Audio Version
When Allie (not their real name) signed up for a professional development course on better understanding and managing Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), she saw it as a way to help others.
Allie was eager to learn the science, the strategies, the solutions so that she could apply this to her work in mental health. As Allie completed one workshop after the other, something very unexpected happened. The symptoms that were being described felt eerily familiar. What started as a journey to expand her expertise became a mirror leading her to confront a truth she hadn’t yet realised – Allie wasn’t just learning more about ADHD, she had been living with it her entire life.
Allie’s impression of ADHD was based on her personal experience with friends and family who had it, or stereotypically: a person who was hyperactive, seeking stimulation through extreme sports and activities, easily distracted, jumping from one topic to the next in conversation, forgetful and disorganised, always late, misplacing their belongings on the daily, never replying to messages, and hard to keep up with. But according to Allie, her life didn’t look like that. As an adult, she appeared to be doing very well, successful in her career, meeting deadlines, being super organised, and able to focus on things she was interested in, such as planning holidays, playing music, and working on DIY projects.
It wasn’t until Allie learned about the indirect signs of ADHD that she realised how easily she had missed it. ADHD isn’t only about somebody being outwardly energetic or impulsive. For some, particularly females, ADHD can present more quietly in the tendency to internalise stress, daydream, procrastinate, or overwork.
ADHD tends to be overlooked because its symptoms can be mistaken for personality traits, anxiety, depression, perceived laziness, or the belief that you are not trying hard enough. If you suspect that you may have ADHD, here are some subtle associated indicators that are significant but often missed because they don’t align with common preconceptions:
- Having perfectionistic tendencies or exhaustive to-do lists
- Over compensatory behaviours like being rigid or overly organised
- Difficulty with subjects like mathematics, reading, numbers, or having illegible handwriting
- Finding it hard to stay focused during long meetings or conversations that don’t interest you, but having an awesome ability to sustain attention for something you enjoy, such as playing computer games, doing puzzles, watching films, or cooking
- Having the talent and ambition to succeed, but feeling like there is an invisible blocker
- Needing to work harder than most people your age or level to achieve the same result. However, with the right support, you perform extremely well
- Avoiding boring people, places, or activities because you’d rather be alone than stuck and under-stimulated
- Often leaving your job. You can’t stand the idea of staying in the same role for two or ten years
- Forever feeling like you don’t fit in and that you are somehow different
- Getting the impression or being told that you are “too much” for other people
- Only wanting to do the fun things in life
Having several of the above experiences consistently over time does not necessarily mean you have ADHD. Although, it may still be helpful to seek a second opinion from a qualified professional in this field.
Understanding ADHD indicators beyond clinical scales is crucial because these standardised measures don’t always capture the full spectrum of lived experience. Many individuals may present with symptoms that don’t fit neatly into the diagnostic criteria, leading to underdiagnoses or misdiagnoses. Additionally, ADHD manifests differently across life stages and contexts, influencing relationships, work, self-perception, and coping, in ways that extend beyond clinical definitions.
By broadening our understanding of ADHD as in the case of Allie, we can foster greater awareness of both self and other, reduce stigma, and promote more flexibility in work, relationships, and lifestyle. ADHD is not a mental illness; it is the way a brain is wired. So rather than pressuring it to be something that it’s not, success comes from understanding its tendencies, embracing its strengths, and creating an optimal environment in which it can flourish.