In my last blog, I reviewed what ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) actually is. I provided descriptions of executive functioning impairments and how they may show up. In this blog, I will focus on the very real academic, professional, social and relational consequences that can arise for people with undiagnosed and/or unmanaged ADHD. Although I only treat adults and do not see children in therapy, I think it’s very important for adults to understand how their experiences with ADHD during their childhood may have impacted them in various ways.
Most school curriculums are not sufficient for building and supporting the executive functioning skills of someone with ADHD. Because impairments in executive functioning disrupt learning, this often leads to academic underachievement or failure.Children are often labeled as not “living up to potential”. They may not be advanced to the next grade in school and may drop out of high school or college.
Because information about ADHD is still new, and many parents and teachers don’t understand executive functioning impairments, they may offer suggestions that aren’t helpful, such as “just try harder” or assuming that a child is “lazy” or badly behaved.
This external shaming from parents and teachers often leads to internal feelings of shame about themselves that develops into a harsh inner critic. The combination of insufficient support around educational needs and internal shame can have a powerful psychological impact. Many of the adults who I see in therapy who have ADHD have long-held beliefs that they are lazy and unintelligent and often tie their self-worth to their level of productivity. This negative feedback from adults may be intensified for people of color, since words such as “lazy” and “stupid” have been used frequently as weapons of racism.
There are many documented psychosocial impacts of ADHD, including decreased earning potential, chronic unemployment or underemployment, increased divorce rate and increased likelihood of criminal justice involvement. Researchers found that high school graduates with ADHD earn about 17% less than their peers and that adults in general with ADHD may reach retirement with up to 75% lower net worth than adults without ADHD.Research finds that 30% of people with ADHD are likely to have chronic unemployment issues and 24% of people collecting long-term disability meet the criteria for ADHD. The divorce rate is nearly twice as high for people with ADHD and people with ADHD are two to three times more likely to be arrested, convicted and put into prison than people without ADHD.
All of this may sound very discouraging. It’s important to remember that there are several forms of treatment for ADHD that can have a significant impact on management of symptoms, including medication and behavioral approaches supported by therapy or ADHD coaching. Appropriate diagnosis and intervention is critical. An important takeaway from this information is that ADHD is a set of symptoms, not a personality trait. WIthout treatment and appropriate support, it’s understandable that many do not thrive.
If these experiences sound familiar to you, therapy can help. Schedule an appointment with me today to talk about next steps and receive the support you need.
Written by: Kate Loewenstein, LCSW
Sources:
Niederman, J. Providing Effective Therapy for Adult ADHD. Simple Practice Learning. https://learning.simplepractice.com/learn/course/providing-effective-therapy-for-adult-adhd/course/course-slides