Adult ADHD
What is ADHD?
Like other traits under the neurodivergent umbrella, ADHD is a natural genetic brain difference. It is not a disorder or something to be fixed. It is a naturally occurring neurotype. There are interventions, like medication, that can be helpful, but these interventions are not "curing" ADHD. Some of the stereotypical symptoms you might experience with ADHD are inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. The more subtle or different types of symptoms can also include not paying close attention to detail/making careless mistakes, struggling to follow through with instruction or organizing self, has challenges with working memory/ short-term memory, having a busy mind, easy to make friends but hard to sustain them, very sensitive to rejection or perceived rejection, feeling strong emotions, and being sensitive to sensory input.
Late Identified ADHD
Some ADHDers are missed or misdiagnosed. This is especially true for those who do not have the stereotypical presentation, which is a common experience for females. You may experience feelings or thoughts throughout your life like, "life is hard" or wonder "why can't I get it together?" or "how does every one else seem to do things with ease?" It can be common for people to "mask" their ADHD traits and go under the radar. It can also happen that people are misdiagnosed with Anxiety or Bipolar Disorder, for instance. If this is you or you wonder if ADHD is affecting you, it's never too late to seek a diagnosis or treatment.
Struggles of ADHD
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Disorganization and problems prioritizing
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"Time blindness" or trouble staying aware of and managing time
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Difficulty with starting a task or keeping the stamina or focus to finish
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Experiencing strong emotions
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Getting overwhelmed
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Moving between difficulty focusing or hyper focusing
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Feeling like the body and mind are always "on"
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Sleep interferences
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Lack of bodily awareness to personal needs like hunger
Strengths of ADHD
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Creative and inventive
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Hyper focusing to learn, create, and achieve
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Thinking "out of the box" and problem solving
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Spontaneous and risk taking to achieve dreams
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Energy and drive
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Having special interests/passions with loads of available knowledge
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Comfortable with change and flexible
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High empathy
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Quick thinking and humorous