- Andrea Troughton
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read

October 20, 2024
I was originally booked to follow up with my doctor about my ADHD assessment in mid-September—the day before my much-anticipated girls’ trip to Austin, Texas, where I was attending a three-day women’s jiu-jitsu and wellness retreat.
True to form, in the days leading up to my trip, I overstretched my schedule and was feeling beyond overwhelmed with everything I had to do before I left. In my frazzled state, I decided to reschedule my appointment for after my trip. Thanks to the state of our healthcare system, that meant it would be another month before I’d see my doctor.
Ultimately, this delay turned out to be a good thing. It gave me the time I needed to really think through my options.
When I first walked out of my psychiatrist appointment, I was flooded with relief, just knowing that there were options. I quickly made a plan to explore them, starting with a break from cannabis. After that, my initial idea was to begin treatment for anxiety and, depending on the outcome, proceed to explore treatment for ADHD afterward.
But as I took more time to consider my options, that plan didn’t feel quite right.
After six years in therapy and countless hours spent reading, writing, and learning about mental health, anxiety, personal development, mindset change, attachment styles, grief, trauma, and behavior change—I’m not going to say I’ve mastered my anxiety, but I’ve definitely developed a vast and powerful skill set to help manage it.
I’ve used those skills time and time again, and they’ve helped me accomplish and experience so much. I’ve left relationships that didn’t serve me and developed deeper connections in relationships that do. I’ve changed many patterns of thinking and incorporated new behaviors that nourish me—mind, body, and spirit.
Do I still get anxiety? Absolutely.
Does it sometimes get the better of me? Sure.
But overall, I no longer fear ending up in a situation where anxiety takes the wheel.
When I shared my diagnosis with a good friend—who also has ADHD—she reassured me: “Of course you’re going to have anxiety. Having untreated and unacknowledged ADHD would make anyone anxious.”
At first, I felt a little defensive. It was like the idea that my anxiety might be caused by ADHD somehow diminished the validity of my generalized anxiety. I had subconsciously decided that anxiety was the real problem—so maybe I could just forget this whole ADHD business after all.
But she was right.
The more I thought about it and reflected on everything I’ve done to manage my anxiety up to this point, the more I could see that the things I still struggle with are different from—but just as valid as—my anxiety.
As I came to that realization and inched closer to my rescheduled doctor’s appointment, I had some decisions to make.