And The Wait Begins Again

It is no secret that the mental health services in the Uk are shocking, to say the least, but on top of this, it has knock-on effects on other services that some people may not think about. In my case, I have joined the long wait list for adults with ADHD who are looking to get help or support. 

I took the decision to get referred to adult ADHD services last month due to the fact that I'm finding things more difficult than I used to. Concentration, staying on task, and finding enjoyment and fulfilment from completing tasks just seems to have waned for me in recent months and years. 

My Experience with ADHD

There was a time when I would be more than happy to simply get lost in a task for hours on end without any thought, but now, we are in a situation where I have to actively fight myself to stay on task and get things done. I have to have a constant battle to even do things I enjoy, and many things that I don't enjoy have simply fallen by the wayside. My house is a mess, I'm eating rubbish because it is quick and easy, and most importantly I'm not being productive when I really need to be. 

The Need for New Medications

Now, the answer to fixing this problem is not as simple as you would think. it will probably involve counselling of some kind, therapy, or some kind of other long-term treatment while at the same time trying out new medications. I have been on the same ADHD medication since I was 14 and the max dosage of that for a good chunk of that time. 

The Broken System

So, the need for new meds is well and truly known me both me and the medical professions who deal with me. But they can't do anything about it, ADHD meds are amphetamines and are needed to be strictly controlled and regulated. This means that not all doctors can prescribe them, instead, it needs to be someone who has the background and training to deal with the meds, their side effects, and the risks that come from the meds. 

I'm not usually the person who you are used to seeing content from on this blog but I wanted to share my thoughts and my story. The system is broken, not only in the UK but in much of the world, no matter what we do we are forever beholden to the standards and struggles that are caused by the system. So the question has to be asked how do we fix it? 

That is a question that has been asked many times, and the truth is there is no real easy fix. The people who have the required expertise required just are not that plentiful and the training takes both time and money that the system is not willing to provide. 

Moving Forward

We could try to move some of the workload away from the prescribing doctors and onto support staff but that has already been extensively done and it needs to be asked how much more of that work can we move over without harming patients or their care... 

I don't know the answer, but I know we need to find one sooner rather than later. 

Thanks for reading,

Spec