Exacerbated ADHD symptoms with age

Recently I have noticed, that my ADHD symptoms get worse and that I get more "quirky". I wondered and thought that especially my bad memory may be because I have Fibromyalgia or because of the last remains of my almost-overcome anxiety disorder or because I had Neuropathia vestibularis 3 years ago or because I maybe had a TGS (Transient global amnesia) last year or because I lived in England in the 1980s and am now developing Creutzfeldt-Jakob. Or perhaps because of all of it all together.

Today I found out it could simply be the changing hormones. I am 47 and have started noticing changes, so why not! 

Overall the articles that I have read state, that there is yet no scientific research on this topic, but some of the information is interesting:

... 

In an ADDitude survey of nearly 5,000 women with ADHD ... more than 93% said they noticed a difference in the severity of some ADHD symptoms during perimenopause and/or menopause. More than half of survey respondents said the following symptoms had a “life-altering impact” from ages 40 to 59:

• Feelings of overwhelm (73.67%) 
• Brain fog and memory issues (74.32%) 
• Procrastination (65.60%) 
• Time-management difficulties (64.27%) 
• Inattention/distractibility (61.74%)
• Disorganization (60.98%)
• Emotional dysregulation (58.82%)

... 

From brain fog to emotionality and poor memory to disorganization, the symptoms of ADHD grow markedly worse and largely unmanageable in perimenopause and menopause. Nearly half of ADDitude readers call this the most challenging time of life for them.

... 

Women almost unanimously report that their ADHD symptoms were most debilitating and life-altering during perimenopause and menopause, when executive dysfunction and emotional dysregulation grew beyond their capacity to manage them effectively.

So here are some of the articles on that issue, that I have read on ADDitude - you might also find them informative:

We Demand Attention on How Perimenopause and Menopause Impact ADHD Symptoms, and Vice Versa

Menopause, Hormones & ADHD: What We Know, What Research is Needed

Perimenopause Problems: How Changing Hormones Exacerbate ADHD Symptoms

Please also take the ADDitude’s ADHD in Menopause survey.

Depression: When It’s More Than a Symptom Of ADHD

Depressed but unsure if it’s the result of your ADHD or something more? Learn what sets reactive and major depression apart, including family history and how quickly your mood shifts, as well as which treatment is best for you.

To most people, depression means feeling blue or down in the dumps. This is an almost universal experience for people with ADHD. At some point in their lives, they feel down due to the frustration and demoralization of trying to fit into a neurotypical world that makes little effort to understand or accept them. Often this is called secondary, or reactive, depression.

It must be emphasized, however, that “reactive depression” is a normal experience and not something that has gone wrong. It is an accurate perception of how hard and frustrating it is to have ADHD, especially if it is not being treated.

This is not how a doctor thinks of depression when he diagnoses a patient. A clinician is trained to see depression as a gradually worsening state in which a person loses energy and the ability to experience pleasure from the things she enjoyed. There is no predictable cause-and-effect relationship between what is going on in a person’s life and her emotional response to those events. A diagnosis of depression means that a person’s moods “have taken on a life of their own, separate from the events of her life and outside her conscious will and control.”

You can read the full article on ADDitude.

The ADHD Subtypes

 By Dr. Neff, who is one of us. Check out her website neurodivergentinsights.com.

What Is Inattentive ADHD (previously called ADD)?

 

Inattentive ADHD (often called ADD) manifests as forgetfulness, disengagement, or distractibility, and can be mistaken for anxiety or a mood disorder in adults. In children, it may resemble a learning disorder. Here, we take an in-depth look at inattentive vs. hyperactive symptoms of ADHD.

Inattentive ADHD (once called ADD) is a subtype of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder that often manifests as limited attention span, distractibility, forgetfulness, or procrastination. People with inattentive ADHD make careless mistakes because they have difficulty sustaining focus, following detailed instructions, and organizing tasks and activities. They are easily distracted by external stimuli, and often lose things. They may leave projects unfinished and appear not to listen when you speak. These are all symptoms of Inattentive-Type ADHD; they are not personal defects.

A student with inattentive ADHD may quietly stare out the window while her work goes unfinished; this 'spacey' or 'daydreamy' behavior is overlooked or mischaracterized as laziness or apathy. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, symptoms of inattentive ADHD are far less likely to be recognized by parents, teachers, and medical professionals, and they rarely get the treatment they need. This leads to academic frustration, apathy, and shame that can last a lifetime.

You can read more about Inattentive ADHD and the symptoms on Additude.

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Understanding The ADHD Inattentive Type on SimplyPsychology.

AD(H)D and anger

Today, I saw that meme on Facebook and wondered that other people also have anger issues. I had forgotten that I had posted about it 12 years ago 😄

It is not a topic that people - neurotypical or neurodivergent alike - usually talk about, and I had never heard before that it can be an issue in neurodivergent people and a symptom of AD(H)D.

So I googled and found those articles that I want to share here:

ADHD Rage and Anger Issues: New Insights into Emotional Dysregulation and Treatment Considerations

Irritability, anger issues, and emotional dysregulation in general contribute significantly to the psychosocial burden of ADHD in children and adults. The latest research suggests that these rage problems are inherent to ADHD and may require specific treatment.

Anger issues stemming from emotional dysregulation – while noticeably missing from diagnostic criteria for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD) – are a fundamental part of the ADHD experience for a significant number of children and adults. Even when controlling for related comorbid conditions, individuals with ADHD experience disproportionate problems with anger, irritability, and managing other emotions. These problems walk in lock step with the general difficulties in self-regulation that characterize ADHD. Recent findings, however, suggest that problems with emotional regulation, including anger and negative emotions, are genetically linked to ADHD, too.

Ultimately, emotional dysregulation is one major reason that ADHD is subjectively difficult to manage, and why it also poses such a high risk for other problems like depression, anxiety, or negative self-medication. Scientific and clinical attention are now increasingly turning to correct the past neglect of this integral aspect of ADHD.

Recognizing this inherent relationship between emotional dysregulation and ADHD is also important when discerning between related and similar conditions, like disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD), bipolar disorder, intermittent explosive disorder (IED), depression, anxiety disorders, and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). In all, paying mind to anger issues and emotionality in patients with ADHD is crucial for successful treatment and symptom management in the long term.

Anger Issues and ADHD: Theories & Research

Though separated from ADHD in official nomenclature today, emotional dysregulation and anger were connected to ADHD in the mid-20th century before current diagnostic norms were created, and have continued to form part of personal and clinical experiences. Decades ago, when ADHD was known as “minimal brain dysfunction,” criteria for diagnosis actually included aspects of negative emotionality.

You can read more on Additude.

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You can also find Management Scripts on Additude.

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How ADHD Amplifies Emotions

Emotional dysregulation is a core symptom of ADHD. The result: overblown reactions to small setbacks or challenges. In this video, learn the brain chemistry behind your runaway feelings.

“Emotion regulation is a big part of ADHD that has been traditionally ignored,” says Joel Nigg, Ph.D. “When comparing ADHD brains to those without, we see that the connection between the prefrontal cortex and the reward system has reduced activation, especially in the dorsal part of the prefrontal cortex. This could explain overexcitement, frustration & anger, and inability to respond to delayed rewards.”

More here.

Prefrontal cortex according to English Wikipedia:

This brain region has been implicated in executive functions, such as planning, decision making, working memory, personality expression, moderating social behavior and controlling certain aspects of speech and language. Executive function relates to abilities to differentiate among conflicting thoughts, determine good and bad, better and best, same and different, future consequences of current activities, working toward a defined goal, prediction of outcomes, expectation based on actions, and social "control" (the ability to suppress urges that, if not suppressed, could lead to socially unacceptable outcomes).

According to German Wikipedia:

The prefrontal cortex receives sensory signals and is correlated with the integration of memory content and emotional evaluations. On this basis, there is a correlational relationship between prefrontal brain activity and action planning.

Calm Your Amygdala Music on YouTube.

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Emotional Instability: A Core Symptom of ADHD?

A new report claims that emotional instability should be listed as a core symptom of ADHD in the DSM, instead of just hyperactivity and inattention.

You can read more on Additude.

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Emotional Regulation: 7 Truths About ADHD Emotions on YouTube.

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ADHD | Emotional Hypersensitivity on YouTube - the tips are good!

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For two decades now I thought my abusive mother and sister had ADHD (while I have ADD), but reading those Symptoms of DMDD, I think, they might (also) have DMDD:

Children with DMDD alternate between extended periods of moodiness and temper outbursts. “It’s a combination of persistently irritable or annoyed mood that hangs on for an unusually long time, usually more than half of the child’s waking hours, and excessive or frequent temper outbursts,” explains James Waxmonsky, MD, division chief, Child Psychiatry at Penn State Health.

Good. Different.

Neurodivergent Mascot

Some Good Words about ADHD

                                                                        C: Township

... Among all of Shankman’s interests, he is perhaps best known for his unusual and very personal take on ADHD. He is convinced that the condition, often considered a hindrance, has helped him, by making him “faster than normal.” ...

I agree with him. I also see ADD as an advantage and believe, that it makes me understand, determine, decide, work, play etc. faster.

When people explain something, I tend to understand it faster than others around me.

The faster the game, the better I get. Actually, a game has to be either slow & relaxing like merge or coloring games, or really fast like the mini-game "Township Sheep Rescue" which was a mini-game of the mobile game Township that I used to play in the past.

I never won anything and was actually quite bad in all the other mini-games like the roller coaster mini-game, which many others won. Then Township published that sheep mini-game which I won 3x while many others complained that it was too fast.

This was when I realized why I am so bad at shooter games or jump-and-run games like Super Mario: Too slow! The time between the jumps or shooting, the time of running, is far "too long" and my brain falls asleep - the faster the game the more awake my brain gets!

You can read the article Some Good Words about ADHD here.

Being neurodivergent

 

What does hyperfocus look like?

People often think that those with ADHD have a short attention span or that they are unable to pay attention at all (hence the name ‘attention deficit’). 

However, it is more accurate to describe people with ADHD as having dysregulated attention, meaning that there are some tasks where they may struggle to give attention, but others where they may give extreme attention. 

When someone hyperfocuses, it may be hard to get their attention. When spoken to, there may be no response or even acknowledgment that they heard anything. They can get so absorbed in a task that they appear to completely ignore or tune out everything else. 

People who hyperfocus may often experience ‘time blindness,’ which means they do not see or feel time (Ozel-Kizil, 2016).

I used to be so focused that I forgot to drink for many many hours so that I even got a urinary tract infection once.

If someone hyperfocuses for hours on end, they may find that they have neglected to take care of themselves (Sklar, 2013). They may have skipped meals, not drank any water, showered, or spent any time outside or exercising. 

But those times have long past and it's not that bad anymore.  I have noticed, that people don't understand it and worked on myself, so now I do notice what is happening around me and people can talk to me. I even trained myself to get up, go to the kitchen to get a coffee, and chat briefly with colleagues. 

Many people with ADHD are able to channel their hyperfocus on productive activities such as school or work-related tasks. For instance, someone may focus on a work project until completion while in a state of hyperfocus (Hupfield et al., 2019). 

Others may also reward themselves with a hyperfocusing activity for completing all their other tasks first, giving themselves the incentive to complete less interesting tasks. 

But it seems, I am still too focused, disciplined, and not babbly enough for colleagues, as I still get bullied, as mentioned in my previous post.

You find more information on hyperfocus in this really good article: What does hyperfocus look like?

Rejection Sensitivity

For many years now I know that I react "allergic" against perceived rejections. While I have worked on myself to not perceive everything as rejection at work, I wasn't able to do so on a private level.

Knowing this, I followed a link to the article Rejection Sensitivity on psychologytoday.com.

What I didn't know was that there is a proposal "that especially high levels of rejection sensitivity be classified as rejection sensitive dysphoria or RSD" as it is not in the DSM:

RSD has not been recognized by the DSM, an the concept itself has not yet been widely studied nor given validated diagnostic guidelines. Still, it has gained attention in recent years, most notably among adults with ADHD or borderline personality.

I am glad, I don't find myself in the Signs of Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria but thought I share this interesting article nevertheless.

Bullying at the workplace due to hyperfocus & perfectionism

I have experienced so much bullying and that I am an outsider at so many workplaces that I already thought something must be wrong with me. I am 47 now and it was a struggle for the last 16 years.

I wondered if it happens to me because I work hard (hyperfocus) and well (perfectionism) and babble little with colleagues except during lunch break or if it always happens because I am a cheerful person and sulky people can't stand cheerfulness and kindness?

Or maybe, I was the awful person, the *beep*?

I often think about conversations or overall the day I had. What I said, what was said to me, what I did, how I behaved. I do not see myself as grumpy, arrogant, unkind, egoistic, rude, whatever. I see myself as friendly, cheerful, polite, helpful, considerate of others, hardly ever moody, honest, and loyal. I believe that employers pay me a salary for working and not babbling more than working and that the lunch break or after-work cocktails but not the working hours exist to interact with colleagues on a more private level.

Or could it just be the mentality of my country? A few years ago I read, that when the GIs came to Europe they got guides about the country they were deployed to. In the guide about my country, it said "There is no point in expecting them to be punctual and reliable, as we understand these terms. That is not how they are made. They really mean it when they promise to do something. They mean it just as honestly when they apologize for not doing it." It further says: "They have little respect for rules and regulations." - it made me laugh so much when I read this 6 years ago but now.

I really couldn't get my head around why this is constantly happening to me! Why do companies in my city don't want hard-working, rule-keeping employees who do their best to do the job properly? Why do they want chronically defiant (reminding of ODD at my last job), lazy employees who compensate for their defiance or laziness by bullying?

So I started searching the Internet and found this article and Michelle's experience is similar to the situation I have experienced in the last 2 weeks. My boss is friends with the bully, turning a blind eye to the person's defiance and accepting the slander about others and also herself. Michelle quit her job - my temporary employment ended and I didn't want it to be renewed.

But constantly having to quit a job is nerve-racking and not the way it should go!

Having ADD and having almost overcome an Anxiety Disorder, not focusing on my job, and not sticking to rules don't seem to be an option. So I asked CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) if they could help me with some advice and a very kind employee of CHADD not only replied very quickly but also sent me those really good articles, that explained to me, why those things were happening:

• Psychology Today - Why Are You Being Bullied at Work?
• Psychology Today - ADHD, Social Norms, and the Workplace
• Verywell Mind - Signs and Effects of Workplace Bullying

After reading those articles, I am pretty relieved though I still don't understand, why companies rather keep bullies than the bullied (a decade ago I was told that in about 70 % of cases in my country the bullied person gets fired, not the bully), but at least I know now, that my assumption was right, that it is not my fault and that there is nothing wrong with my work mentality.

I think I'll stay kind and hard-working and hope for the best than to become the way bullies want me, so I don't get bullied! 😌

I can only recommend, contacting CHADD if you need help, or advice or are in doubt about yourself because of your AD(H)D! 💙

ADHD at work

I haven't experienced this, but these are very good articles about ADHD at work:

How People with ADHD are Being Failed in the Workplace
https://www.theunwritten.co.uk/2022/02/24/how-people-with-adhd-are-being-failed-in-the-workplace/

This Is How People With ADHD Can Rise To The Top At Work
https://www.forbes.com/sites/denisebrodey/2018/10/25/this-is-how-people-with-adhd-can-rise-to-the-top-at-work/

In Their Own Time

Spock 🖖🏻

Help youself, use tools!

I believe that one doesn't have to indulge in "being mentally ill" or having a "disorder" as others around oneself claim or in articles written by people who often don't know how it really is.

I'm usually not into Newspeak, but I have seen too often, what the word "Disorder" does with people. They start believing, that something is wrong with them, they are not worthy, etc., and are not able to see the positive side because they are told too often that they don't function because they are not like the majority.

That, of course, can be utter bs!

I don't have the H of ADHD, in fact - like my dad - I don't have enough energy but being stubborn - I'm a Taurus or maybe just so - by nature, I don't give up on my tiredness, pain or constantly having dozens of thoughts at the same time in my mind. I use tools that help me!

As a kid I constantly heard I was not good enough, my mind was up in the clouds, and I was constantly incompetent and stupid. When I got older I was constantly told, I was depressive, because - like my dad - I liked sitting for hours, reading a book a day and I always thought "Nooooo, I'm not in that dark place. I like life, I enjoy going out and like meeting people and having fun!" My mother, born in the 1940s didn't know better and also didn't care. Also, doctors in my country in the 1980s and 1990s didn't know better.

When I moved to the US in the beginning of 2000 they finally found out that - tada! I have ADD and I got meds that helped me concentrate and have enough energy.

I took the meds (Ritalin in the US, Concerta afterward in my country) and used the chance to build up my life and become the assistant of a CEO of a construction company - without ever having finished high school!

A big role in accomplishing that were the AD(H)D traits hyperfocus, thinking out of the box for problem-solving, energy (muahahaha!), and being really able to multi-task!

But, as good as I was, I had one negative trait - forgetfulness!

Until my favorite boss, the CEO, said to me "You need to always carry a pen and paper with you!". I was surprised and thought "How many secretaries can remember everything when she's on the phone, talking, writing things down, and then the boss throws tasks at her while running by!" but started doing so and it indeed worked - I stopped forgetting.

Since then I write down every single task - no matter how big or small.

At home, I write down all appointments in my Google calendar on my phone as well as on a paper calendar that is hanging on a wall of my anteroom, so that I always see it when I come home or before I leave home. Like that, I can't forget appointments.

I also keep my shopping list on my phone because there is nothing more annoying than going to the supermarket and then coming home just to find out you have forgotten something you really want or need *facepalm*

Older generations are often clean and tidy. My mum either had a mild form of OCD next to ADHD and a personality disorder or was demon-possessed but nothing ever lay around, everything was neat and tidy like in a museum.

I am clean and hygienic, but I am not extreme like my mother at all. In private - not at the job - I have learned to live with my ADD trait of doing things, then starting something else, and then going back to the first thing I did. When I am too tired or lazy to do something I have planned, I don't stress myself and do it the next day. Being a hardcore single of course makes being that way easier!

Having cleaned several houses for other people I have noticed that others who have not been diagnosed with AD(H)D are not cleaner or tidier than me. They are just distracted by their TV instead of AD(H)D which doesn't make one or the other reason and person better or worse.

Anyway, using tools, that can help you be and stay organized can also improve the way you see AD(H)D, your personal traits, and with that also your whole life!

Being Neurodivergent - What Does It Mean?

Neurodiversity describes the idea that people experience and interact with the world around them in many different ways; there is no one "right" way of thinking, learning, and behaving, and differences are not viewed as deficits.

The word neurodiversity refers to the diversity of all people, but it is often used in the context of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as well as other neurological or developmental conditions such as ADHD or learning disabilities.

You can read more about it on the Harvard website.

Neurodiversity is a non-medical umbrella term that includes the conditions autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia and ADHD.

Teams with neurodivergent professionals can be 30% more productive than those without them. But there is a greater incidence of mental health difficulties like anxiety and depression among neurodiverse individuals.

You can read more about it on the website of the World Economic Forum.

Neurodivergent is a nonmedical term that describes people whose brains develop or work differently for some reason. This means the person has different strengths and struggles from people whose brains develop or work more typically. While some people who are neurodivergent have medical conditions, it also happens to people where a medical condition or diagnosis hasn’t been identified.

You can read more about it on the website of the Cleveland Clinic.

Everyone’s brain operates differently. For the average individual, brain functions, behaviors, and processing are expected to meet the milestones set by society for developmental growth. For those who veer either slightly, or significantly, outside of these parameters, their brain functions could be classified as neurodivergent.

Neurodivergent is a non-medical umbrella term that describes people with variation in their mental functions and can include conditions such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other neurological or developmental conditions such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

You can read more about it on the website of Forbes Magazine.