Lived Experience Forum

[findingmyway97]

Hi everyone, 

I am a female in my mid twenties and for a long time now I have suspected that I may have ADHD (the inattentive type), as I resonate with so many of the symptoms and can also relate to many articles and videos on ADHD that I have read and watched.

The symptoms I experience on a day to day basis include:

- Regularly misplacing/losing things (my phone all the time, my keys, my wallet, shoes etc) 

- Forgetfulness (what someone may tell me/in a task that I’m doing - get distracted and then not come back to what I was previously doing)  

- Procrastinating and always putting off things until the very last minute (my uni work - hardly meeting deadlines and always struggling to keep up) 

- Struggling to stay focussed on any task that requires a lot of mental effort (eg. writing an essay)

- Frequent inner restlessness and become very agitated when bored

- Struggle making decisions (small and big) and often see so many different options/ways of doing things so find it difficult to make up my mind 

- Feel very socially anxious and awkward especially around people I don’t know very well 

- Find it agonising to complete mundane tasks/chores (eg. doing the dishes, taking a shower, cleaning my room etc)

- Always feel the need to multi-task (I think because of feeling under stimulated)

- My room and desk is always a mess

- Rely heavily on lists (and phone notes) to remember to do things, otherwise I would definitely be a lot more forgetful. 
- Get overwhelmed very easily (little things can make me very frustrated) and I am highly sensitive to others’ moods. 
- Often feel like things come so much easier to other people, and I really have to try hard to be present and make sure I’m actually actively listening to people (in social situations)
- Often switch between different tasks during the day and don’t always finish what I start.

- Can hyper focus on what I am really interested in and be in an extremely focused zone (playing music) 

- Have felt for a long time that something is not quite right/I’m different to others and have a strong urge to work out what this is so I can better understand my self.

I have been diagnosed previously with depression and social anxiety, however feel there is a deeper root cause to my issues. 

I would love to hear your thoughts, opinions and any advice that you could please give on whether you think it is possible that I might have undiagnosed ADHD.

Thank you.

[Sirius]

Wishing you a warm welcome to the forum @findingmyway97! 😊

My name is Sirius and I'm one of the peer support workers here. I’d firstly like to acknowledge the courage it takes to open up and share your thoughts and feelings here with the community. 

Secondly, I'm going to tag in a few of our fellow forumites and community guides to both welcome you and share any pearls of wisdom they may around their experience with ADHD.

@wellwellwellnez @Faith-and-Hope @kram @TurnAround @demoncat @Bristle

@Girlpower14 @Kewton @JD-03 @Pg12 @Campbarry @Mina @Teej @Briar @greenspace

@Millieme @AFK @Shaz51  @Bristle @CrazyChick @Gurty @Hams @HenryX @JayneB 
@Jerome @MattsOpinion @Rosemary4 @Shaz51 @greenpea @Bow 

You might also find this forum ADHD thread useful: https://saneforums.org/t5/Our-stories/Wait-what-did-I-come-into-this-thread-for-again-Oh-yeah-ADHD/m...

And this Topic Tuesday discussion on ADHD: https://saneforums.org/t5/Special-Events/Topic-Tuesday-ADHD-Tuesday-22nd-February-7-00-8-30PM-AEDT/t...

Again, kudos for sharing your story here @findingmyway97, and I hope you find a community of like-minded people to walk beside you in your journey! 💜

Sirius✨

[BPDSurvivor]

Hi @findingmyway97 ,

Welcome to the forums! 

I have a question (if you want to answer): do you see your “symptoms” as things you’d like to do something about? Or is it just that you like to connect with others who experience the same thing?

If you’d actually like things to change, it’s probably good to speak to your GP. If you’d like to connect with others, the links @Sirius has provided is definitely a good start.

I don’t have adhd, but I’ve worked with those who have it. It’s not that they don’t have attention, it’s moreso that they have difficulty regulating their attention.

I really enjoy working with those with adhd. They’ve got so much to offer - their awesome ideas, and energy!

 Look forward to connecting with you.

[Faith-and-Hope]

Hi @findingmyway97 @and welcome to the forums 👋

[Bow]

Just popping by @findingmyway97 to welcome you to the forum! 

[Paperdaisy]

Hey @findingmyway97 I hear you. I don't have a diagnosis but so much of this resonates with me. I learnt so much when doing the Topic Tuesday Sirius has linked for you. @Jynx is very knowledgeable on the subject! When I was chatting to my psychologist about this, she shared that many people she has worked with who are diagnosed as adults have such a sense of relief as it validates everything they have been feeling and dealing with their whole life. It also gives them a plan to move forward with.

Would it be worth chatting to your GP about this? 

Take care, 

Paperdaisy