Just before Katie Marsh dropped out of college, she began to worry that she might have attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) . “Boredom was like a burning sensation inside of me,” said Marsh, who is now 30 and lives in Portland, Oregon. “I barely went to class.
And when I did, I felt like I had a lot of pent-up energy. Like I had to just move around all the time.” So she asked for an ADHD evaluation — but the results, she was surprised to learn, were inconclusive.
She never did return to school. And only after seeking help again four years later was she diagnosed by an ADHD specialist. “It was pretty frustrating,” she said.
ADHD is one of the most common psychiatric disorders in adults. Yet many healthcare providers have uneven training on how to evaluate it, and there are no US clinical practice guidelines for diagnosing and treating patients beyond childhood. Without clear rules, some providers, while well-intentioned, are just “making it up as they go along”, said Dr David W.
Goodman, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioural sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. This lack of clarity leaves providers and adult patients in a bind. “We desperately need something to help guide the field,” said Dr Wendi Waits, a psychiatrist with Talkiatry, an online mental health company.
“When everyone’s practising somewhat differently, it makes it hard to know how best to approach it.” Can ADHD symptoms emerge in adulth.
