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I’ve been struggling lately. Every morning, before I even get out of bed, I feel this heaviness settling over me. My husband scrolls through the news, and each headline feels like a cattle prod to my nervous system. Zap. Another crisis. Zap. More suffering. Zap. Another injustice.
I’ve had to unfollow journalists I respect, stop listening to podcasts I love, and practically beg my husband to stop sharing news with me. Not because I don’t care—but because I care too much. It’s overwhelming to the point where I become non-functional.
If you’re feeling similar overwhelm, I want to talk about something that isn’t in the official ADHD diagnostic criteria but affects many of us profoundly: justice sensitivity.
What Is Justice Sensitivity?
Justice sensitivity is exactly what it sounds like—an heightened emotional response to perceived injustice. Research suggests it’s common in people with ADHD, though it’s not part of the official diagnostic criteria.
For those of us with ADHD, our emotional regulation challenges can amplify this sensitivity. We don’t just notice injustice—we feel it viscerally. It can trigger our rejection sensitive dysphoria, activate our hyperactive minds to cycle through worst-case scenarios, and overwhelm our already taxed executive functioning.
When Justice Sensitivity Hits Hard
I’ve experienced this justice sensitivity throughout my life, but there have been pivotal moments when it became overwhelming:
In 2020, following George Floyd’s murder, I went into an emotional tailspin. It wasn’t just sadness—it was a profound reckoning with systems of inequality I thought were improving. Despite considering myself an advocate for civil rights and equality, I realized how much I wasn’t seeing clearly from within my bubble. The experience fundamentally changed me, and while that growth was necessary, the emotional toll was immense.
Years ago, when I first learned about factory farming practices, I became what I call “an angry vegan.” The injustice I perceived toward animals was so overwhelming that I became non-functional at times. There are things you can’t unsee, realities that once known, change you forever.
And now, with everything happening globally—climate change, humanitarian crises, political upheaval—my justice sensitivity is in overdrive. I’m terrified not so much for myself, being in my mid-fifties, but for future generations, for wildlife and domesticated animals, for our shared home on this “floating ball of dirt in the universe.”
The Double-Edged Sword
This sensitivity is both a gift and a burden:
The gift: Deep empathy, a moral compass that guides us toward compassion, and motivation to create positive change.
The burden: Emotional overwhelm, difficulty functioning when faced with problems bigger than ourselves, and the risk of burnout from caring too intensely.
Managing Justice Sensitivity: The Inside vs. Outside Job
What I’ve come to realize is that there are two distinct aspects to handling justice sensitivity:
The Outside Job: These are the actions we take in the world—how we vote, where we spend our money, what causes we support, and how we engage with issues we care about. This is about addressing actual injustices through concrete action.
The Inside Job: This is the emotional management piece, the part where we have to regulate our internal responses to injustice so we can function effectively.
Here’s the critical insight that’s helped me: When we’re dysregulated, we’re not useful to anyone or anything—including the causes we care about most deeply. When I’m emotionally flooded by justice sensitivity, I become impulsive. I say things I might regret, or I say what I mean but without the filters that would make my message receivable. My passion becomes overwhelming, not just for me but for those around me.
The Input-Output Framework
I’ve found it helpful to approach this using what I call an input-output framework:
The output is how I’m feeling and functioning—am I stuck? Frozen? Unable to create content or connect with people?
The inputs are everything feeding into that state—news consumption, conversations, social media, and even my own thought patterns.
To change the output, I have to manage the inputs. It’s that simple, yet that challenging.
Practical Strategies That Help Me Cope
Here’s what’s working for me:
1. Information boundaries
I’ve literally had to stop following news and certain journalists. I’ve had to tell my husband not to “dump headlines” on me first thing in the morning. When my emotions about world events become bigger than I can intellectualize, I need to step away.
2. Managing social media whiplash
There’s this bizarre experience of scrolling through Instagram and seeing a post about a humanitarian crisis immediately followed by someone’s favorite self-tanner. That cognitive dissonance can be triggering in itself. I’m learning to expect this disjointed reality and not judge others for continuing normal life amid chaos.
3. Time-limited engagement
With friends, we’ve developed an unspoken rule—about ten minutes on the difficult topics, then we move on. Otherwise, the conversation becomes toxic and all-encompassing.
4. Dopamine management
Sometimes that stuck feeling comes from trying to function without enough dopamine. For those of us with ADHD, keeping our tanks filled is essential for emotional regulation.
5. Extra self-care during high-input periods
When I can’t escape triggering inputs (like during major world events), I double down on self-care—more exercise, more meditation, more positive connections—to balance the negative inputs.
Why Managing Justice Sensitivity Matters
This sensitivity can be one of our most beautiful traits—it means we care deeply about others and the world around us. But it can also be one of our biggest struggles when it overwhelms us to the point of paralysis.
The key insight I want to leave you with is this: When we’re dysregulated, we can’t be there for ourselves, for the people we love, or for the causes we care about. Sometimes the highest form of self-care is managing sensory input—treating news and world events as sensory inputs that need the same thoughtful management as any other trigger.
Your Turn
I’m curious if this resonates with you. Can you identify moments when justice sensitivity has been triggered in your life? How do you manage it while still honoring your values?
Share your thoughts in the comments below, and remember—your sensitivity is not weakness. It’s evidence of your humanity in a world that desperately needs more compassionate people who care deeply about others.
If you found this helpful, subscribe to my weekly email for more insights on navigating ADHD as an adult. And check out my resource page for tools that can help manage overwhelming emotions.
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