How Adult ADHD Goes Undetected

Let’s Connect:

Find our experts and hosts:

:: Sheena William, RN ::
Twitter: @Keepingitkinky1
Instagram: @keepingitkinky

:: Alok Patel, MD ::
Twitter: @AlokPatelMD
Instagram: @alokpatelmd

:: Megan Anna Neff ::
Dr. Neff is a neurodivergent (Autistic-ADHD) clinician, parent, and advocate.
YouTube: @neurodivegent_insights

:: Alice Gendron ::
Alice is a video producer, educator and author. Her book, "The Mini ADHD Coach," will be available September 26.
Instagram: @the_mini_adhd_coach
YouTube: @theminiadhdcoach

:: Foster Cotton ::
Foster makes great videos.
YouTube: @fosteronthespectrum

Want to Read More?

Diagnostic Criteria

More on Autism/ADHD connection:

Why Are Prescriptions For ADHD Rising?

Overdiagnosed or Underdiagnosed in Children & Adolescents?

Skeptical View Arguing ADHD may be OVERdiagnosed in adults:

Racial Disparities in Diagnosis:

Men/Boys Much More Likely to be Diagnosed:

ADHD and Substance Abuse

Symptoms Tend to Continue Into Adulthood

A few resources if you're seeking a diagnosis:

Thyroid & ADHD:

This episode of Vitals is licensed exclusively to YouTube.

00:00 Intro
00:44 The three types of ADHD
02:10 Not just a childhood condition
03:15 "Unofficial" symptoms
05:03 Eight things that get confused with ADHD
06:53 ADHD and autism
07:56 Over- or under-diagnosed?
08:57 Treatment/medication
10:52 ADHD life hacks
11:53 What it meant to get a diagnosis

[pyrethorn]

I got my diagnosis at 38. It only happened because a friend told me that I had ADHD. I didn't believe it. Then they started listing the symptoms. I hit every single one of them. So I went to the doctor, got a referral to a specialist and got my diagnosis. It made things make sense. I had always thought that I was bad at life. Why couldn't I just do things? Why was it so easy for everyone else? I just assumed that I was lazy. When I finally got medication for it, it was like night and day. Like finding out that life had an easy mode and I'd been playing on hard mode my entire life. Also turns out that all my close friends have either adhd, asd or both. It certainly explained why I gravitated towards neuro-divergent people.

[ALADDIN]

No more diagnoses. I had a nervous breakdown to get my ADHD detected February 2020, aged 41, diagnosed 6 months later, only given medication. I got diagnosed with dyspraxia aged 33, Aspergers traits aged 25. I got my degree aged 20, 1999, pgdip 2000.
I am of Middle Eastern origin.
My ADHD was missed, because I was well behaved in school, intelligent and driven.
I have underachieved in my life .
I feel it is too late, sadly .
Moving forward in life is not easy .

[johnmoore]

To anyone out there who has been struggling with “anxiety” and/or “depression” for 5-10+ years and your life really hasn’t improved through medication and therapy. I would highly recommend looking into ADHD.

Yes you may have had anxiety and you may actually get depressed, but if you have ADHD then the anxiety and even more so the depression, will almost always keep returning if the ADHD is left untreated.

ADHD fuels anxiety, give someone a brain that’s thinking constantly and combine it with some nervousness and you can see how that gets out of hand. Likewise if you’re someone with untreated ADHD you’re likely going to have many many failures academically and professionally in your adult life which in turn leads to depression as your peers leave you in the dust.

The first time I took a stimulant, I can’t explain it, the world was just quiet and I could communicate without thinking about it. The day I took it I also had an Anatomy test (going to school to be a RN), we have to identify ~50 structures with no word bank, it’s all from memory. Well normally I was getting 60-65%, but the day I took the stimulant I got a 94%. My brain was empty enough that I could actually pull the names from memory.

[CortexNewsService]

Both my sister and I got diagnosed with ADHD in our 40s. Hyperactive for her, inattentive for me. We didn't realize until my niece was diagnosed at 10. My sister asked why because she had the same habits as my niece. The doctor's response was "I'm sure you do."
"....Oh. This explains so much of the past 40 years."

[hunterGk]

I find it somewhat confusing and immensely frustrating that there is such stigma around ADHD medication; while Drs are happy to hand out antidepressants left right and centre. The ones I'm on are highly addictive to the point where if I miss a *single dose* I will have debilitating withdrawal symptoms.
Also, oh what a surprise, when people are medicated properly they don't feel the need to self medicate later in life. Honestly, the world really needs to get itself together when it comes to psychological issues. The general culture and understanding around these things is absolutely archaic.

[emb]

So I have a story, when I was like 25/26 someone suggested I go to the psychiatrist so I did and they were immediately after talking to me for like 27 seconds like "um were you ever diagnosed with ADHD?" and I was like oh? ... and then like a year later during the pandemic a friend of my sister reached out and, she did an assessment of me in the early 00s when I was like 10 because she was getting her degree at the time so she asked my parents permission to do some stuff with me and she came to the conclusion I had ADHD but for some reason never mentioned it to anyone and I was so angry for a while after I found out... there was someone out there that did notice that knew and they didn't bring it up like...

[darylcauvin]

I'm 40 and very soon I'm getting tested for adhd & autism...this video was fantastic because I really felt like people were describing me...its a peaceful emotion I'm experiencing because of this video. Hopefully that will be an everyday occurance. Thanks

[montithered]

2:06
And what if it isn’t traceable back to childhood?
That seems like a crucial part of the diagnosis.
I see potential for harm and neglect here because there may be environmental factors which cause or exacerbate symptoms.

[jso]

I have wondered for years if I had ADHD because of my forgetfulness and constant procrastination as various intrusive thoughts enter when I am engaged in a task, but also do not want to trivialize the experience of those who genuinely struggle with the condition. The one time I went to Psychologist, it seemed like I was fine, and my college experience also was more about potential depression than anything else, but now I am reconsidering again. Thank you for you.

[craigparse]

5:06 I can relate to this. I got diagnosed about a month ago at age 57. I can clearly remember when I was in Elementary School (in the 1970's), my teachers would often tell me to stay on task and to stop daydreaming.

[HP_Quinn]

Thank you for this video!

I was diagnosed with both ASD and ADHD earlier this year at 35 years old (already having major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder diagnoses since early adulthood.)

These diagnoses explain so much about myself & my life; it's as though I'm finally beginning to learn about who I am.

[brydcsd]

I'm 36. turning 37 this year. all the symptoms listed are ticked. now I am aware that I have ADHD, but I don't have the means to seek professional consultation. I'm anxious, depressed, broke 😢

[linda]

It is really not only that symptoms are different in adult. ADHD simply was not known before. Just got diagnosed at age 53. The symptoms where there all my life. Got through by being fortuned to have good common sence and never giving up but life was always a strunggle. I did get a job, bought a house, raised a child and was smart enough not to get myself in to much debt but it was always like cycling against the wind ( I am Dutch so to put some Dutch refrence) till I simply was tired of fighting a got burned out. It was my company doctor who send me the ADHD route. ADHD entered the DSM in 1986. I finished highschool already by then. I studied social work early 90's but hardly heard anything about ADHD. Even worked in a youth prison as a social therapist and met boys with ADHD but those where there because they commited serious crime. Of course I did get some suspicion lateron. But still. As an adult symptoms are different but also it was simply not a thing, it " didn't exist " and you can not get diagnosed for something that doesn't even exist.

[johnmoore]

9:52 is misinforming the audience. Non-stimulants definitely need to build up in your system before they work and they definitely need to be taken everyday, especially medications like atomoxetine, bupropion, and viloxazine. Atomoxetine takes 4+ weeks in most studies to show any significant clinical benefit. Non-stimulants are also significantly less effective than stimulants.

No doctor in their right mind would prescribe atomoxetine on an “as needed” basis, any benefit would be placebo.

[eliscanfield]

My son was officially diagnosed with ADHD in 1st grade, though it had been suspected since he was in preschool, and lets just say, I wasn't surprised when his teachers suggested it. My little brother has it too, tho without the hyperactive part.

We put Son on medication and dear god, the difference it made in his academics. He's still learning how to self-redirect and needs more time to finish his school work than average but he's not far off the median in any subject and is actually a bit above in reading. I kid you not, nor do I exaggerate, when I say he went from reading 2 or 3 words at a time to short paragraphs in TWO WEEKS after his first dose.

[ImageFilmersPrivate]

Neurotypical: I can forgive, not forget.
ADHDer: Oh, I'll forget eventually, but NEVER forgive.

[trishferrer]

I was diagnosed w/ADHD at age 40. I'm 64 now, still living w/all the symptoms, but more accepting of myself. I initially went to the therapist to find out WHAT was wrong with me! I had experienced a lifetime of trauma after trauma, failing classes in school, job losses, being extraordinarily "curious" (playing with dangerous things) and high risk-taking, etc. Today, I am a gardener, and I know that it's an obsession and I get hyper focused on whatever I'm doing. Hate getting interrupted when I'm in the middle of something; I NEED to get to at least a "stopping point", and although my hyperactivity was definitely there when I was young, now it seems to be in my head - very busy thoughts and very chaotic dreams.

I do have hyper bursts during the day, but being "older" I also take breaks, and feel very unfocused. When I got my diagnosis at 40, I was totally shocked, because I had only ever heard of boys having ADHD, and that it was a childhood condition (implying you "outgrow" this way of being). I have always been very creative, and still am. I'm still learning to understand myself, and I call ADHD my superpower. lol

[CBmo_nofomo]

Love this thank you!! I was initially diagnosed in college and didn’t think much of it but the medication helped me study. Once I was assessed and officially diagnosed with ADHD in my 30’s, I was truly struggling and took the time to learn about it which, like they said in the video, you look back at your life differently and I went through the grieving process but I also joined a support group, began therapy, and medication. I realized it wasn’t just me and I’m not the only one experiencing these things. I’m still learning to cope and find out where I fit in this world but having the knowledge and support that opened up to me through a diagnosis definitely helps.

[jbug]

It’s becoming very fashionable to say you have ADHD or autism. In fact I hear loads of people saying out loud “oh sorry, it’s my ADHD”
I have it (secretly) and keep it to myself as I don’t want backlash from employers etc. My husband conducts a lot of law interviews in a top firm and told me if he reads that a candidate has ADHD or autism, that CV goes straight in the bin! Be warned, do not put that on your CV. It IS still seen as a disability and a mental health problem. Just a heads up.

[skybluskyblueify]

What about "rejection sensitivity"?