ADD can sometimes go unnoticed because the symptoms may be less obvious. ADHD is more often diagnosed in boys than girls. Girls are more likely to have symptoms of inattentiveness only, and are less likely to show disruptive behaviour that makes ADHD symptoms more obvious.
Though it manifests in disparate and dichotomous ways, ADHD is often associated with only a handful of stereotypical behaviors and presentations. So when not-so-obvious ADHD symptoms show up in broad daylight, they may go ignored or misdiagnosed.
While some with ADHD may choose to go without treatment, many adults who have the condition simply don't recognize that they even have it. The three types of ADHD are the inattentive type, hyperactive/impulsive type, or the combined type. While children experience the same symptoms, they often look different in adults.
Some adults who have ADHD don't know they have it. These adults may feel it is impossible to get organized, stick to a job, or remember to keep appointments.
Do people with ADHD think differently? In short, yeah, kind of, or at least their thought processes might look a bit different. People with ADHD have a diminished ability to regulate their attention , to put the brakes on their attention before it leaps to something else.
Mood disorders, extreme sadness, and anxiety often occur when ADHD goes undiagnosed. Even if these conditions are are treated, the underlying problem, if left untreated, leads to other problems.
Signs of ADHD in Adults
Losing items and general forgetfulness. Easily distracted. Getting sidetracked and failing to finish tasks (even fun tasks such as video games or a TV series) Trouble with organizing tasks that include many steps.
“Nobody has perfect memory… but for [people with ADHD], it's extreme. They feel like they're lost all the time,” Almagor said. He believes this is why people don't take ADHD seriously. “I think that's why some people don't respect the severity of what [a person with ADHD] can experience,” he said.
Problems Staying Organized – Problems with organizations are one of the telltale signs of children struggling with ADHD. These children can have a hard time keeping track of required tasks and activities. This can pose a problem with successful performance in school or with self-help/adaptive requirements.
With ADHD, a child or teen may have rapid or impulsive speech, physical restlessness, trouble focusing, irritability, and, sometimes, defiant or oppositional behavior.
Children with ADHD are less well-liked than their neurotypical peers [18] and are more likely to be bullied during their school years [19].
ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) is a brain development condition that typically causes inattention symptoms in women, but hyperactivity and impulsivity symptoms are still possible. Research also indicates that the condition is underdiagnosed in women.
However, when ADHD is left untreated, it can significantly impair work performance. Individuals with ADHD may have difficulty completing tasks, staying on task, and following through with instructions. They may also find it challenging to interact with co-workers and manage time effectively.
ADHD can be similar to other mental health conditions, so it's easy to misdiagnose. Mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder can have some crossover symptoms with ADHD, like inability to focus and impulsivity. So can learning disabilities.
ADHD, especially if not managed well, can lead to constant frustration and self-criticism. The cumulative impact of these frustrations, criticisms, real and perceived failures, self-blaming, and guilt turn self-esteem into rubble.
Anxiety, depression, learning disorders, physical health, and many other conditions can cause symptoms that look like ADHD but aren't.
Adults with ADHD may find it difficult to focus and prioritize, leading to missed deadlines and forgotten meetings or social plans. The inability to control impulses can range from impatience waiting in line or driving in traffic to mood swings and outbursts of anger. Adult ADHD symptoms may include: Impulsiveness.
There's no direct relationship between ADHD and talking too fast. However, it's possible that because of some of our symptoms, we might resort to speedy speech. Case in point: since forgetfulness is a common trait of people with ADHD, we might talk too much so as not to forget the ideas in our head.
Conversational skills and humanity
Those with ADHD are often talkative , which means that they can spark an intriguing conversation in most scenarios. Another study highlights that people with ADHD may have higher levels of social intelligence, humor, and recognition of feeling, or empathy.
One type of ADHD masking — known as mirroring — involves intentionally or unintentionally mimicking the speech, movements, or behaviors of someone else. While ADHD mirroring and body doubling may seem similar at first glance, you can work alongside a body double without imitating them in any way.
The problem: The social maturity of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD) may be a few years behind that of their peers. In addition, they have difficulty reading verbal and physical social cues, misinterpreting remarks, or not getting jokes or games.
They might feel badly about the way their symptoms affect others, or they might not care. Although there are differences in brain function to consider, ADHDers can also be just like neurotypical people in that they can have varying levels of empathy.