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Unless you just generally like looking up medical conditions on the internet for fun, you're here because you think you or another adult you love might have ADHD. And if you do just generally like looking up medical conditions on the internet for fun then please put down your phone and step away from the WebMD as soon as possible. Take a nap, take a walk, give yourself a break! Otherwise, welcome! Pull up a chair and a cup of coffee, or tea, or a fidget cube. I use a handy fidget pen. I'm Dr. Jared DeFife, a psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia and today we're going to talk about: how do I get tested for ADHD? But first remember to subscribe below and click the bell to get notified when new videos release.Here we go! If you're an adult and you think you have ADHD, just reaching out for help is probably not the easiest thing to do. ADHD can make it really difficult to get started on things, get organized, execute a plan, and get important things on the schedule in the first place.To get diagnosed with ADHD you have to do things like: find a clinician, call a clinician, schedule an appointment, show up to that appointment... on time. It's like a whole detailed list. And keeping to everything on a list probably isn't one of your strong suits. But here's the thing about all of that stuff. Despite all the aggravation and coordination that it takes to get evaluated, getting good quality help is so worth it. If you have undiagnosed ADHD, you've probably already been struggling with things like getting started on things, managing your finances without late fees...oops... following through on all those big ideas and big projects that you'll figure out someday...not today. Showing up to things on time, turning things in on time, paying your bills on time, getting to sleep on time, getting out of bed on time, eating meals on time, pretty much anything to do with time. Taking care of yourself and your health, making and keeping good relationships. That's right, unmanaged ADHD affects so many areas of our adult lives. It's almost like stumbling around bouncing into walls without your glasses on or getting nowhere because you can't remember where you left your car keys. Pro tip: forgetting your glasses all the time and losing your car keys frequently may be signs you have ADHD. Now, before you say "well everybody loses their car keys sometimes so everybody must have ADHD". Well, everybody's heard a Taylor Swift song at some point, but it doesn't mean there's no such thing as a hardcore Swiftie..they're out there, they exist, and it's the frequency with which things happen that matters. ADHD is real. It's the subject of thousands of research studies and it affects millions of adults in the US. Okay, but besides internet quizzes and satirical unofficial test videos on YouTube ...see the link below for a few chuckles... how do I know if I actually have ADHD? To quote famed ADHD researcher Russell Barkley from his book Taking Charge of Adult ADHD, he says to get started get evaluated. But before you do here are two key pieces of information to know about adult ADHD evaluations. Number one: there's no magic test for ADHD. this isn't wizard school, Harry...wait, am I allowed to use the name of a specific wizard school or am I going to get sued? Okay this isn't a ... Harrison and there's no magic sorting headgear to put on your head - I hereby proclaim you RufflePuff, inattentive type. There's no special puzzle task, brain scan, blood test or computer game that will naturally tell you if you have ADHD. It just doesn't work that way. Instead psychologists and other clinicians, psychiatrists, social workers, counselors use a variety of tools as part of a detailed assessment process. The most important tools that any clinician will use as part of the assessment process are right up here: their ears and their brain...because good quality clinical interviewing is still the most effective "gold standard" tool for ADHD assessment So that means that your clinician is going to ask you questions...a lot of questions...like all the questions... and they should listen to what you have to say. Also your clinician should collect a lot of standardized numerical questionnaire data to compare your results against scores of tons of other adults who have or haven't been diagnosed with ADHD. Don't worry, there's no math involved, and definitely no scantron forms...just a whole bunch of paper and pencil questionnaires. All this means is that this process takes time. An ADHD diagnosis doesn't happen in a quick 20 minute visit. Your clinician should spend time getting to know you and your experiences, and if possible someone else who cares about you and knows you pretty well.. wait what?!?! Yeah, see one of the things about people in general that is especially true of adults with ADHD is that we aren't always the best observers of our own behaviors. That means with your permission of course it's always a really useful idea to include third-party information from family, friends, or people who know you well if they're trusted and available. Along those lines you should try to have any of your records available from medical exams, previous therapists, angry letters from your third grade teacher about that time you failed to complete your science project on time and instead hastily threw together a baking soda volcano from the cafeteria mashed potatoes during lunch time. Basically any information that helps your clinician get to know you and your history better. Also you should have a general medical exam to rule out problems that can look like ADHD: things like blood sugar problems, hearing problems, sleep disorders, and more so check with your physician... You HAVE been keeping up with your regular medical check-ups right? and flossing your teeth, right? Good. Finally, some clinicians might use some educational performance tasks to learn more about your general level of cognitive functioning or memory and get detailed information about things like learning differences or disabilities. Now, others may use types of scanning equipment or computerized tasks of attention and performance but it's important to note that there's some disagreement about the effectiveness of using these kind of measurements for the purposes of diagnosing ADHD. There is no clear link between ADHD and IQ and many task based assessments either weren't specifically designed to assess ADHD or they miss a substantial percentage of adults who actually have ADHD but still do well on the tests. Why is that? Well, those kind of assessment tasks are short, they're novel and interesting like a video game, and they don't tend to accurately reflect the kinds of complex skills and situations we actually have to navigate in the real world...things like managing our social relationships, cleaning out and organizing your closet, or dodging through rush-hour traffic to get to a new place you've never been before and actually finding a way to show up on time. Now that you've learned a little bit more about what to expect from an ADHD evaluation, it's time for point number two.Find a knowledgeable professional. While there are different types of licensed clinicians who can properly diagnose a range of mental health conditions, evaluations for adult ADHD are usually conducted by clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, neuropsychologists, or behavioral neurologists. This next part is unfortunate, but most importantly don't just assume that any clinician you see inherently knows much of anything about adult ADHD. Heck, I didn't know that I had it and I graduated with a PhD in clinical psychology.. I even finished a clinical fellowship at the same Harvard training hospital as this guy that's Dr. Edward Hallowell, a psychiatrist who literally co-wrote a best-selling book on adult ADHD because he didn't know he had it either until late in his own clinical training career. For years, no for decades, I struggled with things like depression and anxiety and disorganization and social relationships and never once did any of the clinicians or physicians I saw mention anything about the possibility of ADHD. But I did struggle in so many different ways.There are some days I just wish I could go back in time and shout to so many people why did you miss this or why didn't someone just tell me? But I can't. I can only work with what I've got now, and that's a big part of why I'm doing something like this video right now, because I don't want other people like you to struggle and feel lost for the longest time like I did. So, if you suspect you have ADHD, get started by getting evaluated and get evaluated by a knowledgeable professional who will listen to your concerns, collect standardized information, and will talk to important people in your life and take your concerns seriously. If a clinician does all of these things, and then tells you I don't think you have ADHD and here's the data as to why... be open to hearing that, too. But whatever you do, don't give up, get help get support, it will be worth it.Check the description below for some links to additional information and directories to help you locate some resources near you. If you like what you've seen, please remember to subscribe, like, share and leave a comment below to let us know that you're here and any ADHD topics you'd like to learn about in future videos.Take care and see you next time!