Five ADHD Symptoms For Women Lessons From The Pros
ADHD Symptoms For Women Women who suffer from ADHD often report symptoms of emotional instability and an sensitivity to rejection. They might also experience insomnia and poor sleep quality which can cause more symptoms. Women and girls tend to hide their ADHD symptoms more effectively than men, using strategies to cope with social expectations and norms. This can lead to misdiagnosis or delay in treatment. 1. Difficulty Focusing Concentration is the biggest issue for many women suffering from ADHD. The symptoms of this neurodevelopmental disorder can make it hard to stay on task at school, in meetings at work, or when listening to other people's conversations. It can be difficult to complete everyday tasks such as keeping track of appointments or taking medications. Difficulty focusing is one of the most common adhd symptoms for girls and women, regardless of their gender identity or whether they have hyperactive/impulsive or inattentive ADHD. According to CHADD the women who suffer from the inattentive version of the condition can struggle with organizing their homes and desk. They might also find it hard to prioritize their tasks. These issues can result in them not attending appointments, showing up at the wrong time or location or failing to finish their work duties. They may cause them to feel embarrassed and blame themselves for their problems and think they are incompetent or forgetful. Attention-deficit ADHD symptoms can also make it difficult to stay on top of responsibilities, leading to poor school or work performance as well as the accumulation of debt. They can be caused by stress or other mental health conditions, including depression and anxiety that often co-occur with ADHD in women, according to CHADD. Women and girls with inattentive ADHD are underdiagnosed or overlooked because of biases that teachers and parents might have toward boys and men. They may not be able to express their ADHD symptoms as well, especially the hyperactive/impulsive ones, and may have difficulty finding treatment that works for them. Hormonal changes can also increase symptoms in women who suffer from ADHD. They can be more evident during menstrual cycles or perimenopausal periods that is the time leading up to menopausal symptoms as estrogen levels drop and can cause emotional issues like mood swings and irritation. Adults suffering from ADHD may benefit from stimulant medications to improve their concentration, but it will not treat the condition. Other strategies, including lifestyle changes, mindfulness training, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), can also aid in focusing and organization. Some workplaces and schools have facilities that can assist with these issues as well. 2. Forgetting Things Forgetfulness can make it difficult to keep track of your daily activities or take care of obligations. You may struggle to remember important details about events or people particularly when they occur in a crowded or noisy environment. You may also find yourself forgetting appointments or running late to school or work. Women with ADHD are prone to forgetting to pay bills or responding to emails, which could lead to financial stress and an impression of urgency. You may experience difficulties working in a busy or noisy office, and you might get lost in conversations. This can cause the other person to feel unimportant or misunderstood. Many women and girls who suffer from ADHD also struggle to maintain friendships. They also run the risk of being forced into inappropriate sexual behaviour or becoming intimate partner violence victims. They are more likely than other people to feel overwhelmed because they are unable to manage their emotions. They may also struggle with self-esteem, and may be more inclined to see their problems as “personal flaws” instead of acknowledging that their behavior is related to their ADHD symptoms. Females and females with ADHD are also not diagnosed due to gender bias because their symptoms are less evident than those of males and females. They may camouflage symptoms with anxiety and mood disorders, which can result in a misdiagnosis or improper treatment. The symptoms of ADHD differ with the fluctuation of hormones, especially during puberty when estrogen drops and progesterone increases. This can result in a wider range of symptoms, which makes it harder to identify and manage ADHD. If you are diagnosed and treated, you will learn how to manage ADHD symptoms. You can also consider lifestyle changes, for example, eating a well-balanced diet and limiting caffeine, sugar and other stimulants that might cause symptoms to become worse. Meditation and mindfulness techniques can to calm your mind and decrease anxiety and impulsiveness. They can also improve emotional regulation. A mental health professional could be able to help you by discussing possible accommodations that may aid you in managing ADHD symptoms at work or in school. 3. Disruptive Behavior Women who suffer from ADHD tend to experience more sluggish than hyperactive or hyperactive symptoms. This could be due to the fact that girls and women have different brains than boys and men. It could also be due to the amount of brain activity areas that control impulsive behavior. It can be a challenge for doctors to recognize ADHD in women. Many women develop coping strategies to disguise their symptoms. Some are healthy, but others are not sustainable and could cause other health issues. For instance, some women use excessive alcohol or drugs to manage. They could also develop depression or other mental health issues such as anxiety. These unhealthy coping strategies can make it difficult for people to recognize that they have an issue with their mental health and delay the diagnosis. Disruptive behavior is a typical adhd symptom for women that can affect work or school performance and relationships. These include being unable to stay focused on a specific task, forgetting important tasks or events, and easily getting distracted by the surrounding environment or their thoughts. They might fidget or tap their feet or hands or squirm in their seats. They can also talk out loud or yell, and they could be disruptive. Women who have the inattentive subtype may have trouble concentrating during lectures or conversations or completing schoolwork, reading, or writing assignments, following instructions in classes or at work, and juggling daily tasks. They are often disorganized and messy and find it difficult to follow through on commitments or tasks. They are more likely to lose or misplace things such as eyeglasses, wallets, and keys. Having the predominantly hyperactive/impulsive type of adhd can disrupt work or school, cause social problems, and create relationship challenges. This type of disorder can cause issues at work, at home, as well as at schools, and can trigger feelings of anxiety, boredom, and frustration. They have a difficult waiting to be called upon at home, school or in the workplace and are often disruptive to other people. They are not able to control their behavior and tend to be reckless. 4. Anxiety Women and girls with ADHD may have a harder to manage their symptoms than boys and men. This is due in part to the social expectations that demand women and mothers to be the primary caregivers for their children and household. When a woman struggles to manage her responsibilities this can cause anxiety and low self-esteem. This, in turn, makes it more difficult to seek treatment for her ADHD. In addition, women who suffer from ADHD are often unable to be diagnosed because their symptoms are not as prominent as those of boys and men. They may present with primarily inattentive symptoms, which do not have the same outward appearance as hyperactive/impulsive ADHD symptoms, making them less likely to receive a referral for treatment from teachers and parents. Furthermore, add test for women are more likely to develop strategies for coping that mask their ADHD symptoms, such as frequent fidgeting and forgetfulness which could be misinterpreted as symptoms of anxiety disorders. Symptoms of ADHD in women can also change at different times in the woman's lifetime. For instance, during periods of hormonal changes, such as menstruation or pregnancy, a woman could find her ADHD symptoms to become more intense. This could result in being dismissed or misinterpreted as an overly emotional woman and can cause a sense of frustration. This article is based on research into how ADHD affects different people based on their gender. Verywell Health recognizes that sex is biology: chromosomal make-up, hormones, and anatomical structure, while gender is an internal sense of the person you are as a man, woman, or, if non-binary, you're a person. This distinction is crucial because it allows for better understanding of how and the ways ADHD manifests can differ between genders. For this reason, throughout this article we refer to men and people assigned to male at birth (AMAB) as men and boys and women and people assigned to female at birth (AFAB) as girls and women. This is consistent with how many research studies use this terminology. For more details, refer to the guide to sex and gender by Verywell Health.