Common Symptoms of ADD and ADHD in Women
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a childhood known disorder often associated with little boys ages of -3-7 years old. Studies show, ADHD affects 5% of children ages 4-17 and needs to be diagnosed early on as it may carry into adulthood which may cause issues.
In general, adults with ADHD possess mental issues such as anxiety, depression, and oppositional defiant disorder. This may be true for those soon as this medical condition has three subtypes as follows:
- Hyperactive/Impulsive Subtype: primarily displays hyperactive or impulsive symptoms together with impatience, hyper-talkative, difficulty sitting still, impulsive behaviour
- Inattentive Subtype: display inattentive symptoms with limited attention span, forgetfulness, distractibility (poor focus), daydreaming, having difficulty following directions
- Combined Subtype: possesses both inattentive and hyperactive symptoms which may be hard to distinguish.
For adults, women with ADHD are diagnosed late in life which could have adverse effects on each personality. Most women with ADHD do not know they have it and the symptoms won’t show unless triggered by a life-changing experience.
To understand more about women with ADHD here is more specific symptoms they can have:
Feeling low self-worth
Women may feel they should be able to do all tasks and feel upset when they can’t keep up. Parenting and work responsibilities can simply be overwhelming for ADHD.
Hypersensitivity to criticism
High expectations since childhood can make women with ADHD more vulnerable to depression.
Poor sense of time
They are always running late as time management has been often an issue for women with ADHD.
Being emotionally charged and easily upset
Emotions are aggravated during hormonal changes. Emotional issues, such as depression and anxiety, are also related to ADHD. One in four adults with ADHD also suffers from depression.
Starting projects, but unable to finish them
Focusing and following through on a project is difficult with patients having ADHD.
Taking on too much
Women often take on, even more, tasks like volunteering, helping out with school-related functions, cooking, and more aside from parenting. This also goes hand-in-hand with time management and difficulty finishing projects.
Difficulty remembering names
Challenged in remembering names often get worse before, during and after menopause. This is also a sign of inattention, a common symptom of ADHD.
Saying things without thinking
Many social issues are following adults with ADHD. Saying things without thinking often leads to hurting others’ feelings.
Appearing self-absorbed
People often get upset with ADHD since they interrupt them in conversation or bail out on plans at the last moment? Selfish is a sign of ADD/ADHD.
Poor math, or writing skills
Not a numbers person? Some women with ADHD exhibit poor math and reading skills.
Appearing as if not interested to hear what others are saying
Appearing aloof during conversations is difficult for women, they want to connect socially but find it difficult in doing so. Impulsivity and inattention can emphasize this issue.
Engaging in unhealthy behaviours
Shopping, TV, and overeating are common types of unhealthy behaviours. Impulsivity is a key symptom of ADHD in adults.
Problems with word retrieval
Difficulty remembering words and gets worse during menopause. If the problem is not cognitive-based, they may have an issue of inattention and of spinning too many thoughts at one time.
Poor handwriting
In addition to poor math, or writing skills, poor handwriting may be an embarrassing symptom of ADHD.
Difficulty with boring, repetitive tasks
Do you hate and avoid doing house chores? Finishing repetitive tasks like laundry is hard for women with ADD/ADHD.
Spending too much time brooding
Getting lost in thoughts or daydreaming is commonly found among women with ADD/ADHD. The same case goes with distractibility as their attention gets easily diverted.
Difficulty making decisions
Grocery shopping is difficult for them since they cannot seem to decide with all the choices available in stores. Simple tasks require too much commitment to a singular idea for them which leads to distraction.
Difficulty sitting still
Tiredness and restlessness are both signs of ADD and ADHD. May not be the same with hyperactive children with ADHD, fidgety and hyperactive behaviour are still observed in adults.
Difficulty falling asleep and waking up
Most women with ADD/ADHD suffer from sleep disorders which may increase during menopause.
Get Expert Help
At The ADHD Centre, we offer an ADHD Test Online for you to know or confirm if you or a loved one happens to have ADHD and if you would like some further guidance and support on managing your ADHD then please contact us at The ADHD Centre on 0800 061 4276 or via connect@adhdcentre.co.uk.
The ADHD Centre offers holistic ADHD treatment and cares for both children and adults. We are also affiliated with other ADHD clinics and organisations to maximise our services. Are you living in the UK? Lovely! We also offer an ADHD Online Assessment via Zoom for Healthcare. So wherever you are in the UK, know that the ADHD Centre is always available for your ADHD needs.
