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wizardnuke · 4 years

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I think I might have ADHD and from what research I've done I fit most (around 75%) of the criteria, but I don't want to be totally wrong about it so I was wondering if you would be alright telling me when you knew you had ADHD or overarching things/behaviors that people who have ADHD tend to do? Sorry if it's a bad question.

bad questions don't exist my guy! they Are Not Real! so by default this is a good question and I will try to answer coherently. this is not going to be coherent or concise, I am sorry

you don't have to match every single symptom! I'm probably about 75% there too because I'm not hyperactive- not in the way that people think it means, I'm not energetic but hyperactivity is sensory-seeking which I'll elaborate on

1. I say this with an incredible amount of love in my heart, rambling and maybe not getting to the point quickly when you're talking bc u want to add as much detail as possible in order to get ur point across clearly is an ADHD thing and this ask (and my response) is a lovely example of that

2. worrying that you're wrong about it is also very much an ADHD thing because we get really anxious about being laughed at for being wrong about things (google RSD for more info on that) and or because of that we have trouble talking about our issues to people who could impact them in any way, aka a doctor that's diagnosing you

3. I was diagnosed with ADHD-inattentive type (ADD) when I was 13 and I don't particularly remember being 13 or any younger than that jdjfjfjf, my mom is also ADHD-i and she recognized the symptoms!

but uh some assorted ADHD things that I do or see others do that aren't really included in symptom lists are:

- having a bad sleep schedule (like falling asleep at 2am and waking up at 12) bc our circadian rhythm is different. doesn't necessarily mean u wake up a lot when you sleep because I sleep like the dead,, once I manage to fall asleep which takes hours more than it does for nts

- seeing patterns in things that there aren't always actual patterns in. I don't know why this is a thing that ADHD (and autistic!) people do but it seems to be widespread. personally I have an emotional attachment to the fibonacci sequence and I really love music theory bc. patterns.

- gifted kid burnout. I'm 100% serious. it's often, not always but often, an ADHD thing

- ADHD people are disorganized because it's hard to prioritize things. should I put my clothes in the hamper or should I bring the dishes to the kitchen or should I text my friend or should I check my email or- etc.

- constant overwhelm

- trouble with social skills other than interrupting/impatience, I have trouble discerning tone both online and irl so I take things too literally, which is commonly seen as something that only happens to people with autism but I'm hmm most likely not autistic.

- this isn't an example but I think about the "I was diagnosed with ADHD which means my doctor said hey you have autism lite and you should microdose meth" tweet every single day and it never stops sending me

- neurotypical people DO NOT have hyperfixations and they don't hyperfocus. they literally do not. I don't care if an nt says that they do. it means that they're autistic/ADHD. NTs have hobbies and interests and jobs. NDs get overtaken by their interests and sometimes it's difficult for us to focus on other things because of it

- it's comorbid (exists alongside/is impacted by/causes) with a lot of other disorders/mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, PTSD (I mean that ADHD causes PTSD), dyslexia, dyscalculia, audio processing disorder, etc

SENSORY STUFF BECAUSE IT DESERVES ITS OWN SECTION:

sensory issues

- not liking textures, light being too bright, sounds being jumbled together and hard to discern.

- some people with ADHD also have audio processing disorder, which makes it hard for them to understand verbal speech quickly. ppl talk to me and it feels like I have to buffer for 10 seconds before I can understand them

sensory-seeking behavior.

- this includes the Leg Bounce™, other physical motions that you might do which ranges from wiggling around to pacing to cracking your knuckles a lot, echolalia (saying something repeatedly bc uhh its fun), etc. those are all types of stimming, which autistic people (and neurotypical ppl but less so for reasons I'll elaborate on in a second) also do.

this is because ADHD is caused by low dopamine, one of the happy chemicals, and it's harder for us to feel content by literally everything because our brains require a level of activity that they aren't getting because they.. have low dopamine. so stimming gives us more of the sensory input that we need.

- did u know that nt people actually feel satisfied after doing daily chores like laundry and doing the dishes because apparently they do and I got so jealous about that that I almost cried

- this is also why adhd people are "impulsive" or whatever the fuck they say that we are. it's a need for More Stimulation that we don't get unless we work for it in ways that nt people find inconvienent lmao

- so addiction, and by that I mean substance abuse, is something that adhd people are very susceptible to because it makes brain go brrrrrr

- and not addiction, and it makes me mad when people call it that, are behaviors like getting stuck playing games/scrolling social media (which I am very very very guilty of to a painful degree but I literally,, it makes brain go brrr okay), talking aloud, getting upset by monotony, etc.

and this is what we call an infodump

I don't think that a lot of NT people mistake themselves as ADHD. I don't think that self diagnosing is a bad thing to do. if the coping methods and the community help you then you're valid, even if the doctor says that you aren't adhd. doctors can be wrong.

#ask #anon #hope this made sense hope it helped #long post

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