Can the symptoms of ADD, if undiagnosed and untreated cause Depression?

Question

I am struggling with depression right now and am almost certain i have ADD. But am not being treated for it.

Answer 1

It could cause depression in that it is hard to deal with ADD symptoms.  It also could be depression on its own.  I would get treatment.  I delayed on treatment and suffered longer than I should have or needed to.  I have bipolar disorder and was misdiagnosed by my primary care doctor.  I now have a psychiatrist and am getting proper treatment.

Answer 2

Maybe as a byproduct of the stresses one has to deal with ADD!

Answer 3

I wouldn't put it that way. Being diagnosed with ADD first and then later being diagnosed with depression doesn't necessarily mean one "caused the other."

Some people are diagnosed with both.

Attention Deficit symptoms overlap with symptoms of depression; loss of interest, lack of concentration.

Sometimes the same medication is used to treat both.

Sometimes I wonder if there is a really any significant difference between ADD and depression. Also, many people diagnosed with ADHD (with hyperactivity) are later diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. I'm not sure if these specific labels are really all that important.

I have worked with psychiatrists a lot and I have heard them admit that psychiatric diagnoses are pretty subjective when you compare them to physicial health problems. There are no lab tests to check if something is ADD or depression; you just have to go by the symptoms someone is having and treat it accordingly.

Answer 4

there have been several studies relating both diseases, but ADD is incredibly common in the population and many people with ADD don't become depressed.  there is no way to definitively tell if your two disease are related