Who to talk to for ADD treatment?

[Son of Samurai]

Hi, I was always a very disruptive learner at school. I have extreme difficulty concentrating on things for very long and so my studies suffer greatly. I am now 28 and have been out of school for 12 years, however I am about to comence full time study in a course that goes for 2 years. I really want to make a go of this however I am afraid that old habits die hard and that when I start this study I will be stuck in the same situation that I was in in my schooling days.

I have had many discussions with people and almost everyone agrees that I must have ADD to some degree or another. Having worked for 12 years in different jobs I never thought that it was going to be a problem, however looknig back on my work history it is obvious that it still does affect me and my working capcity. The only problem is that I don't know who I need to talk to to get something done about this before it affects my new studies. I went to the doctor a while ago and they sent me to a community centre but as I was working my time schedule didnt fit with theirs and I left it at that (this was about a year ago) and I dont really want to go back there as it didn't look too "proffesional" so I am unsure as to what therapy they were going to do (I have been scared emotionaly from when I was put into one of these types of centres and they tried "new agey" type therapy on me)

Anyways what do I do? Where do I go? I suspect a psychiatrist but do they charge a lot of money? I will not have very much money being a student but if it is whats needed I will go. Plz help.
I am in Geelong Victoria, If anyone knows of a good place to go in my area roughly or even in Melbourne to sort this out please let me know by PM or post it here.

Thankyou.

 

[hoptis]

In case you haven't seen it, this thread would be a good place to start:

Believe I have ADD. See GP or psychiatrist

 

[alphamonkey]

if you are student, why don't you see a dr. through your schools health services, its usually included in your tuition
in the US at least

 

[Son of Samurai]

ok cool thx hoptis, I read most of it and it basically says that one should see ones doctor and be refered by him to a psychiatrist becuase otherwise you wont get the medicare rebate. But I would still like to hear from anyone who has been treated for this condition by a receptive doctor or psych or whoever and has had positive results from the treatment. I really want to nip this in the bud (even though the bud is now 28 years old and hardly pristine) so yeah, anyone had a similar experience and knows of a good doc or psych to see?

Thx.

 

[basix]

Just ask your gp, if you cant afford a PSychiatrist tell your doctor and he should be able to refer you to one that will bulk bill.

When I saw a psychiatrist he just bulk billed me so I didnt have to pay anything.

 

[Son of Samurai]

Well, i went to my GP and she sent me to a community health clinic and after a series of questions sent me to a psychiatrist, so hopefully all should be good after my apointment on monday. She said for sure this guy will prescribe me what I need.

 

[aunty establishment]

That's good to hear and yeah, I hope you found a bulk billing psychiatrist because man it can get hefty if you're paying upfront.

That said, it can be a really good idea to get a second opinion (or even third) if you're uncomfortable with the psych, or his/her diagnosis in any way.

Something I've learned from recent experiences with psychs is that going in with your own diagnosis in mind can be a flawed approach. IMO only, better to explain your symptoms and let the doctor do his/her job without bias.