Adult ADHD Symptoms: Not What You Might Expect

Have you ever wondered if you might have ADHD, or if it’s just you being you? Have you asked yourself if adult ADHD is even a thing? ADHD is not just a childhood disorder. Adults can have it too, although symptoms may change with age and become more subtle and more challenging to recognize.

As far as the difference between ADHD and just being disorganized or forgetful, it’s a matter of severity and frequency. Almost everyone at one time or another gets distracted, forgets things, feels restless, has trouble concentrating, or acts impulsively. However, adults with ADHD experience these symptoms much more than occasionally. They are chronic and long-lasting and cause significant problems in their personal and professional life.

According to the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-5, to be diagnosed with adult ADHD, symptoms must be persistent, have lasted for at least six months, and impair your ability to function in at least two areas of your life, such as home, work, school, or relationships.

Frequent Misconceptions About Adults With ADHD

It is a character flaw ADHD is not a character flaw, nor are the behaviors associated with it intentional. It is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects the part of the brain that enables a person to focus, make decisions, and manage tasks.

This causes difficulties with sustained attention, impulsivity, hyperactivity, and/or emotional regulation, and can alter the way a person with ADHD learns and accomplishes things. Adults with ADHD do not have a choice in how their brains work. Telling them to try harder only makes things worse.

All people with ADHD are hyperactive You can’t tell if someone has ADHD just by looking at them. Adults with inattentive ADHD, for instance, may appear to have it together because they are not hyperactive, yet still be struggling with symptoms such as disorganization, lack of impulse control, and being unable to pay attention and stay focused.

They are lazy Adults with ADHD are not being lazy or looking for an excuse to slack off when they don’t stay on task. They may have trouble knowing where to start, and when they do get started, they struggle to stay focused on what they are doing long enough to finish it.

They are also easily distracted by sights and sounds, so they may have a hard time working on a project if, for instance, they are seated near a window or if they can hear co-workers chatting nearby.

They are uninterested in what anyone has to say Adults with inattentive ADHD have trouble staying focused and are easily distracted, which makes it hard for them to listen intently to a conversation. Even though they may seem to zone out when you are talking to them, it does not mean they do not care about what you are saying.

They are rude and insensitive Adults with ADHD are not purposefully rude or insensitive. The prefrontal cortex of their brain, which is responsible for executive functions such as forethought and impulse control, is impaired by the disorder, making thoughts and emotions intense and hard to filter and control. It’s like having a short fuse that leads adults with ADHD to impulsively say and do things without first stopping to think about the consequences.

They are simple-minded Adults with ADHD are not simple-minded or unintelligent and should not be underestimated. Their brains just operate differently than neurotypical ones do. When allowed to think and work outside the box, they can be spontaneous, enthusiastic, full of creative and innovative ideas, high in energy, good at troubleshooting, and a valuable asset to the workforce.

ADHD In Adults

People tend to think of ADHD as a childhood disorder and are unaware that it can persist into adulthood. Often, it is misdiagnosed or unrecognized because adult ADHD symptoms may not be as visible as childhood ones and look quite different than what’s expected. Hyperactivity, for instance, a key symptom associated with childhood ADHD, tends to decline with age and may manifest in adults as an inner restlessness or being fidgety instead.

Unless they were diagnosed as children, many adults with ADHD are not even aware that they have it. They just know that they have a hard time staying focused, being organized, managing their time, and setting priorities, which leads to misplacing things, missing deadlines, and forgetting appointments.

Experts have described ADHD as a disorder of regulation rather than an inability to focus. Many adults with ADHD, for instance, are unable to regulate their attention span to stay focused on just one desired task from start to finish because their mind is focusing on too many things at the same time, as it moves quickly from thought to thought.

Others experience the opposite, becoming hyper-focused on something they find interesting and unable to shift their attention away from it.

Most Common Symptoms of ADHD in Adults

Adult ADHD symptoms can be predominantly inattentive, predominantly hyperactive-impulsive, or a combination of both. The following are some of the most common ones.

Predominantly inattentive symptoms:

Difficulty staying focused on just one thing You are easily distracted, which makes it hard for you to concentrate on what you are doing and stay on task, no matter how important the task may be. Your mind is constantly racing from one thought to another, which makes it hard to pay attention to what others are saying, follow a conversation, or remember instructions. This can lead to overlooking important details and making careless mistakes.

Hyperfocus On the flip side of the coin, you may get so engrossed in something you are interested in that you become unaware of anything else and may lose track of time and ignore people around you.

Disorganization You struggle with organizational skills such as planning, keeping things in order and where they belong, paying attention to details, prioritizing, maintaining a tidy work area, and completing projects efficiently. As a result, you have a hard time keeping track of things and may overlook important tasks or details.

Forgetfulness Difficulty concentrating and keeping things organized makes you prone to forgetfulness, and you often misplace things, forget appointments, fail to return calls or texts, and neglect to pay bills on time.

Poor time management skills You have trouble estimating how long a task will take and tend to underestimate the amount of time available for an activity, which can lead to missed deadlines, unfinished projects, and showing up late for appointments.

Predominantly hyperactive symptoms:

Restlessness You may feel an inner restlessness as though you have an internal motor that just won’t shut off and get frustrated if you can’t do something immediately and have to wait. You may have a hard time sitting still. Many relieve the need to move by fidgeting, tapping their feet, drumming their fingers on the table, or shifting in their seat.

Inability to relax You may have trouble relaxing or engaging in quiet activities and feel constantly on edge, which can lead to problems such as stress, anxiety, and trouble sleeping.

Trouble waiting your turn You have trouble waiting your turn in conversations or other situations and may frequently interrupt others or blurt out answers before the other person finishes asking a question.

Predominantly impulsive symptoms:

Low frustration tolerance You have trouble dealing with setbacks or disappointments. Small frustrations may seem intolerable, and even minor annoyances can trigger strong reactions.

Lack of impulse control You have trouble regulating your emotions and will impulsively say or do things without considering the consequences. You may also engage in risky behaviors such as reckless driving or gambling.

Next Steps

The good news is that adult ADHD is treatable. Treatment modalities such as cognitive behavioral therapy can reduce symptoms by helping you develop and improve your executive function skills and enhancing your ability to function in challenging areas of daily life.

If you would like to set up a risk-free appointment to meet with one of the faith-based counselors in our online directory, please give us a call.