5 Signs You May Have Attention Deficit Disorder and 17 Ways to Tell

ADHD refers to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, also known as attention deficit disorder, a neuropsychiatric disorder that affects both children and adults, although it is often diagnosed in childhood . However, many diagnoses are late due to lack of information about this disorder.

According to the National Health Service of the United Kingdom (NHS), ADHD is a condition that affects behavior and Sufferers may be agitated, have difficulty concentrating, and act impulsively.

For many years, it was believed that attention deficit disorder peaked at puberty or adolescence, but this idea was categorically dismissed. According to what scientific studies suggest , At least 60% of children with ADHD may continue to have it as they grow .

According to figures from the World Health Organization (WHO), it is estimated that between 4 and 5% of people worldwide have ADHD. In Chile, the prevalence of this mental health disorder reaches 10%.

Common symptoms of ADHD fall into three categories:

• Lack of attention: Difficulty paying attention to details, making careless errors, difficulty maintaining attention on tasks or activities, difficulty following instructions, frequent forgetfulness in daily activities, etc.
• Hyperactivity: Agitation, impulsivity, difficulty sitting still, talking excessively, difficulty waiting one’s turn, interrupting others, etc.
• Impulsiveness: Acting without thinking about the consequences, making hasty decisions, having difficulty waiting your turn, interrupting others, etc.

However, it is a little more difficult to define the symptoms of ADHD in adults. Tahlia Lehmann said a tiktoker diagnosed with ADHD and a teacher Daily Mail who spent most of her life wondering why she was “different” from her peers and couldn’t accomplish tasks as easily as them.

After taking the adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder test, His diagnosis made a big difference in how he dealt with his daily life problems.

That’s why Lehmann gave the Daily Mail 5 signs you might have ADHD without knowing it.

Some people with ADHD as adults may have developed “masking” strategies to compensate for their difficulties. This phenomenon is sometimes called the “masking” or “camouflage” syndrome of ADHD in adults. People who experience this often They develop coping mechanisms to adapt to the demands of daily life and hide their difficulties.

Some people with ADHD may develop an outgoing, happy personality to compensate for internal turmoil or constant distraction. They may strive to always appear positive and energetic, even when facing internal challenges.

The discrepancy between the outward appearance of confidence and the internal experience of anxiety may be a sign of ADHD in adulthood. People with ADHD often develop coping mechanisms to deal with daily challenges, and this may include appearing confident or overcompensating in social situations.

Some people with ADHD may put extra effort into appearing confident and sociable in social situations. They may devote temporary hyperconcentration on social interactions to compensate for possible difficulties with attention or impulsivity.

Despite his confident outward appearance, People with ADHD may experience internal anxiety due to constant difficulties with organization, time management, and other daily demands. They may worry about not being able to meet expectations or forgetting important details.

ADHD is often associated with difficulty maintaining their attention on tasks that do not particularly interest them or are not particularly stimulating for them. This can be misinterpreted as a lack of interest or effort, when in fact it is a manifestation of the difficulties associated with the disorder.

However, people with ADHD can compensate for this by focusing intensely on specific areas of interest, in which they can demonstrate exceptional performance.

Chronic procrastination, or putting off tasks until the last minute, can be a common problem. This is not due to laziness, but rather difficulties with time management and planning. Additionally, they may suffer from frequent forgetfulness, such as forgetting appointments, deadlines, or other commitments, due to difficulty retaining information in their short-term memory.

Feeling exhausted or chronically tired may be a symptom associated with adult ADHD. This exhaustion can have various causes linked to the characteristics of the disorder and the coping strategies used.

Sometimes, People with ADHD may suffer from “hyperfocus,” meaning they focus intensely on a specific task or interest for an extended period of time. This can lead to mental fatigue, as they tend to invest a lot of energy in activities that interest them, leaving less energy for other responsibilities.

Additionally, they often face organizational and time management challenges, which may require additional effort and contribute to feelings of burnout. And as mentioned above, chronic procrastination, which sometimes accompanies ADHD, can lead to increased stress and pressure over looming deadlines.

People with ADHD may go to great lengths to meet expectations and prevent others from noticing their difficulties, which can lead to considerable burnout as they constantly try to keep up and respond to external demands.

Hyperactivity in adults with ADHD does not always manifest in the same way as in children, where it may be more obvious. Instead of typical motor hyperactivity, In adults, hyperactivity is often internal and can be expressed by an internal feeling of agitation or unease.

Some adults with ADHD may experience mental agitation such as a constant feeling of having their mind racing and/or difficulty mentally relaxing or stopping thinking about multiple things at once. Or physical restlessness, such as an inability to sit still for long periods of time or the need to constantly move. This could be someone scratching their skin, playing with their hair, doodling or biting their nails, etc.

It can also be difficult to sit still in situations that require stillness, such as meetings or conferences. And some people even need to seek out new experiences or stimulation to relieve their anxiety.

It is important to recognize that these signs are not exclusive to ADHD and can be caused by a variety of factors. If you are concerned because you are experiencing several of these symptoms or suspect that it might be related to ADHD, it is advisable to seek an evaluation from a mental health professional. Proper diagnosis can lead to more effective management strategies to address these challenges and improve quality of life.

The psychiatrist and therapist, Dr. Melissa Shepard resorted to Tic Tac to share with his 1.6 million followers the questions he asks his patients when they are evaluated for ADHD.

Often people have doubts because “ADHD symptoms can overlap with many other mental health conditions as well as the normal human experience” » noted Dr. Shepard on TikTok.

People living with this syndrome may exhibit several other characteristics, such as persistent distractible, impulsive, and hyperactive behaviors; and emotional regulation challenges

“If this is something that concerns you, it doesn’t automatically mean you have ADHD, it just means it might be worth talking to your doctor or therapist about it,” she said. she declared.

The questions are:

1. Do you have trouble concentrating or do you daydream frequently?
2. Do you often feel restless and have trouble sitting still?
3. Do you find yourself constantly tapping your foot, bouncing your leg, twisting your hair, or picking at your cuticles?
4. No matter how hard you try, do you find yourself constantly late or arriving too early because you’re too afraid of being late?
5. Do you have trouble estimating how long it will take you to complete a task, even if it is a task you do fairly frequently?
6. Do you feel bothered by the disorganization or clutter of spaces in your home or office?
7. Do you find it really difficult to organize things at the start of a project, for example, drafting an article before you start writing it?
8. Do you have difficulty completing one task at a time?
9. Do you find it difficult to relax even if you have free time?
10. Do you have trouble sleeping, either falling asleep or staying asleep, because you can’t stop thinking?
11. Do you struggle with overeating, forgetting to eat regularly, compulsively eating the same foods over and over, or bingeing?
12. When you take a test, do you notice that you tend to do well on the more complex questions, but when it comes to simpler, easier questions, you end up making careless errors?
13. Do you struggle to throw things away and end up keeping a lot of extra things that you may not need by default?
14. Have you noticed that you frequently lose daily essentials like your wallet, keys, phone, etc.? ?
15. Do you feel particularly sensitive to criticism or rejection from others?
16. Do you find that you have difficulty with things that require moving your body through space? So it may seem like you’re clumsier than average and show up with bruises without knowing how they got there? Or even have car accidents more often than the average person.
17. Do you find that you often feel overwhelmed in noisy, busy environments?

It’s important to note that you cannot diagnose yourself with ADHD based on these questions alone. The 17 questions Dr. Shepard asks on TikTok are just some of the most common ones.

“Many other nuanced questions and issues arise when discussing ADHD during an assessment, so it’s definitely something you need to talk to your doctor or therapist about if you’re worried.

There is treatment for ADHD that helps relieve the symptoms and make it less of an everyday problem for people. The NHS recommends a combination of medications and therapies at best.