'You have to have five symptoms out of the diagnostic criteria, and I basically have nearly all of them'
A Dublin woman has shared the struggles of being diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in her 30s in the hopes of removing the stigma surrounding the disorder.
"I have no concept of time, and I have executive function difficulties, which relates to being able to manage things that you're supposed to be able to manage easily on a daily basis. Working memory is part of it, too. Tash says her ADHD has impacted her throughout her whole life, as going undiagnosed for so long meant she had no support or help:
"A lot of people with ADHD are naturally quite intelligent. They go through not being able to showcase it because the school is not designed for somebody with an ADHD brain. Exams just don't showcase your abilities. I can absorb a lot of information, but I can't necessarily turn it around or explain it, that’s where the imposter syndrome would come in.”
“Not only that, but I actually got my diagnosis in the first year of my course, and so I was able to get support and help from the college. That made all the difference, being able to get help. For the exams, I was able to sit in the room on my own, and I was able to work on a computer and wear earplugs and ear defenders and had my movement breaks. I wouldn't have been able to manage, I don't think, having not had my diagnosis.
“I haven't been specifically diagnosed with ASD but my son has. It's something that I have talked through with my doctors and it's not something I don't think that they are in a position to be able to diagnose. We have gone through the diagnostic criteria and I do tick the boxes, but it's not just just not something I've gone for a diagnosis of.
Tash, whose son was diagnosed with ADHD and ASD three years ago, says there is still a lot of stigma surrounding children and teenagers who suffer with invisible disabilities and struggles with others judging her son’s behaviour: “He had a difficult time in school over the years but he has come on leaps and bounds now since people have started to try and understand. We actually had one teacher say to us that they knew that there was somebody in the class who had difficulty but they were looking around the class and couldn't see who it was. When they heard it was him, they were so shocked, but that’s exactly the meaning of the hidden disability. People just don't get it.
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Dublin Fire Brigade received almost 170 calls about Halloween-related fires yesterdayDublin City Council said there was limited anti-social behaviour towards firefighters and paramedics last night.
Read more »
D’Arcy left role as Revolut director when company dropped Irish e-money licenceMichael D’Arcy, the chief executive of the Irish Association of Investment Management, has confirmed he left his role as an independent director of Revolut because the fintech’s Irish business was being “wound down”.
Read more »
Voting ends at Croke Park for Brazilian electionVoting for the Brazilian presidential election has ended at Croke Park in Dublin. A spokesperson for the Brazilian embassy said around 7,500 Brazilian citizens voted in the capital today
Read more »