- To Change Your Mind - Details Matter
ADHD and PTSD Connected
Dodson Dysphoria and ADHD
June 25, 2013ADHD Depression – The Kelsey Score
July 8, 2013
Life, War & ADHD Can Encourage PTSD
ADHD Interferes With PTSD Recovery
Remember: PTSD interferes with ADHD recovery as well. The complexity of ADHD and PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder] challenges find counterproductive links at every turn. Both inevitably stand directly in the way of correcting the other problem. If you miss either one, the other will prove almost untreatable.
Too often with failure of treatment of one side or the other of the ADHD/PTSD equation, substance abuse, refractory depression, hopelessness and suicidal thinking result. There's no way out if you miss any part of this challenging clinical picture.
Both public and professionals must look more closely at both ADHD and PTSD simultaneously. Yes, they can be treated together.
The PTSD Problem
So many who suffer with PTSD from childhood trauma, war, marital discord, sexual abuse/rape, a tyrannical boss, can all create negative experiences that become branded in the brain – branded in implicit memory, unavailable to explicit memory and beyond adaptive memory networks in the brain. EMDR and ADHD treatments delivered in the same time context can provide remarkably effective results for these complicated situations.
Remember: I live in a military town here in Va Beach. At our practices I see parallels with life, war, ADHD and PTSD everyday. We've been talking about these issues for years – and, quite reassuringly, many are listening.
Attention Talk Radio Comments
To keep you up to date on these ADHD/PTSD matters I'm including here a link to my coming interview at Attention Talk Radio, already in the can, with Jeff Copper and Kirsten Milliken. The interview is scheduled to air July 3 at 8PM EDT for your review.
References: PTSD and ADHD, PFC Connected
Some ADHD, prefrontal cortex, PTSD references for your review:
1. Psychology Today: PTSD: Is the amygdala hijacking the brain?
2. Neuroscientist 2009: PTSD: The role of the medial PFC and amygdala.
3. Psychiatric Times '08: Neurobiology of PTSD with excellent pdf diagram of PTSD, PFC and other brain structures
The complexity of ADHD/PTSD recovery becomes considerably less challenging if both conditions receive effective attention.
cp
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16 Comments
Well Doctor…this article was written a few years ago, right around the time my new psychologist suggested I have ADHD. I went to see her about my PTSD. HA!
That night I went home, dug out my box of memories (photos, birth records, report cards – yes my family did save them all) After looking at the comments section of my report cards from grade 2 through 8 (went to parochial school in the 1960’s) the light bulb went off. My gosh! The comments from all those grades, and the comments my mother has said to me over the years…oh my.
So now I’ve got all the particulars. My ACE score turns out to be a five. All the pieces of the puzzle have been put together – I got all the family history of abuse, the older sister’s emasculation of me as a boy, the beatings, rapes, etc. WOW!!!!
So anyway…the new psychologist and I have been working this past 1.5 years together. Just having this knowledge was an eye opener. And now I’ve discovered this article which I will show my doctor as well.
Many thanks for this wonderful article.
I once lived in the Tidewater area and remember the “Dogs and Sailors Keep Off” signs around town…yes – I was a sailor!
Matthew,
Sometimes it does take years to peel those layers away. Always remember, on looking back, that your persistence did pay off – you didn’t quit. I see so many who deny their own reality right there in the office because they swallowed the Kool-Aide from blame and superficial thinking. It’s great that you have a good therapist, and that you’re turning your life around. Well done!
cp
[…] when the Cavendish Gang ambushed he and his Texas Ranger buddies in Box Canyon – – and he, in PTSD fashion, swore anonymous vengeance for the rest of his life on the bad guys that killed his Texas […]
[…] Problems: 136. Abuse (sexual, physical or emotional) 137. Exposure to Traumatic Events (house fires, major motor vehicle accidents) 138. Domestic Violence 139. Loss by separation or death […]
[…] ADHD and PTSD Connected […]
I appreciate you writing this. I notice it was written almost a year ago. I have both PTSD and ADHD. Few understand that the combination can be so…. overwhelming. I’m in the process of writing a blog post about adult ADHD and PTSD and how family members and friends should approach the issue.
Thank you for your encouragement. It may not sound like encouragement, but someone acknowledging my reality is a huge weight off of my heart.
Sarah
Sarah, Thanks, hope this does help, and appreciate partnering w you on your journey. The two problems are almost never connected – and the bias, the innocence, and the outright denial of the challenges with the combo prevent treatment for hundreds, likely thousands.
Press on.
– With you!
cp
I suffer from PTSD and ADHD but I have not been able to find a psychologist or psychiatrist to treat them at the same time. I feel like I am loosing the battle. Do not know who to turn to. Have had Adderall, Concentra, and Strattera which caused more side effects. Can anyone help or have suggestions as to where I might get help?
Xavier,
Please go to http://corepsych.com/services and give me a brief chat call scheduled thru Desiree and we can talk about options.
cp
[…] ADHD and PTSD Connected […]
[…] ADHD and PTSD Connected […]
Thanks for the reply and info. I am trying to get my husband to see a psychologist ‘out on town’ that specializes in this, but he tells me the military/tricare will not allow it. If you have time, could you please offer me some advice/info on how he is supposed to get REAL treatment?
When he went in for help, he told them explicitly that he didn’t want medication thrown at him, he wanted actual ‘life skills’ type of therapy in learning how to progress with ADHD. He told me that as a kid, he never had any type of therapy/discussion etc. they just medicated him. He had pretty bad side effects and problems (ritalin) that no one ever cared to deal with, listen to, ask about…so he was very much against going in for help this time. I kind of feel responsible, because I told him he needed help and to give it another chance. Now, we are seeing that it is the same scenario playing out all over again even though they were supposed to be giving him CBT, he has only seen his psychologist twice in 3 1/2 months. That is just not adequate in my opinion. It should be once a week or so for a while, to get him back on track, you know?
Sorry to rattle on, but as you can see I am quite frustrated and disappointed with the care he is receiving and know he needs better treatment.
Thanks for your compassionate care and time.
Carla
Carla,
I’m developing a group of Coaches that go beyond simply ‘getting it.’ The group on this page gets the coaching, the life skills points, and most have virtual practices so you don’t have to go anywhere: http://www.corebrain.org/corebrain-coach-partners/.
These folks are some of the best in the country and get the med/biomedical management piece entirely.
cp
I was very excited when I came across this article, but even more excited when I started to investigate this blog more fully. OMG I have always, always been an avid “believer” in spec/brain imaging as a guide to help diagnose/treat people with these types of issues. I am more biologically inclined than esoteric so I think I have found a good place to start educating myself about ADHD…and all that goes with it. Thank you so much for this. I wish I still lived in Chesapeake so my husband and I could just go to you guys.
I was officially diagnosed with adult ADHD yesterday. This was upsetting yet validating. I guess people would call this a silver lining situation because now there is a glimmer of hope for me. The trouble is, is that I have also been diagnosed with PTSD (years ago and rather recently) and am having a hard time finding literature/information about coping/treating/medication for the two. Its kind of like, don’t give the manic dynamite it seems lol. So, what now?
All of this came about for me due to educating myself about my husbands disorder. Everything fell into place. It was a eureka moment for sure. My situation is made a bit more complicated because we are a military family (tricare, military treatment facility cattle chutes. My PCM actually refused to refill my ativan prescription, told me I didn’t need it-I was having panic attacks and had a driving phobia so bad, well, I couldn’t drive!) and that is just a hot mess when dealing with mental health in any capacity. Like stimulant medication. They just don’t care about real, effective treatment. I know this because of watching what has gone down with my husband’s supposed treatment for ADHD by them. “We don’t give stimulants on this base.” That was the second lie told that day by his psychologist. Great way to build trust, I say. His Concerta stops working after two weeks, they say, “Here take wellbutrin. We don’t believe in prescribing more than one drug at a time for any reason. Strattera is still your best option…etc.”
I have to see my psychologist, who can’t prescribe meds, but can give me information about them from a “mom’s point of view”-her son has ADHD, but not from an adult’s perspective. Now, I have a letter from her to give to my primary care doctor, who most likely doesn’t know the difference between all of these meds much less which ones are for adults (because tricare won’t cover it at all if it is prescribed off label, as in the case of Intuniv or Provigil).
My psychologist left it up to me to decide if I wanted to start “therapy” with her regarding my PTSD and ADHD. Not like, I will refer you to someone else, but like, o.k. we are done unless you need my help…I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense, but I got the feeling that she was shuffling me out the door and I was on my own. Is it unusual to send patients on their merry way after diagnosing them with something like this? I mean, shouldn’t we, you know, talk about it and what changes may come down the pipe or something?” I wanted to say that but didn’t. Instead I just came home and got on google and found this awesome information. Again, thank you.
Carla
Jax, FL
Carla,
You hit the nail on the head – as the standard of care is dead set, most of the time, against good medical care for ADHD issues, for anxiety – any meds w a controlled substance.
Best bet, go civilian and find a person specializing in ADHD and be done w it. We see these probs here at the Naval Regional Med Center, but not so much at Boone Clinic and the outlying med clinics.
Hang in there, answers are there, but just sometimes hard to find. Do sign up for updates, and take a look at this link for specific training for the public: http://corebrain.org/reality
Thanks for your kind remarks,
cp
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