Australian Women's Weekly
Here's the thing: we all misplace our keys or phone. We don't always finish what we start. We might fidget or zone out in meetings, miss appointments, make impulse purchases, fall down the rabbit hole of social media when procrastinating, and sometimes feel overwhelmed by the juggle that is modern parenting. But that doesn't mean we have ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).
We're humans, not bots (and even they don't function glitch-free). For most of us these symptoms are a momentary nuisance, but for 1 in 20 Australians they become a major stumbling block for managing the 'big' stuff: getting a degree, managing a mortgage, parenting effectively or holding a job.
"Women are more likely to experience both 'missed' diagnosis of ADHD, or 'misdiagnosis' of ADHD," says Dani Bultitude, Founder, CEO and Principal Therapeutic Coach at The Divergent Edge, a national telehealth service supporting adults with ADHD.
"Women are commonly diagnosed with stress - which is assumed as normal for mothers of young children - anxiety, depression, postnatal depression, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, cluster B personality disorder traits or bipolar disorder.
"At times some of these conditions may exist in addition to an undiagnosed ADHD, but for many it is simply a misinterpretation of ADHD symptoms." Part of the diagnostic difficulty is that women are often very good at masking - we're socialised into 'keeping it together' from an early age. "Young girls more commonly experience either inattentive ADHD traits, or they internalise their experience of their ADHD, which causes distress for them but is not noticed by observers," says Dani.
"Boys are more likely to externalise, which not only causes distress for the child, but also for those around them."According to Dani, the current diagnostic criteria requires childhood evidence of ADHD but, for girls, it's often hard to detect until the pressure on planning and organisation skills ramps up in high school or beyond.
"Despite the fact that a girl's ADHD may not have been clear to others in childhood, it is no less real; nor does it make the impact of it going unnoticed less serious," says Dani. "The girls were overlooked ... and now they are coming out."
As psychiatrist, author and director of Aware Hub Dr Lisa Myers explains, ADHD is a neurodevelopmental Diagnosing ADHD disorder - it changes the brain's biological development so some areas are hypofunctioning (leading to attention deficit and impulsivity) and others are hyperfunctioning (leading to daydreaming and distractibility).
She says women with ADHD often have reduced dopamine (required for motivation) and noradrenaline (responsible for attention). "ADHD has multifactorial causes and is likely an interplay of genetics and environmental factors," says Dr Myers.
"Women tend to have more symptoms of inattention and executive dysfunction. They may be unable to organise and manage their lives, tend to be more chaotic and scattered, are easily overwhelmed and emotionally reactive. All of this can lead to increased rates of anxiety, depression and low self-esteem."
Despite being well researched, ADHD is also still widely misunderstood and stigmatised. Is this you? According to the Australian Psychological Society, 2 to 3 per cent of adults are diagnosed with ADHD.
The following symptoms need to have started before the age of 12 and be present in at least two settings (eg, at home and at work). Difficulties with: Concentrating, Staying focused, Organising tasks and activities, Sitting for long periods, Waiting for your turn, Engaging in quiet activities, Forgetfulness, Tendency to lose things, Fidgeting and restlessness, Acting or speaking before thinking things through.
While some people with ADHD will require medication, non-pharmacological treatments are a key part of managing ADHD. "These include education, engaging with specific strategies to help organise self and manage time, and learning coping skills to manage reactive emotions, depression, anxiety and impulsivity," says Dr Myers.
You'll need an official diagnosis first, though - your local GP can arrange for you to see a relevant specialist. It can be quite a lengthy process but for many women a formal diagnosis is life-changing: it's a chance to reframe a negative self-image or a lifetime of low self-esteem. "The challenges faced by adults with ADHD aren't a result of laziness, not putting in the effort or not being disciplined. Let go of these ideas, and instead use your creative brain to innovate solutions that work for you."
What's THE DIFFERENCE? Is it really ADHD? ADHD shares many similarities with anxiety, depression and a dysregulated nervous system, according to Dr Ashwini Padhi, Psychiatrist at South Pacific Private.
"ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder. However, when we talk about a dysregulated nervous system, it is more like the rhythm of 'normal' regulation patterns gets disrupted, so people cannot respond to life in a flexible and resilient way," he says.
As it impacts thoughts, feelings and behaviour, it can lead to a disproportionate response to stress (as either an under or overreaction). "For example, if you find yourself absentmindedly staring into the refrigerator, wondering how you got there, or perhaps you can't sit still for long periods and need to busy yourself, you may well be experiencing a reaction to a stressful interaction or thought process."
Although nervous system dysregulation can look a lot like ADHD on the surface (restless, mood fluctuations and anxiety, for example), Dr Padhi says there are key differences: nervous system dysregulation is often linked to unprocessed stress or trauma (often from childhood) and can be remedied by changing influencing circumstances and habits in consultation with a health professional.
"We all have varying levels of ability to cope with what life throws our way," says Dr Padhi. "Generally speaking, those who are dysregulated are unable to regulate themselves because they never had the chance to learn how to, but there are many ways people can learn to master their nervous system responses and harvest energy from them instead of anxiety or despair."