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Head’s up 👋 while this blog post is not directly sponsored by the ADHD Aha! Podcast and Understood.org, it is related to a recent paid collaboration. That said, all thoughts, stories and opinions are my own.
Have you ever had one of those moments where everything suddenly makes sense? For me, that moment came while listening to a podcast where someone was sharing their recent ADHD diagnosis. They described their struggles, thinking they were broken, and just hearing their experience validated my own feelings. It gave me hope and the self-compassion to realize I wasn’t broken and I wasn’t a screw-up.
It’s personal stories like this that can change lives, and that’s why I love the ADHD Aha! Podcast. It’s a treasure trove of candid ADHD experiences from people just like you and I, who share the the moment it clicked that they, or someone they know, has ADHD.
In today’s podcast, I’m sharing my story about living with undiagnosed ADHD and the journey that led me to where I am today. My hope is that by sharing my experience, you might find some validation, understanding, and practical takeaways for your own journey.
The Aha Moment: Listening to a Podcast
The real aha moment for me came when I was listening to a podcast where someone explained their experience of being recently diagnosed with ADHD. They were struggling to get by, feeling broken, and just by sharing their story, they not only validated my feelings and experiences but also gave me clarity that what I was experiencing in myself wasn’t just a personal flaw. It was something else. That was the moment I realized there might be a brighter future for me and that I wasn’t alone in my struggles.
My ADHD Diagnosis Story: A 2020 Rollercoaster
2020 was a year of upheaval for many of us. The structure I had built over my adult life went out the window, and I found myself struggling to get anything done. Emotionally, I was all over the place. Around that time, I listened to a podcast of a women who spoke about her recent ADHD diagnosis. It was a lightbulb moment for me. I thought, “Oh my gosh, maybe that’s what it is.”
I went down a rabbit hole of research and became convinced I had ADHD. Fortunately, I had access to the appropriate diagnostic testing, and after about three months, my suspicions were confirmed. Even before the final diagnosis, I knew in my heart that ADHD was what I was dealing with.
Building a New Path: From Diagnosis to Coaching
Before my diagnosis, I had been considering doing some sort of coaching certification. When I put ADHD and life coaching together, everything clicked. I knew this was the path for me. Since then, I’ve gone through training, changed my career, and completely transformed my life. I don’t even recognize the pre-2020 version of myself anymore.
Struggling with Undiagnosed ADHD
Looking back, my ADHD symptoms were probably at their worst from as early as I can remember until I was about 16 or 17. Over time, I built a lot of compensatory methods without knowing I had ADHD. My childhood was marked by struggles that I couldn’t explain. I had trouble focusing, my emotions were erratic, and I had a hard time regulating them.
For instance, I couldn’t tell time until I was 13, my locker was always a mess, and I constantly forgot things. These behaviors made me think there was something fundamentally wrong with me. It wasn’t until much later that I realized these were all signs of ADHD.
Finding Compassion for My Younger, Undiagnosed ADHD-Self
With the knowledge I have now, I can look back at my younger self with compassion instead of shame. I used to think I was just a messy kid who couldn’t figure things out. Now, I understand that I was doing the best I could with what I had. This perspective shift has been incredibly healing.
The Impact of Undiagnosed ADHD on Health and Self-Care
ADHD isn’t just about focusing on schoolwork or productivity at work. It’s about the whole person. When I was younger, my health habits were atrocious. I smoked, partied, and ate terribly. My lifestyle was a mess, and it took a toll on my physical and emotional well-being.
Lookin back, I can see a downward spiraling pattern of poor health habits that of course, made my ADHD behaviors even worse (which of course, made my habits even worse, and so on).
The Turning Point: Embracing Fitness
Finally I had a turning point moment in my early twenties. I had enough of my own poor behaviors and knew I needed to change things. In full transparency, it wasn’t my health that I was motivated to improve. My motivation for getting out of that unhealthy lifestyle started as a superficial desire to get attention from boys.
But shallow as it may have been, that motivation opened the door to a whole new lifestyle I would have never imagined for myself. I started running, which gradually led to better health habits. The more I improved physically, the better I felt emotionally, and this had a positive impact on my life, and my ADHD symptoms.
My Healthy Habits Are Still the Cornerstone of My ADHD Treatment
That pivotal change in my health routine changed the quality of my adult life. Had I not taken that step to improve my health, I’m not sure where I’d be today.
Even now, post-diagnosis, I still take my daily routine VERY seriously. Every day includes meditation, walking, working out, and getting a good night’s sleep. Sleep is the foundation of my well-being. If my sleep is off, everything else falls apart. My emotional regulation suffers, which affects my productivity, my decision making and my consistency with my health habits.
Shifting From Overwhelm to Peace
One of the biggest changes I’ve seen in myself since my diagnosis and also becoming an ADHD coach, is that my day-to-day state has largely shifted from chronic overwhelm, to a sense of peace. The peace comes from the confidence I’ve built from learning about my ADHD brain (and how to work with it).
In my coaching practice, I’ve noticed that this sense of overwhelm is common in my adults who are newly diagnosed. They feel like they have too many things to do and not enough time. This often leads to feelings of not reaching their potential and comparing themselves to others.
Much of this is driven by a brain that can’t stop coming up with new ideas, chasing shiny objects and struggling to follow through on projects. It can cause a lot of frustration, shame and struggles in finances and relationships and I can completely relate to all of it.
But the good news, is that there’s hope for all of us, largely due to the expanding awareness of the impacts of adult ADHD, and how to mange it. Again, that’s why I’m so grateful for podcasts like ADHD Aha!, produced by Understood.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences in the US.
I hope my story has provided some insights and encouragement. If you have any questions or want to share your own experience, please leave a comment below. Let’s keep the conversation going and support each other on this journey.
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