Tell HN: Get yourself checked for ADHD, depression, etc.

7 points

3 years ago

In the previous 2 years I've discovered I've had a slew of diagnoses for most or all of my life. I didn't realize these things because I had systems in place to cope. Through recent conversations with people who were diagnosed years ago, I realized I had many similarities with them. This was more impactful than reading a list of symptoms because somehow I can convince myself that my symptoms aren't as bad, but I can ask clarifying questions from people who have these diagnoses. I think that's because of the systems I had in place to cope. But if I look at the symptoms, and take the questionnaires, assuming my systems are not in place, then it becomes glaring obvious.

I'm not sure what heuristic to apply to decide if you should get tested. If I traveled back in time 4 years to convince myself I had these issues I probably would've asked, "is your physical, emotional, and mental health _perfect_? Think deeply about the ways and places that it isn't, and talk to a licensed professional about them. Assume you have diagnoses until proven otherwise." But of course I'm not a licensed professional so I have no idea if that's a good way to look at it for others. It works for me though.

## Questionnaires

This is not an exhaustive list of course. If you think you may have X, you can probably find the official questionnaire online.

1. Depression: https://patient.info/doctor/patient-health-questionnaire-phq-9

2. ADHD: https://add.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/adhd-questionnaire-ASRS111.pdf

3. Anxiety: https://adaa.org/screening-generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad

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