ADHD IN WOMEN: IT ME AT AGE 53

Last July, I wrote that I couldn't explain what I called "laptop PTSD." I can explain it now. At the age of 53, I've been diagnosed with ADHD.

Author:
Janine
Publish date:
Apr 2, 2022

ADHD in women (and at 53) isn't a thing you thought you'd ever read about here, I bet. Seems like a trending topic, but that's because so many women are just now figuring out as adults that they should have been diagnosed as kids. And it turns out ADHD plays all the roles in why BG has been so quiet for the last bit. I thought it was burnout, some kind of laptop PTSD plus a heaping dose of pandemic life. But I had the first three of those four capital letters wrong.

I sort of wrote a thing for @thekit.ca on having been diagnosed a minute ago with "Inattentive" ADHD at the age of 53. Nope, I'm not an 8-year-old boy who can't sit still in class – how weird is that?? Anyway: 👉🏼 it's called "My ADHD Diagnosis Gave Me a New Lease on Life." (Why am I only now realizing how dramatic that headline sounds?)

My experiences echo difficulties many undiagnosed women (and undiagnosed men; boys with inattentive ADHD slip through the diagnostic cracks too) struggle constantly to overcome with varying degrees of success. I'm not alone in managing for years despite being undiagnosed only to feel yanked off the proverbial cliff when, I think, my estrogen levels dived into perimenopause.

everyone is a little adhd

True in the way everyone sneezes sometimes, and some people have hay fever or pet allergies is true. True in the way everyone gets a headache occasionally, and some people can barely function for regular, debilitating migraines is true. Clinical psychologist and ADHD specialist Thomas E. Brown explains brilliantly (he's a good storyteller!) in the ADHD Explained video below:

Another reason "everyone is a little adhd" still gets thrown around may come down to a noteworthy point I spotted via ADHD creator @jessjanderson (in these IG story highlights): ADHD is hereditary. Undiagnosed ADHD parents may see persistent textbook behaviour as "normal" because they've done it their entire lives too without realizing there's a reason. 🤯

adhd in women: resources

The following list of resources – websites, books, authors, doctors, coaches and creators – isn't only about ADHD in women, but this woman (me, this woman is me) has found them all helpful.

The ADHD screening questionnaire is not meant for self-diagnosis, but for discussion with a doctor that leads either to diagnosis or referral to an expert.
ADHD Explained: A 28-Minute Primer is the video embedded above in which clinical psychologist Thomas E. Brown, PhD explains the facts about patient experiences perfectly, including how some people get to adulthood before being diagnosed. Dr. Brown knows all the things and has written a ton on the subject.
ADDITUDE Magazine is a major source of ADHD information and strategies as it pertains to kids, adults, women, and parenting in ADHD families, too. Their posts are written by experts and feature expert interviews, so you'll also find lots of sources to check out there.
ADHD 2.0 by Edward M Hallowell, MD and John J. Raley, MD is a short book (also available for Kindle), and Dr. Hallowell is on TikTok (his Now/NotNow video set me on the course to diagnosis) to share information, tips and reassurance.

Dr. Sasha Hamdani educates as ThePsychDoctorMD on TikTok and Instagram. Author of forthcoming book Self Care for People with ADHD: 100+ Ways to Recharge, De-Stress and Prioritize You! (Simon & Schuster, January 2023; also for Kindle), she navigates ADHD life herself, too.
ADHD artist Dani Donovan shares key advice via TikTok, designed an ADHD "anti-planner" launching this August, and just started a Neurodiverse Squad Twitter community. Dunno how that last one works; I'm checking it out.
Stephanie Rourke Jackson of Beacon Coaching is a life and leadership coach I connected with on Instagram. Her whole family is ADHD; her husband was diagnosed as an adult, as was she, in her 50s. Together Stephanie and I did a trio of "You've Been Diagnosed With ADHD – Now What?" chats that might be helpful for newly diagnosed adults. I've also got an ADHD highlights on my profile that is full of posts from a host of other great ADHD-community accounts.
Aron Croft of Hidden ADHD, diagnosed with inattentive ADHD in his 30s, is a coach whose programs include helpful free workshops on creative strategies for conquering a beast ADHD types call The Overwhelm.
Jesse J. Anderson shares tips and strategies via Instagram and YouTube; I'm listening to the audio on an Avoiding Toxic Productivity video right now – OH MY GOD IT ME AGAIN. And the coffee-shop bit (18:04) – that's how I freelanced and did Beautygeeks at the same time.

Thanks for reading. I know my decision to share this stuff is strange for some people, but if it can help someone else... knowing why is a new beginning.

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