ADHD Symptoms For Women
Women suffering from ADHD typically experience symptoms of emotional volatility and sensitive to rejection. They might also experience insomnia or poor quality sleep, which could make symptoms worse.
Girls and women are generally more adept at hiding their ADHD symptoms by using coping strategies to conform to social expectations and norms. This can lead both to a misdiagnosis or delays in treatment.
1. Problems with Focusing
Concentration is the most difficult issue for women suffering from ADHD. Symptoms of this neurodevelopmental disorder may make it hard to remain focused at school, in work meetings, or even when listening to other people's conversations. It can also be difficult to get through everyday tasks, such as keeping track of appointments or remembering to take medication.
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 women who suffer from the inattentive type of the condition can have difficulty organizing their home and their desk. They might also find it hard to prioritize tasks. These difficulties can lead to being late for appointments, turning up at the wrong time or at the wrong place or failing to finish their work tasks. They can cause them to feel embarrassed and blame themselves for their shortcomings, thinking they are lazy or forgetful.
Inattentive ADHD can also lead to poor performance at work or in school and can also lead to the accumulation of debt. adhd in adults women are often triggered by stress or other mental health issues like anxiety and depression, which often co-occur with ADHD in women, as per CHADD.
Women and girls with inattentional ADHD are underdiagnosed or overlooked due to the prejudices that teachers and parents may be prone to towards males and females. 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 exacerbate symptoms in women who suffer from ADHD. For instance, they could be more evident during menstrual cycles, or during perimenopause, which is the time before menopause--when estrogen levels dip and cause emotional problems which include mood swings as well as anger.
The use of stimulants can help increase the concentration of adults suffering from ADHD however it doesn't cure the condition. Other strategies, such as mindfulness training, lifestyle changes, and cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT) can also help with organization and focus. Some workplaces and schools have accommodations that can help with these issues, as well.
2. Forgetting Things
It can be difficult to keep track of daily activities or take care of responsibilities. It can be difficult to remember important information about events or people particularly when they take place in a noisy or busy environment. You might also notice that you frequently forget appointments or get late to work or school. Forgetting to pay bills or respond to emails is common among women with ADHD that can lead to financial stress and leave you feeling rushed. You might have trouble working in a noisy or busy office, and you may be unable to concentrate during conversations. This can make the other person feel unimportant or confused.
Many girls and women who have ADHD also struggle to maintain friendships. They also run the risk of being pushed into inappropriate sexual behaviour or becoming intimate partner violence victims. This is due to the fact that they have a difficult managing their emotions and are more likely to become overwhelmed. They may also have issues with self-esteem and could be more likely to interpret their problems as "personal flaws" instead of recognizing the fact that their behavior is correlated to their ADHD symptoms.
Due to gender bias Due to gender bias, girls and women suffering from ADHD are often overlooked because their symptoms are less obvious than those of males and boys. They are more likely to disguise their symptoms as anxiety or mood problems, which can result in being misdiagnosed and improperly treated.
ADHD symptoms can be different based on hormone fluctuations. This is especially the case during puberty when estrogen levels drop and progesterone levels increase. This can lead to a wider range of symptoms, which makes it harder to diagnose and manage ADHD.
If you are diagnosed and treated, you can learn how to manage ADHD symptoms. You can also make lifestyle changes such as eating healthy and balanced meals and avoiding stimulants like sugar, caffeine and drinks with sugar that can worsen symptoms. It is also possible to practice meditation and mindfulness techniques to calm your mind, decrease restlessness and impulsiveness and improve your emotional regulation. A mental health professional might be able to assist you by discussing possible accommodations that can help you manage ADHD symptoms at work or at school.
3. Disruptive Behavior
In the majority of cases, women with ADHD have more irritable symptoms than those who are hyperactive or impulsive. This could be due to the fact that the brains of girls and women differ from the brains of men and boys or it could have to do with how much activity is taking place in the regions of the brain that control disruptive and impulsive behavior.
It can be difficult for doctors to diagnose ADHD in women. Many women develop strategies for coping to disguise their symptoms. Some are healthy, while others aren't sustainable and could cause other health issues. For instance, some women turn to alcohol or other drugs to manage their symptoms. They might also develop depression or other mental health issues like anxiety. These unhealthy coping methods can make it difficult for people to recognize they have mental health issues and delay a proper diagnosis.
Disruptive behavior is a common adhd symptom that affects women and can affect work or school performance and relationships. They typically involve not being focused on a task, ignoring important events or tasks and becoming easily distracted by other aspects of the environment or in their thoughts. They may fidget, shake their feet or hands or make a squirming sound. They may also talk loudly or yell, and they could be disruptive.
Women with the inattentive subtype can have difficulty in concentrating during lectures or discussions, keeping up with schoolwork, reading, or writing assignments, following instructions in class or at work, and juggling daily tasks. They might be unorganized, forgetful, and messy. It can be challenging for them to follow through on commitments or tasks. They are more likely to lose or misplace things like 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 subtype can lead to trouble at home, at work, and in school, and it can lead to feelings of agitation or boredom. They have a hard waiting for their turn at home, school or in the workplace and often interrupt other people. They are prone to act recklessly and are unable manage their behavior.
4. Anxiety
Women and girls who have ADHD may have a harder time to cope with their symptoms. This is due in part to societal expectations that demand women and mothers to be the primary caregivers for their children and household. If a woman is struggling to meet her responsibilities, it can lead to anxiety and low self-esteem. This can make it more difficult to seek treatment.
Women with ADHD are not often diagnosed as readily as men or boys because their symptoms do not appear as obvious. 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, they are more likely to develop coping strategies that mask their ADHD symptoms, such as excessive fidgeting and forgetfulness, which could be misinterpreted as symptoms of anxiety disorders.
The symptoms of ADHD in women can change at different times in the woman's lifetime. Women may be afflicted with ADHD symptoms during hormonal changes such as menstrual cycles and pregnancy. This could cause her to be viewed as a victim of prejudice or thought of as a woman who is overly emotional.
The information in this article is based on research regarding how ADHD affects people based on their sex. Verywell Health recognizes that sex is a biological phenomenon: chromosomal makeup hormones, hormones and anatomical structures, whereas gender is an internal sense of who you are as a man, woman, or if you're non-binary, you're an individual. This distinction is crucial because it enables a better understanding of how and why the ways ADHD manifests can differ between genders. In this article, we will refer to males and people who were assigned male at birth as boys and males. We also refer to females as well as people who were assigned females at conception as females and girls. This terminology is used in a variety of research studies. For add women , refer to the guide to sex & gender by Verywell Health.