Have I got ADHD?

By Think ADHD
By Think ADHD

We hope you find this page helpful. Remember, symptoms vary between patients. If in doubt, speak to a healthcare professional.

Snapshot

Symptoms vary from person to person, but often revolve around three core areas – inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.
Many adults with ADHD feel disorganised, forgetful and overwhelmed by everyday tasks.
ADHD can also make time management, relationships, and even self-esteem difficult to maintain.
In the UK, ADHD diagnosis can take time, especially with lengthy waiting lists. However, there are various coping strategies which can be explored while awaiting for an assessment.
If you’re struggling with daily routines and suspect you might have ADHD, seeking professional advice is the first step towards understanding and managing it.

Recognising ADHD-type symptoms

ADHD isn’t just about being a bit forgetful or having occasional difficulty concentrating. The key to recognising ADHD is looking for persistent patterns across different areas of your life.

Ask yourself: do you often struggle to finish tasks, even ones you’re genuinely interested in? Do you constantly misplace things, forget appointments, or find it difficult to follow through on plans? If these challenges feel familiar and have been ongoing since childhood, ADHD might be a possibility.

Another common trait of ADHD is what’s known as time blindness – a poor sense of time. You might feel like you have no idea how long tasks will take, leading to chronic lateness or procrastination (putting off starting the task in the first place). Others experience hyperfocus – focusing so intently on something over here, that you lose track of everything else over there. This can lead to a rollercoaster of productivity highs and lows, contributing to feelings of guilt or frustration.

Ultimately, there is no single list of symptoms which one can quickly and definitively ‘tick off’ to reach an ADHD diagnosis. Hopefully, by reading through this site, and by using some of the free tools, you’ll be able to glean a broad understanding of ADHD-type symptoms, before deciding how to move forward.

Emotional and social effect of ADHD-type symptoms

ADHD can affect your emotional wellbeing and relationships in subtle but significant ways. People with ADHD often experience emotional dysregulation, meaning their emotions can swing rapidly between highs and lows. Often, this can make even small inconveniences feel like major crises or lead to outbursts of frustration.

You may also find yourself feeling easily bored or restless in social situations. Again, these feelings are not exclusive to ADHD – but look for the patterns. How often do you experience these feelings relative to those around you? Do people often comment on your behaviour?

In many cases, adults with undiagnosed ADHD might also struggle with self-esteem. This is another symptom which is not unique to ADHD sufferers – so look for a pattern. If you’ve spent years being labelled as “lazy” or “disorganised” by others (perhaps even yourself) it can have a lasting impact on how you see yourself.

Once you’ve been able to identify and understand these patterns, realising that ADHD might be the root cause can bring a huge sense of relief – offering an explanation for why certain things have always felt harder than they otherwise might.

Is it ADHD? Or is it just… stress?

In today’s world, it’s easy to mistake symptoms of ADHD for general stress or burnout. Seemingly we all struggle with focus, get distracted by our phones, and feel overwhelmed by their to-do lists from time to time.

The difference with ADHD is that these symptoms are more persistent and disruptive. They don’t just pop up during particularly busy times. They are a constant challenge, and usually have been going right back to childhood.

One useful way to distinguish ADHD from stress is to ask yourself if these patterns have been present in different areas of your life. Are you disorganised not just at work but also at home? Have you always struggled with focus, even as a child?

Keep in mind that while it’s true to say that stress and ADHD share some common traits, ADHD is a chronic condition that affects multiple aspects of life, whereas stress tends to fluctuate with circumstances.

What to do if you think you might have ADHD

If you think you might have ADHD, it’s important to seek professional advice. The first step is to speak to your GP, who – armed with the right information – can refer you on for a formal assessment.

The mental health services in the UK are overwhelmed with demand, so it’s important to give yourself the best chance of being seen. You will very likely find that your GP is more readily able to refer you on for a 1:1 ADHD assessment if you have completed our validated Adult ADHD self-test exercise and can provide a copy of the PDF report.

Irrespective of whether you have used our free self-test exercise, obtaining an ADHD assessment can take some time due to long waiting lists, especially for adult ADHD assessments. However, there are things you can do while you wait:

Take the time to complete our ADHD self-test exercise, and have the PDF report ready for your GP. It will help them make a referral for formal assessment.
Start keeping track of your symptoms. Note when and how often they occur, and how they’re affecting your life. This will not only help during your assessment but can also give you a better understanding of your behaviour in the meantime.
Explore some coping strategies. These can include time management techniques, such as using a planner or setting reminders, and breaking larger tasks into smaller, manageable steps.
Be aware that mindfulness and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can also be helpful in managing impulsivity and improving focus.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, remember that you’re not alone. There’s a growing community of people who have gone through the same experience and are happy to offer advice or just listen, which is why online forums, podcasts, and books can provide support and valuable insight while you’re on your journey towards diagnosis and management. Check out our Resource Hub to learn more.

Concluding thoughts

Living with undiagnosed ADHD can be frustrating, and agonisingly so at times. Understanding the condition is the first step towards improving your quality of life.

If you recognise yourself in the symptoms described within this website, it might be worth seeking a professional opinion. Ultimately, for the vast majority of sufferers, ADHD is a manageable condition, and with the right strategies and support, it’s possible to navigate life’s challenges with more ease and confidence.

Ready to take our free Adult ADHD self-test?

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