Okay y'all. I have officially been diagnosed with #ADHD and I wanted to talk into the void about my experience getting the diagnosis. 1/

The @mcgillu wellness hub has been notorious for lack of resources and support. My initial attempts to get any appointment with a psychologist/psychiatrist were met with a lot of dismissals. The Office for Accommodations told me they didn't have openings until Jan. 2021 2/

However, what else to do during a global pandemic than attempt, again and again, to see the healthcare professional you need? 3/

Because of COVID, there were actually available appointments (they could only legally treat students physically located in Quebec). Within two days I had (miraculously!) met with a nurse, a GP, and a psychiatrist. 4/

A week later, I had another appointment with my psychiatrist. He asked me a series of questions (the appt was about 45 mins long) and confirmed a diagnosis of ADHD. Here are what some of the questions were like. 5/

Honestly, I was prepared for a lot of skepticism (how could I have good grades if I have ADHD? how did i make it all the way to my MA? I don't *look* like I have ADHD.... etc). 6/

BUT my doctor was.... really good? Very receptive to my concerns, very transparent about the process of diagnosis, the options I have if I get a diagnosis... 7/

I had my medication by the next day and I have been on it for one week now. And... holy s**t. ALL OF THESE THINGS that I thought were just like, personality quirks.... were actually part of #ADHD??? Constant internal screaming. Interrupting people. Forgetting e v e r y thing. 8/

On my first day of medication, I did a load of laundry. Like, I managed to complete the laundry from start to finish. It sounds silly but that is something that was very difficult for me before. It was weirdly emotional. 9/

Anyways, I say all of this because the only reason I realized I had ADHD was because of some random twitter post. And then I started looking into #ADHDtwitter. I found @ADHD_Alien's comic, which resonated with me so deeply I found myself sobbing at each one. 10/10

I think the most meaningful thing, to me personally, has been the ability to forgive myself. I spent my whole life being frustrated at my absent-mindedness. I thought, somehow, that other people were just inherently better than I am. But now I can work on changing that narrative.