Referral letter

Alhamdulillah. This time it has been very easy. Went to Klinik kesihatan Presint 11. At 3 pm and nobody is there except for 3 nurses and a doctor. That is what i love going to path less taken. Outsider dont even know this place exist..

After 5 minutes my name is up. Went inside and met the doctor. When i told him, he cant believe his ears. He told me to describe what i felt.. So i told him everything. He pull out  a sheet of paper and started scribbling. And in 5 minutes i got my Referral letter. Yay!!!

Now What?

I was supposed to bring the letter to hospital putrajaya. But being easily distracted and impulsive, i decided to drop by to doublecheck the place i was supposed to go.

So i went inside and met the nurse that i met last time. Kak Noraini. So i sat down with her and she asks me about the letter. So i gave it to her and after looking at it she says..

I think the doctor can only see you in 4 month.. if i'm not mistaken.

WHAaaaaaaat?!!

Luckily with my vibrant personality i manage to coax her to double check. And after some phone calls she finally says..

Is it ok for you if we have your appointment on 2 April?
-Yesss!!

BTW can you help me to fill up this DSM form. Its for depression and anxiety. its for mental health screening

So i did fill the form (published by HOSPITAL BAHAGIA ULU KINTA) and got a score of 15.. what does it means?

If you got a score of 14 and above they may refer you for further analysis. But since i have ADHD that may not be valid (because they asked about me being forgetful, not being able to sleep, ability to wake up with feeling refreshed.mind jumping like racing)

so thats it.. just waiting for my appointment with the specialist... :)

Getting Diagonsed

There are two ways of getting help. Please contact your healthcare provider and see how they do it. Basically in Malaysia there are two ways of getting diagnosed. If you have tons of money - Hey.. we ADHDer are generous right? You can just find a licensed Psychiatrist. Not Psychologist - or counselor or marriage counselor. Sometimes these people are the same people. And just kick the couch image thing. You are not Demented ( sans Dementor),  ADHD is clinical disorder.

So how to get Diagnosed my way ?

First, i emailed Hospittal Putrajaya Head of Psychiatry Department Dr. Azizul. I asked him about ADHD Screening. As i send the email on a saturday, i do not expect any reply until monday - have some empathy you guys. But i have to send on saturday -lest i forget.

On Monday around 8am , i recieved a reply. Wow. It must be his first order of the day.. So basically he told me to get a referral letter first from Klinik Kesihatan. Then only can they set an appointment for diagnosis. So, with joy, i called Pusat Kesihatan Mental Komuniti Putrajaya for referral - At first the nurses there transfer me to Help Desk. The nurses there is helpful, and after brief consultation, they say i can come.Not for referral letter but for diagnosis straightaway! WOW! They say it will take about 45 minutes so if i come around 4 it should still be ok.

So, at 3.45 pm on that day, i manage to get to the clinic. It is situated inside Putrajaya Quarters. So I just went where they said registration and waited for my turn impatiently.

At 4.50 pm,  am the last patient. I casually walked to the Doctor and asked for the diagnosis. The doctor looked at me? You came for diagnosis at 4.50? seriously?

- The nurse tells me to come at 4. But after that i just wait for it la
-Who? Did he tell you his name?
- Its a lady, And its For ADHD
-Ooo. I`m sorry sir. Actually you are at the wrong clinic.
-Whaaaaaattt???
-Its Next door. We only have male attendant here today picking up calls. Its Ok... I`ll transfer you there.

So.. controlling my impulsive anger - Not anybodys fault really, I went Next Door.

-Encik..i thought you wont come. I have been meaning to contact you but you didnt leave any contact number.
-Err.. Akak said its ok to come right....? I waited next door for 1 hour and they ask me to come here..
-Actually the diagnosis that we have is for depression. For ADHD you have to get a doctors referral letter. You can get it at the clinic Next Door..
-Whaaaat? So i have to go back there

So I rushed back next door but as it is already past 5 pm. They are already close. I chatted with the nurse for a while and told me that i can go to Klinik 1 Malaysia to get the letter.


So next day i went to klinik 1 Malaysia. Thank god the registration is fast, and after 15 minutes i managed to meet the doctor.. After some consultation here are the bombshell...

Sorry encik, but i have to tell you something..
Yup, what is it?
Actually i`m Not a Doctor. I`m Just a Medical Attendant. I cant issue you this letter.
Whaaaaaat?
Yup.Only a Few Klinik 1 Malaysia have doctors insode. Most of them is Medical Attendant like me..
Whaaaat?
Errr... you have to go to Klinik Putrajaya to get the paper..


So.... its back to square one..


So Today i`m going to putrajaya (again) to get a letter for me...

See how its goes

Now What? Take online Screening Quiz

Ok, you have been reading about ADHD and suspects that you have one. Err.... helloooo... missing your car key and procastination is not ADHD. Its just one of the symptoms but it is not one. Maybe you are depressed at work. Maybe you have bipolar... Uh oh.

The first steps i did take is a quiz. When i do this i have no idea what the questions are. Maybe its just like those personality quiz.. but really when i answer it just spot on.. I have been feeling like this forever man..

Take this quiz. Here is one

http://psychcentral.com/addquiz.htm

And if you want, you can search for other quiz. Mainly its free. But dont bother to take the paid one. ADHD is not diagnosed via online. Its just screening.

My Score? 48! Unbeliavable

So Next Step is Getting properly diagnosed

Where Do I Begins?

Where Do I Begin?

Well, if you are looking for info on ADHD, this is not the place for you. I`m not a doctor, and i`m not even officially diagnosed with ADHD (yet!) I`m sure there`s plenty of resource out there for help with ADHD.

So, Why bother? Well, this is my account of my journey. When i first suspect that i have Adult ADHD, there are nearly no local resources for support and help. People are not aware of this condition, and people thinks its affect only children. Even health workers have nearly zero awareness of this condition. They cant even fathom how a 34 years old adult can even have ADHD!

So, let me tell you what ADHD is using my favourite analogy - Imagine your brain is like Intel i7 Processor. For normal task, you only use 1-2% of the CPU Power. For high level thinking, you may use 80 or even 100% of the processing power. But the CPU will not utilize 100% all the time. This may cause overheating.

Then imagine ADHD brain as a CPU that runs 100% all the time. Even when you sleeps. The brakes and speed regulator is simply missing. And imagine using 100% power to do simple task. That extra power will make the brain to seek anything to do and spend the extra energy. Thats why ADHDers have very limited attention span. The brain will react to whatever stimuli. For example while writing this an aeroplane flew by and i am squirming to know what type it is, what destination and while at that whether that place have any nice food or hotels..

See - i was telling you about why i did this blog, and we end up in a hotel in Male (look it up, real nice- they have this one island one resort policy)

Okay, KISS (Keep It Short and Simple)(actually its more popular as Keep it simple, Stupid). But to make this Blog family friendly we shall (Not Pass - Gandalf the Grey) not use any harsh words.

Have you noticed? This is a glimpse of ADHD mind. I can write rally fast, but due to my impulsive trait i tend to make silly mistakes and i tend to write offensive and inappropriate things. Things that will hurt your feelings. Thats why i can take a long time to write an article. I have to proofread and do self editing.

Bottom line - i hope this will inspire you to get tested for ADHD - An early diagnosis would really help a lot, it would help you to know yourself and your abilities much sooner. It will help to strengthen your family ties and relationship and it will help you in your career and life.  And for skeptics out there who says that ADHD patients just made up this conditions to earn sympathy - That nothing a good discipline will not cure - Pray to god that your ADHD gene will not become dominant in your kids. Then only the joke is on you. Hahaha

Its not the bottom line - The actual bottom line is you can follow me and see whether i can survive or not.

End