Me and ADHD. I'm at the start of a journey I've been on all my life.

I have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); it's official. If you know me well, you'll smile knowingly as you sit back and think, oh, okay, that makes so much sense! 

I recently read, “People living with ADHD may have a variety of skills and abilities beyond those of their neurotypical counterparts. These may include hyperfocus, resilience, creativity, conversational skills, spontaneity, and abundant energy.” Does this sound like me? I’m a wise squirrel!

Heather had already assumed I had ADHD and repeatedly mentioned it to me over the years. She's a school teacher who has worked with hundreds (maybe thousands) of children of all types and knows the signs. Sidenote: Always listen to your spouse. ;)

Reflecting on my ADHD symptoms made me quite certain, and my doctor recently confirmed it. 

Do any of these ADHD symptoms sound familiar? 

• Distractible

• Impulsive

• Hyperactive

• Restless

• Disorganized

• Inattentive

• Impatient

• Fidgety

• Forgetful

• Careless

Reading my old report cards.

My mum kept my old report cards from elementary to high school. They have sat at the bottom of a cardboard box in a closet for over a decade. After my recent diagnosis, I retrieved them, and Heather and I laughed as we read the teachers' feedback because it all makes sense now. 

• Distractible - David is very creative but needs to focus on his lessons. He is often distracted by seemingly silly things. 

• Impulsive - David is a natural leader, but he makes poor choices. He could set a better example to others.

• Hyperactive - David needs to sit still in class and stop trying to make everyone laugh all of the time.

• Restless - David seems bored and often daydreams. His "funny" outbursts are very distracting to others.

• Disorganized - David needs to come to school better prepared and with his homework complete.

• Inattentive - David needs to focus on his teachers and their curriculum.

• Impatient - David seems to only focus on the topics he is interested in and often grows frustrated. 

• Fidgety - David should work on keeping his arms and legs still to avoid distracting his classmates.

• Forgetful - David needs to be reminded to do his homework constantly. He often forgets important details. 

• Careless - David shows great promise but doesn't seem to care about his grades or even showing up to class.

Finding the others.

I've unknowingly worked on each common ADHD trait throughout my career, and while I still suffer from these, I excel in other areas. I've learned to cope by being anal about managing my time and always being punctual, sending myself constant reminders, creating to-do lists, writing Post-It notes, journaling, practicing mindfulness and meditation, and using apps to lock myself out of distracting social media and news sites. 

I have honed my communication, networking, public speaking, workshop facilitating, and content marketing skills to build a sustainable business and serve my happy clients. Heck, even Google trusted me to represent them. I'm like a squirrel, distracted constantly, but I'm wise from my years of knowledge and practice.

As Douglas Ruskoff often says in his Team Human book and podcast, "Find the others." I'm working on a new podcast to share our stories, tools, and tips. Stay tuned for more on that. 

If you're a late-diagnosed adult with ADHD, I would love to hear from you. Email me. Naturally, I would also love to hear from you, whether you are neurotypical, have ADHD, have known it since childhood, or are a medical professional specializing in ADHD. Reach out to me.

The journey begins...

I'm at the start of a journey I've been on all my life. It's exciting to embark on this journey with the tools, knowledge, and relationships that I will need. I hope you find what I share helpful and consider how ADHD might affect the people in your life.

If you’d like to learn more, visit Wise Squirrels.

I have also developed a new keynote presentation about ADHD for neurotypical and neurodiverse audiences alike. I know The Root Down will change lives for the better.

PS: If you know anyone at TED, please tell them I am finally ready. The Root Down is the TED talk that’s been stewing inside me all my life. Let’s do this!