Thinking About ADHD and Anxiety
Hey everyone,
I’ve been thinking about how having ADHD seems to naturally lead to anxiety, especially the kind called Generalized Anxiety "Disorder" (GAD). The world isn't set up for neurodivergent people, and that mismatch makes anxiety almost a given.
Check out what GAD is. Do you have it?
Difficulty Concentrating:
Avoidance Behaviors: Avoiding things that make you anxious
Pessimistic Worldview: It’s tough to stay positive when you’ve been misunderstood a lot.
Autonomic Arousal: That constant feeling of being on high alert, like you’re always ready to react.
Muscle Tension: Being tense because your mind won’t settle.
Sleeplessness: Too much worrying makes good sleep rare.
Constant Worry: Brains are worried about what might happen next.
Given all this, it’s hard to see how someone with ADHD wouldn’t end up dealing with anxiety, considering the lack of understanding and support!
There’s a lot of talk about how women with ADHD are misdiagnosed with anxiety when, in fact, I don’t think that’s the case. I think almost all ADHD women are correctly diagnosed with anxiety, but their ADHD is just missed. The real problem is not getting diagnosed with ADHD.
Why ADHD Often Goes Unnoticed in Women:
Gendered Expectations and Stereotypes in Medicine👧➡️🚶♂️: ADHD is still seen as a young boy's issue—girls who are quiet or daydreaming get overlooked.
Diagnostic Criteria and Research Bias 📚👀: Most ADHD research has focused on men, so women’s symptoms don’t always match the official criteria.
Socialization and Coping Mechanisms 🎭✨: Girls are taught to be quiet and not cause trouble, leading them to work hard to hide their ADHD symptoms; DOctors don’t look for the signs of maskin even though they are readily detectable.
This might be a big reason why so many DDHD Women also battle with high levels of anxiety. It's hard for me to see how you can be a woman with ADHD and not experience some form of anxiety that others might label as an "Anxiety Disorder." We must bring this into the open and advocate for the necessary changes.
Remember, you're not navigating this alone!
Consider joining the new free community I’ve created for all ADHD women to chat and connect and get ready for our next support group.
Join the waitlist for my support and education group, which includes videos, workbooks, a course, and the community. It is a neurodivergent affirming created for women who want support! Scholarships and sliding fee options are available.
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Take care, Kristen McClure
this is so true of my experience!! i was always told that racing thoughts = anxiety but it wasn’t that the thoughts were always negative or worrying about something. the adhd part was always missed until i got my diagnosis last year, and i genuinely believe in hindset my anxiety developed at least initially as protection against my less palatable adhd traits. for me it’s not an ‘either/or’, it’s a ‘yes, and’!
I can relate to this. I got diagnosed with high functioning anxiety so always labelled my racing thoughts as anxiety until I realised I most likely have ADHD and paid attention to those thoughts - they’re not always negative. Constantly being on high alert as if you have to defend yourself to everyone is another one!
It’s so frustrating that as women we have been overlooked and now we’re realising the misdiagnosis it’s being treated like a ‘trend’ rather than the injustice it is.