It’s been a busy month here in our household. I was trying to squeeze in all my usual monthly client work into about 2 1/2 weeks so I could take these last 2 weeks of the month off (mostly). Then, of course, there are the other normal regular life things going on – PTA, Brianna’s holiday functions at school, getting ready for Christmas and dealing with a sinus infection slowing me down for about a week.

I haven’t been taking my Adderall as consistently as I should. If I know I’m not going to be working, I often won’t take it, or I’ll only take it in the morning and not take my afternoon dose.  I also need to start journaling my symptoms better, even on the days I don’t take it, so I can get a better view of what the meds seem to be helping and what I need to be working on.

Like I said in a previous post, I am noticing a difference in my mental focus when I take it, as well as my fidgeting and my desire to do things “in a hurry”. I also had lunch and spent the afternoon with a friend today and helped her with a few things at her office. Partway through our time together I could feel my meds wearing off, but wanted to wait a little while until I took my 2nd dose of the day. I could feel myself getting a little more fidgety and noticed I was talking faster. When we sat down to lunch I took my meds and about 10 minutes later I started feeling “normal” again. I found myself speaking slower without having to think about it and not feeling the need to tear the straw wrapper into hundreds of little pieces (one of my fidgety habits). Something that totally took me by surprise was when my friend told me she was amazed to see how quickly it “changed” me. She said one thing she noticed right away after it “kicked in” was I finished sentences instead of jumping to another thought in the middle of the sentence. I didn’t even realize I did that!

So, after much thought and consideration I decided to get Brianna evaluated also since she is almost a mirror image of myself when I was her age. I do not want her to have to struggle with focus and studying like I did in school. Although I was on the honor roll, studying was almost painful for me. I scheduled a meeting with her teacher and we discussed a few things before I made her appointment.

Brianna was in rare form the day we went to the doctor (which was combined with my monthly check in). The child did not sit still the entire time we were in with the doctor. She was constantly walking around the room putting her hands on pretty much everything. I tried, in vain, to tell her to sit still, stay in one place, stop touching everything, etc. The doc said based on what I had told him about her at home and at school and “just being in the same room with her” (yep, his words), it was one of the easiest AD/HD diagnoses he’s had in a long time. So, we’re starting her on a light dose of Adderall twice a day. I’ll have to get all the paperwork done for her school so they can give her 2nd dose to her at school.

We’ve had a pretty good Christmas here in the household. We got a Wii! It’s GREAT! We’re having a great time playing games with each other. Even Delaney is able to play some of the games. JR’s enjoying it more that I thought he would. I’m much more SORE than I thought I’d be! That darn thing works muscles you forgot you had with some of those games…especially the ones you use the balance board for. I did all the yoga poses the other night just to try them all out…I could definitely feel it the next day!

Jackie and Shiner are doing great. They’re pretty much inseparable now. Shiner actually enjoys being around her. Jackie’s getting so big…she’s up to 30 pounds now. When the two of them get to running around the living room chasing each other it’s like a herd of buffaloes running through the house. Jackie’s gotten “sit” down pat and she’s pretty good at “stay”, so we’ve moved on to trying to teach her “down”.