New site, new ADHD definition
Hi friends,
As I launch this new website (there is an old site that I will forward to this site soon), in this new phase of my life (a new home in life, a new home online), and having observed the increase in ADHD diagnoses, a lot of thoughts occur to me.
You see, “a lot of thoughts’ is how the ADHD brain operates.
As I wrote in the glossary on this website - a lot of which was written with the help of ChatGPT,
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by difficulties with attention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.
This is all true.
But “disorder” is a word that I’ve become increasingly uncomfortable with. Or maybe always was.
On April 5, 2024, I drafted a post called “What If Everything We’ve Learned About ADHD is Wrong?” In true ADHD fashion, I subsequently forgot about it, lost it, and rewrote it in my head and on screen. Two months later, I published this post, found the old one a week later, and edited this one to incorporate the earlier draft. The two posts were almost exactly the same.
“What If Everything We’ve Learned About ADHD is Wrong?”
Regarding that, I wrote,
This is something I’ve thought a lot about in the last few years, especially as I’ve seen a lot of influencer entrepreneurs with huge audiences switch gears to ADHD content. Some of those people were diagnosed years ago, some of them more recently.
There seems to be an increase in diagnosis and awareness. The latter is good; the former is a mixed bag.
Diagnoses are useful. They help us make sense of our outer and inner worlds and get the help we need.
They’re also limiting.
Who created the term “ADHD”, and why is it a “disorder”?
ADHD is defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM, created by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).
Via Cleveland Clinic:
To create the DSM-5, the APA gathered more than 160 mental healthcare professionals from around the world, including psychiatrists, psychologists and experts from many other professional fields. Hundreds of other professionals contributed and assisted as advisers on specific topics. The creation of the DSM-5 also involved field trials and tests.
I sometimes fear this sounds like crazy conspiracy thinking, but hear me out. In the last few years, I’ve wondered such things as,
Who created these labels, and why?
What if the ADHD diagnosis was created so that people could “fix” behaviour to conform?
To what are we conforming?
What if the ADHD diagnosis was created because “different” minds don’t fit in with school, life or work norms?
Who created those norms?
With so many people being diagnosed, is “neurotypical” really typical anymore? Maybe those of us diagnosed with ADHD are neurotypical now?
Neurodiversity is the norm.
The term “atypical” has never sat right with me, but the term “neurodiverse” has. However, isn’t everyone neurodiverse if every brain is unique, like a fingerprint?
“Every brain is different and unique, like a fingerprint.”
In a blog post I wrote in 2018 called "I am not neurotypical", I shared,
Perception is interesting. Someone contacted me twice via the contact form on my website, both times referencing that I write about disabilities. Except, I don’t write about disabilities. At least, I don’t think I do.
The original version of that post expanded on the experience of being contacted by something referring to my website as about disabilities. I shared that I wondered if they had the correct website.
I think it’s possible that in its original forms, ADHD was characterized as a “disorder” because people with ADHD act differently and don’t fit in. In children, that means not fitting into the way “children should be” in the classroom.
As adults, it means that we don’t function the same way as our co-workers.
ADHD as a label is useful
“ADHD” as a label is useful. It can help us find the help we need for the unpleasant characteristics.
But, one term for a vast range of experiences does not feel right. It is one single word for what is essentially a spectrum, a collection of experiences.
There used to be two words: ADHD and ADD. The second one was taken out of circulation.
There are both advantages and disadvantages to how we look at ADHD.
There is an “othering”.
Is ADHD a disability? A disorder? Something else entirely?
ADHD is real. It’s seen in brain scans. Not everyone is “a little ADHD.” (Someone once told me, “Everyone is a little bit ADHD,” and I almost verbally attacked her. That comment still chafes.)
For some people, ADHD is a disability.
That doesn’t describe everyone’s ADHD experience, though. For example, not all of us are plagued by our ADHD symptoms 100% of the time. I call mine “flare-ups” that others often notice before I do.
Because the term “ADHD” encompasses this entire spectrum of people, one term might not be beneficial for all of us. As a generic term, “ADHD” is not entirely accurate.
I think it’s time to redefine and reframe ADHD.
Awareness, accommodation, authenticity
I want a world where we recognize that there’s no single way to ADHD. As I once heard an expert say in a video (I’ve forgotten which expert in which video): “If you’ve met one person with ADHD, you’ve met one person with ADHD.” (Meaning, it is NOT “If you’ve met one person with ADHD you’ve met them all.” We’re all different.)
We need accommodation, and we need to be recognized as unique. There needs to be more awareness about our brain chemistry and why we can’t help certain aspects of ourselves. We are who we are.
“When people say “disorder” or “disability”, the suffix “dis” indicates disadvantage. Consider the positives.”
In another blog post written in October 2020 (Is ADHD An Excuse Or An Actual Disorder?), I said,
Although “disorder” is a clinical term, it’s also a limiting term. When people say “disorder” or “disability”, the suffix “dis” indicates disadvantage. Consider the positives: Creativity. periods of hyperfocus when you’re so in the zone that you don’t hear anyone else. (Those are the best.) Motivation to overcome the challenges. If you have multiple interests, you likely have transferrable skills from one area to another.
People with ADHD think differently than neurotypical people.
ADHD at work
We must be allowed to be our best, authentic, “weird” and wonderful selves. Our superpowers should be on display, with our skills complementing those of others in our group or on our teams. At work, the best teams comprise people whose strengths and weaknesses accompany each other. One person has a brain that’s excellent at keeping track of projects on spreadsheets and in documents (hey, that’s me!), and another person is highly technical (that’s me in some ways). It’s the same as on teams that are completely neurotypical.
One of my former colleagues from a long time ago has ADHD and strong anxiety. We worked well together and became friends, partly because we SAW and understood each other. Another former colleague, the same, without the anxiety. Neurodivergent people tend to flock together like the uniquely beautiful and talented birds we are.
What can we do to recognize that everyone's contribution is valid? Whether ADHD is mild or acute, how can we fit in and have the world fit in with us?
The world is finally waking up to the fact that everyone has a different way of learning and understanding.
How can we reframe “ADHD”?
If we’re sticking to the acronym, how about,
👉Attention Deficit Hyperactivity (without the “Disorder”)
👉Attention Different Hyperactivity Drive
👉Written as “ADH(D)”
👉My friend Heather suggested, “Attention Dialed into Another Dimension”. I like it.
Where do we go from here?
So, where do we go from here?
Education (see this website and, specifically, this blog and the glossary of ADHD terms, which I will keep updating).
Coaching/mentorship. (See what I can do as your ADHD coach)
More employee resource groups. More employers who understand. It comes with management, leadership (sometimes those are the same, sometimes not), and HR. We don’t necessarily need more Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs because those can be problematic.
If you have access to LinkedIn Learning through your employer, check out some of the DEI courses.
Please know that you’re not broken. Life is challenging enough without that stress or negative belief.
I hope you enjoy your time here. Please contact me if you have any questions. Book a free Q&A session to see how I can help you, and sign up for my newsletter below.
