For an ADHD diagnosis, the DSM requires "clear evidence that the symptoms interfere with, or reduce the quality of, social, school, or work functioning."

Medical professionals define what this looks like, not ADHDers. Here are some issues with this approach (thread, 1/11)
When doctors look for evidence of symptoms that interfere with functioning, they're looking for external evidence of this e.g. bad grades, poor work history, risk taking behaviour, and so forth. It's a tickbox approach- and one that has a myriad of limitations.
First, the requirement of "clear evidence" ignores the fact that many undiagnosed ADHDers experience a great deal of shame. We are often told from a young age that our symptoms are actually moral failings, and so use coping mechanisms to HIDE our ADHD behaviors.
This is why so many ADHDers who make it into adulthood without a diagnosis have anxiety. Anxiety gives us the motivation and energy to overcome executive dysfunction, at a cost. Unfortunately some doctors will see anxiety and not consider that ADHD is the cause underneath it.
Some doctors also require parental "evidence". Not only does this again miss that many ADHDs hide our symptoms, but it relies on our parents RECOGNISING these symptoms- when they likely don't really understand what ADHD is (or have it themselves, so think it's "normal").
Next, "interfere" is subjective. Factors like culture, language, class, and gender influence how people experience life and what they aspire to. Being unable to meet your world's expectations bc of ADHD is still interference, regardless of how a doctor interprets your behaviour.
Because of this, the "quality of school, social life, and work" as a evidence base is limited. The external "quality" might be good, but require lots of internal angst to keep it up. Plus, someone may be succeeding in these spaces, but failing at other things they care about.
Personally, I also don't like that ADHD needs to get "bad" in order to get a diagnosis. In high-school, I had all of my admin needs taken care of, and thrived. I was still just as much of an ADHDer then as I am as an adult, it just wasn't disrupting my life in a visible way.
Treatment, support, and accommodations still would have been useful to me back then. Instead, I made it to uni, and essentially developed anxiety to keep up my work/school/social life, and had no framework to understand why things were so hard.
Ultimately, we need to place more value on how it FEELS to be an ADHDer, so professionals and those who are undiagnosed can recognise it. We especially need to amplify POC voices, and build a better understanding of how gender socialisation influences ADHD presentation.
ADHD has been defined by how much we annoy others around us, whether that be our parents, teachers, or workmates. Screw that. Let's keep sharing our stories on here, and build a better repository of what ADHD feels like, so more of us can get the support they deserve.

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More from @AdhdAngsty

23 Feb
Can you please retweet or like this tweet if you have anxiety and/or depression AND adhd?

Have had multiple friends report being told by doctors that they "just have anxiety" so can't have ADHD. So many of us ADHDers have both!
Usually I hate "trying to see something" tweets bc they always feel like people just trawling for likes. In this case I do actually want traction, but because I'm so tired of hearing about people who are dismissed because they're anxious/depressed.
The MAJORITY of ADHDers I know have anxiety and/or depression, especially those of us who got to adulthood without a diagnosis/treatment. Undiagnosed ADHD is damn hard and the coping mechanisms we form and the impacts on our mental health are often pretty bad.
Read 4 tweets
22 Feb
God I miss words! I miss the thrill of capturing a complex thought or feeling and managing to articulate it though writing. My arms get too sore to type or text much these days and I can't even express how much I miss pulling together a contemplative twitter thread.
I know we are supposed to pretend we don't care about tweeting but I miss being present here. Like, I'm still shitposting occasionally and sharing things like this impulsively but it's not the same as painstakingly drafting out a series of ideas for people to easily engage with.
Even these two tweets are hurting too much! Chronic pain seriously robs you of things that are integral to your sense of self and I'm so tired of slowly losing the parts of me that I love.
Read 4 tweets
14 Feb
I don't want #Music to become a "cult classic" like I've seen some articles claim it will be. Yeah, it seems like it's on the same level as Cats and The Room. But it's ableist to the core and I don't trust people to watch it 'ironically' without making fun of autistic people.
Neurotypicals saying they'll see it as a "fun hate watch" makes it clear that they're engaging with the bad reviews, but not the disabled voices screaming out about how dangerous the representation is. Will they think about the ableism as they watch? Or will they laugh at it?
If they're laughing, do they really get it? Do they get how much harm this movie has already done, how many autistic people are feeling unsafe because of it? I loveeee to watch things ironically but watching something like this in a tongue-in-cheek way just feels wrong to me.
Read 4 tweets
3 Jan
Did you know fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of #ADHD? I didn't- I spent over ten years telling people I felt exhausted all of the time, and nobody connected the dots.

There's a few ADHD experiences tied to fatigue that many of us struggle with:
Understimulation: Ever try to start on a task you've been putting off, only to feel fatigued? You might be understimulated, and your boredom is manifesting as brain fog. Often you'll find it'll fade after some positive stimulation, but return as soon as you try the task again.
Overstimulation: You're out with friends at a bar, and the music is blaring and all of a sudden keeping up with the conversation is exhausting. You're overstimulated. While understimulation feels like brain fog, overstimulation can feel like overload, heat or static in your head.
Read 9 tweets
3 Jan
Hey I've gained a lot of followers lately which is awesome, but you should know that I'm just a messy 26 year old sharing her reflections on things. I'm not an expert, and there are people on here who are far more considered and committed. Make sure you're following them too!
Idk, I've started getting a bit anxious about saying the wrong thing on here, but actually this account is primarily for connecting and learning, and while it's dope that others are sharing in that, I'm not a content creator. I'm just a chaotic gal!
If at any point I decide to move more intentionally into an activist or advocate space then I'll be more purposeful with what I say, but for now this is just where I put my bouncing thoughts so I can focus on my actual 9-5 job.
Read 4 tweets
1 Jan
1. I am incompetent
2. I am immature
3. I am an imposter

Sound familiar?

These are the descriptors undiagnosed ADHD women use most in reference to themselves, according to @SariSolden's book.
According to the book, ADHD women (though not sure this is all gender specific) feel that:

1. There is no way to keep up with the demands of life
2. Their symptoms are character flaws and signs of immaturity
3. Their successes are flukes and they are secretly failures
I share this to push against the idea that ADHD adults get diagnosed bc of straightforward symptoms like lack of focus and hyperactivity. Most of us get diagnosed because the demands of life overwhelm us, and we or someone else finally recognises something else is going on.
Read 5 tweets

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