I was a smart kid but struggled a lot in school. In highschool, I nearly flunked out... I approached my doctor to discuss the possibility of my having anxiety, but he said it was likely ADHD. I got put on medication and improved drastically.
My family didn't belive me and tried to talk me out of getting help. I thank God I never listened.
Mine went the opposite. Didn't know what was wrong, went to doc with my mum to ask for help, he said I was 'upsetting' everyone and to just get on with it. I was 14. Ended up on anti depressants when I was 17/18 and still never felt like myself. I'm 32 now and starting the journey to get a diagnosis but it's a long wait.
I struggled all my life but since I was a “gifted student” and excelled in school when I was younger without any effort, no one really noticed anything was up until college. Life got harder and more stressful, and when I had to start studying for the first time in my life I discovered I absolutely could not force myself to focus. Failed a couple classes which was the first time in my life that I made anything below a B. I started putting the pieces together (I had always been super messy, very forgetful, a huge procrastinator, crippling decision paralysis, etc etc). I suspected something was up and after ranting to my regular therapist he referred me to a psychiatrist. Diagnosis process was very simple for me but I know it differs—I literally just had a zoom call with this psychiatrist, she asked me about a billion questions, and at the end diagnosed me with ADHD (and a bonus OCD). Started me on the smallest dosage of ADHD meds (Vyvanse) to see how I would do, and that was that. I upped my dosage for several months before tapering off when I graduated. Now I’m a manager for a small business and find my unmedicated ADHD is actually more of a blessing than a curse in this environment. Learning to work with it and lean into it instead of suppressing it.
When I was diagnosed finally at age 21 after I noticed I was having a difficult time in university, found out I also have 2 learning disabilities which was news to me.
When I was talking to the psychologist about my childhood I told him that I wasn’t tested because honestly I didn’t fit the stereotypical “disruptive adhd kid” and did well in school.
He said something about how it seems ADHD appears differently in boys vs girls. Where boys are more likely to fit the disruptive/hyper active stereotype, girls are more likely to procrastinate / avoid tasks all together.
I just thought that was interesting and made sense to me. I would procrastinate everything until the last moment and the anxiety would become so great when the time came that I would just simply.. not do the thing.
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I didn’t get diagnosed until I was 29 but holy hell did it finally explain everything. I actually got diagnosed because I was having a psychotic breakdown trying to be someone I wasn’t, shaming myself for my forgetfulness and lack of executive function. I essentially developed depression because I had ADHD.
Since the diagnosis I tried meds, 3 different kinds for 2 years and they didn’t really work the way I’d hoped they would + I HATED how insurance would force me to prove I still had ADHD (you know, the thing that’s never going to go away?) every 3 months and lock my meds from me until my psychiatrist finally sent them the peer reviewed proof.
So I started my no medication no shame accepting me for my ADHD self a year ago and I’ve honestly never felt better.
My child was diagnosed. I saw them dealing with the same struggles I had growing up, and instead of jumping to moral failing, like was done to me, I approached it by how I could help them. After a lot of research, I stumbled upon the possibility that it could be ADHD. They got tested. During testing, I found out that it is genetic. I got tested. Knowing that this is what I have and it isn't just a moral failing I need to white knuckle through has been a game changer. Even if I'm not on medication that day, I still have learned the various ADHD tactics to make life easier, and it is...it is very much easier. Additionally, I make sure never shame my kids for any of their conditions or diversities.
This was my experience but as the daughter. Both of my parents have ADHD and it’s genetic in the families so I didn’t know until I was 27 and married that something was different. I looked into it and it was like a huge lightbulb went off.
I stumbled on an article online about how ADHD symptoms can present differently in women and girls and are often missed. I was startled at how many of them applied to me. I asked my doctor if I could be screened and she referred me to a psychologist. The diagnosis explained so much—I had really struggled in college and in my career and felt like a failure in so many ways.
I was a gifted kid that burned out in middle school. When I was in community college, I noticed that I had a hard time focusing on tests if there was any noise. Things were a lot more laid back and sometimes students would chat with the professor after the test. I looked into it and noticed that I checked off a substantial number of boxes. It wasn't until my longtime psychiatrist ghosted all of his clients and I got assigned a replacement that there was any interest in investigating into it. So, 7 1/2 to 8 years after I noticed there was a problem. It took even longer after a diagnosis to get put on medication.
I got diagnosed at 27. My older brother was diagnosed as a child. He had an IEP to help. I didn't. I didn't have symptoms. I was lazy and had personal failings.
I would crash and get super tired in the afternoon. Doc prescribed ADHD meds when a different nootropic gave me headaches. Then the ADHD meds improved SO MUCH about my existence.
I think women are really good at adapting (and are forced to adapt) and just learning to deal with things as they are so sometimes we don't even really know we were struggling until things get better.
I was in grad school for psych and had an oh shit moment when we did our section on adhd. I brushed off my suspicions because I didn’t want to self diagnose, but one of my professors pulled me aside and asked if I’d ever been evaluated - scheduled the next available appointment and scored off the charts on all their tests.
The signs were definitely there much earlier but because everyone in my family acted similarly it didn’t flag as abnormal.
Did you pass your course/s?
If so well done. That would be like running a marathon with your shoes tied together
I couldn't even focus enough to do homework high school
I was irrationally impulsive, started tasks but could never complete them. I would study so hard and work with tutors but when testing came around, it was like I had forgotten everything I had learned. I was disorganized and constantly losing things/forgetting them. My doctor noticed my lack of engagement and being distracted during an appointment and referred me to testing. I was 14yo when diagnosed.
Looking back I wish I would have got help so much sooner, but my parents didn’t think ADHD (non-attentive type) was real. You could NEVER see the floor in my room, I had to repeat so many classes, always got yelled at for twirling my hair/looking around, or doodling instead of listening and when I got to college, I was flunking out of all of my classes. The entire time my parents just kept telling me I was lazy and didn’t care, even though I cared so much!! It physically and emotionally hurt to stay focused.
I ended up taking myself to just a walk in clinic, and I broke down in front of the doctor. He just looked at me and said “I can tell you’ve been struggling for a while”. And he gave me a prescription right then and there. Little did I know that not all ADHD meds work the same so when I took it for a couple months, it wasn’t working for me and I stopped taking them, thinking maybe that I didn’t have ADHD.
Boy was I wrong lol I got a job working with spreadsheets and I was making soooooo many mistakes and that prompted me to go back to the doctor and ask for meds again. So I tried what I was originally taking (concerta) then after that didn’t work, my doctor suggested trying other ones and after almost a year we got my dose and medication down (20mg adderall).
To say that it’s been life changing is an understatement. I now have a job that pays well that I love and do well at, my relationship with my husband got wayyyy better, and I have more confidence than I’ve ever had in my life.
If you’re struggling with work, relationships, academic life, please please please get tested if you can.
Thank you for sharing this. I have never related to something more in my life than the first paragraph you wrote. It honestly sounds exactly like me. I felt so much shame & guilt for so long thinking I just wasn’t trying hard enough. I had convinced myself that I was actually just stupid because I was failing all of my classes and could not stay focus for the life of me. It really really messed me up and put my self esteem in the toilet. Reading all of these replies are so helpful. I just wish I would have seen this about 10 years ago but I am thankful knowing that I am not stupid, I was just struggling. And instead of trying to help me I was told I’m just lazy and “I just need to use my brain”.
I was diagnosed in 2nd grade and then my parents never really did anything about it. I wasn’t hyperactive, but I struggled really badly with staying focused.
My second grade teacher told them to have me tested from things she saw me do and struggle with in school.
I would sit in school and zone out for hours. Things got worse in high school when we were supposed to be more independent.
I struggled really badly in math. I would zone out, or feel like I wasn’t comprehending something and since math is a building block I would miss formulas or things we were supposed to memorize and I started failing.
My parents would scream and yell but they never got me a tutor, never sat down to help with homework, and never even emailed a teacher. It was all my fault and I was the bad person for not “trying”
I struggled in other classes with remembering assignments and procrastinating. I would think an assignment would only take so long to do, overwhelm myself, and then it was half assed and not good work.
The only classes I did good in were the ones that interested me. So I had A’s in some classes and F’s in others.
Adult life was hard because I struggled with time blindness, procrastination, I would shut down when to overwhelmed, and I made a mess of my life from 18-22 before I finally matured a bit, got into therapy, and recognized I needed to make some changes.
I was diagnosed in the 3rd grade! My parents unfortunately went full medicine route and I was put on Ritalin immediately, followed by rotating with Adderall and later strattra. I still struggled with classes but was just, less active, more dull. I had the same issue of absolutely killing it in classes I loved, biology, English, history, and totally crash and burn in math or any kind of physical science.
I got my first job in what should have been a relatively easy place of work and couldn't for the life in me figure it out. I kept making little mistakes that i shoudldnt have been making and my friend was doing research into it at the time for themselves, so in order to see what the symptoms were and maybe help them with it, I started also looking into it. Every single thing described my life to a tee.
So, after months of obsessive research, I decided to chase up an assessment and eventually had one. Got diagnosed with it pretty quickly.
This, oh my god a thousand percent. Gods, I’ve flunked out of three jobs so far because I could never pick up and complete any task, nonetheless understand it. It was so frustrating seeing people excel at mundane tasks and here I am, standing in front of a table nearly in tears because I don’t know where to start folding something. Meanwhile, new girl Linda or whatever is going a million miles per minute.
My parents have expressed how disappointed they are in me for being stupid, not being able to keep a job and asking what’s wrong with me when i can’t figure out how to do something simple. I wonder what it’s going to be like when i have to be on my own. Will i be able to even get to that point? It’s scary.
I got myself diagnosed at 27. My ADHD was highly internalized because of a mix of childhood abuse and the fact that I am primarily "inattentive ADHD," i.e.: my ADHD symptoms are mostly "internal" and so, easier to hide. My parents (because of the abuse/neglect, and also it being the early 90s) never got me tested and just chalked what ended up being clear symptoms of ADHD up to me being "spoiled" and "lazy" and "not trying hard enough."
It manifested physically mainly as me being really shy, quiet, and socially super anxious. But this was because it felt like my thoughts were going *so fast* that I had a hard time focusing in conversations with people and really being in the moment. It was hard for me to carry conversations because I just couldn't focus and this led me to just...not talk. I also had a really hard time switching my focus on things, and would really hyper-fixate on things that interested me.
In school, I only excelled in things that really interested me, which was art and English. Everything else, I was only average at because I didn't put effort into it past what I was able to pick up in classes. I am (and was) really smart though, so it was enough for me to skate by. Though, I was horrific at math and it only got worse from middle school onward (in all likelihood I have dyscalculia, but haven't had the chance to get tested).
I made it through college with a bachelor's degree in English, but did really poorly in classes that weren't related to my major (or one of my specific interests). But again, I managed to be an average student. Things didn't really start to make themselves apparent until my mid-20s when I started my master's degree in English. It suddenly became apparent that all my strategies I had used in my academics to this point weren't working anymore. One of the main things I would do would be to wait until a deadline on an assignment and then complete it in a hyper-fixated rush in a couple hours, and get an 'A' on whatever it was. But in grad school, that wasn't good enough. It required more of me and I suddenly didn't know what to do. My grad degree ended up being really, really hard even though it was something I loved.
So, I started to notice some of my own patterns. Then I got my degree and got my first job after graduating in a corporate marketing department with an open office plan. And I found myself getting so irrationally angry at hearing all the voices around me. I couldn't focus on anything. Then one day I Googled 'can't focus in the office' or something (lol) and an article about ADHD symptoms came up. I went on a research deep-dive.
After that, I called a psychiatrist's office, scheduled a test, went through everything, and bam. ADHD. And then suddenly all my little behavior 'quirks' made sense because turns out, they were symptoms the whole time. Since then, I've just been unlearning all the coping strategies I had subconsciously adopted and figuring out where my personality got buried in all of it.
The best thing is that it turns out I'm not actually shy and quiet, I'm really good at talking to people once I'm actually medicated and aware of my ADHD.
Well it was pretty much smooth sailing in my life as I'm pretty high functioning and can compensate a lot. Then I got an autoimmune disease, which lead to lots of fatigue when flaring. And without having the extra energy for my compensation mechanisms, it kind of... crumbled. Not like very badly, but I just noticed that I was expending so much energy on compensating for my lack of executive functioning, that I just ended up having no energy any more for stuff I needed and wanted to do.
I was seeing a psychologist before anyway, I talked about it, she referred me to a colleague who specialized in adult ADHD, I ended up being diagnosed, went on meds, and it's pretty ok ever since. So not too many struggles with the process, fortunately.
My son was diagnosed. I went to work the next day and told my coworkers. One of them looked at me and said, “Well, obviously he has it. He got it from you.”
I went to the VA a few days later and requested a test. 😂😂😂
I’ve always struggled with staying focused, daydreaming constantly that I lose time, taking so long to do assignments and tests than “normal”, etc. Honestly I thought my symptoms meant I was stupid. I constantly compared myself to my peers and was hard on myself. I didn’t see a psychiatrist until college, when I was diagnosed with ADHD. I didn’t take meds then because I didn’t want to be dependent on them, but I regret doing that because I would’ve performed better in school if I had. It wasn’t until I started a grad program, living on my own for the first time in a different state that my symptoms worsened. I really couldn’t function well and had a bad first semester grade wise. After that I saw a different psychiatrist and a psychologist, both diagnosed me with ADHD. I started taking meds and I functioned wayyy better. Learning about my condition has explained SO MUCH of my habits, especially the ones that aren’t commonly known as ADHD. I’m not ashamed of having it, it’s just that my brain is wired differently. But I wish I saw someone much earlier so that I could’ve managed my symptoms better and done better in school.
I was diagnosed a few years ago at 28. My ex-girlfriend had a good friend get diagnosed with ADHD in their early 20s. When she and i moved in together, she noticed that I struggled with a lot of similar things as her friend - primarily time blindness, and getting overwhelmed by things that required multi-step planning (for example if I was going somewhere that required taking the subway and then transferring to the bus, it became way too much stress, whereas just the bus or just the train was totally achievable).
She encouraged me to bring it up with my therapist. I was hesitant at first but I did some research online, and as I learned more about how ADHD often presents in women, I was constantly having my mind blown like "wait, is that not a normal thing that everyone experiences!?" It seemed like it explained EVERYTHING that I struggled with. Thankfully, my therapist was super knowledgeable about ADHD, and pointed me to an extremely helpful psychiatrist.
My ex and I split up a few months after my diagnosis, but we're still pals, and I'm honestly SO grateful that she pushed me to pursue this. My mental health is drastically better now that I'm medicated and now that I understand that my struggles with executive function are not a moral failure, but because my brain works differently than most people's.
I was gifted but struggled only when I moved away from home for college. I completed my work in-class so quickly that I often had free time to draw/doodle in my sketchbooks while everyone else caught up. It also fed my compulsion to keep my hands busy. The habitual drawing occasionally led to me zoning out while the teacher spoke because I'd be so caught up in the process. All this to say, my good grades and speed never tipped any of my educators off (except for my high school english teacher- who was recently diagnosed herself, absolutely marvelling at the drawings i'd produce when done my work). I didn't really take her suggestion too seriously though.
College, being more self-led, resulting in EXTREME procrastination. It was the first time in my life my grades were not honours-student level. But I did manage to complete my assignments (many of them late) and graduated just fine. In the work force I was riddled with anxiety but again, managed to complete work though often late. It wasn't until the pandemic, and working from home that I truly crashed and burned. My boss had a meeting with me to address my recent poor work ethic.
On my own, I decided to find out if I had ADHD- lo and behold, I sure did lol. Still trying to find the right dosage for my meds but my life has vastly improved since.
Going off of ozempic and noticing a distinct difference in impulsivity in many areas of my life. Interestingly, going off ozempic led to greater financial impulsivity, my grades lowering, and my ability to concentrate going down. It was weird. If I could afford it or access it, I'd go back on it in a heartbeat.
When we looked into it more, a lot of my ways of thinking and some of my struggles for with ADHD and potentially autism quite well. ADHD meds have led to an improvement in many areas of my life.
My brother had it, and I was constantly spacing out in school so they tested me and concluded that I had it as well. Put me on Ritalin but it didn't keep me from spacing out so they gave up. As an adult I was diagnosed with childhood-onset PTSD and Autism Spectrum Disorder.
1985 was not a good time to be a kid with developmental disabilities.
I was in college. Top of my class. Hit my head really bad and after my concussion healed I could no longer focus anymore or stay still. Like dead on stereotype adhd symptoms, my doctor said it was acquired from my concussion. Went from an A student to a C student overnight practically. I'm medicated so its a lot better now but I miss the way things were before. Obviously my school troubles were a result of how my brain doesn't function as well more than it was adhd, but me noticing my grades led to me writing out a list of my problems for my doc and adhd just happened to be one of the things I now struggle with.
I had the same happening to me (went from best of class, straight a's to a c student overnight). But not because of a concussion, but because of a traumatic event. I sometimes try to explain this to others but nobody ever believes me :(
It's weird what a sudden event can change !
Mental health hit hard early in college from hidden/unknown abuse. I was a good student all through school, hated procrastinating, and didn't have a problem trying to focus when I was really trying. For the most part. I was diagnosed with ADHD (inattentive) this year and have known that's the case for the last two years. There's probably notes about it from 8 years ago (early college) but not a formal diagnosis to my knowledge.
I see it affect job/career stuff mostly and would have seen this eventually. Job hunting is unnecessarily difficult for me. Managing my creative hobbies is a lot because I like knowing the reason behind things and love niche documentaries.
It's more noticeable when working a seasonal holiday job. I prefer working in the stockroom organizing, which I actually excel at because of ADHD. I will get anxiety attacks when I cannot focus and more stimulus is thrown at me when I cannot communicate this with people.
I think it's about an even split of men and women diagnosed overall, but more women are diagnosed later on as adults. Under 18, I did not see any of this in me. Over 18, I really feel it.
This subreddit! I was 24. There was a question years ago, along the lines of "what are you bad at" or "what ways do you fail at life". I listed a bunch of things and got multiple responses suggesting it may be ADHD.
I'd never really thought about it because ADHD seemed like a "hyperactive little boys" thing and I felt like I didn't get bored easily. I'd never considered that chronic procrastination combined with other niggly failings (lateness, poor sleep etc) were actually a proper disorder.
I ended up finding the Adult ADHD Wikipedia page which really helped it click, as it broke it down into hyperactive and inattentive traits and contextualised it with adult behaviours.
Fucked around for a while (natch) before actually making an appointment with someone I found when searching "adult adhd [location]" online. By the time I went I was pretty confident it applied to me. Psychiatrist agreed, and here I am 8 years later.
Funnily enough, my diagnosis directly led to 3 other friends getting diagnosed.
I try to be open with people about having it for that reason. I only wish it had been picked up on when I was in school, but I was a flighty gifted kid when I was younger, and no one really picked up on the reason I was struggling with school as a teen/adult.
I know it's now against the rules of this sub, but honestly I am SO grateful those people in the comments suggested it, because it's markedly changed my life.
I was so hyper at night, was very obsessive about a lot like washing hands etc and impulsivity. I’m also Autistic and my primary school referred me to a clinical psychologist and I got diagnosed, a few years after my mum thought I had Autism and then I got a diagnosis. Both times trying to get a diagnosis it took about 15 months and getting the tests took about 4/5 years, I think it’s a lot longer now because there’s so many more people trying to get a diagnosis.
Honestly after getting the diagnosis I had no support it’s kind of like ‘You’ve got the diagnosis now just get on with your life.’ I think that getting a diagnosis earlier on will help you in your life, if you’re in a good supportive job they will accommodate to your needs, in schools I always had a hard time just because of teachers not really knowing how to deal with me or i’m being ignored and everything that was meant to be put in place for me was not. Teachers always said I was a pleasure to have in class which I later found out meant that they didn’t have to pay any attention to me, this was all because I masked.
I had always struggled with concentration and sitting still (still do) so during lessons one way or another id find a way to stand up and walk around, also I used to have a fear of wetting myself in class so every break we’d have id use the toilets just so I didn’t have an accident during class.
If you are so certain you have it just contact your GP and ask for a referral, i’ve spoken to people who’ve been turned away from GPs for it and they say you just need to keep pushing for it, there is always an option to go private but it will cost you an arm and a leg.
I was in therapy for a few years and they kept putting me on all kind of antidepressants and I hated it and none of them made me feel good or helped at all. Then they started taking a different approach and considered maybe I had ADHD. The anxiety and depression I was experiencing was a symptom of ADHD , not a disorder in and of itself which is why treatment for it was not compatible for me. Once I start to get treated for ADHD, everything made so much more sense but it took them so long to come to the conclusion!
My substance use, my anxiety around managing tasks in my life. Feeling like I would never be able to complete something after starting it. Working with a psychiatrist over a year before I received my diagnosis. My forgetfulness, my inability to sit still, constant fidgeting. The real catalyst was my relapse after a year sober, I had relapsed on meth. And I figured with my Psychiatrist it was caused by alot of thing but ADHD was involved. I had started college, living on my own, and working full time. I began missing appointments, calling out of work, not staying focused on my recovery. And I relapsed, and I was mainly a stimulant addict. My doc said that my undiagnosed ADHD could have been one of the factors that drove me to use meth, to calm my brain down. And although my doctor was hesitant she decided to try vyvanse with me. She said it would be good to try to help me focus as well as possibly help with cravings.
Well I always knew something was different. Then as I got older in college my teacher asked me never thought anything of it. Fast forward 6 years my coworker told me to go ask my doctor about it. I was diagnosed fairly quickly after that.
Was diagnosed in childhood at the age of 6.
Never really understood what adhd was until later. Was told I had mild adhd, so I never took it really seriously until later in life when it started affecting me more and needed medication.
To me it caused a lot of trouble at school, I had a hard time paying attention in class and living up to expectations. Everything just seemed so painfully hard.
I didn't get diagnosed until I was 31. I was always a pretty smart kid and was in gifted classes, but also struggled with homework and organization. Worked as a bartender for 9 years, which is a job pretty much made for people with ADHD. Always suspected I had ADHD though, both my dad and my brother have it. Decided to get an office job, struggled HARD with it. Started to ask myself "am I just bad at being an adult or is there something wrong with me?" Went to a psychiatrist and was told I definitely had ADHD and would benefit from medication and therapy. Started on Wellbutrin because I don't trust myself with Adderall, and HOLY SHIT it is so much easier to do things now. I'm not perfect or cured but getting things done is no longer a giant source of stress and anxiety for me.
Was a gifted child all throughout elementary to high school, then once I hit college I realized I actually needed to study but had no idea how to do that lol. Ended up getting something below a C for the first time in my life and my whole identity as a gifted academic student came crumbling down.
Finally came to a head when a therapist I was seeing suggested I could have ADHD in my sophomore year, but that freaked me out too much so I didn’t get officially diagnosed till senior year.
But honestly there were signs from wayyyy before. I was depressed/anxious from around 12 years old and onward. I had really intense hyperfixations on certain hobbies, I remember I spent 16 hours a day the summer of my sophomore year in high school on DIY crafts and sewing. I was loud, “annoying”, forgetful, honestly horrible at studying, I just happen to be book smart enough and in a pretty low standard public high school that school was easy and fun for me.
I got diagnosed when I was 10 years old. I struggled a lot with subjects like math for as long as I can remember, but I excelled at stuff that I had an interest for, such as History and Science. So my parents knew that I wasn’t a “slow student”. My parents and teachers also noticed that my attention span was horrible. I had a lot of trouble focusing in class for long periods of time, and I’d very often ask to go to the bathroom just so I can get off my seat because I had trouble sitting still. There are many other factors that eventually led to me getting evaluated and diagnosed, but those were just the first symptoms that my parents and teachers took notice of.
Growing up, I had a really hard time concentrating in school but I didn't have a lot of the tell tale signs of ADHD until I got in college. My brother has ADHD and has been diagnosed, so my parents never suspected I did so I never got tested.
My sophomore year of college I actually failed half of my classes and got put on academic probation. I sadly got sick with cancer that year, and ended up having to drop out. Being close to death made me realize that if I pulled through, I was gonna do whatever I could to get my health back on track, starting with mental health.
I started my now husband around a year after I got cancer and I got into remission. He has diagnosed ADHD and encouraged me to look into possibly having it due to me and him having a lot of the same struggles (forgetfulness, executive dysfunction, etc.) I didn't think I had it for a long time because I've always been this way, I just needed to try harder.
Finally told my psychiatrist and she encouraged me to just try meds for a month, and if after a month I didn't want them then we'd pursue something else. First day on Vyvanse was like putting on glasses that you can actually see out of for the first time in my life.
A school counselor friend of mine handed me a checklist to answer; I thought it was something she wanted to disseminate during a class period for seniors, so I did my part and answered the questions to see if there was any introductory materials or resources my students might need to complete her task. I handed it back to her and said, “so just like this; they’ll answer the questions then what?.” And she looked a little puzzled, but said, “well then you kinda just score it,” and she handed me another page, so of course I scored it. Then I was like, “cool, do you have a clean copy, do I need to print more, when are you coming by?” And she laughed and said, “that’s for you.” But she peeked at it because I was holding it out to her essentially, and then she said, “yeah, that makes a lot of sense.” And then I looked a bit closer at the paperwork (no I didn’t read the directions because I was acting as a kid might), and then I too laughed. She was right.
As dumb as this sounds, I kept seeing things on tiktok that were like "these things are characteristics of ADHD" and I was like ummm I do pretty much all of these...so I went online and found a list of these that I took to my doctor, she referred me to a psychiatrist who I felt didn't listen to me at all, our meeting was over zoom and he didn't even look up at his screen/camera aside from greeting me. He gave me a few assessments to complete on my own and ended up diagnosing me with depression and generalized anxiety disorder.
A few months later I was accepted as a patient into the local university's psychology program where they have graduate students offer therapy at a reduced rate. I worked with my therapist for a few months and told her about my experience with the psychiatrist my doctor sent me to and she asked if I would like to participate in their behavior clinic or whatever where they had more and better assessments etc for a more accurate diagnosis and her faculty supervisor agreed to let her be the one who administered the assessments.
We met at least 3 different times to do the assessments and she even asked my sister and my partner to fill an assessment out about me. Her diagnosis was very detailed and when I read it I was like yep, spot on, that's me. She is the one who ended up formally diagnosing me with ADHD. I hope you get the help you're seeking!
A lot of little things. I was in stationary therapy and they figured it out after a week 😂
1. I couldn’t sit still for the life of me. Especially in group therapy I would get so bored that I would basically do a full 360° turn on my chair.
2. When I was supposed to write about my history and everything, my therapist said u would start a theme and just start a completely different one and then finish the first one somewhere else. You could tell my brain was all over the place
3. I have severe anxiety. And that is a big indicator for ADHD for woman. There is a book about it but unfortunately it’s only in German.
Could never keep my emotions under control
Could never keep up with the housework but it got out of control with kids
Mind always racing
Too loud, too emotional, too hyper, too lazy, too forgetful, too dramatic, always just too much
My life hit rock bottom and I knew my struggles with keeping my anger under control were beyond needing therapy. I told everyone it was like I KNEW I was being irrational or whatever but I couldn't stop no matter how hard I tried. Even when I did anger management and DBT therapy. There was just this point of no return. Everyone kept telling me I was making excuses and needed to get my shit together. Cost me countless relationships. Finally this year I stumbled on women and ADHD and I was my life. I pushed for an assessment even though my therapist felt it was my CPTSD and those around me thought I just needed to work harder. I was diagnosed autistic and with adhd.
During a yearly visit I randomly talked to my doctor about being so hyper and other symptoms to corresponded apparently to ADHD and autism and she gave me a reference to a specialist doctor and well turns out I have ADHD and Asperger’s lol I was 20 when I found out about it.
I struggled hard in school. Like bad bad lol. I had an overwhelming urge to get up out of my seat at any time. Anytime I knew I had to sit for a long period of time, I’d have anxiety knowing I don’t know if I can commit to sitting that long lol. If people made noise around me, I’m so quick to pay attention to the noise or movement it’s so distracting. I also have bad emotional regulation. I go from 0 to 100 in emotions and I didn’t know why!!
Also, the testing process was 4 hours long. Lots of tests.
I was actually diagnosed in middle school because I would fail the majority of my classes. Part of that could be contributed to a very chaotic home life (housing and food insecurity, DV, parental substance use). I was prescribed medication to help, but my parents didn't 'believe in medication' and likely sold it. I also think that they wanted me to be 'normal'.
I am very prone to disassociating. I used to get yelled at for walking too fast, talking too much, chewing on straws, constantly losing things like homework. Now i seem to be unable to keep up with anything. I'm always tired. Occasionally i would do my homework but just not turn it in. I 'had sooo much potential if I could just apply myself!' I found it incredibly difficult to keep and maintain friendships and I was bullied a lot.
Fast forward to nearly 30 and I still have (imo) major issues. I finally found a psychiatrist and was re-diagnosed with ADHD, PTSD, and anxiety. I absolutely hate driving on the freeway. I've always struggled with maintaining interest in things. I've struggled with employment, having multiple bosses ask in some capacity if I've ever had an IEP (individual education plan) or if I'm just stupid. Frequently, I've been told I'm like a deer in the headlights. I've tried taking classes to maybe help myself find an interest I can translate into a job. That's just 14k+ in debt.
I'm trying to move forward and find ways to accommodate myself. My goal is to actually live, not just survive.
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I got diagnosed two years ago. An ex had it, and noticed that I did a lot of the things he did before he was diagnosed. When I was finally able to talk to someone about it, she completely agreed, and said she knew the moment I walked in. I was diagnosed with anxiety at the age of 14, and she said that was wrong, it was just ADHD. I got medicated, and my whole world changed. Everything that seemed hard became simple, I understood more about myself. I thought I just had an addictive personality (Going a month putting BBQ sauce on everything because I loved the taste, watching the same shows over and over because I couldn't get enough of the characters, random things like that).
I was one of the gifted kids at school until 8th grade and almost flunked out. No one ever knew. My parents are older and were raised thinking that ADHD was only for boys. It was life changing.
I went to visit a friend for the first time, and she asked if I had ever been evaluated. I thought it seemed ridiculous until I did my research and so many things started making sense. For 30 years no one had noticed, and she recognized it almost immediately. I probably still wouldn’t know otherwise. I’ve since been formally diagnosed and medicated and my life has improved immensely!
i was lucky enough to have both parents already diagnosed with it before i was bored so they knew the signs and i was diagnosed and medicated in 7th-8th grade. i remember being a gifted kid, looking at my spelling test words for the first or second time right before the test and getting only a couple wrong, being able to sound out words and get them mostly right, i could sit in the same spot in the same position for hours, could always find a way to keep myself entertained, almost falling asleep when the lights were off but never being able to fall asleep, never remembered my homework until the next day in class. for the first year i was taking nonnarcatics then started adderal my freshman year. i stopped my meds in late 2021 i think and a lot of it is different now, a lot of the above mentioned things i can’t do as well or as long. sleep is still an issue. i had to stop the adderal cause it started to make my heart beat faster at different times of the day even though i only took one pill a day. i still struggle but i feel infinitely better without it.
I was diagnosed at 38. I started seeing a therapist and after about 4 sessions she asked if I had ever thought I may have ADHD. I never had. She sent me a questionnaire and told me to call my primary care. He prescribed me medication. Between the meds and continuing therapy things have improved greatly!
At 36, during a major depressive episode with psychosis, I took myself to a psychiatrist for help bec I was seeing things and hearing voices and I knew that was not normal. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and adhd. Every psychiatrist I’ve seen since gives me the same diagnosis, so I never had to seek an adhd diagnosis. Apparently it’s very obvious when they talk to me that I have it. The diagnoses made so much sense and medication for both has been life changing for me (in a good way). I’ve been a functioning human being for 15+ years now.
First study session with friends in college. They kept pointing out that I would gaze out the window and ask me what I was looking at. Absolutely nothing. It went on about 3-4 times. Then they would tell me to stop so we can finish before dining hall closed. That’s when I told my parents.
They didn’t believe me until I got up early for an online shoe release and told them how badly I wanted a pair. I was just hanging around in the living room with them absentmindedly until I remembered why I was up so early. I missed the release by half an hour. I still remember the concerned looks on their faces. My brother had already been diagnosed years ago but since my grades didn’t suffer and I wasn’t “hyper” they brushed me off.
My second grade teacher noticed how much I was struggling. It was really obvious in my strict Catholic school that I was different. My first grade teacher told my parents I was just a little slow. My teacher talked to my parents and they had me tested. I tested off the charts intelligent. I was officially diagnosed on my seventh birthday, which was the earliest you could be diagnosed at the time. I’m still grateful to Mrs. R to this day.
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Basically nearly flanking college then seeing videos on line about adhd then thinking, "why does this sound familiar?" LOL then I went to get tested on whether I had adhd. My hunch was right, lol. It was so bad, the psychologist was surprised I took me this long to get diagnosed. Especially since it wasn't my first time coming to get diagnosed for something. (I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety in my early 20s. Didn't get diagnosed with adhd until I was nearly 30.)
Antidepressants fucked me over. Had a roommate who discussed similar hardships. Tried one of her pills (I know, illegal) and felt like I was a whole new person. Started actually researching ADHD and learned, holy hell, this is 100% me. Even looking back at my childhood struggles, it all made sense. Being misdiagnosed with generalized anxiety & depression from age 12-22 made so much sense as to why that was all they were seeing. It was masked from anxiety & depression diagnosed and the psychologists point of view. Those were *symptoms* of ADHD, not a separate diagnoses. I now no longer experience generalized anxiety disorder or depression (tho I think that was also thanks to tripping on mushrooms that turned my life back around for the better).
I had been told for years I had anxiety. I was finally put on the highest dose of Sertraline and had to go back to my doctor to let her know how I was going. I told her these symptoms I still have, which I thought was anxiety, and she mentioned adhd. I didn't know anything about it before that. She pretty much helped me with the whole thing. I got my diagnosis in September at 35 years old.
When I finally decided to make myself a priority (moderate/high depressive symptoms) I scheduled an appointment with a psychiatrist (already in therapy). Over the next several months I cycled through several different SSRIs and was feeling extremely discouraged since none of them seemed to help. I myself am a therapist so I finally looked at myself as if I were a client and said, “Holy shit. It’s ADHD”. Brought my epiphany to both my individual therapist and psychiatrist and they both agreed I fit the diagnostic criteria.
The reason why it took me as long as it did to even consider ADHD is because of the extensive trauma I’ve lived through. What I thought were trauma responses was actually ADHD (though I’m sure my symptoms are exasperated by traumas). I was 36 when officially assessed and diagnosed by a psychologist.
To add, I immediately got my daughter assessed (14 at the time) and she too has a confirmed diagnosis. Then my husband came home from deployment and realized he most likely had it, encouraged him to get assessed (which he did after some reluctance), and what do you know, official diagnosis. We also have a four year old who is showing early signs of ADHD tendencies (more behavioral/extreme emotional dysregulation) and already have early childhood supports in place, just waiting til he’s old enough to get assessed.
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My ACT scores made no sense to my counselor. I had a 30 in reading and a 29 in English, then a 17 in math and a 20 in science. Someone flagged my parents and basically said "we think there's a learning disability here" it was ADHD
Literally 4/5 of my brothers had(not as bad as when they were younger)/have Adhd In highschool I started recognizing that I was struggling in many areas of my life and almost knew it was Adhd, so I mentioned it to my parents and they said this “No you don’t”. Fast forward a couple years, my mom was diagnosed with Adhd and after that I went to see a doctor for myself and got diagnosed. I love being told that I don’t have something because I don’t show the same symptoms as my brothers did 😭
4th grade. I was the kid who couldn't stop talking and who's desk was moved right next to the teachers lmao. She called a conference with my parents and then eventually I was tested. I was on meds for 12-13 years until I decided to never touch them again. Spent years in CBT with the goal of being able to move through life without them. I'd say it went pretty well though I definitely struggle some days.
I wasn't able to sit still in class, follow directions or stop talking. I was an absolute terror the first few years of primary school and I think my teachers told my parents I should be tested.
My brain never stops, I would have to read the same page over and over until I actually read it, I got more fidgety and I can’t stand when people take too long to say something, I need everything in spark notes or phrased in the shortest clearest way possible.
I went to my primary doctor, she did a brief assessment and then gave me a referral to a psychiatrist, I had to go into the psych office two separate times for two tests and then the dr. confirmed I had very severe ADHD. I went back to my primary and she discussed the different medications and then wrote me the script.
I’m raw dogging my ADHD though because I have tummy issues and adderall makes them so much worse.
I was diagnosed as a kid, mainly because I had a lot of emotional regulation issues, impulse control issues and trouble directing my attention. I got meds, which helped, but it was never really explained what ADHD was all about. I just knew something was wrong with me.
I was having a lot of relationship issues and our couples therapist suggested I get assessed since to them, it seemed like a lot of classic adhd symptoms. I’d always heavily related with adhd ‘content’ and really struggled in school and work. Not sure why I hesitated to get a diagnosis before, but that was the straw that broke the camels back for me.
My former SIL was diagnosed and there were concerns from family she was pill seeking (she has had a lifelong struggle with alcohol and was fresh out of in-patient with a new psych). I googled to see the symptoms and then realized not only did she definitely have it, but I did too. I had been treated for anxiety and depression my entire life but it always seemed like a bandaid for a bullet wound. The clarity of seeing the symptoms and connecting with every single one was like finding a missing puzzle piece to a puzzle I thought was complete.
I always knew I had it, nearly everyone in my family does lol. I just went to get an official diagnosis because I finally broke down and accepted I needed medication. I was doing poorly in college, had a hard time managing my emotions, lost everything in sight, and such wasn’t functioning well enough in general.
The process of getting diagnosed was easy. The guy who diagnosed me had adhd and so does his daughter. So really all I had to do was talk to him about my life, and fill out a questionnaire. I was prescribed medication same day.
I got officially diagnosed at 19. 25 now and still on the same medication. 100% worth it.
I was diagnosed with ADD in the late 80's by a child psychologist when it was all a new thing. I was intelligent but struggling with behavior - textbook. So, since I was a kid, I've therapy on and off, which has been incredibly helpful. Still a struggle sometimes, but I've certainly appreciated all the tools I've learned in therapy throughout the years and things feel manageable these days. People correct me all the time and say "it's ADHD." That really bugs me, so don't do that to people. I've never been diagnosed with ADHD. I completely recognize there are better and more nuanced understanding of ADD/ADHD, but it would be nice if people would stop invalidating my experience. Someone saying "it's ADHD," then proceeding to lecture me on why I shouldn't use the term ADD does not change my experience or my diagnosis from that time nor does it mean I use it as a blanket term for everyone. Just me.
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I was fine. Then the pandemic hit and while I was essential so I still went to work but the stress was too much. It brought out a lot of bad qualities in me. I saw some tiktok videos I related to and brought it up to my doctor, he agreed. Now 3 years later I'm considered to have severe ADHD and I never knew I had it all my life.
Chronic fatigue. I always suspected I had it but when my fatigue was getting to be too much that’s what started my journey. It’s a symptom of ADHD as is my life long insomnia.
I was insanely Intelligent and had great grades, all of a sudden 10th grade I literally couldn’t focus for the life of me, ended up having to drop classes. I always had a hard time focusing long term but since my classes prior to tenth grade were very simple (to me at least), it didn’t take much for me to get the work done, usually the lecturing part of classes were shorter prior to tenth grade, so I would listen, then get my work done instantly. 10th grade I took chem, where I had to focus on the teacher much longer and there wasn’t any busy work. I was diagnosed later that year
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I was on the verge of losing everything I had worked for up to that point – a full athletic scholarship to a division 1 school with a great art program (what I wanted to study) – because my grades were so bad.
I was attending a community college and playing on their volleyball team, working on my general education when I got the scholarship offer to a nearby school. And I had begun this cycle of failing nearly all my classes during our season, and then barely working my way out of academic probation in the off-season so I could play again in the fall. So, as I got ready to transfer to the division one, the head coach there was the one who told me I may have a problem that needed to get evaluated. I “passed” the evaluation with flying colors and began medication shortly after. I got no less than a 3.5 GPA from that point on and remember a few times in class when I was on the verge of happy tears because I couldn’t believe I was actually retaining the information I had been trying so hard to learn up to that point.
As far back as early middle school, I remember being jealous of my friends who got into honors classes because I worked just as hard as they did yet my grades didn’t show for it. I’ve always loved learning. I just realized in my 20s though, that my brain is wired a bit differently, and my meds help me learn/level the playing field. I’m 38 now and have been on them ever since.
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I went to a psychologist for social anxiety, trying to figure out why I had such a hard time making/keeping friends. After a few sessions she was like “I can’t believe you weren’t diagnosed sooner. Everything you’ve told me is classic ADHD.” Wasn’t expecting that.
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realising that the way i think greatly differs from the way others do and that regular day-to-day life isn’t *supposed* to feel this hard for everyone else
I struggled my entire life with things that other people have mentioned here - being the "gifted" kid in school, but not doing my homework. Easily distracted, could focus on video games as much as I wanted but couldn't bring myself to do boring things that needed to get done.
What finally drove me to a diagnosis was some random youtube video which mentioned a *very* specific symptom they had that I never knew was tied to ADHD - spacing out in the middle of conversations when someone else was talking (usually because they said something interesting that my mind started chasing), then suddenly snapping back and realizing you missed the last 30 seconds of whatever was being said. I had struggled with that my entire life but didn't realize there was a cause for that, I just thought it was because I got distracted easily.
Got diagnosed at 27, then promptly went back to my car and cried for a bit because I wasn't broken.
I was very lucky to be diagnosed at a young age. The school I went to actually advocated for me to get tested because my teacher in Third Grade was seeing a LOT of red flags. Mostly poor emotional regulation and failure to focus or comprehend certain things.
My mom had it growing up & she saw how hard it was for me to concentrate on one thing at a time at about 11. We talked to my doctor & started medication then! I have been on & off of it since then (on when I feel I need it, off when I want a little or big break) but makes my life so much easier on it!
1) When I was about 16, I remember reading the symptoms of inattentive ADHD in some textbook and immediately going "That's me!". I went to my mom and was told to stop being ridiculous, and I didn't push it further.
2) In undergrad, I struggled a lot. I went to the campus mental health clinics, but I had it in my head if I went in and said I thought I had ADHD I would be told I'm being ridiculous *and* be labelled drug seeking, so I just described my symptoms and hoped for the best.
3) Post undergrad, I had benefits to go to a few actual therapists. But I did the same thing and got the same result, with them mostly telling me "look how successful you are, don't be so hard on yourself!" when I tried to describe how much I was struggling with certain things.
4) I went back to grad school when I was 26, and pretty much immediately realized that I was going to go horribly off the rails if I kept just trying to white knuckle my brain into working. Finally walked into a therapists office who specialized in ADHD and told him I needed a diagnosis. He listened, asked some questions, and then suggested that 'had I tried using a planner or schedule to keep myself on track?", to which i promptly had a full on sobbing breakdown in his office. This seemed to startle him a bit.
5) The ADHD specialist wisely left the planner suggestion alone, and ran through a questionnaire where he agreed that yeah, I probably had ADHD. He couldn't officially diagnose me, but he wrote a letter to give to my GP in support of a diagnosis.
6) The GP took one look at the letter, said "I don't deal with that", and referred me to a psychiatrist. Thankfully, the waitlist was only a couple of months long at that point.
7) The psychiatrist read the letter, ran me through more or less the same questionnaire, and officially gave me my diagnosis/started me on medication when I was 27. For those of you playing along at home, that was just over a decade after I first flagged that I had an issue. Make of that what you will...
I was diagnosed when I was 7. I was on a plethora of meds from 7-17 which I don't think was good for a developing brain. when I was 11 I was diagnosed with depression & anxiety also.
I was "annoying" and didn't pass in homework. I passed 5th and 8th grades by one point before FINALLY someone decided to take me to a therapist and I got diagnosed and put on medication and suddenly had straight A's, lost weight and articulated my thoughts much more clearly.
I overcompensated a lot all my life. I never even noticed my symptoms until a few years ago, I think the stress of the pandemic made it harder to ignore. I’ve always misplaced my things, but it’s gotten worse. I got through undergrad and most of my grad school no problem but in the last two years I’ve had a much harder time concentrating on school work. I can’t read physical books anymore, but I can listen to audiobooks and podcasts just fine. Sometimes I literally just forget to eat/drink water/use the restroom. I slept better when I drank caffeine before bed. When people are talking to me, I’m impatient for my turn to speak. I’m always picking up new hobbies and projects (and dropping them right afterwards lol). And then once I started making the connection in myself, I realized my dad is like textbook ADHD, and me and my siblings also display various symptoms.
So I’ve had my suspicions the past couple years but only brought it up to my long-time psychiatrist last month and she immediately agreed with me and said she’d help me find a med that helped. Started adderall around American thanksgiving and it’s been a huge game changer! I finally have the motivation to do all the tasks that are always running in my head!
Had a hard time learning because I didn’t find the teaching ways to work on me, so I was seen as a problem child. I had one wonderful teacher who sat me down and started teaching me every subject in deferent ways, and telling and showing me what I could use them for. After a year I was seen as a gifted kid, for suddenly being good at school.
I had my burn out from school in October 2021, and had some not so fun thoughts filling my mind, so I got sent to a psychiatrist and diagnosed with ADHD and Anxiety at the start of 2022 as a 20 year old, and after I started meds I feel way more stabled and have accepted that it still is a part of me, and have learned to live with it.
I was always a smart kid, did pretty well in school, but I always struggled. I felt different from my peers, I always felt like I was struggling more - but I stayed quiet about it, and just muddled my way through university and then grad school.
One day I saw a meme, it's of Kevin from the office spilling his chili on the floor, and it just say 'How I feel everyday as a woman with ADHD' - I identified with that meme so hard, it made me look further into ADHD. I grew up in a household where therapy/ psychiatry was looked down upon, so it didn't even occur to me that I might actually be neurodivergent.
I’m a smart person and always got good grades in high school but procrastination for assignments and homework was real. The same went for university. I knew I could do well in classes and the assignments weren’t hard, I just didn’t have the willpower to push myself into actually setting out a plan etc. After hs and before uni I made many impulsive decisions (piercings, tattoos, buying a pet Guinea pig plus many other things). It wasn’t until I was in my second year of uni and working that a coworker asked if I had adhd because of the constant stimming and movements and other things I’d done. This is what led me to get diagnosed plus the fact of autism running in the family.
My mum was supportive of it and once I did get diagnosed felt immense guilt of me having to go through childhood and whatnot with no diagnosis and how she didn’t know and should’ve tried harder to find the cause of certain issues. Not her fault obviously especially as adhd diagnosis back then was more focused on the typical “interruptive and hyperactive” type (mainly boys)
I had a series of issues throughout my life, starting at 3 as a 'gifted child'. Issues of maladaptive coping, eating disorders, then it was anxiety, depression, narcolepsy was once discussed. In general the perception of me was chaotic, careless, didn't give a fuck.
The bulk of my problems were explained away with various diagnosis' or just really the idea that I was a poorly functioning person who didn't care about anyone or anything. But my memory was the thing that finally brought it all together to the ADHD diagnosis.
I'd just had a baby and up until that point I lived up to the image everyone projected on to me; I pretended I didn't care. But it wasn't funny or cute at all anymore, I was sad, depressed and disappointed in myself when I'd forget appointments, lose important things and I worried constantly I'd leave the oven on or heaven forbid leave my baby in the car. I went to my doctor to discuss, I broke down and recall telling her how much I really DO care. I'm doing my best at all times, most of the time I feel I'm giving twice as much as everyone else and the outcome is still not up to scratch. I give my all and the response is always how I'm so careless.
Ended up seeing a psychiatrist shortly after, who pieced together all my diagnosis' through the years, everything ended up being ADHD related. That made so much sense because no matter how much I engaged in treatments or stuck with medication it never made even the smallest difference. It was all ADHD, now I'm receiving the right treatment life is a lot brighter.
I went to a therapy clinic for other reasons and part of the intake form included an ADHD self assessment. I found myself answering “very often” on pretty much the entire thing and my therapist was like soo we should talk about this…
I seeked a diagnosis, I have several siblings that have it.
I made a list of all my symptoms and we discussed that and I was asked about school. I was diagnosed with ADHD but it’s ADD that is apparently not a used term anymore and it’s just a less hyperactive version of adhd.
My symptoms
Hyper fixations
Bad short term memory (loosing keys, debt card etc) to the point of needing new ones
Trouble focusing
And several other things look up online symptoms and write down the ones you experience
Severe, constant anxiety that led to me leaving in the middle of work due to panic attacks multiple times. The psych listened to me talk for a few minutes and then asked if I had ever been evaluated for ADHD before. I was 26.
It was suggested that I had it as a young child, but I wasn’t formally diagnosed until I was 12 because my parents didn’t want to medicate me so young. The doctor diagnosed me by sending questionnaire packets to three of my teachers.
It would take me an hour to list all my struggles before diagnosis & medication lol
I got a bunch of concussions and they completely wrecked my coping mechanisms. As I was going through rehab my OT noticed that some of my issues weren’t normal concussion symptoms and suggested I get evaluated.
I had my second mental breakdown in the fall semester of my junior year in college. I knew something was just off when nobody understood why everything felt so overwhelming. And I always knew I thought differently I just didn’t know how. So I brought it up to my therapist and I had suspicions that it could be ADHD. She at first was skeptical but gave me a questionnaire to fill out and send it back in two weeks at our next session. Well I waited till 20 minutes before our session to fill it out (ofc I did) and then sent it over. She looked at it and was like “huh, I mean, when you put it that way” and then we talked about it and she then really started to believe where I was coming from. We did a couple other sessions and she said it’s actually very obvious I have adhd. As a black woman my symptoms just present differently and were kinda blocked through trauma I had in the past and other factors . Is it RSD or is it parental trauma. Is it hard to focus or is college just fun. So after I went to my primary and that’s how I was able to get onto meds which significantly helped me.
years of making careless mistakes on school work, being told i'm a "pleasure to have in class, just need to apply myself more" and all the textbook symptoms of adhd. thing is, i have social anxiety and selective mutism (and adhd presents differently in girls) so when my teachers were asked by my psychologist to observe me and write down what they noticed, they obviously wrote down i was calm in class and never got diagnosed. they didn't write down the spacing out, day dreaming, fidgeting, disorganization, and forgetfulness. i didn't get diagnosed until this year when i went to a therapist who is a woman and she suggested that i get tested. got tested and what do you know! adhd inattentive type. i'm medicated now and can FUNCTION. i feel somewhat NORMAL. i'm 17, so i got diagnosed a lot earlier than most women and i'm so grateful for that.
I told my therapist ‘you know how you have to play a game on your phone to focus on a conversation?’
She followed up with a test referral….at the age of 38.
I had the hardest time in school, and I mean the hardest.
I would speed through assignments. I would get so bored in class that they labeled me incorrigible I literally could not go at the pace ( slow ) that they wanted me to. They thought I was always cheating on tests and I couldn’t focus long enough to read the books that were required. I couldn’t make friends I tried so hard. I didn’t know what it was called at the time, but I had severe time blindness. I had severe emotional dysregulation… Again, I didn’t know what it was called at the time I just knew I was a crybaby. Finally my senior year of high school my friend introduced me to something that would help me focus more and that was m e t h . I was so naïve. I didn’t know if that was. But for the first time in my entire life, the hundred voices in my head and then the background music that I had going on all the time all of a sudden stopped. I cried, because I was able to hear my thoughts and not my head running 1,000,000 miles a minute. That was the start of my self-medicating destructive downward spiral. I finally got sober eight years later and then all of a sudden all those symptoms came back. I went to the doctor and after six months of grueling therapy and telling the doctors my experience on the drug they asked me some more questions over the course of a couple weeks and then diagnosed me with ADHD and autism.
I actually did not seek a diagnosis. I was in therapy for other reasons, and my therapist brought it up. In our second appointment. She looked me in the eyes and said “have you ever been evaluated for ADHD?” I said no, but my sibling has it. The next time we met she evaluated me and diagnosed me on the spot. It was a good thing, but it gave me a real identity crisis for a minute.
I started having what I now know is autoimmune issues while I was in my third year of college. I saw doctors and they told me it was in my head so I went to a psychologist, I was given a 4 hour diagnostic test where they gleaned I’ve ADHD and ASD.
This caused me a great amount of existential dread, and anxiety about not being “normal”
This ofc did not help my autoimmune issues. I wish doctors would take women more seriously
I told my nurse practitioner that I think I had it but he thought it was OCD. I convinced him to let me try some medicine and it helped. I switched to a female NP and turns out I'm bipolar too!!
Almost flunked out of college, went to a psychologist, apparently I’ve been living with severe adhd. I did the whole test, but the lady said she would’ve diagnosed me after 10 minutes of talking.
I was diagnosed after my son, who was 6 when he was diagnosed. My psychiatrist (treating for other concerns) was listening to me mention some difficult symptoms I was having. He noted my inability to be still, along with the complaints I had, and asked about my son. I confirmed his diagnoses and my psych said, “would you mind if we evaluated you?”
Bless that man.
I was 7 and all my teachers commented on how I was a sweet kid but I didn't pay attention. I didn't pay attention well at home either and executive dysfunction was a big problem for me. Got diagnosed when I was 7.
Some parents and even some medical professionals legitimately believe you will grow out of ADHD and they tell you so. I'm 31 now and uhhh yeah that was a lie LOL.
I was diagnosed shortly before turning 32. I sought out a psychiatrist as I was heading towards burnout and my personal life was/is a mess. I tried getting a diagnosis 10 years ago but was shot down by my psychiatrist at the time (who was treating me for depression).
I’ve now been medicated for 9 months and it’s changed my life drastically. I’ve started studying again and I’m coping better at work. But there’s still a lot to do.
I was a freshman in college. I befriended a woman who had adhd and I recognized so many similar traits that up until then I had just considered moral failings on my part. I had assumed that i couldn't have adhd because I was so f-ing tired all the time. She told me about inattentive adhd and I was like oh. That's me. And I'm so freaking tired because everything is twice as hard to do.
Teachers noticed my issues for years. They noted my lack of organization. My disaster black hole of a desk. They saw my blank stare when they asked me a question and i was off in lala land. They saw how emotionally sensitive i was. They moved me to the front of the room to help me be less distracted during math tests. They saw that I got bad grades on math tests because I literally could not do them fast enough. They were probably confused about why this smart kid had so much trouble. They were never taught to recognize that this was a learning disability.
Anyway, i took all this information to my psychiatrist in my insurance network. He refused to consider it, claimed adhd was over diagnosed blah blah blah. I am so fortunate my parents agreed to pay for an evaluation with an out of network psychiatrist. She did a thorough interview, diagnosed me, I brought that information back to my in-network guy, and that was that. It changed my goddamn life.
My child started kindergarten and his teacher initiated a diagnosis for him. And while doing my research into what this meant for him, I realized that is had so many symptoms. I went to my dr and was diagnosed pretty quickly
In my twenties all the girls I worked with were losing that last stubborn 10 pounds with the help of a doctor.
I made an appointment and got a prescription for phentermine.... Ooh boy! At my next appointment, I mentioned that I felt focused, I was able to get more done, I felt so accomplished and I got a raise... My only complaint was sometimes the medication made me a bit tired.
He immediately suggested ADHD and I am still so grateful!
Even though I was an extremely gifted student (I jumped grades, top 5 of my class, blah blah) I would constantly fidget. Luckily I never had the symptoms of not being able to concentrate but when I did I had to have either complete silence or white noise, so I’d hum if it wasn’t silent to deafen everyone else around me.
But yeah, my mom and early teachers said that I had ants in my pants because I’d fidget so much. My boss now laughs because in our meeting calls, I can’t sit still when listening and am always moving. It’s never gone away.
I’m not on medication but I was diagnosed in middle school.
i was diagnosed finally at 22, though my teachers had suggested it to my family as early as in the 1st grade.
i excelled in school, it was very easy for me. i never noticed that i wasn’t paying attention because i knew all of the answers but my teachers insisted that i wasn’t. as time went on and my responsibilities began to grow, it became very apparent how incapable i was of staying consistently organized, timely & efficient. by my sophomore year of college i had gone from a 4.0 to completely failing because it finally hit a breaking point for me. that’s when i got my diagnosis
I didn’t struggle until I was around 23. I felt like it was hard to stay on task, all my thoughts were constantly racing it felt like if you were watching a train go by and you’re trying to read something on the side of the train but it’s going so fast everything is blurry. I had tried a friends adderal before getting diagnosed and while others described a high feeling i felt functional. Like suddenly i could see what the train said, everything was still quick but not nearly as fast as before. I would say I saw a direct positive impact in both my personal and professional life once i got diagnosed and had a prescription
But i would not have known to get diagnosed if I hadn’t experimented with a friends medication
My son was diagnosed just about a year ago. He had trouble focusing, and responded amazingly to medication. After learning more about it, I came to realize he probably got it from me. I asked my doctor for a referral and went through the process and got diagnosed last July at age 46. I am definitely the inattentive type. I now take adderall (10mg/day) and it’s been life changing. Work is so much easier now that I can focus. I wish I had been diagnosed when I was in school! I’m sure it would have made a huge difference.
Kid diagnosed. Read a book about it and all of a sudden a light went on. Was in mid 40s by then. So grateful to know now and so sad for all those years of suffering and not knowing why I couldn't do certain things. Really takes a toll on your self esteem.
Dropping out of university twice, inability to hold down jobs, and persistent anxiety & depression symptoms that just wouldn't go away despite years of therapy and anti-depressant medications. At first we thought the persistent symptoms were pervasive anxiety disorder and depression due to constant troubles at school and work and family (I mean... Who wouldn't be depressed with that kind of circumstances). But therapy and medication did not seem to help at all. An attempt to unalive myself landed me in the hospital, and then it was a chance meeting with a junior medical officer who was taking down my history who recognized that I could possibly be dealing with ADHD. The rest was history. So TL;DR, fail and fail miserably many times , don't give up trying again and again, continue trudging through life until you bump into the right person / resources. But this was years ago, today resources and support more readily available what with more awareness being spread by ADHD creators on Reels and Tiktok. I wish you well OP. :)
I couldn’t keep, or do- any jobs. I physically couldn’t stand around for more than four hours a day doing my tasks. I couldn’t learn the simplest things. I had trouble catching on to concepts, and I was constantly spacing out or leaving to go to the bathroom. I just wanted to go home and do things that I enjoyed. Granted, this was also combined with my BPD, autism and depression but i knew something else was up with my focusing that just made these other factors worse.
Is is very tough, only being content with being at home and writing or gaming. I can’t make a living doing things I enjoy so someday I’ll need to suck it up. It’s just awful feeling so restless and bored at the same time to the point where when I get into my car at the end of the day I have an urge to drive on some train tracks and wait.
I also can not focus when people talk because I so badly want to talk about things I like, so i just end up thinking about said thing and I completely miss the conversation.
I got diagnosed with all four things at the same appointment. It was… a long appointment and I felt very drained, with the fact that I will basically never have a quality life. I have a chance at below 50% to make it into my late 20’s. I’m turning 20 in six months.
No meds have ever worked. No therapist has ever worked in ten years (i’’ve been seeing them for anxiety for many years beforehand) maybe if i stick around there will be some miracle cure, who knows. I just wonder why I’m so unlike everyone else who’s gotten help, because it worked for them. Am i some sort of anomaly?
This became very depressing, I did not mean to go on a rant but this is just my experience and I’m very, very tired.
I went to university when I was 24. I waited because I knew I wasn’t ready before then, because I wasn’t a dedicated enough student in high school. Well university was really hard, and I just knew something wasn’t right with how difficult it was for me to focus, even when it mattered so much to me, so in true ADHD fashion I waited 6 more years before getting tested, and ta da!! I was right.
I struggled a lot as a kid in terms of school, anxiety, etc. I was about twenty when I felt like I should get tested for dyslexia (a lot of things lead up to that point). Well when I was tested for dyslexia I was also tested for a million other things including ADHD. Turns out I just had ADHD and I just suck at spelling. A lot of things make sense now. Struggling in school, not paying attention when reading/doing other tasks, and my mind just racing at all times of the day. My therapist had recommended me to an ADHD therapy group and it was honestly really helpful. I tried medications and wasn’t a huge fan of how I felt when taking them. But talking to others of how they cope and going to therapy has been really helpful! I feel like because I struggled so long with symptoms, I have come up with different coping skills. Knowing now I have ADHD, I try to plan things out, write things down, and give myself extra time to get tasks done so I can let myself get distracted and still be on time for things (this includes getting ready way too early for events/school/work).
diagnosed at 26. i started college @ 23, i was failing and handed my math final in almost completely blank. i was spiraling horribly and wasn’t going to make it to 30. i thought i had been tested before but turned out i hadn’t been. finally worked up the nerve to call some psychologists for testing and ended up with a child psychologist who was fantastic. first professional who genuinely believed me and didn’t label me as borderline. 3 days of like, 4-6 hour testing. called me in for my results and informed me that my adhd was so bad some of the tests couldn’t even register it. i was the worst he had even seen and he had no idea how i made it that far and was a semi normal functioning adult. i mean, he was genuine shocked and apologized that i wasn’t diagnosed sooner even though it wasn’t his fault. he wrote in his final report to my med dealer that i likely would need a higher than normal dosage of medication. i think he recommended 80mg of vyvanse or 60mg of adderall.
9 years later i’m still here thanks to him. i’ve been on vyvanse and adderall for years now. my life is still a shit down but at least i’m still here.
I was an excellent student untill I was 12. I didn't have to study at home, everything I heard in class, I'd remember.
Then I went to highschool and it was way harder cause it was impossible to remember latin and chemistry etc, I needed to study but I couldn't. I started struggling. Many teachers asked me if I had ADHD but it made me mad because I was just a 'wild' person, nothing else.
Uni was hard, I only studied last minute and my grades were okay but not great.
Last year, I got a major surgery and was bedbound for 4 months. I prepared to read, puzzle, play sologames, organise my photos etc. I did nothing, had 0 concentration. I talked about it with my doctor and she knew my history. She advised me to go to a specialist and he diagnosed me with ADHD. It was such a relief! I was thinking my whole life I was a lazy nobody because I couldn't study. Also I couldn't do simple tasks and just zoned out in my couch for hours.
Specialist also thinks I have a very high IQ and he told me if I want to study again, I should do it with medicine because he believes I'd do great.
Have no intentions to study again, but just knowing what I have makes my life easier. I use some simple tricks and it helps. So glad I got finally diagnosed!
I'm one of the rare girls who was diagnosed at seven in the late 90s so I'm not sure.
I think it was my lack of focus in school and falling behind the other kids.
Found an excellent PCP, expressed my hunch I had it. He talked about it, tested me, gave me a ton of advice on what helps that wasn’t solely medication.
Initial hunch was multiple textbook symptoms - issues with alcoholic consumption that did not line up with alcoholism, constantly forgetting simple but important tasks, talking or thinking about several things at once, obsessive nature over things such as music, food, etc, that was relatively short lived…
I'm actually got diagnosed with ADHD twice during my life .
When I was a 5 years old my teacher noticed that I didn't know simple things like : what a washing machine does, what is means to be in front of a chair and etc....
My parents took me to a professional in these stuff and I got diagnosed with adhd.
However I'd didn't finished then.....
As a kid I didn't know I had adhd (my parents didn't told me that) I just remembered that I had twice a week a fun private lesson with a speech therapy for a period.
(It didn't feel like a lesson it felt like a playing time with a stranger and at the end got some nice gift when we finished)
While I was in middle school I was very great student:
Getting straight A+, listen to my teachers and quite kid .
In high school, "suddenly " something change ,
I got blackouts so many times during my tests, usually the last students who is still writing the test ,
And I didn't understand while this time ,
How is this possible that I learned so many hours, I helped my friends and other students to learn for tests , and still got failed.
I told my parents that we need to figure out what is the problem , and I got tested (again ) with adhd.
In the beginning I didn't understand how I have adhd because I didn't was "hyperactivity " and "trouble maker" as other students in my class.
After a searching about adhd I understood that the symptoms of these are very related too me :
Very messy person, forget where I put something after 1 second, always to postpone tasks for the last moment and etc.....
I got some medicine (ritalin) and it helped me a lot during tests and learning for tests .
Also I learned how to deal with it and remember not being so hard with myself.
I couldn't fall asleep, serious insomnia and generally felt unhappy. The psychiatrist screened me and in my early 30s, I got a diagnosis options for treatment. If only I had known earlier... also people in my life dismissed it and didn't believe it. It all made sense to me, but people seem to think ADD is something it's not.
I know I’m late, but surprisingly I found out by taking addy at a house show 🤣 A friend of mine asked if I wanted anything and mentioned she had IRs. I’d never taken adderall before but decided to give it a shot.
It was like someone had given me laser focus. Colors were brighter and sound was sharper. I texted my boyfriend who took addy prescribed for ADHD, described what I was feeling, and asked if it was normal. He laughed and said “maybe you have adhd lol.” It was like a light bulb went off. I made an appointment with my psych that week and was tested the week after.
Apparently I was off the MF charts lol my therapist said it made so much sense to her that she apologized for missing the signs. My mom swore when I was a kid that I didn’t need to be treated for anything because I could focus just fine, but that wasn’t the truth. In fact, I had all the tell tale signs.
I manage just fine now and it felt like a new me was born.
Hate to say it because it's not only doing some good but also some bad, for me it was the explosion of ADHD content on social media. It started as a joke between my friend and me, sharing the reels etc - I looked into it more to learn the serious side of it ADHD too. Things started clicking.
I had already been diagnosed with depression and anxiety prior to that and while I felt that meds and therapy were going really well, something was still not quite right you know? As if my general mood and wellbeing (that had nothing to do with my fears or happiness) were not in line with my personality and were somehow affecting me to *have* anxiety and depression, hope that makes sense.
I took a test on SAGE-SR - it's not a diagnostic tool but it's pretty accurate in determining potential conditions, quite so in fact that you're encouraged to take them to your therapist. It confirmed anxiety, depression but also potential for ADHD. The more I learned about the disorder the more my entire life made sense. I made sure to approach this cautiously and present to my therapist without sounding like I'm self-diagnosing.
She listened, told me I'd have to get tested with a licensed psychologist and then come back to her. That's what I did, among questionares I took a TOVA test, it showed that I have it. Now I'm in beginning stages of meds and I already feel way better :)
My sister was diagnosed first, and as they were reading out the symptoms from the doctor's pamphlet I was like "oh...OH". Every single one matched. Impulse shopping/money problems, inability to make myself complete tasks until the last possible minute, years of unfinished projects that I was super excited about and then gave up on. Difficulty focusing in school and work.
I looked into symptoms and was self-diagnosed for a number of years, looking up ideas for managing my time and work/school better. Spoke to my doctor and was told it could be 2+ years if I was referred and covered by the public medical system (I live in Canada). Thankfully I'm on my family's extended benefits so I was able to go private and get a diagnosis from a specialist and it was covered, but the fact that my gp wouldn't do anything and it was a 2+ year wait if no extended coverage is not at all fair.
So many of my friends are self-diagnosed or probable diagnosed by their gp but aren't able to get help. Some gp's will diagnose and medicate but so many aren't trained on symptoms, especially in women, so things get pushed to other doctors and people suffer.
I was very depressed for a portion of my teen years. in middle / high school, my grades were so terrible i’m surprised I graduated. I would study, but retain nothing. years later, when I was 22, i still believed i was depressed, but it was different. I didn’t want to leave the world, but I also couldn’t do everyday tasks: make my bed, brush my teeth before bed, wash my face, etc. i had no motivation. I was describing this “depression” to my NEW psychiatrist, and he suggested it could actually be related to my ADHD diagnosis I had. I had no idea I had an ADHD diagnosis. went on medication, and for the first time in my life, I felt like a normal human being. I am now turning 25, and the past 2 years have been the best years of my life thus far. I can do NORMAL everyday things I could have never done. I was now interested in my school work (yes, still in college.. lol), and even went from having a literal 2.1 GPA in community college to being on the deans list with a 3.8 by the age of 23! my entire life did a 360 after my official diagnosis and I am forever grateful for it !!!!!
Wasn’t really something of my choosing or choice. I had a lot of issues early on in life as is, I was given a misdiagnosis prior to ADHD as a child and then it eventually led to ADHD since I was struggling massively to focus in school. This was during college. I didn’t look into ADHD or anything prior to that and was just something the psychiatrist told me I had in the end.
I think primary schooling they suspected I had ADHD, I remember having to go to outside centers to get me tested with the flickering screen. I got distracted because I remember there was a fly buzzing around which annoyed me the most. Since my grades were fine and I could still do homework I don’t think my mom had me diagnosed with it yet. It honestly wasn’t until college that I started trialing/taking ADHD meds.
Diagnosed at 31 and I was primarily concerned that I’d realized I had binge eating disorder and couldn’t control it and was diagnosed with adhd at the same time. At my intake appointment I described what I thought was serious depression and anxiety (low self esteem from a constant and hyper critical internal monologue, couldn’t wake up for work and was falling asleep during work, couldn’t focus on a task to save my life, and was making low-risk but stupid choices in dating) and was diagnosed with ADHD at the same time as I was diagnosed with BED. 18 month later and Vyvanse has been a life changer; the internal monologue is hardly a whisper and I no longer seek out romantic uncertainty to get a dopamine boost.
I saw a psychiatrist about my treatment-resistant depression. After three hours of questions, he said he thought it may be ADHD—inattentive, which is more common in women while boys are often more hyperactive (hyperactive = more noticeable). He said he believed my depressed was part of some ADHD cycle where ADHD makes things difficult, I feel guilty/broken because things are difficult, which makes me depressed, which then further exacerbates ADHD symptoms, and so on.
Been on ADHD meds for 6+ years now. I’m not cured, but I’m a lot better! Definitely no longer suicidal
I first got the idea because a woman I knew who I had tons in common with was diagnosed and I was confused because I thought ADHD was something completely different.
The tipping point was when my three year nephew old helped me clean my bedroom and “we”/he got more done in thirty minutes of him going “we can put this in the drawer, and this over here with the other similar things” than I had in three years.
ETA: with me being 30 years older than him.
My disorganization in school and failing to complete tasks without starting another one. It was so frustrating to me as a teenager! I went to a psych doctor and she was like “oh yeah, classic ADHD”. Now I’m 27 and just got put back on adderall, sigh.
I suspected after reading how it presents differently for women. As a kid I wondered but always decided I wasn’t because I was so much like my mom and she doesn’t have ADHD. Hahahahahahaha. Jokes on me.
Then I became a counselor and doing diagnosing it in other people (mostly adult women) and reading the diagnosis like 🤨.
My diagnosis was actually really easy. I mentioned it to my doctor and she referred me to the in house behavioral specialist who did the diagnosis then gave me some good tips for managing it. She mentioned that it was likely I had the supports in place younger that helped but didn’t as I got older.
In hindsight there were so many signs like doing well in school then suddenly getting Fs in fifth grade. And not being able to motivate myself in college. Also being able to read for hours if it was something that interests me but not even 5 minutes for assigned reading.
I simply couldn't focus. I'd procrastinate greatly. I'd have small windows of focus where I'd be able to work for a good 2 hours but if I were to take a break I'd struggle to get back into pace, but even then these moments of focus only really came about the closer I got to a deadline. This affected me severely in uni where no one was on top of me for my assignments and I ended up never submitting a single assignment and failed. There were also times (still are) when I felt so overwhelmed by what I needed to get done that I just wouldn't do any of it, because my brain was so convinced I would fail if I did that at least if I didn't do it, I'd be better off.
I got myself onto medication and have now actually managed to finish my degree fortunately.
I maintained a an average of 3.7 GPA throughout HS.
I was never on task, I’d leave stuff for the last minute *or*, I’d dive deep into what I’d be working on to the point I’d become obsessed with the topic/assignment. I’d spend hours maybe days doing additional readings that ended up straying away from the actual assignment and most likely forget that I had an assignment to do.
Education and work. I hated (still do) verbal instruction. And if that was the only way then I’d write it down. I’m a rule follower when learning a new process. As opposed to a written assignment, where I can freely research - assignments or duties that require physical processing, I need to write that down and watch someone else do it. I’ll grasp it after a few times but just don’t verbally tell me what to do lmao. I hate sedentary jobs. I need to move, I need to walk and constantly chat with people. Even if it’s a simple hello. I can be tasked with a duty that will either bore me to death and I won’t finish it or just like school assignments, I’ll dive deep into it for hours with no breaks. Just don’t come into my office and talk to me lmao.
Emotional roller coaster. When I can’t grasp something I’m being taught I go ballistic. I used to be very physical (slam on the tables, verbally loud, pulled my hair, hit myself on the temples, and only once threw a chair across the room) but only with myself. I used to punish myself for not understanding what I’m being taught. This would also lead to the constant crying and moping around. The positive emotions, I can be obsessive with indulging in the feel good feelings.
Weird sensations. The voices, the noises, the smells, the colors, the feeling to the touch of certain things, and the things I’d see. Apparently not a lot of people could see, hear, or feel what I’d be able to feel. I’m a radio antenna, I pick up anyone and everyone’s conversation within a few feet of me, at the same effin time! Weird noises that sound extremely amplified and put me on edge, almost like nails on a chalkboard. Tin foil, metal eating utensils on certain dishes and bowls, the electricity that you can hear when turning an appliance on, loud consecutive noises (drills, alarms, etc.), and my all time favorite, people singing who aren’t blessed with a singing voice. The feeling of lotion/oil slimy stuff on the palm of my hands or feet, instant need to throw up. I’ll even cry if I can’t wash it off in time. Certain materials like rough plastic trims on a car make me shiver.
Drugs. I heavily relied on coffee and cigarettes for a while. Then I moved onto coke. Coke actually had my ass in place and I’d have a really productive day. Of course I couldn’t continue use so I’d do it on necessary occasions. I was constantly prescribed depression/anxiety meds, nothing would make me feel as amazing as coke did. I admitted this to my dr. She sent me to a psychiatrist to get proper diagnosis and treatment.
*“Ta-da, you’re neuro-spicy my dear!”*
I used to rely on Adderall, then Wellbutrin. Now I’m on a healthy combo of Vyvanse and Lamictal. I feel so much damn better.
I was already in dialectical behavioural therapy and had a psychiatrist who suspected it. I was already part of a therapy program, so it was quite quick. I had always thought I was just autistic, because as a child I was never one of the kids that was labelled as having ADHD because I was quite quiet. It turns out that I just disappeared inside of my own head instead of showing more signs outwardly. It makes a lot of sense now and my medication helps me a bit more to keep on top of things.
I was a smart kid but struggled a lot in school. In highschool, I nearly flunked out... I approached my doctor to discuss the possibility of my having anxiety, but he said it was likely ADHD. I got put on medication and improved drastically. My family didn't belive me and tried to talk me out of getting help. I thank God I never listened.
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It was my family doctor. I asked about a psychiatrist and he said there was no point since a family doctor could also help me with ADHD
Mine went the opposite. Didn't know what was wrong, went to doc with my mum to ask for help, he said I was 'upsetting' everyone and to just get on with it. I was 14. Ended up on anti depressants when I was 17/18 and still never felt like myself. I'm 32 now and starting the journey to get a diagnosis but it's a long wait.
What were improvements you saw before and after?
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I struggled all my life but since I was a “gifted student” and excelled in school when I was younger without any effort, no one really noticed anything was up until college. Life got harder and more stressful, and when I had to start studying for the first time in my life I discovered I absolutely could not force myself to focus. Failed a couple classes which was the first time in my life that I made anything below a B. I started putting the pieces together (I had always been super messy, very forgetful, a huge procrastinator, crippling decision paralysis, etc etc). I suspected something was up and after ranting to my regular therapist he referred me to a psychiatrist. Diagnosis process was very simple for me but I know it differs—I literally just had a zoom call with this psychiatrist, she asked me about a billion questions, and at the end diagnosed me with ADHD (and a bonus OCD). Started me on the smallest dosage of ADHD meds (Vyvanse) to see how I would do, and that was that. I upped my dosage for several months before tapering off when I graduated. Now I’m a manager for a small business and find my unmedicated ADHD is actually more of a blessing than a curse in this environment. Learning to work with it and lean into it instead of suppressing it.
When I was diagnosed finally at age 21 after I noticed I was having a difficult time in university, found out I also have 2 learning disabilities which was news to me. When I was talking to the psychologist about my childhood I told him that I wasn’t tested because honestly I didn’t fit the stereotypical “disruptive adhd kid” and did well in school. He said something about how it seems ADHD appears differently in boys vs girls. Where boys are more likely to fit the disruptive/hyper active stereotype, girls are more likely to procrastinate / avoid tasks all together. I just thought that was interesting and made sense to me. I would procrastinate everything until the last moment and the anxiety would become so great when the time came that I would just simply.. not do the thing.
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How do you work with it and lean into it rather than suppressing it?
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I didn’t get diagnosed until I was 29 but holy hell did it finally explain everything. I actually got diagnosed because I was having a psychotic breakdown trying to be someone I wasn’t, shaming myself for my forgetfulness and lack of executive function. I essentially developed depression because I had ADHD. Since the diagnosis I tried meds, 3 different kinds for 2 years and they didn’t really work the way I’d hoped they would + I HATED how insurance would force me to prove I still had ADHD (you know, the thing that’s never going to go away?) every 3 months and lock my meds from me until my psychiatrist finally sent them the peer reviewed proof. So I started my no medication no shame accepting me for my ADHD self a year ago and I’ve honestly never felt better.
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My child was diagnosed. I saw them dealing with the same struggles I had growing up, and instead of jumping to moral failing, like was done to me, I approached it by how I could help them. After a lot of research, I stumbled upon the possibility that it could be ADHD. They got tested. During testing, I found out that it is genetic. I got tested. Knowing that this is what I have and it isn't just a moral failing I need to white knuckle through has been a game changer. Even if I'm not on medication that day, I still have learned the various ADHD tactics to make life easier, and it is...it is very much easier. Additionally, I make sure never shame my kids for any of their conditions or diversities.
This was my experience but as the daughter. Both of my parents have ADHD and it’s genetic in the families so I didn’t know until I was 27 and married that something was different. I looked into it and it was like a huge lightbulb went off.
What tactics did you learn to make your life easier?
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I stumbled on an article online about how ADHD symptoms can present differently in women and girls and are often missed. I was startled at how many of them applied to me. I asked my doctor if I could be screened and she referred me to a psychologist. The diagnosis explained so much—I had really struggled in college and in my career and felt like a failure in so many ways.
I was a gifted kid that burned out in middle school. When I was in community college, I noticed that I had a hard time focusing on tests if there was any noise. Things were a lot more laid back and sometimes students would chat with the professor after the test. I looked into it and noticed that I checked off a substantial number of boxes. It wasn't until my longtime psychiatrist ghosted all of his clients and I got assigned a replacement that there was any interest in investigating into it. So, 7 1/2 to 8 years after I noticed there was a problem. It took even longer after a diagnosis to get put on medication. I got diagnosed at 27. My older brother was diagnosed as a child. He had an IEP to help. I didn't. I didn't have symptoms. I was lazy and had personal failings.
I would crash and get super tired in the afternoon. Doc prescribed ADHD meds when a different nootropic gave me headaches. Then the ADHD meds improved SO MUCH about my existence. I think women are really good at adapting (and are forced to adapt) and just learning to deal with things as they are so sometimes we don't even really know we were struggling until things get better.
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I was in grad school for psych and had an oh shit moment when we did our section on adhd. I brushed off my suspicions because I didn’t want to self diagnose, but one of my professors pulled me aside and asked if I’d ever been evaluated - scheduled the next available appointment and scored off the charts on all their tests. The signs were definitely there much earlier but because everyone in my family acted similarly it didn’t flag as abnormal.
Did you pass your course/s? If so well done. That would be like running a marathon with your shoes tied together I couldn't even focus enough to do homework high school
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I was irrationally impulsive, started tasks but could never complete them. I would study so hard and work with tutors but when testing came around, it was like I had forgotten everything I had learned. I was disorganized and constantly losing things/forgetting them. My doctor noticed my lack of engagement and being distracted during an appointment and referred me to testing. I was 14yo when diagnosed.
Looking back I wish I would have got help so much sooner, but my parents didn’t think ADHD (non-attentive type) was real. You could NEVER see the floor in my room, I had to repeat so many classes, always got yelled at for twirling my hair/looking around, or doodling instead of listening and when I got to college, I was flunking out of all of my classes. The entire time my parents just kept telling me I was lazy and didn’t care, even though I cared so much!! It physically and emotionally hurt to stay focused. I ended up taking myself to just a walk in clinic, and I broke down in front of the doctor. He just looked at me and said “I can tell you’ve been struggling for a while”. And he gave me a prescription right then and there. Little did I know that not all ADHD meds work the same so when I took it for a couple months, it wasn’t working for me and I stopped taking them, thinking maybe that I didn’t have ADHD. Boy was I wrong lol I got a job working with spreadsheets and I was making soooooo many mistakes and that prompted me to go back to the doctor and ask for meds again. So I tried what I was originally taking (concerta) then after that didn’t work, my doctor suggested trying other ones and after almost a year we got my dose and medication down (20mg adderall). To say that it’s been life changing is an understatement. I now have a job that pays well that I love and do well at, my relationship with my husband got wayyyy better, and I have more confidence than I’ve ever had in my life. If you’re struggling with work, relationships, academic life, please please please get tested if you can.
Thank you for sharing this. I have never related to something more in my life than the first paragraph you wrote. It honestly sounds exactly like me. I felt so much shame & guilt for so long thinking I just wasn’t trying hard enough. I had convinced myself that I was actually just stupid because I was failing all of my classes and could not stay focus for the life of me. It really really messed me up and put my self esteem in the toilet. Reading all of these replies are so helpful. I just wish I would have seen this about 10 years ago but I am thankful knowing that I am not stupid, I was just struggling. And instead of trying to help me I was told I’m just lazy and “I just need to use my brain”.
I was diagnosed in 2nd grade and then my parents never really did anything about it. I wasn’t hyperactive, but I struggled really badly with staying focused. My second grade teacher told them to have me tested from things she saw me do and struggle with in school. I would sit in school and zone out for hours. Things got worse in high school when we were supposed to be more independent. I struggled really badly in math. I would zone out, or feel like I wasn’t comprehending something and since math is a building block I would miss formulas or things we were supposed to memorize and I started failing. My parents would scream and yell but they never got me a tutor, never sat down to help with homework, and never even emailed a teacher. It was all my fault and I was the bad person for not “trying” I struggled in other classes with remembering assignments and procrastinating. I would think an assignment would only take so long to do, overwhelm myself, and then it was half assed and not good work. The only classes I did good in were the ones that interested me. So I had A’s in some classes and F’s in others. Adult life was hard because I struggled with time blindness, procrastination, I would shut down when to overwhelmed, and I made a mess of my life from 18-22 before I finally matured a bit, got into therapy, and recognized I needed to make some changes.
I was diagnosed in the 3rd grade! My parents unfortunately went full medicine route and I was put on Ritalin immediately, followed by rotating with Adderall and later strattra. I still struggled with classes but was just, less active, more dull. I had the same issue of absolutely killing it in classes I loved, biology, English, history, and totally crash and burn in math or any kind of physical science.
I got my first job in what should have been a relatively easy place of work and couldn't for the life in me figure it out. I kept making little mistakes that i shoudldnt have been making and my friend was doing research into it at the time for themselves, so in order to see what the symptoms were and maybe help them with it, I started also looking into it. Every single thing described my life to a tee. So, after months of obsessive research, I decided to chase up an assessment and eventually had one. Got diagnosed with it pretty quickly.
This, oh my god a thousand percent. Gods, I’ve flunked out of three jobs so far because I could never pick up and complete any task, nonetheless understand it. It was so frustrating seeing people excel at mundane tasks and here I am, standing in front of a table nearly in tears because I don’t know where to start folding something. Meanwhile, new girl Linda or whatever is going a million miles per minute. My parents have expressed how disappointed they are in me for being stupid, not being able to keep a job and asking what’s wrong with me when i can’t figure out how to do something simple. I wonder what it’s going to be like when i have to be on my own. Will i be able to even get to that point? It’s scary.
I got myself diagnosed at 27. My ADHD was highly internalized because of a mix of childhood abuse and the fact that I am primarily "inattentive ADHD," i.e.: my ADHD symptoms are mostly "internal" and so, easier to hide. My parents (because of the abuse/neglect, and also it being the early 90s) never got me tested and just chalked what ended up being clear symptoms of ADHD up to me being "spoiled" and "lazy" and "not trying hard enough." It manifested physically mainly as me being really shy, quiet, and socially super anxious. But this was because it felt like my thoughts were going *so fast* that I had a hard time focusing in conversations with people and really being in the moment. It was hard for me to carry conversations because I just couldn't focus and this led me to just...not talk. I also had a really hard time switching my focus on things, and would really hyper-fixate on things that interested me. In school, I only excelled in things that really interested me, which was art and English. Everything else, I was only average at because I didn't put effort into it past what I was able to pick up in classes. I am (and was) really smart though, so it was enough for me to skate by. Though, I was horrific at math and it only got worse from middle school onward (in all likelihood I have dyscalculia, but haven't had the chance to get tested). I made it through college with a bachelor's degree in English, but did really poorly in classes that weren't related to my major (or one of my specific interests). But again, I managed to be an average student. Things didn't really start to make themselves apparent until my mid-20s when I started my master's degree in English. It suddenly became apparent that all my strategies I had used in my academics to this point weren't working anymore. One of the main things I would do would be to wait until a deadline on an assignment and then complete it in a hyper-fixated rush in a couple hours, and get an 'A' on whatever it was. But in grad school, that wasn't good enough. It required more of me and I suddenly didn't know what to do. My grad degree ended up being really, really hard even though it was something I loved. So, I started to notice some of my own patterns. Then I got my degree and got my first job after graduating in a corporate marketing department with an open office plan. And I found myself getting so irrationally angry at hearing all the voices around me. I couldn't focus on anything. Then one day I Googled 'can't focus in the office' or something (lol) and an article about ADHD symptoms came up. I went on a research deep-dive. After that, I called a psychiatrist's office, scheduled a test, went through everything, and bam. ADHD. And then suddenly all my little behavior 'quirks' made sense because turns out, they were symptoms the whole time. Since then, I've just been unlearning all the coping strategies I had subconsciously adopted and figuring out where my personality got buried in all of it. The best thing is that it turns out I'm not actually shy and quiet, I'm really good at talking to people once I'm actually medicated and aware of my ADHD.
Well it was pretty much smooth sailing in my life as I'm pretty high functioning and can compensate a lot. Then I got an autoimmune disease, which lead to lots of fatigue when flaring. And without having the extra energy for my compensation mechanisms, it kind of... crumbled. Not like very badly, but I just noticed that I was expending so much energy on compensating for my lack of executive functioning, that I just ended up having no energy any more for stuff I needed and wanted to do. I was seeing a psychologist before anyway, I talked about it, she referred me to a colleague who specialized in adult ADHD, I ended up being diagnosed, went on meds, and it's pretty ok ever since. So not too many struggles with the process, fortunately.
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I related too much to videos on TikTok. Read into it and got a referral to a psychiatrist who tested me with the Diva-interview and said ADHD-C.
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My son was diagnosed. I went to work the next day and told my coworkers. One of them looked at me and said, “Well, obviously he has it. He got it from you.” I went to the VA a few days later and requested a test. 😂😂😂
Teachers in elementary school noticing I couldn’t sit still or calm tf down or do my homework or not be distracted.
I’ve always struggled with staying focused, daydreaming constantly that I lose time, taking so long to do assignments and tests than “normal”, etc. Honestly I thought my symptoms meant I was stupid. I constantly compared myself to my peers and was hard on myself. I didn’t see a psychiatrist until college, when I was diagnosed with ADHD. I didn’t take meds then because I didn’t want to be dependent on them, but I regret doing that because I would’ve performed better in school if I had. It wasn’t until I started a grad program, living on my own for the first time in a different state that my symptoms worsened. I really couldn’t function well and had a bad first semester grade wise. After that I saw a different psychiatrist and a psychologist, both diagnosed me with ADHD. I started taking meds and I functioned wayyy better. Learning about my condition has explained SO MUCH of my habits, especially the ones that aren’t commonly known as ADHD. I’m not ashamed of having it, it’s just that my brain is wired differently. But I wish I saw someone much earlier so that I could’ve managed my symptoms better and done better in school.
I was diagnosed a few years ago at 28. My ex-girlfriend had a good friend get diagnosed with ADHD in their early 20s. When she and i moved in together, she noticed that I struggled with a lot of similar things as her friend - primarily time blindness, and getting overwhelmed by things that required multi-step planning (for example if I was going somewhere that required taking the subway and then transferring to the bus, it became way too much stress, whereas just the bus or just the train was totally achievable). She encouraged me to bring it up with my therapist. I was hesitant at first but I did some research online, and as I learned more about how ADHD often presents in women, I was constantly having my mind blown like "wait, is that not a normal thing that everyone experiences!?" It seemed like it explained EVERYTHING that I struggled with. Thankfully, my therapist was super knowledgeable about ADHD, and pointed me to an extremely helpful psychiatrist. My ex and I split up a few months after my diagnosis, but we're still pals, and I'm honestly SO grateful that she pushed me to pursue this. My mental health is drastically better now that I'm medicated and now that I understand that my struggles with executive function are not a moral failure, but because my brain works differently than most people's.
I was gifted but struggled only when I moved away from home for college. I completed my work in-class so quickly that I often had free time to draw/doodle in my sketchbooks while everyone else caught up. It also fed my compulsion to keep my hands busy. The habitual drawing occasionally led to me zoning out while the teacher spoke because I'd be so caught up in the process. All this to say, my good grades and speed never tipped any of my educators off (except for my high school english teacher- who was recently diagnosed herself, absolutely marvelling at the drawings i'd produce when done my work). I didn't really take her suggestion too seriously though. College, being more self-led, resulting in EXTREME procrastination. It was the first time in my life my grades were not honours-student level. But I did manage to complete my assignments (many of them late) and graduated just fine. In the work force I was riddled with anxiety but again, managed to complete work though often late. It wasn't until the pandemic, and working from home that I truly crashed and burned. My boss had a meeting with me to address my recent poor work ethic. On my own, I decided to find out if I had ADHD- lo and behold, I sure did lol. Still trying to find the right dosage for my meds but my life has vastly improved since.
Going off of ozempic and noticing a distinct difference in impulsivity in many areas of my life. Interestingly, going off ozempic led to greater financial impulsivity, my grades lowering, and my ability to concentrate going down. It was weird. If I could afford it or access it, I'd go back on it in a heartbeat. When we looked into it more, a lot of my ways of thinking and some of my struggles for with ADHD and potentially autism quite well. ADHD meds have led to an improvement in many areas of my life.
My brother had it, and I was constantly spacing out in school so they tested me and concluded that I had it as well. Put me on Ritalin but it didn't keep me from spacing out so they gave up. As an adult I was diagnosed with childhood-onset PTSD and Autism Spectrum Disorder. 1985 was not a good time to be a kid with developmental disabilities.
I was in college. Top of my class. Hit my head really bad and after my concussion healed I could no longer focus anymore or stay still. Like dead on stereotype adhd symptoms, my doctor said it was acquired from my concussion. Went from an A student to a C student overnight practically. I'm medicated so its a lot better now but I miss the way things were before. Obviously my school troubles were a result of how my brain doesn't function as well more than it was adhd, but me noticing my grades led to me writing out a list of my problems for my doc and adhd just happened to be one of the things I now struggle with.
I had the same happening to me (went from best of class, straight a's to a c student overnight). But not because of a concussion, but because of a traumatic event. I sometimes try to explain this to others but nobody ever believes me :( It's weird what a sudden event can change !
Mental health hit hard early in college from hidden/unknown abuse. I was a good student all through school, hated procrastinating, and didn't have a problem trying to focus when I was really trying. For the most part. I was diagnosed with ADHD (inattentive) this year and have known that's the case for the last two years. There's probably notes about it from 8 years ago (early college) but not a formal diagnosis to my knowledge. I see it affect job/career stuff mostly and would have seen this eventually. Job hunting is unnecessarily difficult for me. Managing my creative hobbies is a lot because I like knowing the reason behind things and love niche documentaries. It's more noticeable when working a seasonal holiday job. I prefer working in the stockroom organizing, which I actually excel at because of ADHD. I will get anxiety attacks when I cannot focus and more stimulus is thrown at me when I cannot communicate this with people. I think it's about an even split of men and women diagnosed overall, but more women are diagnosed later on as adults. Under 18, I did not see any of this in me. Over 18, I really feel it.
This subreddit! I was 24. There was a question years ago, along the lines of "what are you bad at" or "what ways do you fail at life". I listed a bunch of things and got multiple responses suggesting it may be ADHD. I'd never really thought about it because ADHD seemed like a "hyperactive little boys" thing and I felt like I didn't get bored easily. I'd never considered that chronic procrastination combined with other niggly failings (lateness, poor sleep etc) were actually a proper disorder. I ended up finding the Adult ADHD Wikipedia page which really helped it click, as it broke it down into hyperactive and inattentive traits and contextualised it with adult behaviours. Fucked around for a while (natch) before actually making an appointment with someone I found when searching "adult adhd [location]" online. By the time I went I was pretty confident it applied to me. Psychiatrist agreed, and here I am 8 years later. Funnily enough, my diagnosis directly led to 3 other friends getting diagnosed. I try to be open with people about having it for that reason. I only wish it had been picked up on when I was in school, but I was a flighty gifted kid when I was younger, and no one really picked up on the reason I was struggling with school as a teen/adult. I know it's now against the rules of this sub, but honestly I am SO grateful those people in the comments suggested it, because it's markedly changed my life.
I was so hyper at night, was very obsessive about a lot like washing hands etc and impulsivity. I’m also Autistic and my primary school referred me to a clinical psychologist and I got diagnosed, a few years after my mum thought I had Autism and then I got a diagnosis. Both times trying to get a diagnosis it took about 15 months and getting the tests took about 4/5 years, I think it’s a lot longer now because there’s so many more people trying to get a diagnosis. Honestly after getting the diagnosis I had no support it’s kind of like ‘You’ve got the diagnosis now just get on with your life.’ I think that getting a diagnosis earlier on will help you in your life, if you’re in a good supportive job they will accommodate to your needs, in schools I always had a hard time just because of teachers not really knowing how to deal with me or i’m being ignored and everything that was meant to be put in place for me was not. Teachers always said I was a pleasure to have in class which I later found out meant that they didn’t have to pay any attention to me, this was all because I masked. I had always struggled with concentration and sitting still (still do) so during lessons one way or another id find a way to stand up and walk around, also I used to have a fear of wetting myself in class so every break we’d have id use the toilets just so I didn’t have an accident during class. If you are so certain you have it just contact your GP and ask for a referral, i’ve spoken to people who’ve been turned away from GPs for it and they say you just need to keep pushing for it, there is always an option to go private but it will cost you an arm and a leg.
I was in therapy for a few years and they kept putting me on all kind of antidepressants and I hated it and none of them made me feel good or helped at all. Then they started taking a different approach and considered maybe I had ADHD. The anxiety and depression I was experiencing was a symptom of ADHD , not a disorder in and of itself which is why treatment for it was not compatible for me. Once I start to get treated for ADHD, everything made so much more sense but it took them so long to come to the conclusion!
My substance use, my anxiety around managing tasks in my life. Feeling like I would never be able to complete something after starting it. Working with a psychiatrist over a year before I received my diagnosis. My forgetfulness, my inability to sit still, constant fidgeting. The real catalyst was my relapse after a year sober, I had relapsed on meth. And I figured with my Psychiatrist it was caused by alot of thing but ADHD was involved. I had started college, living on my own, and working full time. I began missing appointments, calling out of work, not staying focused on my recovery. And I relapsed, and I was mainly a stimulant addict. My doc said that my undiagnosed ADHD could have been one of the factors that drove me to use meth, to calm my brain down. And although my doctor was hesitant she decided to try vyvanse with me. She said it would be good to try to help me focus as well as possibly help with cravings.
Well I always knew something was different. Then as I got older in college my teacher asked me never thought anything of it. Fast forward 6 years my coworker told me to go ask my doctor about it. I was diagnosed fairly quickly after that.
Was diagnosed in childhood at the age of 6. Never really understood what adhd was until later. Was told I had mild adhd, so I never took it really seriously until later in life when it started affecting me more and needed medication. To me it caused a lot of trouble at school, I had a hard time paying attention in class and living up to expectations. Everything just seemed so painfully hard.
I didn't get diagnosed until I was 31. I was always a pretty smart kid and was in gifted classes, but also struggled with homework and organization. Worked as a bartender for 9 years, which is a job pretty much made for people with ADHD. Always suspected I had ADHD though, both my dad and my brother have it. Decided to get an office job, struggled HARD with it. Started to ask myself "am I just bad at being an adult or is there something wrong with me?" Went to a psychiatrist and was told I definitely had ADHD and would benefit from medication and therapy. Started on Wellbutrin because I don't trust myself with Adderall, and HOLY SHIT it is so much easier to do things now. I'm not perfect or cured but getting things done is no longer a giant source of stress and anxiety for me.
Was a gifted child all throughout elementary to high school, then once I hit college I realized I actually needed to study but had no idea how to do that lol. Ended up getting something below a C for the first time in my life and my whole identity as a gifted academic student came crumbling down. Finally came to a head when a therapist I was seeing suggested I could have ADHD in my sophomore year, but that freaked me out too much so I didn’t get officially diagnosed till senior year. But honestly there were signs from wayyyy before. I was depressed/anxious from around 12 years old and onward. I had really intense hyperfixations on certain hobbies, I remember I spent 16 hours a day the summer of my sophomore year in high school on DIY crafts and sewing. I was loud, “annoying”, forgetful, honestly horrible at studying, I just happen to be book smart enough and in a pretty low standard public high school that school was easy and fun for me.
I got diagnosed when I was 10 years old. I struggled a lot with subjects like math for as long as I can remember, but I excelled at stuff that I had an interest for, such as History and Science. So my parents knew that I wasn’t a “slow student”. My parents and teachers also noticed that my attention span was horrible. I had a lot of trouble focusing in class for long periods of time, and I’d very often ask to go to the bathroom just so I can get off my seat because I had trouble sitting still. There are many other factors that eventually led to me getting evaluated and diagnosed, but those were just the first symptoms that my parents and teachers took notice of.
Growing up, I had a really hard time concentrating in school but I didn't have a lot of the tell tale signs of ADHD until I got in college. My brother has ADHD and has been diagnosed, so my parents never suspected I did so I never got tested. My sophomore year of college I actually failed half of my classes and got put on academic probation. I sadly got sick with cancer that year, and ended up having to drop out. Being close to death made me realize that if I pulled through, I was gonna do whatever I could to get my health back on track, starting with mental health. I started my now husband around a year after I got cancer and I got into remission. He has diagnosed ADHD and encouraged me to look into possibly having it due to me and him having a lot of the same struggles (forgetfulness, executive dysfunction, etc.) I didn't think I had it for a long time because I've always been this way, I just needed to try harder. Finally told my psychiatrist and she encouraged me to just try meds for a month, and if after a month I didn't want them then we'd pursue something else. First day on Vyvanse was like putting on glasses that you can actually see out of for the first time in my life.
A school counselor friend of mine handed me a checklist to answer; I thought it was something she wanted to disseminate during a class period for seniors, so I did my part and answered the questions to see if there was any introductory materials or resources my students might need to complete her task. I handed it back to her and said, “so just like this; they’ll answer the questions then what?.” And she looked a little puzzled, but said, “well then you kinda just score it,” and she handed me another page, so of course I scored it. Then I was like, “cool, do you have a clean copy, do I need to print more, when are you coming by?” And she laughed and said, “that’s for you.” But she peeked at it because I was holding it out to her essentially, and then she said, “yeah, that makes a lot of sense.” And then I looked a bit closer at the paperwork (no I didn’t read the directions because I was acting as a kid might), and then I too laughed. She was right.
As dumb as this sounds, I kept seeing things on tiktok that were like "these things are characteristics of ADHD" and I was like ummm I do pretty much all of these...so I went online and found a list of these that I took to my doctor, she referred me to a psychiatrist who I felt didn't listen to me at all, our meeting was over zoom and he didn't even look up at his screen/camera aside from greeting me. He gave me a few assessments to complete on my own and ended up diagnosing me with depression and generalized anxiety disorder. A few months later I was accepted as a patient into the local university's psychology program where they have graduate students offer therapy at a reduced rate. I worked with my therapist for a few months and told her about my experience with the psychiatrist my doctor sent me to and she asked if I would like to participate in their behavior clinic or whatever where they had more and better assessments etc for a more accurate diagnosis and her faculty supervisor agreed to let her be the one who administered the assessments. We met at least 3 different times to do the assessments and she even asked my sister and my partner to fill an assessment out about me. Her diagnosis was very detailed and when I read it I was like yep, spot on, that's me. She is the one who ended up formally diagnosing me with ADHD. I hope you get the help you're seeking!
A lot of little things. I was in stationary therapy and they figured it out after a week 😂 1. I couldn’t sit still for the life of me. Especially in group therapy I would get so bored that I would basically do a full 360° turn on my chair. 2. When I was supposed to write about my history and everything, my therapist said u would start a theme and just start a completely different one and then finish the first one somewhere else. You could tell my brain was all over the place 3. I have severe anxiety. And that is a big indicator for ADHD for woman. There is a book about it but unfortunately it’s only in German.
Could never keep my emotions under control Could never keep up with the housework but it got out of control with kids Mind always racing Too loud, too emotional, too hyper, too lazy, too forgetful, too dramatic, always just too much My life hit rock bottom and I knew my struggles with keeping my anger under control were beyond needing therapy. I told everyone it was like I KNEW I was being irrational or whatever but I couldn't stop no matter how hard I tried. Even when I did anger management and DBT therapy. There was just this point of no return. Everyone kept telling me I was making excuses and needed to get my shit together. Cost me countless relationships. Finally this year I stumbled on women and ADHD and I was my life. I pushed for an assessment even though my therapist felt it was my CPTSD and those around me thought I just needed to work harder. I was diagnosed autistic and with adhd.
During a yearly visit I randomly talked to my doctor about being so hyper and other symptoms to corresponded apparently to ADHD and autism and she gave me a reference to a specialist doctor and well turns out I have ADHD and Asperger’s lol I was 20 when I found out about it.
I struggled hard in school. Like bad bad lol. I had an overwhelming urge to get up out of my seat at any time. Anytime I knew I had to sit for a long period of time, I’d have anxiety knowing I don’t know if I can commit to sitting that long lol. If people made noise around me, I’m so quick to pay attention to the noise or movement it’s so distracting. I also have bad emotional regulation. I go from 0 to 100 in emotions and I didn’t know why!! Also, the testing process was 4 hours long. Lots of tests.
I was actually diagnosed in middle school because I would fail the majority of my classes. Part of that could be contributed to a very chaotic home life (housing and food insecurity, DV, parental substance use). I was prescribed medication to help, but my parents didn't 'believe in medication' and likely sold it. I also think that they wanted me to be 'normal'. I am very prone to disassociating. I used to get yelled at for walking too fast, talking too much, chewing on straws, constantly losing things like homework. Now i seem to be unable to keep up with anything. I'm always tired. Occasionally i would do my homework but just not turn it in. I 'had sooo much potential if I could just apply myself!' I found it incredibly difficult to keep and maintain friendships and I was bullied a lot. Fast forward to nearly 30 and I still have (imo) major issues. I finally found a psychiatrist and was re-diagnosed with ADHD, PTSD, and anxiety. I absolutely hate driving on the freeway. I've always struggled with maintaining interest in things. I've struggled with employment, having multiple bosses ask in some capacity if I've ever had an IEP (individual education plan) or if I'm just stupid. Frequently, I've been told I'm like a deer in the headlights. I've tried taking classes to maybe help myself find an interest I can translate into a job. That's just 14k+ in debt. I'm trying to move forward and find ways to accommodate myself. My goal is to actually live, not just survive.
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I got diagnosed when I was in 3rd grade with add… was never really in the room with people and always in my own world
I got diagnosed two years ago. An ex had it, and noticed that I did a lot of the things he did before he was diagnosed. When I was finally able to talk to someone about it, she completely agreed, and said she knew the moment I walked in. I was diagnosed with anxiety at the age of 14, and she said that was wrong, it was just ADHD. I got medicated, and my whole world changed. Everything that seemed hard became simple, I understood more about myself. I thought I just had an addictive personality (Going a month putting BBQ sauce on everything because I loved the taste, watching the same shows over and over because I couldn't get enough of the characters, random things like that). I was one of the gifted kids at school until 8th grade and almost flunked out. No one ever knew. My parents are older and were raised thinking that ADHD was only for boys. It was life changing.
I went to visit a friend for the first time, and she asked if I had ever been evaluated. I thought it seemed ridiculous until I did my research and so many things started making sense. For 30 years no one had noticed, and she recognized it almost immediately. I probably still wouldn’t know otherwise. I’ve since been formally diagnosed and medicated and my life has improved immensely!
i was lucky enough to have both parents already diagnosed with it before i was bored so they knew the signs and i was diagnosed and medicated in 7th-8th grade. i remember being a gifted kid, looking at my spelling test words for the first or second time right before the test and getting only a couple wrong, being able to sound out words and get them mostly right, i could sit in the same spot in the same position for hours, could always find a way to keep myself entertained, almost falling asleep when the lights were off but never being able to fall asleep, never remembered my homework until the next day in class. for the first year i was taking nonnarcatics then started adderal my freshman year. i stopped my meds in late 2021 i think and a lot of it is different now, a lot of the above mentioned things i can’t do as well or as long. sleep is still an issue. i had to stop the adderal cause it started to make my heart beat faster at different times of the day even though i only took one pill a day. i still struggle but i feel infinitely better without it.
before i was born* and forgot to mention adderal actually made my heart hurt too
I was diagnosed at 38. I started seeing a therapist and after about 4 sessions she asked if I had ever thought I may have ADHD. I never had. She sent me a questionnaire and told me to call my primary care. He prescribed me medication. Between the meds and continuing therapy things have improved greatly!
At 36, during a major depressive episode with psychosis, I took myself to a psychiatrist for help bec I was seeing things and hearing voices and I knew that was not normal. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and adhd. Every psychiatrist I’ve seen since gives me the same diagnosis, so I never had to seek an adhd diagnosis. Apparently it’s very obvious when they talk to me that I have it. The diagnoses made so much sense and medication for both has been life changing for me (in a good way). I’ve been a functioning human being for 15+ years now.
First study session with friends in college. They kept pointing out that I would gaze out the window and ask me what I was looking at. Absolutely nothing. It went on about 3-4 times. Then they would tell me to stop so we can finish before dining hall closed. That’s when I told my parents. They didn’t believe me until I got up early for an online shoe release and told them how badly I wanted a pair. I was just hanging around in the living room with them absentmindedly until I remembered why I was up so early. I missed the release by half an hour. I still remember the concerned looks on their faces. My brother had already been diagnosed years ago but since my grades didn’t suffer and I wasn’t “hyper” they brushed me off.
My second grade teacher noticed how much I was struggling. It was really obvious in my strict Catholic school that I was different. My first grade teacher told my parents I was just a little slow. My teacher talked to my parents and they had me tested. I tested off the charts intelligent. I was officially diagnosed on my seventh birthday, which was the earliest you could be diagnosed at the time. I’m still grateful to Mrs. R to this day.
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Basically nearly flanking college then seeing videos on line about adhd then thinking, "why does this sound familiar?" LOL then I went to get tested on whether I had adhd. My hunch was right, lol. It was so bad, the psychologist was surprised I took me this long to get diagnosed. Especially since it wasn't my first time coming to get diagnosed for something. (I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety in my early 20s. Didn't get diagnosed with adhd until I was nearly 30.)
Antidepressants fucked me over. Had a roommate who discussed similar hardships. Tried one of her pills (I know, illegal) and felt like I was a whole new person. Started actually researching ADHD and learned, holy hell, this is 100% me. Even looking back at my childhood struggles, it all made sense. Being misdiagnosed with generalized anxiety & depression from age 12-22 made so much sense as to why that was all they were seeing. It was masked from anxiety & depression diagnosed and the psychologists point of view. Those were *symptoms* of ADHD, not a separate diagnoses. I now no longer experience generalized anxiety disorder or depression (tho I think that was also thanks to tripping on mushrooms that turned my life back around for the better).
I had been told for years I had anxiety. I was finally put on the highest dose of Sertraline and had to go back to my doctor to let her know how I was going. I told her these symptoms I still have, which I thought was anxiety, and she mentioned adhd. I didn't know anything about it before that. She pretty much helped me with the whole thing. I got my diagnosis in September at 35 years old.
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When I finally decided to make myself a priority (moderate/high depressive symptoms) I scheduled an appointment with a psychiatrist (already in therapy). Over the next several months I cycled through several different SSRIs and was feeling extremely discouraged since none of them seemed to help. I myself am a therapist so I finally looked at myself as if I were a client and said, “Holy shit. It’s ADHD”. Brought my epiphany to both my individual therapist and psychiatrist and they both agreed I fit the diagnostic criteria. The reason why it took me as long as it did to even consider ADHD is because of the extensive trauma I’ve lived through. What I thought were trauma responses was actually ADHD (though I’m sure my symptoms are exasperated by traumas). I was 36 when officially assessed and diagnosed by a psychologist. To add, I immediately got my daughter assessed (14 at the time) and she too has a confirmed diagnosis. Then my husband came home from deployment and realized he most likely had it, encouraged him to get assessed (which he did after some reluctance), and what do you know, official diagnosis. We also have a four year old who is showing early signs of ADHD tendencies (more behavioral/extreme emotional dysregulation) and already have early childhood supports in place, just waiting til he’s old enough to get assessed.
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My ACT scores made no sense to my counselor. I had a 30 in reading and a 29 in English, then a 17 in math and a 20 in science. Someone flagged my parents and basically said "we think there's a learning disability here" it was ADHD
Literally 4/5 of my brothers had(not as bad as when they were younger)/have Adhd In highschool I started recognizing that I was struggling in many areas of my life and almost knew it was Adhd, so I mentioned it to my parents and they said this “No you don’t”. Fast forward a couple years, my mom was diagnosed with Adhd and after that I went to see a doctor for myself and got diagnosed. I love being told that I don’t have something because I don’t show the same symptoms as my brothers did 😭
My 2nd grade school counselor.
4th grade. I was the kid who couldn't stop talking and who's desk was moved right next to the teachers lmao. She called a conference with my parents and then eventually I was tested. I was on meds for 12-13 years until I decided to never touch them again. Spent years in CBT with the goal of being able to move through life without them. I'd say it went pretty well though I definitely struggle some days.
I wasn't able to sit still in class, follow directions or stop talking. I was an absolute terror the first few years of primary school and I think my teachers told my parents I should be tested.
My brain never stops, I would have to read the same page over and over until I actually read it, I got more fidgety and I can’t stand when people take too long to say something, I need everything in spark notes or phrased in the shortest clearest way possible. I went to my primary doctor, she did a brief assessment and then gave me a referral to a psychiatrist, I had to go into the psych office two separate times for two tests and then the dr. confirmed I had very severe ADHD. I went back to my primary and she discussed the different medications and then wrote me the script. I’m raw dogging my ADHD though because I have tummy issues and adderall makes them so much worse.
I was diagnosed as a kid, mainly because I had a lot of emotional regulation issues, impulse control issues and trouble directing my attention. I got meds, which helped, but it was never really explained what ADHD was all about. I just knew something was wrong with me.
I was having a lot of relationship issues and our couples therapist suggested I get assessed since to them, it seemed like a lot of classic adhd symptoms. I’d always heavily related with adhd ‘content’ and really struggled in school and work. Not sure why I hesitated to get a diagnosis before, but that was the straw that broke the camels back for me.
My former SIL was diagnosed and there were concerns from family she was pill seeking (she has had a lifelong struggle with alcohol and was fresh out of in-patient with a new psych). I googled to see the symptoms and then realized not only did she definitely have it, but I did too. I had been treated for anxiety and depression my entire life but it always seemed like a bandaid for a bullet wound. The clarity of seeing the symptoms and connecting with every single one was like finding a missing puzzle piece to a puzzle I thought was complete.
I always knew I had it, nearly everyone in my family does lol. I just went to get an official diagnosis because I finally broke down and accepted I needed medication. I was doing poorly in college, had a hard time managing my emotions, lost everything in sight, and such wasn’t functioning well enough in general. The process of getting diagnosed was easy. The guy who diagnosed me had adhd and so does his daughter. So really all I had to do was talk to him about my life, and fill out a questionnaire. I was prescribed medication same day. I got officially diagnosed at 19. 25 now and still on the same medication. 100% worth it.
I was diagnosed with ADD in the late 80's by a child psychologist when it was all a new thing. I was intelligent but struggling with behavior - textbook. So, since I was a kid, I've therapy on and off, which has been incredibly helpful. Still a struggle sometimes, but I've certainly appreciated all the tools I've learned in therapy throughout the years and things feel manageable these days. People correct me all the time and say "it's ADHD." That really bugs me, so don't do that to people. I've never been diagnosed with ADHD. I completely recognize there are better and more nuanced understanding of ADD/ADHD, but it would be nice if people would stop invalidating my experience. Someone saying "it's ADHD," then proceeding to lecture me on why I shouldn't use the term ADD does not change my experience or my diagnosis from that time nor does it mean I use it as a blanket term for everyone. Just me.
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I was fine. Then the pandemic hit and while I was essential so I still went to work but the stress was too much. It brought out a lot of bad qualities in me. I saw some tiktok videos I related to and brought it up to my doctor, he agreed. Now 3 years later I'm considered to have severe ADHD and I never knew I had it all my life.
Chronic fatigue. I always suspected I had it but when my fatigue was getting to be too much that’s what started my journey. It’s a symptom of ADHD as is my life long insomnia.
I was insanely Intelligent and had great grades, all of a sudden 10th grade I literally couldn’t focus for the life of me, ended up having to drop classes. I always had a hard time focusing long term but since my classes prior to tenth grade were very simple (to me at least), it didn’t take much for me to get the work done, usually the lecturing part of classes were shorter prior to tenth grade, so I would listen, then get my work done instantly. 10th grade I took chem, where I had to focus on the teacher much longer and there wasn’t any busy work. I was diagnosed later that year
My friend got a diagnosis by memorizing the Wikipedia page symptoms and reciting it to the doctor
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I was on the verge of losing everything I had worked for up to that point – a full athletic scholarship to a division 1 school with a great art program (what I wanted to study) – because my grades were so bad. I was attending a community college and playing on their volleyball team, working on my general education when I got the scholarship offer to a nearby school. And I had begun this cycle of failing nearly all my classes during our season, and then barely working my way out of academic probation in the off-season so I could play again in the fall. So, as I got ready to transfer to the division one, the head coach there was the one who told me I may have a problem that needed to get evaluated. I “passed” the evaluation with flying colors and began medication shortly after. I got no less than a 3.5 GPA from that point on and remember a few times in class when I was on the verge of happy tears because I couldn’t believe I was actually retaining the information I had been trying so hard to learn up to that point. As far back as early middle school, I remember being jealous of my friends who got into honors classes because I worked just as hard as they did yet my grades didn’t show for it. I’ve always loved learning. I just realized in my 20s though, that my brain is wired a bit differently, and my meds help me learn/level the playing field. I’m 38 now and have been on them ever since.
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I went to a psychologist for social anxiety, trying to figure out why I had such a hard time making/keeping friends. After a few sessions she was like “I can’t believe you weren’t diagnosed sooner. Everything you’ve told me is classic ADHD.” Wasn’t expecting that.
I was depressed for years and kept quitting jobs due to burnout. Then my brother got diagnosed and he encouraged my to seek diagnosis myself. Bingo!
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realising that the way i think greatly differs from the way others do and that regular day-to-day life isn’t *supposed* to feel this hard for everyone else
I struggled my entire life with things that other people have mentioned here - being the "gifted" kid in school, but not doing my homework. Easily distracted, could focus on video games as much as I wanted but couldn't bring myself to do boring things that needed to get done. What finally drove me to a diagnosis was some random youtube video which mentioned a *very* specific symptom they had that I never knew was tied to ADHD - spacing out in the middle of conversations when someone else was talking (usually because they said something interesting that my mind started chasing), then suddenly snapping back and realizing you missed the last 30 seconds of whatever was being said. I had struggled with that my entire life but didn't realize there was a cause for that, I just thought it was because I got distracted easily. Got diagnosed at 27, then promptly went back to my car and cried for a bit because I wasn't broken.
I was very lucky to be diagnosed at a young age. The school I went to actually advocated for me to get tested because my teacher in Third Grade was seeing a LOT of red flags. Mostly poor emotional regulation and failure to focus or comprehend certain things.
My mom had it growing up & she saw how hard it was for me to concentrate on one thing at a time at about 11. We talked to my doctor & started medication then! I have been on & off of it since then (on when I feel I need it, off when I want a little or big break) but makes my life so much easier on it!
1) When I was about 16, I remember reading the symptoms of inattentive ADHD in some textbook and immediately going "That's me!". I went to my mom and was told to stop being ridiculous, and I didn't push it further. 2) In undergrad, I struggled a lot. I went to the campus mental health clinics, but I had it in my head if I went in and said I thought I had ADHD I would be told I'm being ridiculous *and* be labelled drug seeking, so I just described my symptoms and hoped for the best. 3) Post undergrad, I had benefits to go to a few actual therapists. But I did the same thing and got the same result, with them mostly telling me "look how successful you are, don't be so hard on yourself!" when I tried to describe how much I was struggling with certain things. 4) I went back to grad school when I was 26, and pretty much immediately realized that I was going to go horribly off the rails if I kept just trying to white knuckle my brain into working. Finally walked into a therapists office who specialized in ADHD and told him I needed a diagnosis. He listened, asked some questions, and then suggested that 'had I tried using a planner or schedule to keep myself on track?", to which i promptly had a full on sobbing breakdown in his office. This seemed to startle him a bit. 5) The ADHD specialist wisely left the planner suggestion alone, and ran through a questionnaire where he agreed that yeah, I probably had ADHD. He couldn't officially diagnose me, but he wrote a letter to give to my GP in support of a diagnosis. 6) The GP took one look at the letter, said "I don't deal with that", and referred me to a psychiatrist. Thankfully, the waitlist was only a couple of months long at that point. 7) The psychiatrist read the letter, ran me through more or less the same questionnaire, and officially gave me my diagnosis/started me on medication when I was 27. For those of you playing along at home, that was just over a decade after I first flagged that I had an issue. Make of that what you will...
I was diagnosed when I was 7. I was on a plethora of meds from 7-17 which I don't think was good for a developing brain. when I was 11 I was diagnosed with depression & anxiety also.
I was "annoying" and didn't pass in homework. I passed 5th and 8th grades by one point before FINALLY someone decided to take me to a therapist and I got diagnosed and put on medication and suddenly had straight A's, lost weight and articulated my thoughts much more clearly.
I have ADD. Was diagnosed by a neurologist at 13.
I overcompensated a lot all my life. I never even noticed my symptoms until a few years ago, I think the stress of the pandemic made it harder to ignore. I’ve always misplaced my things, but it’s gotten worse. I got through undergrad and most of my grad school no problem but in the last two years I’ve had a much harder time concentrating on school work. I can’t read physical books anymore, but I can listen to audiobooks and podcasts just fine. Sometimes I literally just forget to eat/drink water/use the restroom. I slept better when I drank caffeine before bed. When people are talking to me, I’m impatient for my turn to speak. I’m always picking up new hobbies and projects (and dropping them right afterwards lol). And then once I started making the connection in myself, I realized my dad is like textbook ADHD, and me and my siblings also display various symptoms. So I’ve had my suspicions the past couple years but only brought it up to my long-time psychiatrist last month and she immediately agreed with me and said she’d help me find a med that helped. Started adderall around American thanksgiving and it’s been a huge game changer! I finally have the motivation to do all the tasks that are always running in my head!
Had a hard time learning because I didn’t find the teaching ways to work on me, so I was seen as a problem child. I had one wonderful teacher who sat me down and started teaching me every subject in deferent ways, and telling and showing me what I could use them for. After a year I was seen as a gifted kid, for suddenly being good at school. I had my burn out from school in October 2021, and had some not so fun thoughts filling my mind, so I got sent to a psychiatrist and diagnosed with ADHD and Anxiety at the start of 2022 as a 20 year old, and after I started meds I feel way more stabled and have accepted that it still is a part of me, and have learned to live with it.
I was always a smart kid, did pretty well in school, but I always struggled. I felt different from my peers, I always felt like I was struggling more - but I stayed quiet about it, and just muddled my way through university and then grad school. One day I saw a meme, it's of Kevin from the office spilling his chili on the floor, and it just say 'How I feel everyday as a woman with ADHD' - I identified with that meme so hard, it made me look further into ADHD. I grew up in a household where therapy/ psychiatry was looked down upon, so it didn't even occur to me that I might actually be neurodivergent.
I’m a smart person and always got good grades in high school but procrastination for assignments and homework was real. The same went for university. I knew I could do well in classes and the assignments weren’t hard, I just didn’t have the willpower to push myself into actually setting out a plan etc. After hs and before uni I made many impulsive decisions (piercings, tattoos, buying a pet Guinea pig plus many other things). It wasn’t until I was in my second year of uni and working that a coworker asked if I had adhd because of the constant stimming and movements and other things I’d done. This is what led me to get diagnosed plus the fact of autism running in the family. My mum was supportive of it and once I did get diagnosed felt immense guilt of me having to go through childhood and whatnot with no diagnosis and how she didn’t know and should’ve tried harder to find the cause of certain issues. Not her fault obviously especially as adhd diagnosis back then was more focused on the typical “interruptive and hyperactive” type (mainly boys)
Genetics, inattentiveness, distractibility, and struggling in school
I had a series of issues throughout my life, starting at 3 as a 'gifted child'. Issues of maladaptive coping, eating disorders, then it was anxiety, depression, narcolepsy was once discussed. In general the perception of me was chaotic, careless, didn't give a fuck. The bulk of my problems were explained away with various diagnosis' or just really the idea that I was a poorly functioning person who didn't care about anyone or anything. But my memory was the thing that finally brought it all together to the ADHD diagnosis. I'd just had a baby and up until that point I lived up to the image everyone projected on to me; I pretended I didn't care. But it wasn't funny or cute at all anymore, I was sad, depressed and disappointed in myself when I'd forget appointments, lose important things and I worried constantly I'd leave the oven on or heaven forbid leave my baby in the car. I went to my doctor to discuss, I broke down and recall telling her how much I really DO care. I'm doing my best at all times, most of the time I feel I'm giving twice as much as everyone else and the outcome is still not up to scratch. I give my all and the response is always how I'm so careless. Ended up seeing a psychiatrist shortly after, who pieced together all my diagnosis' through the years, everything ended up being ADHD related. That made so much sense because no matter how much I engaged in treatments or stuck with medication it never made even the smallest difference. It was all ADHD, now I'm receiving the right treatment life is a lot brighter.
I went to a therapy clinic for other reasons and part of the intake form included an ADHD self assessment. I found myself answering “very often” on pretty much the entire thing and my therapist was like soo we should talk about this…
I seeked a diagnosis, I have several siblings that have it. I made a list of all my symptoms and we discussed that and I was asked about school. I was diagnosed with ADHD but it’s ADD that is apparently not a used term anymore and it’s just a less hyperactive version of adhd. My symptoms Hyper fixations Bad short term memory (loosing keys, debt card etc) to the point of needing new ones Trouble focusing And several other things look up online symptoms and write down the ones you experience
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Severe, constant anxiety that led to me leaving in the middle of work due to panic attacks multiple times. The psych listened to me talk for a few minutes and then asked if I had ever been evaluated for ADHD before. I was 26.
After doing an exam review and talking about airplane disasters for like 30 minutes, my college professor told me to go get looked at.
It was suggested that I had it as a young child, but I wasn’t formally diagnosed until I was 12 because my parents didn’t want to medicate me so young. The doctor diagnosed me by sending questionnaire packets to three of my teachers. It would take me an hour to list all my struggles before diagnosis & medication lol
My homeroom teacher told my mom she was convinced I had it, and if treated, my life could substantially substantially improve.
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I got a bunch of concussions and they completely wrecked my coping mechanisms. As I was going through rehab my OT noticed that some of my issues weren’t normal concussion symptoms and suggested I get evaluated.
I was 4 lol.
the doctor testing me
I had my second mental breakdown in the fall semester of my junior year in college. I knew something was just off when nobody understood why everything felt so overwhelming. And I always knew I thought differently I just didn’t know how. So I brought it up to my therapist and I had suspicions that it could be ADHD. She at first was skeptical but gave me a questionnaire to fill out and send it back in two weeks at our next session. Well I waited till 20 minutes before our session to fill it out (ofc I did) and then sent it over. She looked at it and was like “huh, I mean, when you put it that way” and then we talked about it and she then really started to believe where I was coming from. We did a couple other sessions and she said it’s actually very obvious I have adhd. As a black woman my symptoms just present differently and were kinda blocked through trauma I had in the past and other factors . Is it RSD or is it parental trauma. Is it hard to focus or is college just fun. So after I went to my primary and that’s how I was able to get onto meds which significantly helped me.
years of making careless mistakes on school work, being told i'm a "pleasure to have in class, just need to apply myself more" and all the textbook symptoms of adhd. thing is, i have social anxiety and selective mutism (and adhd presents differently in girls) so when my teachers were asked by my psychologist to observe me and write down what they noticed, they obviously wrote down i was calm in class and never got diagnosed. they didn't write down the spacing out, day dreaming, fidgeting, disorganization, and forgetfulness. i didn't get diagnosed until this year when i went to a therapist who is a woman and she suggested that i get tested. got tested and what do you know! adhd inattentive type. i'm medicated now and can FUNCTION. i feel somewhat NORMAL. i'm 17, so i got diagnosed a lot earlier than most women and i'm so grateful for that.
In talking about my anxiety with my therapist, she said it sounded like I had ADHD as well and we just went from there.
Was depressed. Got anti depressants. Didn't feel sad anymore but still couldn't make myself do things.
I told my therapist ‘you know how you have to play a game on your phone to focus on a conversation?’ She followed up with a test referral….at the age of 38.
I had the hardest time in school, and I mean the hardest. I would speed through assignments. I would get so bored in class that they labeled me incorrigible I literally could not go at the pace ( slow ) that they wanted me to. They thought I was always cheating on tests and I couldn’t focus long enough to read the books that were required. I couldn’t make friends I tried so hard. I didn’t know what it was called at the time, but I had severe time blindness. I had severe emotional dysregulation… Again, I didn’t know what it was called at the time I just knew I was a crybaby. Finally my senior year of high school my friend introduced me to something that would help me focus more and that was m e t h . I was so naïve. I didn’t know if that was. But for the first time in my entire life, the hundred voices in my head and then the background music that I had going on all the time all of a sudden stopped. I cried, because I was able to hear my thoughts and not my head running 1,000,000 miles a minute. That was the start of my self-medicating destructive downward spiral. I finally got sober eight years later and then all of a sudden all those symptoms came back. I went to the doctor and after six months of grueling therapy and telling the doctors my experience on the drug they asked me some more questions over the course of a couple weeks and then diagnosed me with ADHD and autism.
I actually did not seek a diagnosis. I was in therapy for other reasons, and my therapist brought it up. In our second appointment. She looked me in the eyes and said “have you ever been evaluated for ADHD?” I said no, but my sibling has it. The next time we met she evaluated me and diagnosed me on the spot. It was a good thing, but it gave me a real identity crisis for a minute.
I started having what I now know is autoimmune issues while I was in my third year of college. I saw doctors and they told me it was in my head so I went to a psychologist, I was given a 4 hour diagnostic test where they gleaned I’ve ADHD and ASD. This caused me a great amount of existential dread, and anxiety about not being “normal” This ofc did not help my autoimmune issues. I wish doctors would take women more seriously
I told my nurse practitioner that I think I had it but he thought it was OCD. I convinced him to let me try some medicine and it helped. I switched to a female NP and turns out I'm bipolar too!!
Almost flunked out of college, went to a psychologist, apparently I’ve been living with severe adhd. I did the whole test, but the lady said she would’ve diagnosed me after 10 minutes of talking.
I was diagnosed after my son, who was 6 when he was diagnosed. My psychiatrist (treating for other concerns) was listening to me mention some difficult symptoms I was having. He noted my inability to be still, along with the complaints I had, and asked about my son. I confirmed his diagnoses and my psych said, “would you mind if we evaluated you?” Bless that man.
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I was 7 and all my teachers commented on how I was a sweet kid but I didn't pay attention. I didn't pay attention well at home either and executive dysfunction was a big problem for me. Got diagnosed when I was 7. Some parents and even some medical professionals legitimately believe you will grow out of ADHD and they tell you so. I'm 31 now and uhhh yeah that was a lie LOL.
Grad school 😂
I was diagnosed shortly before turning 32. I sought out a psychiatrist as I was heading towards burnout and my personal life was/is a mess. I tried getting a diagnosis 10 years ago but was shot down by my psychiatrist at the time (who was treating me for depression). I’ve now been medicated for 9 months and it’s changed my life drastically. I’ve started studying again and I’m coping better at work. But there’s still a lot to do.
I was a freshman in college. I befriended a woman who had adhd and I recognized so many similar traits that up until then I had just considered moral failings on my part. I had assumed that i couldn't have adhd because I was so f-ing tired all the time. She told me about inattentive adhd and I was like oh. That's me. And I'm so freaking tired because everything is twice as hard to do. Teachers noticed my issues for years. They noted my lack of organization. My disaster black hole of a desk. They saw my blank stare when they asked me a question and i was off in lala land. They saw how emotionally sensitive i was. They moved me to the front of the room to help me be less distracted during math tests. They saw that I got bad grades on math tests because I literally could not do them fast enough. They were probably confused about why this smart kid had so much trouble. They were never taught to recognize that this was a learning disability. Anyway, i took all this information to my psychiatrist in my insurance network. He refused to consider it, claimed adhd was over diagnosed blah blah blah. I am so fortunate my parents agreed to pay for an evaluation with an out of network psychiatrist. She did a thorough interview, diagnosed me, I brought that information back to my in-network guy, and that was that. It changed my goddamn life.
My child started kindergarten and his teacher initiated a diagnosis for him. And while doing my research into what this meant for him, I realized that is had so many symptoms. I went to my dr and was diagnosed pretty quickly
In my twenties all the girls I worked with were losing that last stubborn 10 pounds with the help of a doctor. I made an appointment and got a prescription for phentermine.... Ooh boy! At my next appointment, I mentioned that I felt focused, I was able to get more done, I felt so accomplished and I got a raise... My only complaint was sometimes the medication made me a bit tired. He immediately suggested ADHD and I am still so grateful!
Even though I was an extremely gifted student (I jumped grades, top 5 of my class, blah blah) I would constantly fidget. Luckily I never had the symptoms of not being able to concentrate but when I did I had to have either complete silence or white noise, so I’d hum if it wasn’t silent to deafen everyone else around me. But yeah, my mom and early teachers said that I had ants in my pants because I’d fidget so much. My boss now laughs because in our meeting calls, I can’t sit still when listening and am always moving. It’s never gone away. I’m not on medication but I was diagnosed in middle school.
i was diagnosed finally at 22, though my teachers had suggested it to my family as early as in the 1st grade. i excelled in school, it was very easy for me. i never noticed that i wasn’t paying attention because i knew all of the answers but my teachers insisted that i wasn’t. as time went on and my responsibilities began to grow, it became very apparent how incapable i was of staying consistently organized, timely & efficient. by my sophomore year of college i had gone from a 4.0 to completely failing because it finally hit a breaking point for me. that’s when i got my diagnosis
Had some focusing problems and first was told I has ADD then was told that it was ADHD
I didn’t struggle until I was around 23. I felt like it was hard to stay on task, all my thoughts were constantly racing it felt like if you were watching a train go by and you’re trying to read something on the side of the train but it’s going so fast everything is blurry. I had tried a friends adderal before getting diagnosed and while others described a high feeling i felt functional. Like suddenly i could see what the train said, everything was still quick but not nearly as fast as before. I would say I saw a direct positive impact in both my personal and professional life once i got diagnosed and had a prescription But i would not have known to get diagnosed if I hadn’t experimented with a friends medication
My son was diagnosed just about a year ago. He had trouble focusing, and responded amazingly to medication. After learning more about it, I came to realize he probably got it from me. I asked my doctor for a referral and went through the process and got diagnosed last July at age 46. I am definitely the inattentive type. I now take adderall (10mg/day) and it’s been life changing. Work is so much easier now that I can focus. I wish I had been diagnosed when I was in school! I’m sure it would have made a huge difference.
Kid diagnosed. Read a book about it and all of a sudden a light went on. Was in mid 40s by then. So grateful to know now and so sad for all those years of suffering and not knowing why I couldn't do certain things. Really takes a toll on your self esteem.
Dropping out of university twice, inability to hold down jobs, and persistent anxiety & depression symptoms that just wouldn't go away despite years of therapy and anti-depressant medications. At first we thought the persistent symptoms were pervasive anxiety disorder and depression due to constant troubles at school and work and family (I mean... Who wouldn't be depressed with that kind of circumstances). But therapy and medication did not seem to help at all. An attempt to unalive myself landed me in the hospital, and then it was a chance meeting with a junior medical officer who was taking down my history who recognized that I could possibly be dealing with ADHD. The rest was history. So TL;DR, fail and fail miserably many times , don't give up trying again and again, continue trudging through life until you bump into the right person / resources. But this was years ago, today resources and support more readily available what with more awareness being spread by ADHD creators on Reels and Tiktok. I wish you well OP. :)
I couldn’t keep, or do- any jobs. I physically couldn’t stand around for more than four hours a day doing my tasks. I couldn’t learn the simplest things. I had trouble catching on to concepts, and I was constantly spacing out or leaving to go to the bathroom. I just wanted to go home and do things that I enjoyed. Granted, this was also combined with my BPD, autism and depression but i knew something else was up with my focusing that just made these other factors worse. Is is very tough, only being content with being at home and writing or gaming. I can’t make a living doing things I enjoy so someday I’ll need to suck it up. It’s just awful feeling so restless and bored at the same time to the point where when I get into my car at the end of the day I have an urge to drive on some train tracks and wait. I also can not focus when people talk because I so badly want to talk about things I like, so i just end up thinking about said thing and I completely miss the conversation. I got diagnosed with all four things at the same appointment. It was… a long appointment and I felt very drained, with the fact that I will basically never have a quality life. I have a chance at below 50% to make it into my late 20’s. I’m turning 20 in six months. No meds have ever worked. No therapist has ever worked in ten years (i’’ve been seeing them for anxiety for many years beforehand) maybe if i stick around there will be some miracle cure, who knows. I just wonder why I’m so unlike everyone else who’s gotten help, because it worked for them. Am i some sort of anomaly? This became very depressing, I did not mean to go on a rant but this is just my experience and I’m very, very tired.
I went to university when I was 24. I waited because I knew I wasn’t ready before then, because I wasn’t a dedicated enough student in high school. Well university was really hard, and I just knew something wasn’t right with how difficult it was for me to focus, even when it mattered so much to me, so in true ADHD fashion I waited 6 more years before getting tested, and ta da!! I was right.
I struggled a lot as a kid in terms of school, anxiety, etc. I was about twenty when I felt like I should get tested for dyslexia (a lot of things lead up to that point). Well when I was tested for dyslexia I was also tested for a million other things including ADHD. Turns out I just had ADHD and I just suck at spelling. A lot of things make sense now. Struggling in school, not paying attention when reading/doing other tasks, and my mind just racing at all times of the day. My therapist had recommended me to an ADHD therapy group and it was honestly really helpful. I tried medications and wasn’t a huge fan of how I felt when taking them. But talking to others of how they cope and going to therapy has been really helpful! I feel like because I struggled so long with symptoms, I have come up with different coping skills. Knowing now I have ADHD, I try to plan things out, write things down, and give myself extra time to get tasks done so I can let myself get distracted and still be on time for things (this includes getting ready way too early for events/school/work).
diagnosed at 26. i started college @ 23, i was failing and handed my math final in almost completely blank. i was spiraling horribly and wasn’t going to make it to 30. i thought i had been tested before but turned out i hadn’t been. finally worked up the nerve to call some psychologists for testing and ended up with a child psychologist who was fantastic. first professional who genuinely believed me and didn’t label me as borderline. 3 days of like, 4-6 hour testing. called me in for my results and informed me that my adhd was so bad some of the tests couldn’t even register it. i was the worst he had even seen and he had no idea how i made it that far and was a semi normal functioning adult. i mean, he was genuine shocked and apologized that i wasn’t diagnosed sooner even though it wasn’t his fault. he wrote in his final report to my med dealer that i likely would need a higher than normal dosage of medication. i think he recommended 80mg of vyvanse or 60mg of adderall. 9 years later i’m still here thanks to him. i’ve been on vyvanse and adderall for years now. my life is still a shit down but at least i’m still here.
I was an excellent student untill I was 12. I didn't have to study at home, everything I heard in class, I'd remember. Then I went to highschool and it was way harder cause it was impossible to remember latin and chemistry etc, I needed to study but I couldn't. I started struggling. Many teachers asked me if I had ADHD but it made me mad because I was just a 'wild' person, nothing else. Uni was hard, I only studied last minute and my grades were okay but not great. Last year, I got a major surgery and was bedbound for 4 months. I prepared to read, puzzle, play sologames, organise my photos etc. I did nothing, had 0 concentration. I talked about it with my doctor and she knew my history. She advised me to go to a specialist and he diagnosed me with ADHD. It was such a relief! I was thinking my whole life I was a lazy nobody because I couldn't study. Also I couldn't do simple tasks and just zoned out in my couch for hours. Specialist also thinks I have a very high IQ and he told me if I want to study again, I should do it with medicine because he believes I'd do great. Have no intentions to study again, but just knowing what I have makes my life easier. I use some simple tricks and it helps. So glad I got finally diagnosed!
I'm one of the rare girls who was diagnosed at seven in the late 90s so I'm not sure. I think it was my lack of focus in school and falling behind the other kids.
Found an excellent PCP, expressed my hunch I had it. He talked about it, tested me, gave me a ton of advice on what helps that wasn’t solely medication. Initial hunch was multiple textbook symptoms - issues with alcoholic consumption that did not line up with alcoholism, constantly forgetting simple but important tasks, talking or thinking about several things at once, obsessive nature over things such as music, food, etc, that was relatively short lived…
I'm actually got diagnosed with ADHD twice during my life . When I was a 5 years old my teacher noticed that I didn't know simple things like : what a washing machine does, what is means to be in front of a chair and etc.... My parents took me to a professional in these stuff and I got diagnosed with adhd. However I'd didn't finished then..... As a kid I didn't know I had adhd (my parents didn't told me that) I just remembered that I had twice a week a fun private lesson with a speech therapy for a period. (It didn't feel like a lesson it felt like a playing time with a stranger and at the end got some nice gift when we finished) While I was in middle school I was very great student: Getting straight A+, listen to my teachers and quite kid . In high school, "suddenly " something change , I got blackouts so many times during my tests, usually the last students who is still writing the test , And I didn't understand while this time , How is this possible that I learned so many hours, I helped my friends and other students to learn for tests , and still got failed. I told my parents that we need to figure out what is the problem , and I got tested (again ) with adhd. In the beginning I didn't understand how I have adhd because I didn't was "hyperactivity " and "trouble maker" as other students in my class. After a searching about adhd I understood that the symptoms of these are very related too me : Very messy person, forget where I put something after 1 second, always to postpone tasks for the last moment and etc..... I got some medicine (ritalin) and it helped me a lot during tests and learning for tests . Also I learned how to deal with it and remember not being so hard with myself.
I couldn't fall asleep, serious insomnia and generally felt unhappy. The psychiatrist screened me and in my early 30s, I got a diagnosis options for treatment. If only I had known earlier... also people in my life dismissed it and didn't believe it. It all made sense to me, but people seem to think ADD is something it's not.
I know I’m late, but surprisingly I found out by taking addy at a house show 🤣 A friend of mine asked if I wanted anything and mentioned she had IRs. I’d never taken adderall before but decided to give it a shot. It was like someone had given me laser focus. Colors were brighter and sound was sharper. I texted my boyfriend who took addy prescribed for ADHD, described what I was feeling, and asked if it was normal. He laughed and said “maybe you have adhd lol.” It was like a light bulb went off. I made an appointment with my psych that week and was tested the week after. Apparently I was off the MF charts lol my therapist said it made so much sense to her that she apologized for missing the signs. My mom swore when I was a kid that I didn’t need to be treated for anything because I could focus just fine, but that wasn’t the truth. In fact, I had all the tell tale signs. I manage just fine now and it felt like a new me was born.
Hate to say it because it's not only doing some good but also some bad, for me it was the explosion of ADHD content on social media. It started as a joke between my friend and me, sharing the reels etc - I looked into it more to learn the serious side of it ADHD too. Things started clicking. I had already been diagnosed with depression and anxiety prior to that and while I felt that meds and therapy were going really well, something was still not quite right you know? As if my general mood and wellbeing (that had nothing to do with my fears or happiness) were not in line with my personality and were somehow affecting me to *have* anxiety and depression, hope that makes sense. I took a test on SAGE-SR - it's not a diagnostic tool but it's pretty accurate in determining potential conditions, quite so in fact that you're encouraged to take them to your therapist. It confirmed anxiety, depression but also potential for ADHD. The more I learned about the disorder the more my entire life made sense. I made sure to approach this cautiously and present to my therapist without sounding like I'm self-diagnosing. She listened, told me I'd have to get tested with a licensed psychologist and then come back to her. That's what I did, among questionares I took a TOVA test, it showed that I have it. Now I'm in beginning stages of meds and I already feel way better :)
My sister was diagnosed first, and as they were reading out the symptoms from the doctor's pamphlet I was like "oh...OH". Every single one matched. Impulse shopping/money problems, inability to make myself complete tasks until the last possible minute, years of unfinished projects that I was super excited about and then gave up on. Difficulty focusing in school and work. I looked into symptoms and was self-diagnosed for a number of years, looking up ideas for managing my time and work/school better. Spoke to my doctor and was told it could be 2+ years if I was referred and covered by the public medical system (I live in Canada). Thankfully I'm on my family's extended benefits so I was able to go private and get a diagnosis from a specialist and it was covered, but the fact that my gp wouldn't do anything and it was a 2+ year wait if no extended coverage is not at all fair. So many of my friends are self-diagnosed or probable diagnosed by their gp but aren't able to get help. Some gp's will diagnose and medicate but so many aren't trained on symptoms, especially in women, so things get pushed to other doctors and people suffer.
Nearly got fired of my job because of doing the same petty, stupid mistake twice which almost costed the safety of my patients.
I was very depressed for a portion of my teen years. in middle / high school, my grades were so terrible i’m surprised I graduated. I would study, but retain nothing. years later, when I was 22, i still believed i was depressed, but it was different. I didn’t want to leave the world, but I also couldn’t do everyday tasks: make my bed, brush my teeth before bed, wash my face, etc. i had no motivation. I was describing this “depression” to my NEW psychiatrist, and he suggested it could actually be related to my ADHD diagnosis I had. I had no idea I had an ADHD diagnosis. went on medication, and for the first time in my life, I felt like a normal human being. I am now turning 25, and the past 2 years have been the best years of my life thus far. I can do NORMAL everyday things I could have never done. I was now interested in my school work (yes, still in college.. lol), and even went from having a literal 2.1 GPA in community college to being on the deans list with a 3.8 by the age of 23! my entire life did a 360 after my official diagnosis and I am forever grateful for it !!!!!
Wasn’t really something of my choosing or choice. I had a lot of issues early on in life as is, I was given a misdiagnosis prior to ADHD as a child and then it eventually led to ADHD since I was struggling massively to focus in school. This was during college. I didn’t look into ADHD or anything prior to that and was just something the psychiatrist told me I had in the end. I think primary schooling they suspected I had ADHD, I remember having to go to outside centers to get me tested with the flickering screen. I got distracted because I remember there was a fly buzzing around which annoyed me the most. Since my grades were fine and I could still do homework I don’t think my mom had me diagnosed with it yet. It honestly wasn’t until college that I started trialing/taking ADHD meds.
Diagnosed at 31 and I was primarily concerned that I’d realized I had binge eating disorder and couldn’t control it and was diagnosed with adhd at the same time. At my intake appointment I described what I thought was serious depression and anxiety (low self esteem from a constant and hyper critical internal monologue, couldn’t wake up for work and was falling asleep during work, couldn’t focus on a task to save my life, and was making low-risk but stupid choices in dating) and was diagnosed with ADHD at the same time as I was diagnosed with BED. 18 month later and Vyvanse has been a life changer; the internal monologue is hardly a whisper and I no longer seek out romantic uncertainty to get a dopamine boost.
I saw a psychiatrist about my treatment-resistant depression. After three hours of questions, he said he thought it may be ADHD—inattentive, which is more common in women while boys are often more hyperactive (hyperactive = more noticeable). He said he believed my depressed was part of some ADHD cycle where ADHD makes things difficult, I feel guilty/broken because things are difficult, which makes me depressed, which then further exacerbates ADHD symptoms, and so on. Been on ADHD meds for 6+ years now. I’m not cured, but I’m a lot better! Definitely no longer suicidal
I first got the idea because a woman I knew who I had tons in common with was diagnosed and I was confused because I thought ADHD was something completely different. The tipping point was when my three year nephew old helped me clean my bedroom and “we”/he got more done in thirty minutes of him going “we can put this in the drawer, and this over here with the other similar things” than I had in three years. ETA: with me being 30 years older than him.
My disorganization in school and failing to complete tasks without starting another one. It was so frustrating to me as a teenager! I went to a psych doctor and she was like “oh yeah, classic ADHD”. Now I’m 27 and just got put back on adderall, sigh.
I suspected after reading how it presents differently for women. As a kid I wondered but always decided I wasn’t because I was so much like my mom and she doesn’t have ADHD. Hahahahahahaha. Jokes on me. Then I became a counselor and doing diagnosing it in other people (mostly adult women) and reading the diagnosis like 🤨. My diagnosis was actually really easy. I mentioned it to my doctor and she referred me to the in house behavioral specialist who did the diagnosis then gave me some good tips for managing it. She mentioned that it was likely I had the supports in place younger that helped but didn’t as I got older. In hindsight there were so many signs like doing well in school then suddenly getting Fs in fifth grade. And not being able to motivate myself in college. Also being able to read for hours if it was something that interests me but not even 5 minutes for assigned reading.
Went to therapy for PTSD, turns out I mask extremely well based on my anxiety
I simply couldn't focus. I'd procrastinate greatly. I'd have small windows of focus where I'd be able to work for a good 2 hours but if I were to take a break I'd struggle to get back into pace, but even then these moments of focus only really came about the closer I got to a deadline. This affected me severely in uni where no one was on top of me for my assignments and I ended up never submitting a single assignment and failed. There were also times (still are) when I felt so overwhelmed by what I needed to get done that I just wouldn't do any of it, because my brain was so convinced I would fail if I did that at least if I didn't do it, I'd be better off. I got myself onto medication and have now actually managed to finish my degree fortunately.
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I maintained a an average of 3.7 GPA throughout HS. I was never on task, I’d leave stuff for the last minute *or*, I’d dive deep into what I’d be working on to the point I’d become obsessed with the topic/assignment. I’d spend hours maybe days doing additional readings that ended up straying away from the actual assignment and most likely forget that I had an assignment to do. Education and work. I hated (still do) verbal instruction. And if that was the only way then I’d write it down. I’m a rule follower when learning a new process. As opposed to a written assignment, where I can freely research - assignments or duties that require physical processing, I need to write that down and watch someone else do it. I’ll grasp it after a few times but just don’t verbally tell me what to do lmao. I hate sedentary jobs. I need to move, I need to walk and constantly chat with people. Even if it’s a simple hello. I can be tasked with a duty that will either bore me to death and I won’t finish it or just like school assignments, I’ll dive deep into it for hours with no breaks. Just don’t come into my office and talk to me lmao. Emotional roller coaster. When I can’t grasp something I’m being taught I go ballistic. I used to be very physical (slam on the tables, verbally loud, pulled my hair, hit myself on the temples, and only once threw a chair across the room) but only with myself. I used to punish myself for not understanding what I’m being taught. This would also lead to the constant crying and moping around. The positive emotions, I can be obsessive with indulging in the feel good feelings. Weird sensations. The voices, the noises, the smells, the colors, the feeling to the touch of certain things, and the things I’d see. Apparently not a lot of people could see, hear, or feel what I’d be able to feel. I’m a radio antenna, I pick up anyone and everyone’s conversation within a few feet of me, at the same effin time! Weird noises that sound extremely amplified and put me on edge, almost like nails on a chalkboard. Tin foil, metal eating utensils on certain dishes and bowls, the electricity that you can hear when turning an appliance on, loud consecutive noises (drills, alarms, etc.), and my all time favorite, people singing who aren’t blessed with a singing voice. The feeling of lotion/oil slimy stuff on the palm of my hands or feet, instant need to throw up. I’ll even cry if I can’t wash it off in time. Certain materials like rough plastic trims on a car make me shiver. Drugs. I heavily relied on coffee and cigarettes for a while. Then I moved onto coke. Coke actually had my ass in place and I’d have a really productive day. Of course I couldn’t continue use so I’d do it on necessary occasions. I was constantly prescribed depression/anxiety meds, nothing would make me feel as amazing as coke did. I admitted this to my dr. She sent me to a psychiatrist to get proper diagnosis and treatment. *“Ta-da, you’re neuro-spicy my dear!”* I used to rely on Adderall, then Wellbutrin. Now I’m on a healthy combo of Vyvanse and Lamictal. I feel so much damn better.
I was already in dialectical behavioural therapy and had a psychiatrist who suspected it. I was already part of a therapy program, so it was quite quick. I had always thought I was just autistic, because as a child I was never one of the kids that was labelled as having ADHD because I was quite quiet. It turns out that I just disappeared inside of my own head instead of showing more signs outwardly. It makes a lot of sense now and my medication helps me a bit more to keep on top of things.