[cpsns]

I'm not the GP, so I don't get to make that call. If they say no that's the end of the story. It's frustrating, but ultimatly just how it is.

There's no possibility of a second opinion either because I'm really damn lucky to even have access to a GP, the waiting list for one is ~3-4 years long right now if you don't already have one.

[iokanuon]

That's crazy. Where do you live? In Poland I just skipped the insurance system to get ADHD meds and went to a psychiatrist specialising in ADHD privately - $70 for a 20 minute visit seems a bit steep but it's better than waiting years.

Could you possibly do something similar?

[cpsns]

No, that's impossible. I live in a Canadian province where the provincial healthcare situation is very, very bad.

There are no private doctors and private psychiatrists are not legally allowed to perscribe. ADHD medication is controlled so only NPs, GPs, and (I think) psychologists are permitted to write a script for it.

Basically there are no options for me except the ones I have already taken, short of moving to a different province thousands of kilometers away.

[vonseel]

Can they prescribe non-stimulant ADHD medications? I imagine those are less-strictly regulated.

My previous psychiatrist said he's had some luck with patients on stimulants lowering their stimulant doses and adding a non-stimulant treatment like Strattera, but his patients rarely had success stopping all stimulants and taking only Strattera. That's just one docs opinion, but having been treated for adhd for 15 years, it doesn't surprise me.

So, consider yourself lucky you don't already need stimulants to get by. Some of the newer non-stimulant options may be effective for you, and you won't have to deal with the "druggy" aspect of being on stimulants for work. Stimulants can seriously affect your life, both positively and negatively. You might be able to get things done that you never would have done before - I felt like I was finally able to compete at a normal level when I started - but you might retreat from society at the same time, be less interested in spending time with loved ones or building relationships, and then there's all the short-term side-effects like trouble sleeping or losing interest in eating.

Basically my experience has been a double-edged sword and it's bittersweet. For every way that it's benefited me, ADHD meds negatively affect me in some other way and it's hard to quantify the net balance.

[cpsns]

> So, consider yourself lucky you don't already need stimulants to get by.

I wish that were the case, I've been heavily "abusing" Redbull and Claritan-D (non-drowsey with sudafed, I found this helped purely by accident a few years ago) for years just so I can barely function enough to hold down a job. It's probably part of why my blood pressure is so bad in the first place.

I have to put literally all the energy I have into work, by the time 1700 rolls around I have no energy left to give for anything, I just crash. Most nights even getting supper is a huge ordeal, much less anything else.

Non-stimulant drugs might be an viable option, I haven't inquired about that yet, but I intend too.

I apreciate you giving a small window into what the medication has been like for you. How it would affect me and how I'd change on it has been one of my main concerns should I somehow actually get perscribed anything. At this point I'd try anything because the older I get the less sustainable this all becomes.

[pcthrowaway]

Medical tourism is an option too, I think. If you visited a doctor in another country, and obtained a prescription, you'd be allowed to bring it with you back to Canada, right?

[cpsns]

> you'd be allowed to bring it with you back to Canada, right?

You’d never be able to get a foreign prescription filled in Canada, federal and provincial regulations forbid that. Brining medicine back would be fine, but then you can’t get more without an expensive flight again.

If I lived near the US border I’d just get an American doctor and get prescriptions filled in America, but I’m nowhere even remotely close to the border.

[hericium]

You may need special permits to move scheduled substances across borders. ADHD meds can even be problematic between EU states.