Simon Mercier (00:00)
Obsessives with numbers, hoarders with cats. I could really rock a tinfoil hat. Perfect they're not, but at least they know who they are. No more bad pills, fads or tricks. Who says there isn't an easy fix? With a diagnosis, I'm ready to blow this joint, and by joint I mean my inner sense of confusion.
Simon Mercier (00:23)
Those are lyrics from the song Diagnosis. It's a soundtrack from the musical comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend with vocals and performances from Worth a watch. And it's a lighthearted fun perspective to mental health that we all need at times.
you are the Bumpy Road of Freedom, the podcast about navigating this journey called life, finding freedom while living with ADHD from those that have traveled it and for those just discovering it.
Welcome, this is Simon speaking and I'm in a bus and this is episode three the journey of diagnosis.
Simon Mercier (01:11)
This episode is for those looking for answers on where to start. You've done some research and you would like to go through the process of getting help. You're at a point where it's affecting your life, your work, your relationship. It's affecting those around you. And this is an important one because it can also help those close to you understand you. you're doing the what ifs and maybe you do, maybe you don't.
but where there's smoke, there is fire. And maybe like myself, you have been misdiagnosed or misled. You know That game of snakes and ladders when you feel like you're winning and then you slide back down and here we go all over again. That was me. So I get it.
is not reliable. It's a start and it's a question of your discovery. I'll explain. We all live in a world now where there's so much noise, i.e. the social media, people trying to sell you things, fake news, online quizzes that want your credit card and your details, the online forums, and of course there's the doubters. ADHD has become a bit of a trend word at the moment and there's reasons for that, which I'll explain in another episode.
diagnosis can be a game changer, if done right. It's important for clarification. If it's not ADHD, then close that book. This is for peace of mind, it's perspective, which is a big one. Everything makes sense. This can be that aha moment. When you get perspective through a diagnosis. And there are many spectrums to ADHD.
Diagnosis can help you with that, with what your ADHD spectrum is, your blueprint. And without a proper diagnosis, you can't work on You may want to look at medication or alternative therapies for this, but you need a starting point. And that's why I'm really excited to talk about this today, because diagnosis is your new starting point.
Simon Mercier (03:10)
this podcast is brought to you by Bumpy Road Coffee. Roast it smooth on a bed of hot air, buy it yours truly. Now, if you're only going to have one coffee a day, spoil yourself, make it a good one. Go to bumpyroadcoffee.com.au and you can subscribe to Bumpy Road Coffee and I'll send you fresh coffee every month if you like. And that's what keeps this podcast going. So it's a win-win for our coffee lovers.
And the bumpy road community.
And if this podcast resonates with you, please our ADHD community. It's free just like you are. And maybe help others find their freedom by showing your ADHD experiences as a good, bad and ugly to make this journey called life a little bit smoother.
Simon Mercier (03:57)
So let's get started. And this is one of the most important steps you'll take. So if you only listen to one episode, please listen to this episode on diagnosis. Hey, it's free.
Online ADHD tests. Now, if you haven't done one of these already, you're going to need to do one. And look, if there is a credit card or a buzzword attached to it, don't do it. Do it later if you want to, but here we're not about trying to make someone rich by selling a course online.
And you're going to need to save your money to get your ADHD sorted out. Cause unfortunately there's not a lot of free help out there,
Go for a site with .org usually at the end of it, or it's usually a nonprofit site. if you're like me and you get stuck scrolling for ages trying to find the right site to do an online ADHD test, I'll save you some time. Just go to ADHDquiz.com.au. This is a nonprofit site. owned by the ADHD Foundation of Australia and it's recognized. Has all the fancy numbers behind the test.
There's a two minute version and there is an eight minute version. And you do have to put your email in there to get your results off memory, I think. And when you do it, I think it's eight minute one, you got to remember as you were an eight year old. this is really important because we're looking back at you as an eight year old and this wherever your ADHD has stemmed from. I'll explain that a little bit further down the track.
Now this is not your diagnosis. It's just a starting test, but you can actually take these to your doctor if you're going to go for a referral to see an ADHD psychiatrist or specialist.
Now you should get those pretty quickly. I think it's instantaneous because it's It's just a guide. to give you an idea that you've got some sort of ADHD, depending on where you want to go from there.
I share a little personal thing with you. This is how I actually discovered my ADHD was because
it was an online ADHD test such as this that I was doing when I was thinking somebody else that I knew in my life was having issues. And I started Googling and I found this online ADHD test. And that's actually how I discovered that I was potentially ADHD.
This is what I recommend. I reckon reading.
is knowledge and knowledge is really important and not the fake stuff that you can see on some of these online sites. Going back to the real situations that have happened for other people. So the first book I'm going to recommend and I read this is called Driven to Distraction. It's about ADHD from childhood to adult. And if you only read one book or do one thing, this should be it.
Also, if anyone is trying to understand you, so if you've got a spouse or somebody in your life that you believe is struggling with ADHD, you can read this book and get a better understanding of what's going on with them.
and if you get a bit of an aha moment when you read it and go, I feel like I'm reading a book about my life, well then I think you know you're on the right path.
Now you can also get these on audible. If you're not a reading person, I find audible or anything like that. Those audible podcasts are quite amazing. You can get with books nowadays. The other thing is Ted talks, failing it normal by Jessica McCabe, And I'll tell you what, if you do not get a tear out of this one more than, well, you're maybe not on the, on the spectrum of emotional sensitivity that I am, but I got some tears in my eyes when I listened to Jessica McCabe's.
Ted talk, and that was called failing at normal. But my favorite of all is Sir Ken Robertson. And he has a, he has a Ted talk called do schools kill creativity? And it was voted one of the best talks of all time. Now this not a ADHD subject on Ken's talk, but I could relate to it and you will too, but it's the girl becoming a dancer when she was failing at everything else. And that was an ADHD observation for me.
And in actual fact that that particular girl came back and did a later Ted talk with Sir Ken before he passed away.
so you need to ask yourself you content with self diagnosis to this point? And for some people, this is enough. You know, you can take time, sit with it, look at options. And sometimes awareness is all you need.
Simon Mercier (08:39)
After doing online assessments and reading books, my Ted talks about ADHD. I didn't really know much more than that. I don't even really know what ADHD was and I'd live my whole life oblivious to anything like that. However, when life gives you lemons,
You make lemonade and that's story of my life right there. But when it starts to make sense to you and you understand that you have something that's a little bit different to what other people do and things start to align It starts to change everything. Throw that in with the fact that I was at a point where it was affecting other people in my life I was becoming a dad and
A lot of responsibilities that I was throwing away or discarding through the crazy life that I was living just weren't going to cut it anymore. So I went and saw a psychiatrist
this guy was pretty good. at what he did. And I got on very well with him. had a great connection with my psychiatrist. So when I went in there with my new found information, his diagnosis was very instant. was basically everybody has ADHD at some point in their life. It's in everybody. you're just going through ADHD stages right now.
He gave me a book on something completely different from what ADHD was. So as you can imagine, I left there quite confused because I sort of really believed that I had something here. However, I
however I was told by a professional who was very good in his area of expertise. Now let me repeat that, in his area of expertise.
The next step, looking at other options. So I'm saying, okay, well, I don't necessarily have ADHD. Maybe I have a mild form of ADHD questioning everything, throwing it all back out there and then thinking, okay, well, I've got to change my diet. I've got to change my lifestyle. I'm going to get on some fancy mushrooms and all these different things. And I went like this for about another year. However, I was always coming back to the same place that I started. And when things don't go quite well, again, we start.
looking so round two, ding, ding. My second psychiatrist, I did some research. I found somebody that was specialized in adult mental health because I believe that, okay, adult mental health. And as I said, specialized in an area. And this was the process I went through there.
I went to the appointment armed with the information that I had. like I had ADHD.
He asked me why I thought that.
I told him that I was struggling. I'd read a book or two on ADHD. I watched some Ted talks and I've done an online ADHD assessment. He asked me how I was feeling. And I said, I was confused and I'm feeling very depressed. He then asked me if I'd had issues in the past. And asked me three questions and that were, was I ever in trouble with the
if I was sexually promiscuous and if I had issues with drugs in the past. And that was basically the crux of it. That was it.
his diagnosis to me was that I was suffering from depression and you can't diagnose ADHD if somebody has depression. So he needed to treat me for depression. And then down the track, we would look at the idea.
of ADHD at a later date. I was given some medication and off I went. Now that session went for no more than seven minutes. How's that? Seven minutes with a guy to walk out with a prescription.
for depression.
I was a bit dubious about the medication and I did take it a few times. However, I never really felt like depression was it. The medication just dulled me a little bit. I did go back to my next session, which was a month later. He asked me how I was going. And I said, I didn't really feel that the medication was right for me. He asked me why. And I said, well, it just didn't seem to make sense.
I don't feel that depressed and it's making me feel a little bit numb. I kind of lied. It just didn't make sense and I was frustrated. So he then sent me with another medication for depression. And that was the last time I went there because nothing felt right. I felt like I was in and out there very, very quickly. I paid quite a large amount of money and that was it. for another year.
So fast forward to my next session. And this was roughly around COVID time. Well, this was around COVID time as I remember, because we were all in lockdown and I'm sitting around here thinking, I wonder if I've got this. And I was actually doing some classes with my daughter where we were homeschooling noticing my concentration and how I was back in school and all these sorts of things started to come back up again. And I'm thinking, I wonder if that ADHD was a thing and I wonder if my daughter has it. And all these questions started flooding in.
So of course I started scrolling and getting on Google and doing some research and I had time to do that. And here was the interesting thing about COVID and I do credit COVID for a bunch of things like this. And I know a lot of people came out with ADHD and COVID and the reason being was we had time. We're all of sudden out of our normal comfort zones, our way of doing things and we were sitting back and we were starting to reflect a little bit on life and
Guess what? Telehealth started. So zoom meetings, things like that. That became a little bit of a invaluable resource. However, finding someone that was specializing in ADHD for adults, that was my issue. And I realized as I went back on my last scenarios, seeing psychiatrist was
specialized in a certain field and ADHD in adults is quite a new thing in the scheme of the whole ADHD world. So pinpointing the right person was a rabbit hole.
And I was able to spend quite a considerable amount of time on finding somebody. And I did. The process was getting a referral. You have to get a referral from a doctor. Hey, I had a zoom meeting with a doctor. I was able to get that one pretty quickly. The next step was obviously finding the right person for me. I was lucky. I jagged somebody that was experienced in ADHD.
I wasn't on a massive waiting list. Like there was a lot of waiting lists out there and this is the frustrating part about it. My waiting list was three months. Okay. Now look, it seems like a long time. Time is something you've done with this all your life. Just book it if you can. So I just booked it. And before I know it, that three months came up for my initial consultation with my psychiatrist. And here was the interesting part about it.
It wasn't just a psychiatrist meeting that went for five minutes. it went for just under an hour and a lot of questions were asked and I had to do a fair bit of thinking I was given some homework to take away some tests to do and asked if I wanted to proceed, which of course I did. Now here's the difference, of course, specialized in a certain area. And that's what this particular psychiatrist did.
that was to me a huge relief. I felt this guy actually got it. He was sympathetic to the cause he understood exactly what I was talking about. And this changed everything for me. So moving down the track, I went to the next session where we had to, I had to actually involve somebody that grew up with me who was involved in my life, when I was.
between the ages of eight and 12 because that's when ADHD is forming in your life and you're starting to notice things that are happening that you can relate to as an observation-based scenario. So we pulled out school reports and all these things from my past, as well as the tests and things that I had to also do in this situation. So that was the next step.
And then I had two more sessions before I actually received my official diagnosis. So it was a journey in itself. And I said, it seems like a long time, but Hey, this whole process from the day I first did that online test was nearly three years. So I don't want to discourage anyone. It is a bit of a journey. And one of the reasons why this podcasts exist
because you can find out a little bit more information. is starting to get easier. It is starting to become more recognized. it's not as hard as it was back then. However, it's worth it. It's worth going down this because you're also discovering a lot of things about yourself along the way.
So I've been my psychiatrist now for about two and a half years and that has been a great experience for me. It started off with monthly sessions to three monthly sessions now six months.
And the next time now is a year.
When you go through a process of diagnosis and you've got to this point now what am I going to do? What do you want to do with it? you decide to go down the route of medication or looking for alternative therapies, that is totally up to you.
And I will speak about that in another podcast because I think that really should have a professional interview during that time as well. because I've got to be careful when it comes to medication, course, theres alternate therapies, a bunch of things out there as well.
so what I'll do now is I'm going to give you some, some points and some tips.
when they go through this stage. Some, find it easier. Some more difficult depending on where you are, your location. I'm in a regional area. So zoom was amazing for me and telehealth was amazing for me because everything was instantaneous we hate waiting for things. want everything to happen right now. Don't we? So that was a game changer for me. So here's a bunch of things
I want you to take away from this today.
So make sure you're seeking help specific to you and do your research. Secondly, and most importantly, is your psychiatrist, experienced in ADHD? And when I say experienced, I say specialized, specialized
for adults, if it's for kids, it's generally different. Okay, so specialize in adult ADHD. Check their experience with the staff and make sure that you're in the right area And when I say specific, they are trained, they are up to date with adult ADHD.
Another one is, are they taking new patients? And this is a big one. went through waiting sitting on a phone and then all of sudden to be told, we're not taking any new patients.
and that's quite common because we're looking for an area that's very overwhelmed and there's not a lot of expertise out there in the adult ADHD world. So make sure they're taking on new patients.
Do they provide telehealth if that's what you want or zoom? There's a bunch of different things out there.
Here's another one that's really important. some places will offer you an assessment and they'll offer you a diagnosis, but they may not be able to offer you the treatment when it comes down to prescriptions if you want that. Now,
Why it's important is because it's a lot easier if you're going with the same person the whole way through. If you've got a bond with your particular psychiatrist, you want to stay there. You don't want to have to keep going to different places and moving around all over the place. It's really good to have a one-stop person that you can count on that gets you, that's got your history, that knows all about you and where you came from and what you're all about. Now I'm not talking about your GP who does a referral.
you can go to a regular GP and get a referral. That's an easy part.
And now I understand some people don't want to go down the route of medication. I was very anti-medication at the beginning and that's totally understandable if you don't want to do that. However, I do believe it's finding somebody that is non-judgmental either way. is open to different scenarios on how you should get your treatment.
And here's the big one cost. Sorry to say ADHD is not hugely recognized in adults. out there. So cost is going to be something that you're going to have to face. However,
There are different rebates out there in Australia. If you get online, have a look and find out what's available to you. You can have up to 10 counseling sessions for mental health. You might be able to include that in some way with your ADHD. However, it doesn't pay for diagnosis as I understand or first sessions. Check out the costs.
Some ADHD psychiatrists will offer you pay as you go. Some want an upfront payment for the whole process. And there's also payment plans nowadays, which you can look at as well. Unfortunately, sorry to say it's not a free service. There is however, rebates.
It is an investment. I'm not selling anything here. It is an investment in your own mental health.
So here's a recap. Find someone that specialize in ADHD for adults and is qualified and at that level. a psychiatrist, not a psychologist, a psychiatrist that can prescribe.
You want to find someone that's a one-stop shop so they can assess you, they can treat you, they can diagnose you, and they can prescribe if you want to go down that way. A one-stop shop is the way to go. They are taking on new patients. Don't go through this whole process if they're not taking on any new patients right now. If you have to jump on a waiting list, if there's nothing else, well then jump on the waiting list, you can cancel it. They offer telehealth or online consultations
if that's gonna work easier for you. their payment options, can they do rebates, plans, are they looking for pay as you go? If you do have a system where they're asking for a one-shot payment for the whole process, which is the diagnosis, the treatment, everything like that, usually about three or four sessions, then make sure that you've got someone that you feel comfortable with.
Simon Mercier (23:02)
So why does it all seem like such a roadblock at times? Because ADHD in adults is a fairly new discovery. that crazy rat bag that was once you as a kid, well grew up, you adapted, you adapted as your brain did. And now, ta-da, here we are. It's called maturity. Your brain grew and so did you.
How you were as an eight year old is no longer the you today. It was believed that you grew out of ADHD and some do depending on the spectrum and the severity.
may have been come down to depression. That inattentive child may have learned to focus through other avenues. like my inability to write, change suggests an excuse for being not able to write and just adjusting. Your wandering became creativity. Your impulsiveness became entrepreneurial. Your disorganization, well that became laziness.
and you search for dopamine, Became addiction, and so on.
You had to learn to adapt and find your place in the world. It's called survival. However, the cause of ADHD is still there. And this is why when you do a test, they ask you to go back to the younger version of yourself.
Now in a world where the fabric of society has changed. Hey, guess what? Smoker gives you cancer. Asbestos can kill you. Putting oil on your skin to get a tan. Well, yeah, nah, not a good idea in hindsight. These are lessons from time. the answer to me not doing my homework in grade five.
That was a year of getting belted by a one meter steel ruler from my teacher on a dirty basis. That was the answer back then. Did it work? No. Now in a world of greater expectations, technology, awareness, individuality, instant gratification, to high expectations. These are consequences to discovering things like ADHD. ADHD in adults is not new. It was just never discovered.
until society evolved to a point where awareness and expectations changed.
So who actually understands it enough to treat it and who has the resources for it all? Not enough yet. Society has been so preoccupied trying to keep up with so much going in other areas, yet the effects on society with ADHD, well, I believe it's massive. And that's for another episode. So we need to be patient here and understand that right now, we're pioneers in this stage of the ADHD world.
There are people out there that generally do want to help you and you're not alone. There's people also that don't understand you and that's okay too.
you are unique, you have a gift and you've got this far. Don't be afraid of your freedom. This is Simon speaking and you're on the bumpy road to freedom, listening to today's journey of diagnosis. Navigating this journey called life, living with ADHD.