A couple things are wrong with the image. To be clear, the image doesn’t actually describe an act of doing anything. The image describes a barrier to diagnosis. It’s a real problem and one worth discussing - but I’m not sure if the conclusion should be “lol just do it yourself.” The image also says you’re just saying someone to “say what you’ve already known” which is a blatant attempt to flatter the reader’s intellect and skips over the most important part of diagnosis, the DDX. Which leads to the biggest issue, the implied conclusion, represented in this post’s title: “Self-diagnosis is valid”.

As for what to do: I’m just saying that you can make behavioral changes without having to name your behavioral patterns. Or name them whatever you want, call it Fred. For ADHD behavioral interventions alone wont be as effective as it would if combined with medication, but if there’s no other option then by all means. See what others have done to manage ADHD and try it out for yourselves. That doesn’t necessarily mean you have ADHD - but the name doesn’t matter! If you’re forgetting appointments, keeping an appointment book is just a generally good practice. Keeping a schedule, adjusting how your space is organized to cue your attention instead of relying on executive function, and utilizing post-it notes to stay on track - these are all good practices! And so on. You don’t need a diagnosis to do this. Why must we insist on “self-diagnosing”?

I just want people to shift from this horoscope-esque idea of “diagnosis” and focus more on “treatment”. I think a lot of the emphasis on the name and not the action comes down to a desire to fit in and finding liberation in a lack of agency. Like if we look at a false dichotomy: Would you rather be officially labeled ADHD and not have to work on yourself at all, or would you not get the label but be in charge of making the changes you want in your life? Both sound pretty scary, but the latter sounds far more difficult.

Thanks for the thoughtful response!

they probably meant me

actually just encouraging people to look inward and outward, find common themes between themselves and others, and use those findings to inform what they can do to help themselves and those around them.

That’s actually what I am saying you do. Why would you call that “diagnosis”? Why not call it “pizza-stomping”? Why not call it winning a nobel prize? Words mean something. The fact that so many people cannot understand why this is frustrating is exactly why it is frustrating. I actually like the nobel prize comparison. That’s not too far off from what’s going on here lol.

What it leads to is communities of people who increasingly have little relation to people who are actually diagnosed with the condition. “hey i like pizza do i have adhd” “yeah man totally! i have adhd and i love pizza” “yeah it’s totally a major symptom” and then when someone comes along saying “uhh that’s not actually diagnostic of adhd” they get told to fuck off

these words mean something. these conditions mean something. the treatments mean something. we have boards and licenses and ethics surrounding all of this. if you want to go wild wild west at it, im sure you’ll have a lot of fun and make great friends along the way, but all of this contributes to the undermining of our society’s understanding of mental health

that sounds hard. i cant give you medical advice - you know yourself better than me anyway. one thing i can comment on is that changes usually take a combination of medication and behavioral changes (aka therapy). so it’s not surprising that things didn’t improve after 3 sessions. it takes a lot of effort!

a lot of stuff about childhood experiences. it’s helpful to have someone present who knew you as a child, but failing that, you can talk to them beforehand I suppose. I imagine this sounds like a headache, so don’t worry about calling mom if it sounds stressful or confrontational. id say the ideal is a teacher who knew you well but doesn’t have stakes in the diagnostic label like a parent might. maybe a sibling.

All emotions are valid. Even ones arising from psychosis. That doesn’t mean the experiences that create the emotions are based in reality. Stop with the wordplay. You aren’t as smart as you think you are. What you described is NOT a diagnosis - not any more than the burn marks on my toast are Jesus. Calling it so does not make it so.

If you want to take this as “There’s nothing wrong with you” then that’s on you. Maybe we will revisit the phrase, “You’re not as smart as you think you are” as evidenced by this interpretation. Funny how self-diagnosers are so willing to engage in wordplay but cannot see any other meaning here than “There’s nothing wrong with you.”

As far as the broken arm bit, WHY NOT REREAD WHAT I SAID ABOUT TREATMENT?! And let me reiterate for the self-diagnosers in the back, You aren’t as smart as you think you are. See a fuckin doctor, get a ddx, try techniques that work for you, don’t claim to have a diagnosis without one.

If this feels bad, GOOD, it should. This is hard news. But I won’t lie to you to make you feel good and sell you products like OP.

Damn right I’m confrontational because this is literally medical misinfo being peddled by a grifter and you’re eating it right out of her hand.

The differential is what matters. We go to a professional to figure out what it’s NOT.

I think it’s ego. People probably can’t handle the fact that they aren’t as smart as they think they are and don’t want to admit that maybe they’re wrong about their “”“diagnosis”“”. But that’s just a generalization. Go to a doctor. Fuck OP.

There’s no such thing as self-diagnosis. That’s my point. What you said about coping mechanisms is exactly what I said in my response: that diagnosis informs treatment, so just try different behavioral applications that help you without worrying about the diagnosis.

Holy shit, I just realized that you’re one of the mods. This is absolutely embarrassing. I can’t believe you’re spreading this garbage. STOP telling people to diagnose themselves! You’re contributing to genuine harm of the TikTok Diagnosis era.

Self-diagnosis is not valid. By definition. Not even a psychiatrist can diagnose themselves. What you’re talking about is either 1) advocating for your own diagnosis or 2) self-treatment.

Both of these things are valid.

Advocate for yourself for a diagnosis from a health professional if it will unlock new treatment options. But also just look into how others with similar problems have successfully managed their problems. Consider how you could implement similar things. That’s what’s at the heart of therapy for ADHD anyway.

But diagnosis itself is only useful as a tool for describing symptoms and informing treatment. If a collection of symptoms speaks to your experience, then the only point in putting a diagnostic label on it is to say “Maybe these things that helped others with similar symptoms will also help you.” But in order to do that effectively, there also needs to be a differential diagnosis to ascertain what it is not. This is why healthcare providers need to be involved in the process. Two different things can look very similar but have very different etiologies and different treatments.

Social media needs to quit putting so much emphasis on diagnosis and more emphasis on treatment. This post should be removed for medical misinfo, but I hope people at least read the comments to see why this person seems to be such a snakeoil influencer.

the lived exp of someone with ADHD? my doxin in christ, why do you think I’m on this sub?

just dropping in to say that as a clinician, most of what is posted in here is bullshit. it’s actually pretty frustrating and ill probably have to unsub soon. for my own sanity.

I mean get assessed but dont take anything you see here seriously. ANYTHING.

Real friends don’t make friendships based on this or that opinion… that’s an internet thing.

your telling me they reached Malaysia before Finland??

“no offense” lol and then you go on to ask a random ass question that’s usually meant to offend. why are you bringing up GDPs in Africa anyway?

if you’re actually trying to learn something, then what’s the “no offense” for? it sounds like you want us to draw a controversial conclusion - probably that Africans are lazy or something. if you actually believe this and are behaving this way online, then there’s probably no point in trying to explain how the consequences of colonization continue to hold back development in many African nations.

why don’t you take your dogwhistles elsewhere, or at least learn some social cues. “no offense” is a pretty idiotic thing to say and might best be removed from your vocabulary. because, no offense, you sound like a fucking moron.

I’m so sick of sharing this relevant xkcd

yeah routine helps treat some symptoms/effects of ADHD, it’s just gotta be a flexible routine that has room for novelty.

perhaps a better way to understand it is not in what is craved but where one thrives?

hey good on you being skeptical of MH info on social media. In this case, the hyper interests are the kind of thing that once you’ve been on the receiving end of it, you know what it is.

It’s definitely a thing.

Desire for routine or at least control over the routine can show up in ADHD, esp as a means of controlling one’s own condition. the routine may not look like a routine to others lol

Oh man, you can’t pin the whole field down based on the actions of Better Health. Therapy apps are notoriously predatory. The message cannot be “Don’t use Telehealth”. The message is “Do not use therapy apps like Better Health and Cerebral”.

If you reach out to a proper outpatient therapy clinic and request telehealth appointments, you will meet with a therapist on specific HIPAA compliant software that medical practitioners use throughout the country. The industry is highly regulated on these things. Part of why those predatory apps are such a problem is not just in how they underpay clinicians, give poor service to clients, or charge extortionary rates, but also because of how they use sleazy practices to undermine confidentiality and telemedicine as a whole.

So in short, if you go to a licensed clinician with a proper practice, you will have confidentiality as long as they have a license.

It doesn’t seem like it’s bringing you joy. You aren’t happy where you are, are you? Sometimes when an immediate pleasure keeps us afloat in a bad situation, it tends to make it easier to stay in that bad situation. And the more you seek satisfaction from gaming, the harder it is to get that satisfaction, right? Hence the negativity.

If nothing else, try watching some Healthy Gamer videos. He has a great YouTube channel with a lot of topics that will be relevant to you.