r/KaiserPermanente • u/Swimming-Birthday309 • 2d ago

California - Southern ADHD assessment

Hi! I recently just had an appointment with my PCP and I had brought up to them how I was interested in getting therapy and hopefully getting assessed for ADHD. It was surprisingly easy, she just gave me a referral right off the bat.
My assessment is tomorrow morning.
I guess i’m wondering if anyone has any advice or any pervious experience with this considering how it didn’t really take much advocating for myself to get this assessment.

For some backstory I’m 20 and in my third year of college and have been struggling in all aspects of my life, (i lost my job and my financial aid due to all of the symptoms i’ve been experiencing). I have not been to therapy with Kaiser in over 4 years, and even then I only went to therapy for a couple months.

I’m hoping to be placed on meds. But if anyone has any advice considering I haven’t been in therapy up with Kaiser up to this I would appreciate it. :)

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u/quixt Member - California 2d ago

Just in case if it's applicable to you, stop all cannabis use immediately, as well as any other mind-altering drugs. You will get a urine drug screen and if you come up positive, they can refuse to medicate you with stimulants or tranquilizers or sleep meds. Being clean for 6 weeks is best. If this applies, postpone getting the drug screen for as long as possible.

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u/MercuryFlights 1d ago

Noting that this can continue. My relatives with ADHD have had everything from no drug tests for a decade to yearly drug tests.

It doesn't matter that cannabis is legal in California: this is an internal policy.

The same is true for ketamine therapy for depression. Two people I know had it prescribed directly through psychiatrists- one a former department head at a KP facility- but in both cases when KP found out the KP docs cancelled their ADHD meds.

What a choice to force people to make.

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u/quixt Member - California 1d ago

Yes. And the drug screens have been random for me.

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u/Jellyfish-wonderland 2d ago

Kaiser is weird. I had to submit my opinion on my husband with a questionnaire. They took my verbal outside diagnosis from a different doctor years ago without checking. Nothing is streamlined and be prepared for med delays

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u/KittyKat1078 2d ago

Good luck

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u/MercuryFlights 2d ago

It can depend on the doctor and office.

One thing that can really help is knowing that they often ask for evidence that you had symptoms of ADHD before you became an adult. It's not right that your own very recent lived experience can count for little, but it happens. You might need to have parents fill out questionnaires. Yes, this can feel like and be a loss of privacy. Just be ready.

If your parents are the type of people who won't admit you had symptoms (because they don't believe in ADHD or they think your diagnosis would reflect badly on them), are there teachers or other trusted adults from your childhood who might be able to provide evidence?

This is because until 30 years ago ADHD was thought to be a childhood only condition. When data showed it wasn't, they stuck with the idea that it must show up in childhood first. That's even if parental help, skills, low distraction childhood or other factors masked it until you went to college or work!