognized my inattention, but nothing was ever done about it....

I finally ended up taking Adderal XR because i always forgot my lunchtime dose with the regular adderal and the ritalin before that

my grades my first semester in nursing school were awesome, but then life got in the way and i couldnt afford to stay on my meds and my grades reached a lovely plateau of Bs........cant really complain too much but As would have been wonderful.

so i cant wait to get a real job again with benefits so i can go back on my meds again...........

[Bipley]

Anyone easily bored with their jobs? How many can say they have had MANY W2's to file at the end of the year? Can you say you needed an extension on taxes so you could remember who all owed you W2's from those employers?

Can you list your last 20 jobs? LOL

Someone mentioned that people talk too slowly. Isn't that the truth! It is as though they have their entire lives to get out ONE silly point! By the time they make their point I forgot the topic of the conversation.

I had to learn to type so I can type fast enough to get my thoughts on a computer screen. I'm still trying to top 90WPM and let me tell you, that's NO easy task! If only my fingers could move at the speed of my brain.

What about moving! Ever tried to move to a new house and you don't have the slightest idea how to organize where everything goes??? I have a friend that organizes, tells me where everything goes and then I'm good to go. But to do it myself I'd end up with a huge pile of what-nots in the middle of my living room floor.

I recall once when in college my friends were doing speed to stay awake to study for finals. They were all something similar to euphoric and they had energy to spare. They were tripping. I wanted to clean out and organize the closets. I wasn't at MY home!

Your boss explains in excruciating detail about "X" task. By the end of the conversation you have no clue what the topic was.

CLEANING! Aaarrrrgggghhhhhhh! I start off realizing a drawer needs to be organized. I go to put something from the drawer in the closet and I realize the closet needs to be cleaned and organized. I find a book from the closet that needs to be on the bookshelf and the bookshelf needs some serious work. By the end of the day my house is in chaos, I can't find a bloody thing, and my living room floor is up to the ceiling with all the stuff I'm organizing.

Ever try to go to bed at night cuz you have to get up in 4 hours to go to work and your mind is still absolutely racing? I take an amphetamine and I sleep like a baby. Take too much and I want to crawl under the desk at work and take a snooze.

Ever see the commercial on TV talking about AD/HD? They flip through the TV channels at lightening speed to show viewers what the AD/HD mind is all about. They aren't doing it right! Not only do they go too slow they don't finish the thought of the channel before flipping to a new channel. I do!!! I have one thought, think it through just enough to move on to the next thought. 'Course, I think that's the case but problem is, I forgot my last thought. As soon as I remember what it is I'll be sure to put much care into that task.

Work circles around your coworkers? I'm zipping around the young'sters at lightening speed but if the truth be known, I'm not getting a bloody thing done. But it seems like it to others. They call me a type A personality. I call me ADHD.

For the hyperactive ADDers out there. Do you have to move something all the time? I either have to twirl my hair, click my nails, or kick my foot as I sit. First doc I ever went to I swore I would stay absolutely still. I'd seen others do it, I knew it could be done. *I* could do it.

I thought I would absolutely explode if I couldn't move SOMETHING! Anything! Click my nails, wiggle in my chair, ANY BLOODY MOVING BODY PART WILL DO! If I can't move anything I'm just sure I'll explode. I've been known to talk with my hands while I'm on the phone.

Let me tell you something, go to your doc for your 2nd appt and when you are clicking your nails on the table beside the chair non stop, you get your Dex dose doubled while the doc is wishing there was a Benzo salt lick in the waiting room. Or his office, doesn't matter. When his eyes get bigger and his teeth are clenching while watching your nails click on that arm of the chair, you know you are annoying the heck out of him.

I found a doc I absolutely adore. She's a gem! Without a doubt she is THE best doc around. I asked her one day if she treats many AD/HDers. She said she does, depression, bipolar, .. those types of folks take something out of her that she can't really describe well. Her AD/HDers amuse her and keep her going. She loves AD/HDers, we brake up the monotony.

I'm still not sure if that is a good thing or not. Hmmm...

Oh, and speaking of typing... anyone HATE proof reading? You already READ what you wrote, MUST you read it again? Heck NO! Go by the basic AD/HD standards, if it isn't spelled right then SOUND IT OUT! Is that really asking so much? Fun-e-tics darnitall! Sound it out!

[ansturge]

haha, listening to you is like a balm to my soul

my old roomate(when i told her i had add) said i always new something was up when you would suddenly ransack your room at 2 am to clean and organize it(and not quite get it clean again).

I have trazodone to help me go to sleep, but it makes me feel so yucky in the mornings if i havent slept long enough

i dont run around all over the place, dont have quite that much energy right now but i do fidget, cant sit still and i have to change positions ALL the TIME.

my social interactions definitely suffered over the years, esp since as i mentioned before i tend to interrupt people, cant help it if i dont blurt it out, i forget it. Focusing on mundane tasks is hard, focusing on studying is a hurculean effort.

I have a day planner, i always have the best of intentions in using it, but after a while i forget about it and therefore dont follow thru with it.

I start tasks and school projects with enthusiasm and lots of ideas, but get bored with it quickly. Its the same with cleaning and dieting and exercise......sigh Sometimes i really do feel crazy lazy and irresponsible

and i have read the book i think its "you mean im not lazy crazy or stupid"

and i have to say that listening to the ADD naysayers does get me down

just like my parents telling me that im lazy and not responsible did in my teens I TRY really hard but i just cant follow thru with stuff like that =(

structure is great tho so far in clinical i have had no problems, but i start precepting next week so i think that will be the true test of me

[Bipley]

and i have to say that listening to the ADD naysayers does get me down

Nahhh... don't let them get you down. They are the SAME people telling chronically depressed folks to just STOP doing that! Get with the program, be normal for goodness sakes.

My own personal experience... each and every bloody time I have written in detail of AD/HD some parent out there privately emails/PMs me asking me for more info. It's always the same, their spouse is beating the tar out of their kid to just make him pay attention, be aware of his surroundings, etc. When a nurse with AD/HD tells them what life is like as an AD/HDer with and without meds, then something clicks. Especially when I discuss in detail what it like to be a kid with ADHD. I TRIED soooo hard, I did ALLLLL the right things. It just didn't work. I remember as a kid my parents helping me with homework. That just made it worse. The more they "helped" the harder it was. To a parent that just doesn't ring true. They are 'helping' for goodness sakes! Why isn't this working????

Sometimes it simply takes waking up that little itty bitty part of the brain that isn't functioning as it should. When you wake up that part of the brain, the world changes in mysterious ways. All the beatings, the spankings, the groundings... it doesn't work. It takes a biological measure to fix the problem.

[twee426]

Wow...what a subject!!! Really interesting input from everyone!! I have a son who is 13 now. He was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 7. His doctor was really cool in the fact that he didn't just give him medication because the school said he had this. He referred him to Texas Childrens for a battery of tests. I can honestly say we have been on a roller coaster for 6 years now. I cannot stress this enough....FIND THE RIGHT DOCTOR!!!

I stick with his original doctor now.....but at one point fell in the hands of a Psychiatrist who over medicated my child. Take this med to counteract the effects of that med.....and so on. I have found (through trial and error of alot of medications) Adderall XR works the best for my child.......Problem now: His original doctor all of a sudden switched him back to the short acting Adderall......It does not work as well and his doctor is saying there are problems with the XR??? Have any of you heard anything like this?? I have major depression; anxiety and adult ADD......Adderall XR has been a life saver for me.....For some reason it keeps me focused and calm. I do not get overwhelmed and my compulsiveness has dwindled remarkably. Any thoughts here???

[nurse_clown]

i not only have adhd but dyslexia as well. it makes life much more difficult to the point, i want to leave. does anyone else have this combo?

yep. i've got that combo you speak of. i was diagnosed in high school. i just couldn't get physics right. i was diagnosed with add in nursing school. for the longest time, i've heard "you are so smart, you just don't apply yourself." i struggled in school and i kept thinking i was stupid.

currently, i'm not on any meds. been there done that. me and meds are a real bad combo. my psychiatrist helped me deal with the add and dyslexia without meds. he has the same combo by the way and he's a physician!!! it took me two years to finally get my work life sorted out. i only work the night shift. it's quieter. no doctors or visitors to distract me. i focus on my patient care and paperwork. mind you the paper work is more on the night shift and there's a lot of responsibility without a supervisor (i am the supervisor). it also gets lonely when i have to struggle to focus and i can't talk to anyone. i've managed pretty good all these years to keep the units i'm responsible running in an orderly fashion. i've received my evaluations and i did pretty well on them. i have been in the nursing field with this combination for almost ten years. i recognize my limitations. i've also been very open about my limitations. i don't look for excuses but i've been working with my coworkers for almost three years and they are very understanding. they are especially understanding when i'm available to take their night shifts for them. :chuckle i don't work during the day time. there is too much action going on and i'm just too distracted to function effectively in that environment.

don't let ppl tell you that you can't be in nursing because of the dyslexia. i know i'm not the only nurse with this combination. i know a lot of my colleagues who have add or dyslexia or both and they are supervisors (like me) managers, staff rn's, rpn's. and there's different types of nursing you can do. i have a friend who has add. she's brilliant but really distracted and hyper. she's an o.r. nurse. she can manage herself but she's also with a team that keeps her focused and in line. i used to be a high risk infant nurse at children's aid. that was a bad situation for me. i had a case load of thirty regular clients. i would visit anywhere between six and ten clients a day for assessment. but, when i got all my work done, i'd goof around and in a child welfare setting, it looked unprofessional. i found my niche working in oncology/palliative care and long term care. i just do the night shift.

and i'm not saying don't take meds. some ppl need meds. for me, things will get worse if i take meds. just making that clear.

[nurse_clown]

it is widely abused my adults also, and yes i keep up with my research. and yes we are seeing a much increased number of "adults" coming into the er wanting scripts for add/adhd treatment. some to use personally, but also ritalin is being sold on the streets. personally i consider that abuse.

just wondering.... have you been diagnosed with add? do you know what it's like to have add?

your comments seem pretty "judgmental". yes, ritalin is sold on the streets and yes that's abuse. but percocet is sold on the streets and so is morphine and demerol, dilaudid, heroin, gravol, quinine..... otc cold remedies are being made into some real messed up drugs that's being abused on the streets.

add/adhd should not be dealt with in the er. a competent psychiatrist should be dealing with this. and to add on to this, when an adult comes into the er asking for a ritalin script, what do you do? i didn't know that an acute care setting was the environment to deal with a "long term" condition. is your department writing scripts for ritalin? i'd be more concerned about that. would that be a reason why you think ritalin is abused? maybe it's because your department is trying to deal with something it knows very little about and giving it away to people who don't need it and abuse it? could that be why you think the diagnosis and ritalin is abused? hmmmm?

[chadash]

That is so strange, I can't imagine someone coming to the ER to get ADD treated. What do they say: I can't get my house organized, I'm ditzy on my job and walk too fast....oh my heavens....this could be fatal!

Clearly, that must be drug seeking...duh.

I have to tell you though, I have never been on anything but straterra which aint great.....if there is something that can help me after all these years I would like to see it. Is that drug seeking behavoir?

[kathjo]

Hi, this is my first posting. I've been a nurse for over 30 years-worked in a hospital setting for 15 and in medical sales for 15. I can relate to all of your stories about ADD/ADHD. I was diagnosed with ADD (not the hyperactive ADHD) when I had my son tested (he was about 7 years old). The psychiatrist said he didn't have it but I did! He also diagnosed me with chronic depression. I felt fine, and thought the doctor was out of his mind & didn't know what he was talking about. However, all the symptoms fit, even all the way back to grammar school. I figured what the heck & tried a few antidepressants for only 3 weeks. What happened after that was terrible: I developed severe tick syndrome. I had these ticks for almost 2 years after, even after not being on the meds! Over time the ticks became weaker & weaker, and now it's been about 10 years since I tried these drugs. I still get little twitches whenever I exercise. Needless to say, medication was definitely not for me. I noticed most of the ADD medication has a warning for tick syndrome, so I can't take any ADD meds. I've just learned to live with it like most of us do. I try to think positive about the disorder; most of us with ADD are very creative and very intelligent people and other people wouldn't know what to do without us. We have the patience of a saint and can fix just about anything; most people don't have our talents.

[jubeepepper]

:rotfl: I was diagnosed with ADD as a kid and then also as an adult. I took Ritalin for several years but then found that it just increases my anxiety so I used Paxil (made me fat) and the Wellbutrin (made me quit smoking). I usually work with kids in a psychiatric hospital inpt setting and have found that the ADD actually helps me do my job because I am pretty silly and scattered and the kids can relate to that, thus open up to me. My co-workers think I am great although do get frustrated with me, they say they have found that by placing their hand on my arm before telling me something important, they get my attention, and I am more likely to focus and listen. I wouldn't trade it for the world.