Hi Kathy! Sorry to hear about an unsupportive family. TBH I think all gifted kids should get tested bc I swear like 80% are ADHDers/autistics/both. Unfortunately for a formal diagnosis you do need a doctor (as far as I know). If you’re just looking for self discovery you may find a self diagnose and utilizing ADHD tips to be enough. If you’re looking for medication/accommodations often you can get ADHD diagnosed for a psychiatrist. If you’re family isn’t resistive to psychiatric help, find one that is able to diagnose and just casually leave that part out of them. A psychiatrist can’t diagnose tics, but many in school accommodations for ADHD can help support tics. In terms of just going off on your own: ADHD people tend to find caffeine is hit or miss (calms them down and helps to focus a little or makes them dead tired). Some supplements have anecdotally shown minor improvements such as Dopa Mucuna. Some GP’s will be willing to proscribe non controlled ADHD meds (Strattera, guanfancine, or clonidine) without an official diagnosis. Be warned these are usually suggested intandum with a stimulant. Straterra can be pricey and only works for 50% of people with ADHD, but those who it works for it tends to be great. guanfancine and clonidine are both fairly cheap and are also tic medications. They generally are prescribed more for people who struggle with sleep since they make you dead tired (like take them night bc when taken during the day in an ADHD-Tourettes study 35% of pacientes dropped out bc the side effects were so bad). They often (but not always) won’t make too much of a difference for ADHD during the day if you take them at night, but just fixing your sleep schedule can be a huge improvement for some people. For tics study’s have shown Clondine/guanfancine taken once a day at night can make tics up to 30% better. (Honestly guanfancine and clonidine seem to be used to just treat everything it’s really funny). It’s important to note time and time again on average stimulants have shown to be the most effective ADHD med, but that doesn’t mean the narrative is helpless without access to stimulants!

I have severe anxiety and ADHD (and suspected autism) and I found that getting Lexapro through my GP to deal with my anxiety reduced my nervous tics and made it easier to manage my ADHD without medications. I hope this helps!

Hi Kathy, We have almost the same things, minus the tics. I have ADHD, anxiety, migraines, and GI issues. I recently joined the app “cerebral” for treatment of my ADHD. I live in an area where Dr’s really don’t take ADHD seriously, and I went to soooo many Dr’s looking for answers and they all just told me I was over-reacting and there was nothing wrong with me. Cerebral has been the BIGGEST help, and would be especially helpful for you with your family situation as you can keep it on the down-low. They have different packages, I signed up for the cheapest one which is $30 for your first month and $80 a month after that. That gives you one 30 minute session with a counselor, and one 30 minute session with a medication prescriber once a month. I felt more heard and seen in 30 minutes with the providers than I ever have with countless irl Dr’s. She immediately validated my ADHD, gave me coping mechanisms and help to move forward, and my prescriber gave me medication no questions asked, picked them up at my pharmacy the next day. Given your situation I think this app would be great for you if financially do-able.

not really what you asked, but Katty mentioned dopa Mucuna as a supplement that can help ADHD, I've found that it helps A TON. I function amazingly on it. only problem is the helpfulness fades after like a week then I have to up my dose for it to work again. many people do not have this experience though, I've heard of people finding consistent success with it for years and I think it's worth a shot if you need some help with your ADHD

are you in the US if so I can recommend a professional who is out of pocket pay only.