Interview with Jakob Johnsson
When did your parents realize you had ADHD?
My parents wondered if I had ADHD when I was three. You can’t get diagnosed with ADHD in Sweden until you turn four, but often doctors want kids to wait until they are six because it’s best to observe symptoms over time. In my case, I had so many symptoms that I got diagnosed earlier than most kids.
What kinds of ADHD symptoms did you have as a child?
I had a wide range of ADHD symptoms. I was hyperactive, I couldn’t concentrate, I couldn’t control my moods and emotions, I had several phobias and ticks, I was aggressive, at times I blocked everything out and my parents couldn’t get my attention, and I generally didn’t do well in life.
Did your ADHD symptoms change when you became a teenager?
When I got older, my ADHD changed some. I became increasingly anxious and depressed on top of my other symptoms.
What was growing up with ADHD like?
My parents told me they were relieved when I got a diagnosis because they thought the doctors could help me, but that didn’t prove to be the case. I was definitely a trial for them. I had mood swings and was often aggressive, but the symptoms my parents hoped medicine would help didn’t change much during the rounds of medications.
What I noticed most from the pharmacist’s drugs was the horrible side effects! The side effects increased as I raised the dose, and eventually, I stopped taking medicine altogether. It feels like I spent part of my childhood living at BUP (Short for Psycharitry for children and youth in Swedish) because I was there so often.
What were some of the side effects you noticed from the ADHD meds prescribed by doctors?
The worst side effect was probably my lack of appetite. ADHD drugs suppress appetites which is great if you’re 45 and overweight, but terrible if you’re an underweight child. My parents tried everything to get me to eat, but I didn’t see the point when I didn’t feel hungry. Mom and dad worried I’d quit growing because I ate mouse-sized portions.
I didn’t feel like myself on ADHD meds. I felt less creative and emotionally blank. Unfortunately, the meds didn’t help me concentrate, and I continued to hit other kids and get into fistfights.
I couldn’t sleep while taking ADHD meds. When I finally did sleep, I had terrible nightmares and sleep terrors. I was often up at night wandering around, sometimes sleepwalking, sometimes not. My mom always followed me everywhere.
I didn’t realize how affected I was by the medications until after I quit taking them. When I only took Omega-3, I slept better and didn’t have nightmares. Sleeping better reduced my aggressive behaviors. Taking traditional ADHD meds became a perpetual negative spiral for me.
I know ADHD meds help some people. That’s wonderful if that’s the case, but I hope those who struggle on traditional meds read my story and try alternatives.
Did your ADHD greatly affect your schooling and what roll did ADHD meds play in your school years?
ADHD and ADHD meds negatively affected my years in school. I felt like ADHD meds changed my personality. I never felt like myself, and I changed medicines and doses more times than I could count.
I didn’t appreciate feeling different which caused me to not want to use the items teachers gave me to help me in school, for example, a laptop, because those things made me feel even more different.
It was hard to be the person in the class who always ended up causing problems and starting fights. I had horrible self-confidence, and I tried to smooth over my shortcomings by being the class clown.
There weren’t a lot of teachers who knew how to take care of a child with ADHD who had aggressive tendencies. Most kids with ADHD in school mainly had trouble concentrating and were hyper but didn’t end up in continual fistfights as I did.
Teachers had to pull me off other kids and sometimes hold my arms to keep me from hitting. They were concerned about other kids in my class, but having an adult keep me from hitting made me mad, evoked even more aggression! Often the school called my dad, who continually left work to pick me up when I got into fights.
I had a hard time in school. It’s a miracle I passed. They hired an extra teacher to help me, and he and my dad got me through school.
When did you stop taking traditional ADHD medicine?
Until around the age of 14 or 15, my parents let me try practically all the available ADHD Medications, and none of them had positive effects. At that point, my parents read about a study where Omega-3 helped ADHD and decided to take me off my meds in favor of a natural approach.
How did you realize that Omega-3 could help your ADHD?
As I said, my parents read an article about omega-3, and taking me off traditional ADHD meds was a great move. Everything was trial and error, and after all the recommended meds from doctors, I was ready to give natural strategies a chance.
I should say that one doctor I met for a short time recommended Omega-3 to help ADHD. He said some studies proved Omega-3 helped ADHD, but he told me to take Omega-3 along with my ADHD meds, and I didn’t notice results taking omega-3 and ADHD meds simultaneously. Other kids may see results by combining meds with Omega-3, but I didn’t.
I started taking Omega-3 pills by themselves, which suppressed my aggressive tendencies and helped me concentrate! I slept better and felt happy and harmonious for the first time!
What changes in behavior came about because you stopped taking traditional ADHD meds and started taking Omega-3?
It felt like I could concentrate for the first time in my life after taking omega-3 for some weeks. That led to feeling calm and happy for the first time.
Calming down helped me sleep, and after sleeping an entire night for the first time, I felt less rage, and I could better control my moods and emotions. The combined effect of all these changes was that I grew up and gained some self-confidence.
Did you get any help from BUP (Short for Psycharitry for children and youth in Swedish) other than prescribed medicine?
No, the waiting list for talking to a psychologist was long, and the doctors I met discouraged me from getting on the waiting list. They told me they couldn’t put me on the list just because I wanted to talk to a psychologist. I had to have an excellent reason for talking to a psychologist they said, and the fact that I thought it would help me wasn’t good enough. They literally told me that if they wrote my reasons on the application form to get on the waiting list, the paper would get rejected!
During the time I was at BUP, I saw it decline from a place where I had an excellent contact person who really seemed to care about me, to a place that no longer cared about individuals.
I had this awesome contact person for about a year when she called my mom at work all upset because the government decided to restructure BUP to save money and now those with ADHD wouldn’t have access to contact persons or extra resources.
BUP actually called demanding items back, items I’d been given to help me tell time and sleep better. My mom refused to send them back!
The decline of BUP is unfortunate. After they restructured, they seemed to only care about medicating kids. At first, we got a contact person because I took medicine, but he could only answer medicine-related questions and fill prescriptions. Still, it was better than nothing. After another year or so, they took that contact person away too! I remember my mom stressed out trying to call BUP because my prescription was running out, but she couldn’t get ahold of anyone for days!
Unfortunately, there isn’t much help for ADHD patients at BUP outside of medication. The doctors I met didn’t seem to care about the whole person. Perhaps they cared, but the medical system didn’t allow them to help outside of prescribing medicine.
I started doing better because my parents never gave up.
Would you choose not to have ADHD if you had a choice?
Honestly, I wouldn’t want to be without my ADHD. Yes, it would have been nice to have an easier time in grade school and middle school and more friends, but I’ve only taken Omega-3 for my ADHD since I was 14 or 15, and It’s great to feel that I finally function normally.
I feel that my ADHD gives me some advantages over my friends who don’t have ADHD. I have more energy and a stronger drive to do things. After I get home from work, I eat supper and head for the gym while most of my friends sit on the couch watching NETFLIX. Working out helps me control my ADHD and gives me a good night’s sleep. If I really want to renovate my apartment or participate in a sports competition, I have tons of drive to get it done. That’s probably what you call hyper-focus.
Do you have a girlfriend or close relationship? If So how are your close relationships affected by ADHD?
I met my girlfriend Linnea about three years ago. We worked together when we first met. She moved in with me about six months ago. I am so happy that I got my ADHD sorted before meeting her. Without Omega-3, I wouldn’t have a life partner. It would have been too complicated to live with me when ADHD was still controlling my life.
Thanks for letting us interview you!
The names have been changed in this interview to preserve privacy.
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Copyright Annie Eklöv