Undiagnosed ADHD in Women
Women who are not diagnosed with ADHD often experience low self-esteem. They struggle to live up to social expectations and then internalize their frustration.
They may also experience emotional distress, including the sensitivity to rejection. This can cause them to be more likely to engage in risky behaviors.
ADHD symptoms can also change during hormonal changes, like menstruation, pregnancy, or menopause. This can make it more difficult to determine the cause of ADHD.
Signs and symptoms
Women may be unable to recognize their ADHD symptoms, since they are often hidden. This could lead to an inaccurate diagnosis, and incorrect treatment could cause more issues than they resolve. Many women also report difficulty being diagnosed, particularly in adulthood. This is due to the diagnostic criteria are based on research conducted in males. Some experts are working to improve these criteria.
Undiagnosed ADHD symptoms for women are typically like those experienced by males. Many people with ADHD struggle with concentration and listening. They might lose track of important tasks or lose things. They can spend hours organizing their work or home space, but fail to keep up. They are often distracted by the noise or activities that are happening around them. People who suffer from ADHD are prone to having trouble sleeping and may be worried over their health and the safety of others.
When women and girls suffer symptoms of undiagnosed ADHD it can impact every aspect of their lives. They can have trouble in the workplace or at school and have issues with their romantic relationships and friendships. They can have low self-esteem and anxiety, and they might resort to unhealthy strategies for coping like alcohol or drugs.
Undiagnosed ADHD may cause frustration and misunderstandings in relationships between family members, friends and coworkers. Teachers and coaches may be critical of them or be treated unfairly at work. ADHD can make it difficult to concentrate and meet deadlines.
Over time, many people with undiagnosed ADHD have developed strategies for coping. They might be up late at night to stay ahead of their work or hide their problems from family members. When they realize that their problems are a result of ADHD, it is like a lightbulb moment. They can then utilize their strengths to overcome challenges (such as creativity and high levels of energy).
Undiagnosed ADHD can have a long-term impact on the person's career, life, and relationships. It can cause social isolation, financial instability as well as depression. Certain people who suffer from ADHD, who are not diagnosed are prone to developing an dependence on stimulants, such as amphetamines or cocaine. This can lead to serious health problems, including heart disease and stroke.
Diagnosis
Many women with ADHD aren't diagnosed because symptoms are more difficult to spot in women than in males. This may be due to the fact that women have a harder time communicating with health professionals about their struggles, and are more likely to employ strategies to disguise their ADHD symptoms. These strategies for coping could involve changing behavior for example, like taking on more hours at work or school to compensate for their lapses on the subject, or relying on productivity tools to help them stay in control and on to schedule with their tasks. These strategies might work in the short-term however they are usually exhausting and not sustainable.
In addition, due to gender stereotypes about what women should be like, many people don't think that the woman they know may have ADHD. Certain symptoms can also be worsened by hormonal changes such as those that occur during menstrual cycles, pregnancy or menopause. This could result in women being misunderstood or dismissed as moody and emotionally tense. This adds to the frustration of these women.
Undiagnosed ADHD symptoms for women include forgetfulness trouble concentrating, and the tendency to be impulsive. They also tend to jump from one thing to the next and have trouble maintaining relationships. Undiagnosed ADHD is more prevalent in women. They are also more likely than others to suffer from coexisting conditions such as anxiety or depression. Symptoms of these conditions can be confused with those of ADHD and can lead to wrong diagnosis and treatment.
It can be difficult to diagnose anxiety and ADHD because they share many symptoms. The signs of anxiety include feelings of restlessness, difficulty concentrating and a constant feeling that something is wrong. The impulsivity and inattention that are characteristic of ADHD are not present in anxiety disorders.
A diagnosis from a professional of undiagnosed ADHD can have a profound impact on women. In several studies, patients reported that their symptoms reduced after receiving an expert diagnosis. Finding an external explanation for their problems helped them stop blaming themselves and start looking at their own problems as something they could control.
It takes time to identify ADHD and it can be a long time, but it's worth the long wait. Treatment of ADHD by psychotherapy and medication can improve relationships, assist women excel in school and work, and give them an improved understanding of themselves.
Treatment
Women and girls typically have different symptoms of ADHD than men, making it harder to obtain diagnosis and treatment. They may also be better in hiding their symptoms which makes it difficult to get help or support. This could be due to forgetting appointments, being unable to complete tasks at work or school, and having trouble in relationships. They could be more prone to be pressured into unwanted sexual behaviour or become victims of abuse from intimate partners because they're unable to acknowledge and react to their own emotions.
Early diagnosis and a successful treatment can make a huge difference for these women. A 2020 study found that a late or missed diagnosis can have long-lasting negative effects on a woman's emotional well-being as well as her ability to build and maintain relationships. It can also affect her self-esteem and confidence in her abilities to control. These studies found that many women reported feeling more relaxed and more confident in themselves after receiving a diagnosis of ADHD and receiving treatment.
It is important to know that research has shown that women with undiagnosed ADHD are less confident and less likely to seek help than their male counterparts. They are more likely to blame their attention, impulsivity and organizational issues on social or personal factors rather than their ADHD.
There are a myriad of options for treating adults suffering from ADHD, aside from medication. The most commonly used are cognitive behavior therapy and dialectical therapy. CBT helps people identify and alter negative attitudes and behaviors, whereas DBT provides skills to improve mindfulness and self-acceptance. Neurocognitive Psychotherapy, which combines elements of these therapies with training in strategies to improve focus and concentration is another option. This treatment is available in individual or group sessions and is geared to adults with ADHD. *Note in this article, the word "women" is used to mean those who were assigned a female at birth, regardless of their gender identity. It also refers people assigned male at birth as "men", to include all gender identities.
Support
adhd in women treatment who suffer from ADHD experience a sense shame or confusion about their symptoms. Women are often misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed as a result of the ways ADHD manifests in women. This is due to pressures from society, hormonal changes, and other factors. This can result in inappropriate or ineffective treatment and the increased likelihood of developing mood-related disorders, such as depression and anxiety.
Women are more adept at concealing their symptoms than men, who tend to be more impulsive or hyperactive. They can be taught to work late into the evening, and make use of productivity apps to disguise their inattention. The problem is, these coping mechanisms take a negative effects on self-esteem and eventually affect the quality of life.
The process of diagnosing women with ADHD can be complicated and frustrating. Traditional ADHD criteria were developed for men, so they might not always capture the full spectrum of symptoms that women experience. Many women with undiagnosed ADHD have been misdiagnosed with other conditions, like anxiety or depression.
Clara was not an exception. Clara was smart, hardworking and committed to her work. Yet she was unable to meet deadlines and was overwhelmed by the demands of her job. She saw her mistakes as her own fault and believed that she wasn't good enough. Her shattered self-confidence was the result of undiagnosed ADHD.
When she was diagnosed with adult ADHD, it was a moment of revelation. Clara realized that her issues were not a result of personal failures. She was able to stop seeing them as a sign of lazyness and start to look at her ADHD as a thread that can be used to create an effective personal and professional life.
As women's ADHD is more well-known, it will become increasingly important to include women in treatment and research. This is particularly important in the area of sexually-specific treatments, since new research is geared towards understanding how gender influences the disorder and developing medications that are effective for women. Hopefully, this will lead to better treatment and diagnosis for women suffering from undiagnosed ADHD.