I'm a 27-year-old female, and I was recently diagnosed with ADHD.
The most common two responses I get from people upon hearing about my diagnosis are: 1. "Oh, I'm sorry!" and 2. "No you don't. There's no way you have ADHD; you're calm and quiet."
But ADHD manifests differently in women and is often misdiagnosed for many years, if not an entire lifetime. I'm one of the lucky ones.
Don't feel sorry for me, though. That's not what this is about. This is about me navigating this new and growing understanding of myself, and the relief I feel that, finally, things are making more sense. It's why the depression meds only worked for a little while and I still felt like I'd never be normal. It's why my anxiety wasn't as manageable as I had hoped and worked for it to be. It's why some people get horribly mad and frustrated with me because I seem "normal" but can't do/process what they expect of me. It's why I can understand others and empathize in ways many other people can't. It's the reason I strive to be more compassionate in my life and educated.
It's a lot of things, but none to be sorry about. I'm ready to hit the ground running with this new hope and excitement, and to figure out, like many others have, how to use my ADHD to my advantage.
My sister said that ADHD is like a superpower, especially when we get hyper-focused. I like that take on things.
So, here I go, and you can tag along with me if you'd like.
If you've stumbled across this and it's not quite your thing, that's okay too. Just remember one thing, okay? Life can be painful and sad and difficult beyond imagination, but it can be beautiful, fun, exciting, and worth it. So, hang in there; you got this, kid.
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