Submitted by scott on 06/30/2008.
Hi this is my first post here. I was diagnosed with ADHD about 3 years ago and was on Adderoll XR since then but have struggled to take it regularly and haven't taken it at all since last fall. Im gay and have been in a committed relationship the last 9 years. I work for myself as a contractor which I believe is very detrimental to me with ADHD. I struggle to finish projects and always have clients angry with me even though they love my creativity and are usually very happy with the project itself just unhappy with my inability to schedule and finish the most minor of details. I haven't been seeing my therapist and have admittedly let my treatment slip into the toilet. I had used my partners credit cards without his knowledge and amassed about 10,000 in bills on 2 cards, 99% of the expenses were related to my work and I thought I could pay them off without his knowing what I had done, a terrible mistake and fatal to our relationship. I do not have this behavior issue in other areas , I do not steal from anyone, although my partner says I have stolen from him by doing this, my brain doesn't process it like that but I bet everyone else sees it like he does. I am very sorry for what I've done and especially that it has ruined our relationship, he is such a great person and has had to deal with me and my adhd problems throughout our relationship. Most of my issues with ADHD manifest themselves in my financial life. I struggle to pay bills, I lost my health insurance last fall about the time i stopped my medication and quit going to my doctor. I know i need to get back to the doctor and get back on meds, they did help me a lot when i took them as directed. I don't know what I hoped to accomplish by posting here, I wondered if anyone else had such bad behavior, I feel so terrible about what I've done. Amazingly most all of our friends have contacted me to to tell me they love me and that they will help anyway they can. Well I guess I need to get packing, I have to move out of our house this week while he is on vacation, how could I have done this to someone who cared so much for me? I don't blame him for having to end this, why should he sacrifice his happiness while I can't get myself together to be an equal partner in the relationship. He says that breaking the trust we had is what did the damage and I can see that. Has anyone else here had similar problems, did my ADHD cause me to do something so dishonest and hurtful?
Relationship broken
Submitted by MelissaOrlov on
If you had such a good relationship, why didn't you just ask him for the loan for your business, rather than sneak around with his credit cards? Was there something else going on?
You say you have many friends who will support you and love you. Take them up on their offers and get help with the following:
Your friends sound like an amazing support network. Stay connected to them - don't let your shame at what you've done keep you away from them - admit that this was a miserable learning experience, and then forgive yourself (while making a specific plan to get yourself back on track). The good news for you is that you actually are well on the road to knowing how to do this (meds work, network of friends, main issues are identified if not fixed yet). You have many good things going for you, so don't obsess about your mis-step...as they say - if the horse throws you, get back in the saddle (is there a gay double entendre there that I need to worry about?!)
Melissa Orlov
relationship broken
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on
broken relationship
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on
Broken Relationship
Submitted by MelissaOrlov on
He may have a case of "cold feet". But I guess I would ask you this question - if he does this now, how will you feel when he does something equally unexpected and big in the future? Are you of a personality that can handle big shifts, including having him "run away" again?
Perhaps "too comfortable" is another word for "not stimulated enough". That would fit in with an ADHD profile of seeking stimulation. You might ask him. There is also a chance that he has other feelings that are negative that he just hasn't shared with you because he didn't want to hurt your feelings.
Or, it could just be impulsive...though if that were the case, it would seem that he would be okay with your tagging along.
I guess I would ask as many questions as I needed to feel that I understood what was going on, and then make a decision as to how to move forward. But it might well be that the downside of his "sparkle" is inconsistency...in this case, severe inconsistency.
Best of luck figuring it out (I mean that honestly - there's no irony in that statement, though it might sound that way in writing.)
Melissa Orlov
Scott, I am so sorry to hear
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on
It sounds like your husband
Submitted by SunnyNights0909 on