September 12, 2025 • 32 mins
Have you ever wondered if you might have ADHD but feel nervous about saying it out loud? Or maybe you’ve been diagnosed already, but all you hear are confusing myths?
In this episode of But Are You Happy, clinical psychologist Dr. Anastasia Hronis is breaking down the many ways ADHD can show up, clearing up some of the biggest myths, and sharing what to do if you think you might need to go and get a diagnosis.
You'll also learn:
- The three types of ADHD and how their symptoms differ
- How ADHD is actually diagnosed
- The common myths about ADHD you might have seen on the internet
- How to manage your ADHD day to day if you've been diagnosed
For resources, visit the ADHD Foundation Australia website.
Watch the podcast on YouTube here.
If you or someone you know needs support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636. Both services are available 24/7 for free, confidential mental health support.
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Want to get in touch with us? DM @butareyouhappypod on Instagram or send us a voice memo. Our hosts are ready to hear your dilemmas—think of it as free therapy!
CREDITS:
Hosts: Ashani Dante & Dr Anastasia Hronis
Executive Producer: Naima Brown
Senior Producer: Tahli Blackman
Audio Producer: Jacob Round
Our studio is styled with furniture from Fenton and Fenton.
Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/mplus/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:11):
You're listening to a Muma Mia podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Mamma May I acknowledges the traditional owners of the land
and waters that this podcast is recorded on. This is
my impression of my auntie after I've said, I reckon,
I've got ADHD, because I've been really struggling lately, especially
with things like paying attention and like attention span.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
Right.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Oh, You've got to have something, don't you. You're a
little bit different. You go to hd H. That's what
people are supposed to do. You're supposed to want to
do things. But this generation, if you don't want to
see in front of the TV, you go ADHD. Go TOHD.
I'm a bit sad today. Well, I've got depression, don't I.
I've got depression generation generation.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
For Mamma Mia.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
I'm your host, Ashannie Dante. Welcome to But are You Happy?
The podcast that won't diagnose you, but will probably make
you say, Oh that sounds like me.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
And I'm Doctor Anastaga hernis a clinical psychologist passionate about
happiness and mental health. Have you ever wondered if you
might have ADHD but feel nervous about saying it loud?
Or maybe you've been diagnosed already, but all you hear
are confusing myths.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Yeah, it feels like ADHD gets boxed into one definition,
but the reality is it's way more complex.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Right, everyone's experience is different.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Exactly today, I want to break down the many ways
ADHD can show up, clear up some of the biggest myths,
and share what to do if you think you might
need to go and get a diagnosis.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
I know a lot of listeners have been waiting to
hear about this one, so let's dive straight in. Okay, Anastasia,
The term ADHD is being thrown around a lot, but
I'm keen to hear it from you as the expert.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
What actually is ADHD?
Speaker 2 (01:55):
Good starting point, ADHD is a developmental disorder. So what
that means is that it starts early on in childhood
and it is with you throughout your life. Right. ADHD
is a diagnosed ciner condition that affects the executive functioning
in our brain. So this very much relates to the
(02:16):
prefrontal cortex, that front part of our brain that is
responsible for higher order planning, decision making, problem solving, emotion regulation,
things like that. It's the part of the brain from
an evolutionary perspective that develops later. It's what distinguishes us
from things like animals that don't have as well developed
prefrontal cortext So it's this developmental condition that largely affects
(02:41):
the front of the brain and impacts the way in
which people are able to focus and pay attention and
engage with certain parts of their life.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
Now, I know in our previous season episode one, we
talked about anxiety, and I remember you talking about how
there's a spectrum, right, is that the same case for ADHD.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
So ADHD symptoms can exist on a spectrum. But there
are actually some well defined subtypes of ADHD. It used
to actually be called ADD but now we refer to
it as ADHD. So attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is what
the full acronym actually stands for. So there's three different
(03:22):
subtypes that someone can be diagnosed with. The first one
is the inattentive subtype. So this is where someone really
struggles with distractability. It's hard for them to pay attention,
it's hard for them to focus, they become easily distracted
with other things. You might have noticed this if you've
(03:43):
been in a conversation with someone who has ADHD inattentive subtype,
and suddenly you're talking about one thing and then they're
off onto a different kind of conversation and topic. Right,
their brain gets easily distracted. Or it could be that
they notice something in their environment and they get distracted
by that. So this inattentive subtype is characterized by challenges
(04:04):
with focus and paying attention.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
When it comes to inattentive symptoms, is there the symptoms
underneath that category?
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Yeah, So this could be other things like people might
have a tendency to start projects and then not finish
them again because they get distracted or they find it
hard to finish. They might sort of put off some
tasks that require a lot of effort, so we see
a lot of procrastination. Sometimes memory difficulties, trouble remembering things,
and this is not necessarily a core memory problem itself.
(04:33):
It's more so that perhaps if a person wasn't really
paying attention in the first place, that information doesn't get
properly encoded and stored in the brain. We might find
that people lose things very easily. It's hard for them
to kind of follow instructions. We see this with kids
at school. It might be hard for them to follow
the instructions that the teacher gives and maybe sort of
(04:55):
someone who makes a lot of mistakes that sort of
seem careless, but they're not. It's just that as part
of this inattentive ADHD, it is hard to focus and
organize and plan.
Speaker 3 (05:04):
So what about Is there any other types of ADHD
or is it just that one?
Speaker 2 (05:09):
So there's the hyperactive subtype of ADHD, and this is
the sort of stereotypical presentation that people might have historically
had in mind when they thought about ADHD. If you
imagine kind of like that typical kid that doesn't sit still,
like they can't sit in their chair, they're constantly squirming
and fidgeting more than any of the other kids. This
(05:31):
is that kind of hyperactive subtype. So it's that restlessness,
it's hard to sit still. It's characterized by impulsivity, so
reacting very quickly to things, finding it hard to kind
of think through decisions before actually acting on them. People
with this hyperactive subtype also might find that they get
(05:51):
bored quite easily, so there's that sense of boredom that
comes in. They might be thrill seekers, so there's a
lot of risk taking behavior or thrill seeking behavior that
might occur. So this is more of that hyperactive subtype
for ADHD. And then we can have the third type,
which is essentially a combat nation of both a combination
(06:12):
of the hyperactivity and the inattention as well.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
It's like it's a double whammy, a mix of the
mix of both. Yeah, So does that mean people with
ADHD can't focus at all?
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Not at all.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
It doesn't mean that. It just means that there are
sometimes some challenges and some difficulties with focusing, and particularly
we're talking about focusing for long periods of time. So
when we actually think about attention and focus, there are
different types of attention. Right. We have sort of our
short term attention, we have our long term attention. We
(06:47):
have our ability to focus on two things at once. Right,
So we're talking about lots of different types of attention here.
But what we see is that it's sometimes that longer
attention that people with ADHD might struggle with. But that said,
there is actually something called hyper focusing in ADHD, which
(07:07):
is that ability to focus and get into that flow
in a really in depth way. When someone with ADHD
has the right conditions around them and they're interested in
what they're doing. They can actually double down and focus
really quite intensely and for long periods of time on
(07:28):
that specific task. So it's a myth to say that
people with ADHD can't focus. They absolutely can, but sometimes
it means that environmental conditions need to be tweaked in
order for them to get into that space of focus.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
Yeah, that's really interesting, and I think that's why I'm
also very excited about this episode because I feel like
you are going to bust a lot of myths for
us when it comes to ADHD.
Speaker 2 (07:52):
What I will add is that with the hyper focusing,
there can be pros and cons to that be with ADHD.
So while they can really get into that flow and
get a lot done in a period of time, sometimes
what they find is that there's difficulty coming out of it.
So actually breaking the focus when they need to then
actually stop because life requires them to do other things
(08:15):
coming out of it and breaking that focus can feel
quite challenging, And people who have ADHD who get into
these hyper focused states can say that it almost even
feels like time distorts, like when they're in that state,
you know, it might have been five or six hours
that pass, but it only actually feels like one. So
(08:35):
this is it's this whole sort of experience that's quite
unique to ADHD.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
It's interesting because as you've been going through a lot
of the symptoms, like I mean, I'm sitting here like,
oh my gosh, I do that. I do that, And
I'm sure there's listeners tuning in where they're like, I'm
ticking a lot of these boxes and I'm keen to know.
How do you actually know if you have ADHD? Like
what's involved with getting a real diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Yeah, one of the important things for us to think
about is how frequent our inner tention and these symptoms occur,
but also oh how much they occur across context. Right,
So we're all sometimes destractible, we all sometimes lose focus,
we all sometimes forget things, right, that's kind of just
normal human behavior. But what we're really looking for is
(09:23):
patterns in someone's life, and patterns that are ultimately debilitating
or cause dysfunction for them in some way. It's all
well and good if we every now and again forget something,
but if we are forgetting so often that it means
we're not attending doctor's appointments, we're not meeting deadlines for
work and we run the risk of getting fired, then
that's having some serious negative consequences in our life. We
(09:45):
also want to make sure that we are seeing these
symptoms across contexts. Now, when we look at diagnosing children,
this is really important because if a child struggles to
focus at school, but they can focus home, or they
can focus when they're with their friends, they can focus
in other contexts, this isn't typical of ADHD, and it's
more indicative that maybe there's something going on at school
(10:08):
that's causing disruption for them. ADHD doesn't kind of discriminate
according to where you are or who you're with. That's
one of the key features of ADHD symptoms is that
they go across contexts. So if someone's listening to this
and thinking, Okay, that still does sound like me, what
can they do well? Seeking a diagnosis from a medical
(10:32):
professional is probably the next step. So usually this would
involve going to a GP as a first point of
contact to discuss the possibility of ADHD, and then perhaps
getting a referral to either a psychiatrist or a psychologist
to get a more formal diagnosis, or in the case
of a child, a pediatrician.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
Yeah, and I can imagine as well, people that are
kind of on the fence and the dowding. I guess
it doesn't hurt to just go to a GP and
have the conversation.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Right, absolutely, absolutely, These are the people who are trained
and equipped to be able to talk through your symptoms
with you in a way that's going to make sense
for you and be able to provide you with some clarity.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
So with ADHD, and I know we kind of spoke
to it a little bit before around how we're hearing
it everywhere, like it's I know, for me, it's on
my social media feed. I'm hearing in a lot of
my circles of friends and people I know that are
getting diagnosed with ADHD, and it gets me wondering, why
is there a sudden rise in the diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Yes, we've seen the rise of the adult ADHD diagnosis
in the last few years. And I think what this
really speaks to is two things. One, perhaps reduced stigma.
Maybe people feel like there's less stigma around ADHD and
that they can actually go to a doctor or a
health professional and get that diagnosis and be able to
(11:55):
tell people that they have ADHD. But also that there's
a greater awareness of it. And we're seeing this particularly
around adult women who fall into the inattentive subtype. So
these were typically the kids who went undiagnosed at school
because they weren't disruptive. So if I can present you
(12:15):
with the stereotypical picture, it's the kid who sits at
the back of the classroom daydreaming, not causing any problem,
not being disruptive, not being loud and noisy, like the
hyperactive kids might be the inattentive kids flight under the radar.
And so if we think back, you know, ten twenty
thirty years ago, where we perhaps didn't have the understanding
(12:35):
of ADHD that we do now, these are the adults
who are now getting diagnosed, and as I said, particularly
those adult women who fall into that inattentive subtype.
Speaker 3 (12:45):
And do you find as well that social media can
impact like the consumption of social media can impact people
with ADHD because you know you're constantly getting those dopamine hits, right, Like,
is there some correlation there or maybe not?
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Yes? I love that you bring dopamine and the brain
into the conversation. I've been ninety well.
Speaker 3 (13:05):
I've been reading a book called The Dopamine brain. I
don't know if anyone's heard of it before.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
So you're spot on here about dopamine. So when we
actually look at what's happening in the brain for someone
with ADHD, as I said, it's related to that prefrontal
cortex part of the brain. And there are a few
kind of theories that are still being debated in the literature,
but there is a theory around under activation of dopamine.
(13:31):
So dopamine is not being activated enough or there is
not enough dopamine in the brain right And this dope
meine is very much related to drive and motivation to
seek out rewards. And so what this might mean is
that people with ADHD feel quite impulsive. They find it
hard to sort of find the motivation to do things
(13:51):
that might be challenging at time because of not of
a lack of willingness, but because of the way in
which their brain is operating and dope mean is being activated.
The other theory is that dopamine is activated similarly in
the brain to people without ADHD, but it is removed
quicker so it doesn't sort of kind of hang around
(14:12):
as long in the brain, which again might result in
people being more impulsive or as you said, seeking out
those dopamine hits, whether that's from social media, whether it's
from video games or other things in people's lives. And
what I see a lot of in the clinic, A
lot of my work is in addictions specifically, but actually
(14:32):
what we see is that a lot of the people
who come with some sort of addiction actually have undiagnosed ADHD.
Really yeah, And for many years they've been self medicating
to manage the kind of ups and downs and highs
and lows that they've been feeling, and substances have been
a way for them to sort of quote unquote feel
(14:52):
normal in some way.
Speaker 3 (14:54):
And it really does come down to this is what
I'm gathering. It is the right education, right And it
gets me wondering, are there what are some of the
other biggest myths out there when it comes to ADHD.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
I think the biggest one is like the whole laziness thing,
Like if you have ADHD and then you can't focus
or get tuss done, it means that you're lazy, or
it means that you don't try hard enough, or you
just don't have enough kind of willpower to get through it.
And it's just really not the case. It's fundamentally that
the brain is working differently to people who don't have
(15:29):
the ADHD diagnosis, and that can have both, as we said,
pros and cons to being able to get things done.
Another myth I think that we see is more so
with children and parenting, that ADHD is the result of
kind of bad parenting or parents not disciplining their children enough.
And again it's simply not the case. You can put
(15:53):
all the rules and schedules and discipline in place for
children with ADHD and they will still present with ADHD behaviors.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
So what's the impact for people that are undiagnosed with ADHD.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
What I see a lot of in the clinic is
for people who've been under diagnosed through most of their
childhood and early adult years, they internalize the struggles that
they've been having, And what I mean by that is
that there's a lot of self blame that develops. They
blame themselves for being forgetful, for not getting tasked done,
(16:28):
for not being able to focus, for maybe not being
able to achieve as much as they know they have
the potential for. And they blame themselves as being lazy
or undisciplined or not motivated enough they compare themselves to
maybe their siblings or their friends who've been able to
achieve more. So they internalize the hardships that they've been
(16:48):
facing and kind of attribute it to some sort of
character flaw as opposed to an actual diagnosis that exists
in the way that their brain works. And so I
see a lot of depression and low self esteem as
a result of it. On the flip side of that,
when I see people who've been struggling for so long
(17:08):
and then finally do get it done diagnosis, it's often
this moment of relief for them, like suddenly their experience
makes sense to them. They're like, this is why I've
been struggling. It's not because I'm dumb. It's not because
I'm lazy, it's not because I haven't been hard working.
It's not all these things that maybe people in my
life have told me I am. It's actually because I
(17:31):
have ADHD. And while it can be relieving, it can
also be a little bit sad for people. I see
the sadness come through because they think, Gosh, if only
I had known this earlier in my life, you know,
I potentially could have achieved more, or perhaps school wouldn't
have felt like such a struggle, or perhaps I wouldn't
have had the negative impact maybe on friendships and relationships
(17:55):
that I've had in my life. So it's a bittersweet
moment often for people where there's a bit of that
sadness but also that relief for them.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
And I really love that because I think sometimes we
can villainize labels, but if anything, it sounds quite liberating
to sometimes to sometimes have a bit more language and
a label around what you're going through.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Absolutely, it's how we use the label, right, Yeah. If
the label ultimately helps us understand ourselves better and make
sense of our own experience, then that's a great thing.
Speaker 3 (18:28):
After the break, doctor Anastasia is going to tell you
what to do if you think you might need to
be diagnosed with ADHD. Okay, Anastasia, I feel like you've
really given us a thorough overview of what ADHD is.
Speaker 1 (18:42):
I've got two part question for you.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
First question is what do you do if you think
you might have ADHD? And the second one is if
you do have ADHD, how do you manage it day
by day. Let's start with the first question.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
Yes, okay, so what do you do if you're listening
along and you think, hmm, that sounds like me. I
might have ADHD. So I'm going to talk about where
to seek out help and a diagnosis. So I always
recommend GPS as a first point of contact GPS for adults,
pediatricians for kids. And this is because they are a
(19:19):
wealth of knowledge and they can point you in the
right direction after having that initial consultation with you. So
a GP can be a great first place to start. Ultimately,
a psychologist or a psychiatrist can diagnose an adult with ADHD,
or a pediatrician for a child. So psychologists and psychiatrists
(19:41):
often go about diagnosing ADHD differently. So psychiatrist will do
quite an in depth clinical interview with you and usually
administer some questionnaires. So we have some good quality questionnaires
that can assist with the diagnosis of ADHD. Usually these
are filled out by the person who thinks they have ADHD,
(20:02):
but also often the parents as well, because it's asking
parents to think back to when you were a child,
did you know little Bobby do these things? And as
we said before the reason for this is it's a
developmental condition. It should start in childhood. If it's not
present in childhood. If you suddenly have this onset of
symptoms in adulthood that was not there in childhood, then
(20:24):
we would probably not be looking at ADHD and maybe
some other sort of either mental health or even neurological
condition that might be going on. Okay, so we really
have to see that stability across time. That's what a
psychiatrist will do. A psychologist will also do this sort
of in depth clinical interview with someone, but they can
also do psychological tests, neuropsychological tests, so they might do
(20:48):
things like an IQ test, an academic test, and other
sort of tests that assess for different types of attentional functioning.
And what you get at the end of this is
a big, long, comprehensive report that basically gives you your
neuropsychological profile. So it'll explain your IQ, your working memory,
(21:09):
how fast you can process information, all these different parts
of what your brain and your executive function can do.
Psychiatrists tend not to do that, so there's a point
of difference there in terms of the process that we
might go through to get diagnosed. Now, another difference is
that psychologists can't prescribe medication, So if someone does want
(21:31):
to pursue a pathway or consider a pathway of medication,
then they would be looking at seeing a psychiatrist for that.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
With the process so far, because if you're not sure
whether to see a psychiatrist or a psychologist, would that
discussion be had with your GP they'll be able to
point you to which person to go to next.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
It absolutely can be. And if someone really is feeling
like they have potentially severe ADHD and would be very
open to that pathway of attaining medication, if that was
the right treatment for them, then sometimes it's best to
go to a psychiatrist from the start because these things
are also expensive, right, let's not shy away from that fact. Ye,
the costs add up, and so seeing a psychiatrist from
(22:11):
the start can be useful. The reason people might want
to see a psychologist first is because they get that
profile of themselves, and for some people, that's really helpful
for them to understand, almost in small ways, how different
parts of their brain and brain functioning work. So that
can be a really validating, validating and informative process for
(22:33):
some people.
Speaker 3 (22:34):
Okay, so how about someone with ADHD? How can they
manage that in their day to day life?
Speaker 2 (22:40):
So, if you've been diagnosed with ADHD. You've got the
diagnosis and you go now what Yes, Typically a combination
of medication and behavioral strategies is what's considered first line option.
It's not to say that everyone needs to go on medication,
but I will say that there is really good evidence
(23:01):
for stimulant and non stimulant medication, and this is usually
an option that is discussed by psychiatrists or doctors or pediatricians.
Right in addition to medication, though, it's really looking at
what behavioral strategies can we put in place to help
with the areas that we're struggling. So, if it's struggling
(23:22):
with organization and planning, can we have big colored planners
on the wall that outline every day what you need
to be doing at different times. Is it that you
need to set lots of alarms in your phone to
be able to kind of send reminders for when you
need to leave the house buy because you run the
risk of being late a lot of the time. Is
(23:42):
it that you get really overwhelmed by sensory things and
you get very distructed and you need to wear headphones
around the office to help with the destructions, you know,
finding what some of those practical strategies are to help
with that management of whatever the symptoms are that you
experience of ADHD.
Speaker 3 (24:01):
Is that where fidget toys come in, because I've noticed
there's this I don't know if it's a new trend thing,
but I'm seeing a lot more fidget toys around.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
Yes, the fidget spinners to toys. Absolutely. People with ADHD
find that if they have that kind of sensory touch
and something to do with their hands, it can actually
help them focus on the task at hand. There's also
I don't know if you've heard about body doubling.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
No, what's that.
Speaker 2 (24:24):
Yeah, So a lot of people with ADHD find that
if they need to do a task, sitting with someone
else who's also doing a task and sort of like
doubling physically what they're doing can help them do it.
And there's actually websites online where you can like kind
of find body doubles remotely. If you go, right, I've
got half an hour of work to do and I
(24:44):
need to sit at my computer and do it, and
you get someone else to do the same thing. It
helps with that sort of accountability and focusing on the task.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
I've never heard of that before.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
There's lots of like detailed ways and nuanced ways in
which we can put strategies in place to help manage
the attentional or hyperactive difficulties that people might face.
Speaker 3 (25:06):
So if the above strategies don't work or it's not
an is that when you would look into medication.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
Yeah, you can look into medication if that doesn't feel
like it's enough or even from the starting point of
getting the diagnosis. And so this is where someone like
a psychiatrist might discuss either stimulant or non stimulant medication.
So stimulant medication things like ritulin. These medications are typically
non addictive. Of course, like any medications, they can have
(25:34):
some side effects. They might interrupt sleep, or they might
result in like kind of lower appetite and things like this,
so of course we always need to be monitoring for
side effects. But also, like with a lot of conditions,
when it comes to either neurodivergence or mental health conditions,
these conditions exist on a spectrum right as we were
(25:55):
saying before, So you can have perhaps a more mild
diagnosis of ADHD, or you can have quite a severe
diagnosis of ADHD. And depending on what sort of category
you fall into. You might need either different strengths of medication,
different type of medication, or different combinations of behavioral strategies
as well.
Speaker 3 (26:16):
Just when you were talking about like the different severities
of ADHD, does that mean someone who has severe ADHD
would have, let's say that third type that you spoke
about before, like a combination of both.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
Not necessarily, OK. Someone can have a pure inattentive ADHD
and it still can fall into the severe category, so
that the categories are really dependent on how much of
a negative impact it's having on someone's day to day functioning.
Speaker 3 (26:43):
After this shortbreak, we hear from a woman who's just
been diagnosed with ADHD and isn't sure if she should
tell her workplace stay with us.
Speaker 2 (26:53):
Berb, Barb, Berb, I'm proving a serious Cristi Therb having
a crisis.
Speaker 3 (27:00):
We've reached that time in our episode where we answer
a question or dilemma from one of you our listeners.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
This dilemma comes from Molly.
Speaker 4 (27:08):
I've just been diagnosed with ADHD, and it explains a
lot about my struggles at work, like missing deadlines or
zoning out meetings. But now I'm stuck wondering if I
should tell my boss and colleagues. Part of me wants
to be honest so that they understand where I'm coming from.
But I'm also terrified that they might judge me or
treat me differently. Will they see me as less capable?
(27:30):
Could it hurt my chances for a promotion? I want support,
but I don't want my diagnosis to become a label
that limits me professionally. What's the right move here?
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Tricky scenario.
Speaker 3 (27:41):
I feel like every single dilemma we always start off
it's hard. Yeah, it's always hard, MOLLI we feel for you.
Speaker 2 (27:48):
And Molly. I really think this is a common question
people who've been diagnosed with ADHD in adulthood or asking
right should I tell my workplace? Should I tell my friends?
Should I tell the people around me? What are the
pros and cons? And I guess what I would suggest
here is it really is a personal decision at the
end of the day, and I don't think there's a
(28:08):
right or wrong. I unders stand the hesitation about wanting
to share the diagnosis with work. As much as we
would like to think that we're past stigma, it does
still exist realistically. But if you did want to talk
to work about it. Then one of the things I
would suggest to you is share the diagnosis with them,
(28:30):
but share what it is that you need so that
you're not presenting it as a limitation. As we said before,
ADHD can have some real positive strengths to it. You
can get into that hyper focus mode and you can
get a lot of work and tasks done right, So
have a plan as to what you're going to suggest
or propose to work if you do tell them about
your diagnosis. So perhaps it might be about telling them, Look,
(28:53):
I've been recently diagnosed with ADHD. What that means is
that at times I can become distracted, maybe a little
bit more easily than some other people. But here are
some things that help me. One might be it's really
helpful for me to wear headphones when I'm in the
office and I'm not distracted by other people's conversations. So
if you see me walking around the office with headphones on,
(29:15):
it's because I'm focusing, not because I'm being rude and
not wanting to talk to anyone. It might be that
I find it really helpful to have a clear task
structured in my calendar and to block out times to
do certain tasks. So you'll see that my calendar is
organized in a particular way. This is really helpful for me.
So if you can talk to work about it but
(29:36):
also present to them the strategies that are going to
help you that they can get on board supporting, then
we're hopeful that the response from work won't be one
of stigma but one of understanding and for them to
have a willingness to get on board to support you
to do the best that you can at work.
Speaker 3 (29:55):
And it's also really incredible because you having the courage
to have that conversation Molly with your boss could open
up possibilities for other people in the workplace, you know,
like how common ADHD is. It's also an opportunity for
the workplace culture to be educated on these things as
a whole.
Speaker 2 (30:10):
So absolutely, it starts somewhere, Start somewhere.
Speaker 3 (30:13):
Good luck, Molly, Anastasia. Can you give us the main
takeaways from today's episode?
Speaker 2 (30:23):
Yes, I can. First of all, ADHD is a condition
that's rising in recognition. Second, there are different types of
ADHD which affect people differently. There's the inattentive subtype, which
is characterized by a difficulty with focus, concentration and paying attention.
(30:43):
There's the hyperactive subtype, which is characterized by difficulty with
sitting still or feeling like you always want to be
on the move. And then there's the combination where we
have a combination of inattention and hyperactivity. Third, don't be
fooled by myths that say that ADHD is a lack
(31:04):
of discipline. It's not. And last of all, talk to
your GP or a health professional if you think that
you might be struggling with ADHD. Explore behavioral therapy and
medication treatment options.
Speaker 3 (31:17):
If you have a burnie question for us, there are
a few ways to get in touch with us.
Speaker 1 (31:20):
Links are in the show notes.
Speaker 2 (31:22):
And remember, while I am a psychologist, this podcast isn't
a diagnostic tool, and the advice and ideas we present
here should always take into account your personal medical history.
The executive producer of But Are You Happy? Is Niama Brown.
Speaker 1 (31:38):
Our senior producer is Tarlie Blackman.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
Sound design and editing by Jacob Brown.
Speaker 1 (31:43):
I'm a Shany Dante.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
And I'm doctor Anastasia heronus. The names and stories of
clients discussed have been changed for the purpose of maintaining anonymity.
If this conversation brought up any difficult feelings for you.
We have links for more resources in the show notes
around the topics we discussed today. You can also reach
out to organizations like Beyond Blue or Lifeline if you're
(32:06):
wanting more immediate support.
Speaker 3 (32:09):
Tune in next week as we unpack adulthood, anxiety, and
how to build real confidence and competence in everyday life.
Mumma Bea studios are styled with furniture from Fenton and Fenton.
Visit Fenton Andfenton dot com dot au. Thanks for listening,
See you next time.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
Thank you so much for listening to today's But Are
You Happy? Episode. We're keen to understand how you're looking
after your mental health these days. There's a survey link
in the show notes. It only takes a few minutes
and you'll go in the drawer to win a one
thousand dollars gift voucher. We'd love to hear from you.
You're listening to a Muma Mia podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Mamma May I acknowledges the traditional owners of the land
and waters that this podcast is recorded on. This is
my impression of my auntie after I've said, I reckon,
I've got ADHD, because I've been really struggling lately, especially
with things like paying attention and like attention span.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
Right.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Oh, You've got to have something, don't you. You're a
little bit different. You go to hd H. That's what
people are supposed to do. You're supposed to want to
do things. But this generation, if you don't want to
see in front of the TV, you go ADHD. Go TOHD.
I'm a bit sad today. Well, I've got depression, don't I.
I've got depression generation generation.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
For Mamma Mia.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
I'm your host, Ashannie Dante. Welcome to But are You Happy?
The podcast that won't diagnose you, but will probably make
you say, Oh that sounds like me.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
And I'm Doctor Anastaga hernis a clinical psychologist passionate about
happiness and mental health. Have you ever wondered if you
might have ADHD but feel nervous about saying it loud?
Or maybe you've been diagnosed already, but all you hear
are confusing myths.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Yeah, it feels like ADHD gets boxed into one definition,
but the reality is it's way more complex.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Right, everyone's experience is different.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Exactly today, I want to break down the many ways
ADHD can show up, clear up some of the biggest myths,
and share what to do if you think you might
need to go and get a diagnosis.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
I know a lot of listeners have been waiting to
hear about this one, so let's dive straight in. Okay, Anastasia,
The term ADHD is being thrown around a lot, but
I'm keen to hear it from you as the expert.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
What actually is ADHD?
Speaker 2 (01:55):
Good starting point, ADHD is a developmental disorder. So what
that means is that it starts early on in childhood
and it is with you throughout your life. Right. ADHD
is a diagnosed ciner condition that affects the executive functioning
in our brain. So this very much relates to the
(02:16):
prefrontal cortex, that front part of our brain that is
responsible for higher order planning, decision making, problem solving, emotion regulation,
things like that. It's the part of the brain from
an evolutionary perspective that develops later. It's what distinguishes us
from things like animals that don't have as well developed
prefrontal cortext So it's this developmental condition that largely affects
(02:41):
the front of the brain and impacts the way in
which people are able to focus and pay attention and
engage with certain parts of their life.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
Now, I know in our previous season episode one, we
talked about anxiety, and I remember you talking about how
there's a spectrum, right, is that the same case for ADHD.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
So ADHD symptoms can exist on a spectrum. But there
are actually some well defined subtypes of ADHD. It used
to actually be called ADD but now we refer to
it as ADHD. So attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is what
the full acronym actually stands for. So there's three different
(03:22):
subtypes that someone can be diagnosed with. The first one
is the inattentive subtype. So this is where someone really
struggles with distractability. It's hard for them to pay attention,
it's hard for them to focus, they become easily distracted
with other things. You might have noticed this if you've
(03:43):
been in a conversation with someone who has ADHD inattentive subtype,
and suddenly you're talking about one thing and then they're
off onto a different kind of conversation and topic. Right,
their brain gets easily distracted. Or it could be that
they notice something in their environment and they get distracted
by that. So this inattentive subtype is characterized by challenges
(04:04):
with focus and paying attention.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
When it comes to inattentive symptoms, is there the symptoms
underneath that category?
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Yeah, So this could be other things like people might
have a tendency to start projects and then not finish
them again because they get distracted or they find it
hard to finish. They might sort of put off some
tasks that require a lot of effort, so we see
a lot of procrastination. Sometimes memory difficulties, trouble remembering things,
and this is not necessarily a core memory problem itself.
(04:33):
It's more so that perhaps if a person wasn't really
paying attention in the first place, that information doesn't get
properly encoded and stored in the brain. We might find
that people lose things very easily. It's hard for them
to kind of follow instructions. We see this with kids
at school. It might be hard for them to follow
the instructions that the teacher gives and maybe sort of
(04:55):
someone who makes a lot of mistakes that sort of
seem careless, but they're not. It's just that as part
of this inattentive ADHD, it is hard to focus and
organize and plan.
Speaker 3 (05:04):
So what about Is there any other types of ADHD
or is it just that one?
Speaker 2 (05:09):
So there's the hyperactive subtype of ADHD, and this is
the sort of stereotypical presentation that people might have historically
had in mind when they thought about ADHD. If you
imagine kind of like that typical kid that doesn't sit still,
like they can't sit in their chair, they're constantly squirming
and fidgeting more than any of the other kids. This
(05:31):
is that kind of hyperactive subtype. So it's that restlessness,
it's hard to sit still. It's characterized by impulsivity, so
reacting very quickly to things, finding it hard to kind
of think through decisions before actually acting on them. People
with this hyperactive subtype also might find that they get
(05:51):
bored quite easily, so there's that sense of boredom that
comes in. They might be thrill seekers, so there's a
lot of risk taking behavior or thrill seeking behavior that
might occur. So this is more of that hyperactive subtype
for ADHD. And then we can have the third type,
which is essentially a combat nation of both a combination
(06:12):
of the hyperactivity and the inattention as well.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
It's like it's a double whammy, a mix of the
mix of both. Yeah, So does that mean people with
ADHD can't focus at all?
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Not at all.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
It doesn't mean that. It just means that there are
sometimes some challenges and some difficulties with focusing, and particularly
we're talking about focusing for long periods of time. So
when we actually think about attention and focus, there are
different types of attention. Right. We have sort of our
short term attention, we have our long term attention. We
(06:47):
have our ability to focus on two things at once. Right,
So we're talking about lots of different types of attention here.
But what we see is that it's sometimes that longer
attention that people with ADHD might struggle with. But that said,
there is actually something called hyper focusing in ADHD, which
(07:07):
is that ability to focus and get into that flow
in a really in depth way. When someone with ADHD
has the right conditions around them and they're interested in
what they're doing. They can actually double down and focus
really quite intensely and for long periods of time on
(07:28):
that specific task. So it's a myth to say that
people with ADHD can't focus. They absolutely can, but sometimes
it means that environmental conditions need to be tweaked in
order for them to get into that space of focus.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
Yeah, that's really interesting, and I think that's why I'm
also very excited about this episode because I feel like
you are going to bust a lot of myths for
us when it comes to ADHD.
Speaker 2 (07:52):
What I will add is that with the hyper focusing,
there can be pros and cons to that be with ADHD.
So while they can really get into that flow and
get a lot done in a period of time, sometimes
what they find is that there's difficulty coming out of it.
So actually breaking the focus when they need to then
actually stop because life requires them to do other things
(08:15):
coming out of it and breaking that focus can feel
quite challenging, And people who have ADHD who get into
these hyper focused states can say that it almost even
feels like time distorts, like when they're in that state,
you know, it might have been five or six hours
that pass, but it only actually feels like one. So
(08:35):
this is it's this whole sort of experience that's quite
unique to ADHD.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
It's interesting because as you've been going through a lot
of the symptoms, like I mean, I'm sitting here like,
oh my gosh, I do that. I do that, And
I'm sure there's listeners tuning in where they're like, I'm
ticking a lot of these boxes and I'm keen to know.
How do you actually know if you have ADHD? Like
what's involved with getting a real diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Yeah, one of the important things for us to think
about is how frequent our inner tention and these symptoms occur,
but also oh how much they occur across context. Right,
So we're all sometimes destractible, we all sometimes lose focus,
we all sometimes forget things, right, that's kind of just
normal human behavior. But what we're really looking for is
(09:23):
patterns in someone's life, and patterns that are ultimately debilitating
or cause dysfunction for them in some way. It's all
well and good if we every now and again forget something,
but if we are forgetting so often that it means
we're not attending doctor's appointments, we're not meeting deadlines for
work and we run the risk of getting fired, then
that's having some serious negative consequences in our life. We
(09:45):
also want to make sure that we are seeing these
symptoms across contexts. Now, when we look at diagnosing children,
this is really important because if a child struggles to
focus at school, but they can focus home, or they
can focus when they're with their friends, they can focus
in other contexts, this isn't typical of ADHD, and it's
more indicative that maybe there's something going on at school
(10:08):
that's causing disruption for them. ADHD doesn't kind of discriminate
according to where you are or who you're with. That's
one of the key features of ADHD symptoms is that
they go across contexts. So if someone's listening to this
and thinking, Okay, that still does sound like me, what
can they do well? Seeking a diagnosis from a medical
(10:32):
professional is probably the next step. So usually this would
involve going to a GP as a first point of
contact to discuss the possibility of ADHD, and then perhaps
getting a referral to either a psychiatrist or a psychologist
to get a more formal diagnosis, or in the case
of a child, a pediatrician.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
Yeah, and I can imagine as well, people that are
kind of on the fence and the dowding. I guess
it doesn't hurt to just go to a GP and
have the conversation.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Right, absolutely, absolutely, These are the people who are trained
and equipped to be able to talk through your symptoms
with you in a way that's going to make sense
for you and be able to provide you with some clarity.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
So with ADHD, and I know we kind of spoke
to it a little bit before around how we're hearing
it everywhere, like it's I know, for me, it's on
my social media feed. I'm hearing in a lot of
my circles of friends and people I know that are
getting diagnosed with ADHD, and it gets me wondering, why
is there a sudden rise in the diagnosis.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Yes, we've seen the rise of the adult ADHD diagnosis
in the last few years. And I think what this
really speaks to is two things. One, perhaps reduced stigma.
Maybe people feel like there's less stigma around ADHD and
that they can actually go to a doctor or a
health professional and get that diagnosis and be able to
(11:55):
tell people that they have ADHD. But also that there's
a greater awareness of it. And we're seeing this particularly
around adult women who fall into the inattentive subtype. So
these were typically the kids who went undiagnosed at school
because they weren't disruptive. So if I can present you
(12:15):
with the stereotypical picture, it's the kid who sits at
the back of the classroom daydreaming, not causing any problem,
not being disruptive, not being loud and noisy, like the
hyperactive kids might be the inattentive kids flight under the radar.
And so if we think back, you know, ten twenty
thirty years ago, where we perhaps didn't have the understanding
(12:35):
of ADHD that we do now, these are the adults
who are now getting diagnosed, and as I said, particularly
those adult women who fall into that inattentive subtype.
Speaker 3 (12:45):
And do you find as well that social media can
impact like the consumption of social media can impact people
with ADHD because you know you're constantly getting those dopamine hits, right, Like,
is there some correlation there or maybe not?
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Yes? I love that you bring dopamine and the brain
into the conversation. I've been ninety well.
Speaker 3 (13:05):
I've been reading a book called The Dopamine brain. I
don't know if anyone's heard of it before.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
So you're spot on here about dopamine. So when we
actually look at what's happening in the brain for someone
with ADHD, as I said, it's related to that prefrontal
cortex part of the brain. And there are a few
kind of theories that are still being debated in the literature,
but there is a theory around under activation of dopamine.
(13:31):
So dopamine is not being activated enough or there is
not enough dopamine in the brain right And this dope
meine is very much related to drive and motivation to
seek out rewards. And so what this might mean is
that people with ADHD feel quite impulsive. They find it
hard to sort of find the motivation to do things
(13:51):
that might be challenging at time because of not of
a lack of willingness, but because of the way in
which their brain is operating and dope mean is being activated.
The other theory is that dopamine is activated similarly in
the brain to people without ADHD, but it is removed
quicker so it doesn't sort of kind of hang around
(14:12):
as long in the brain, which again might result in
people being more impulsive or as you said, seeking out
those dopamine hits, whether that's from social media, whether it's
from video games or other things in people's lives. And
what I see a lot of in the clinic, A
lot of my work is in addictions specifically, but actually
(14:32):
what we see is that a lot of the people
who come with some sort of addiction actually have undiagnosed ADHD.
Really yeah, And for many years they've been self medicating
to manage the kind of ups and downs and highs
and lows that they've been feeling, and substances have been
a way for them to sort of quote unquote feel
(14:52):
normal in some way.
Speaker 3 (14:54):
And it really does come down to this is what
I'm gathering. It is the right education, right And it
gets me wondering, are there what are some of the
other biggest myths out there when it comes to ADHD.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
I think the biggest one is like the whole laziness thing,
Like if you have ADHD and then you can't focus
or get tuss done, it means that you're lazy, or
it means that you don't try hard enough, or you
just don't have enough kind of willpower to get through it.
And it's just really not the case. It's fundamentally that
the brain is working differently to people who don't have
(15:29):
the ADHD diagnosis, and that can have both, as we said,
pros and cons to being able to get things done.
Another myth I think that we see is more so
with children and parenting, that ADHD is the result of
kind of bad parenting or parents not disciplining their children enough.
And again it's simply not the case. You can put
(15:53):
all the rules and schedules and discipline in place for
children with ADHD and they will still present with ADHD behaviors.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
So what's the impact for people that are undiagnosed with ADHD.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
What I see a lot of in the clinic is
for people who've been under diagnosed through most of their
childhood and early adult years, they internalize the struggles that
they've been having, And what I mean by that is
that there's a lot of self blame that develops. They
blame themselves for being forgetful, for not getting tasked done,
(16:28):
for not being able to focus, for maybe not being
able to achieve as much as they know they have
the potential for. And they blame themselves as being lazy
or undisciplined or not motivated enough they compare themselves to
maybe their siblings or their friends who've been able to
achieve more. So they internalize the hardships that they've been
(16:48):
facing and kind of attribute it to some sort of
character flaw as opposed to an actual diagnosis that exists
in the way that their brain works. And so I
see a lot of depression and low self esteem as
a result of it. On the flip side of that,
when I see people who've been struggling for so long
(17:08):
and then finally do get it done diagnosis, it's often
this moment of relief for them, like suddenly their experience
makes sense to them. They're like, this is why I've
been struggling. It's not because I'm dumb. It's not because
I'm lazy, it's not because I haven't been hard working.
It's not all these things that maybe people in my
life have told me I am. It's actually because I
(17:31):
have ADHD. And while it can be relieving, it can
also be a little bit sad for people. I see
the sadness come through because they think, Gosh, if only
I had known this earlier in my life, you know,
I potentially could have achieved more, or perhaps school wouldn't
have felt like such a struggle, or perhaps I wouldn't
have had the negative impact maybe on friendships and relationships
(17:55):
that I've had in my life. So it's a bittersweet
moment often for people where there's a bit of that
sadness but also that relief for them.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
And I really love that because I think sometimes we
can villainize labels, but if anything, it sounds quite liberating
to sometimes to sometimes have a bit more language and
a label around what you're going through.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Absolutely, it's how we use the label, right, Yeah. If
the label ultimately helps us understand ourselves better and make
sense of our own experience, then that's a great thing.
Speaker 3 (18:28):
After the break, doctor Anastasia is going to tell you
what to do if you think you might need to
be diagnosed with ADHD. Okay, Anastasia, I feel like you've
really given us a thorough overview of what ADHD is.
Speaker 1 (18:42):
I've got two part question for you.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
First question is what do you do if you think
you might have ADHD? And the second one is if
you do have ADHD, how do you manage it day
by day. Let's start with the first question.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
Yes, okay, so what do you do if you're listening
along and you think, hmm, that sounds like me. I
might have ADHD. So I'm going to talk about where
to seek out help and a diagnosis. So I always
recommend GPS as a first point of contact GPS for adults,
pediatricians for kids. And this is because they are a
(19:19):
wealth of knowledge and they can point you in the
right direction after having that initial consultation with you. So
a GP can be a great first place to start. Ultimately,
a psychologist or a psychiatrist can diagnose an adult with ADHD,
or a pediatrician for a child. So psychologists and psychiatrists
(19:41):
often go about diagnosing ADHD differently. So psychiatrist will do
quite an in depth clinical interview with you and usually
administer some questionnaires. So we have some good quality questionnaires
that can assist with the diagnosis of ADHD. Usually these
are filled out by the person who thinks they have ADHD,
(20:02):
but also often the parents as well, because it's asking
parents to think back to when you were a child,
did you know little Bobby do these things? And as
we said before the reason for this is it's a
developmental condition. It should start in childhood. If it's not
present in childhood. If you suddenly have this onset of
symptoms in adulthood that was not there in childhood, then
(20:24):
we would probably not be looking at ADHD and maybe
some other sort of either mental health or even neurological
condition that might be going on. Okay, so we really
have to see that stability across time. That's what a
psychiatrist will do. A psychologist will also do this sort
of in depth clinical interview with someone, but they can
also do psychological tests, neuropsychological tests, so they might do
(20:48):
things like an IQ test, an academic test, and other
sort of tests that assess for different types of attentional functioning.
And what you get at the end of this is
a big, long, comprehensive report that basically gives you your
neuropsychological profile. So it'll explain your IQ, your working memory,
(21:09):
how fast you can process information, all these different parts
of what your brain and your executive function can do.
Psychiatrists tend not to do that, so there's a point
of difference there in terms of the process that we
might go through to get diagnosed. Now, another difference is
that psychologists can't prescribe medication, So if someone does want
(21:31):
to pursue a pathway or consider a pathway of medication,
then they would be looking at seeing a psychiatrist for that.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
With the process so far, because if you're not sure
whether to see a psychiatrist or a psychologist, would that
discussion be had with your GP they'll be able to
point you to which person to go to next.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
It absolutely can be. And if someone really is feeling
like they have potentially severe ADHD and would be very
open to that pathway of attaining medication, if that was
the right treatment for them, then sometimes it's best to
go to a psychiatrist from the start because these things
are also expensive, right, let's not shy away from that fact. Ye,
the costs add up, and so seeing a psychiatrist from
(22:11):
the start can be useful. The reason people might want
to see a psychologist first is because they get that
profile of themselves, and for some people, that's really helpful
for them to understand, almost in small ways, how different
parts of their brain and brain functioning work. So that
can be a really validating, validating and informative process for
(22:33):
some people.
Speaker 3 (22:34):
Okay, so how about someone with ADHD? How can they
manage that in their day to day life?
Speaker 2 (22:40):
So, if you've been diagnosed with ADHD. You've got the
diagnosis and you go now what Yes, Typically a combination
of medication and behavioral strategies is what's considered first line option.
It's not to say that everyone needs to go on medication,
but I will say that there is really good evidence
(23:01):
for stimulant and non stimulant medication, and this is usually
an option that is discussed by psychiatrists or doctors or pediatricians.
Right in addition to medication, though, it's really looking at
what behavioral strategies can we put in place to help
with the areas that we're struggling. So, if it's struggling
(23:22):
with organization and planning, can we have big colored planners
on the wall that outline every day what you need
to be doing at different times. Is it that you
need to set lots of alarms in your phone to
be able to kind of send reminders for when you
need to leave the house buy because you run the
risk of being late a lot of the time. Is
(23:42):
it that you get really overwhelmed by sensory things and
you get very distructed and you need to wear headphones
around the office to help with the destructions, you know,
finding what some of those practical strategies are to help
with that management of whatever the symptoms are that you
experience of ADHD.
Speaker 3 (24:01):
Is that where fidget toys come in, because I've noticed
there's this I don't know if it's a new trend thing,
but I'm seeing a lot more fidget toys around.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
Yes, the fidget spinners to toys. Absolutely. People with ADHD
find that if they have that kind of sensory touch
and something to do with their hands, it can actually
help them focus on the task at hand. There's also
I don't know if you've heard about body doubling.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
No, what's that.
Speaker 2 (24:24):
Yeah, So a lot of people with ADHD find that
if they need to do a task, sitting with someone
else who's also doing a task and sort of like
doubling physically what they're doing can help them do it.
And there's actually websites online where you can like kind
of find body doubles remotely. If you go, right, I've
got half an hour of work to do and I
(24:44):
need to sit at my computer and do it, and
you get someone else to do the same thing. It
helps with that sort of accountability and focusing on the task.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
I've never heard of that before.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
There's lots of like detailed ways and nuanced ways in
which we can put strategies in place to help manage
the attentional or hyperactive difficulties that people might face.
Speaker 3 (25:06):
So if the above strategies don't work or it's not
an is that when you would look into medication.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
Yeah, you can look into medication if that doesn't feel
like it's enough or even from the starting point of
getting the diagnosis. And so this is where someone like
a psychiatrist might discuss either stimulant or non stimulant medication.
So stimulant medication things like ritulin. These medications are typically
non addictive. Of course, like any medications, they can have
(25:34):
some side effects. They might interrupt sleep, or they might
result in like kind of lower appetite and things like this,
so of course we always need to be monitoring for
side effects. But also, like with a lot of conditions,
when it comes to either neurodivergence or mental health conditions,
these conditions exist on a spectrum right as we were
(25:55):
saying before, So you can have perhaps a more mild
diagnosis of ADHD, or you can have quite a severe
diagnosis of ADHD. And depending on what sort of category
you fall into. You might need either different strengths of medication,
different type of medication, or different combinations of behavioral strategies
as well.
Speaker 3 (26:16):
Just when you were talking about like the different severities
of ADHD, does that mean someone who has severe ADHD
would have, let's say that third type that you spoke
about before, like a combination of both.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
Not necessarily, OK. Someone can have a pure inattentive ADHD
and it still can fall into the severe category, so
that the categories are really dependent on how much of
a negative impact it's having on someone's day to day functioning.
Speaker 3 (26:43):
After this shortbreak, we hear from a woman who's just
been diagnosed with ADHD and isn't sure if she should
tell her workplace stay with us.
Speaker 2 (26:53):
Berb, Barb, Berb, I'm proving a serious Cristi Therb having
a crisis.
Speaker 3 (27:00):
We've reached that time in our episode where we answer
a question or dilemma from one of you our listeners.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
This dilemma comes from Molly.
Speaker 4 (27:08):
I've just been diagnosed with ADHD, and it explains a
lot about my struggles at work, like missing deadlines or
zoning out meetings. But now I'm stuck wondering if I
should tell my boss and colleagues. Part of me wants
to be honest so that they understand where I'm coming from.
But I'm also terrified that they might judge me or
treat me differently. Will they see me as less capable?
(27:30):
Could it hurt my chances for a promotion? I want support,
but I don't want my diagnosis to become a label
that limits me professionally. What's the right move here?
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Tricky scenario.
Speaker 3 (27:41):
I feel like every single dilemma we always start off
it's hard. Yeah, it's always hard, MOLLI we feel for you.
Speaker 2 (27:48):
And Molly. I really think this is a common question
people who've been diagnosed with ADHD in adulthood or asking
right should I tell my workplace? Should I tell my friends?
Should I tell the people around me? What are the
pros and cons? And I guess what I would suggest
here is it really is a personal decision at the
end of the day, and I don't think there's a
(28:08):
right or wrong. I unders stand the hesitation about wanting
to share the diagnosis with work. As much as we
would like to think that we're past stigma, it does
still exist realistically. But if you did want to talk
to work about it. Then one of the things I
would suggest to you is share the diagnosis with them,
(28:30):
but share what it is that you need so that
you're not presenting it as a limitation. As we said before,
ADHD can have some real positive strengths to it. You
can get into that hyper focus mode and you can
get a lot of work and tasks done right, So
have a plan as to what you're going to suggest
or propose to work if you do tell them about
your diagnosis. So perhaps it might be about telling them, Look,
(28:53):
I've been recently diagnosed with ADHD. What that means is
that at times I can become distracted, maybe a little
bit more easily than some other people. But here are
some things that help me. One might be it's really
helpful for me to wear headphones when I'm in the
office and I'm not distracted by other people's conversations. So
if you see me walking around the office with headphones on,
(29:15):
it's because I'm focusing, not because I'm being rude and
not wanting to talk to anyone. It might be that
I find it really helpful to have a clear task
structured in my calendar and to block out times to
do certain tasks. So you'll see that my calendar is
organized in a particular way. This is really helpful for me.
So if you can talk to work about it but
(29:36):
also present to them the strategies that are going to
help you that they can get on board supporting, then
we're hopeful that the response from work won't be one
of stigma but one of understanding and for them to
have a willingness to get on board to support you
to do the best that you can at work.
Speaker 3 (29:55):
And it's also really incredible because you having the courage
to have that conversation Molly with your boss could open
up possibilities for other people in the workplace, you know,
like how common ADHD is. It's also an opportunity for
the workplace culture to be educated on these things as
a whole.
Speaker 2 (30:10):
So absolutely, it starts somewhere, Start somewhere.
Speaker 3 (30:13):
Good luck, Molly, Anastasia. Can you give us the main
takeaways from today's episode?
Speaker 2 (30:23):
Yes, I can. First of all, ADHD is a condition
that's rising in recognition. Second, there are different types of
ADHD which affect people differently. There's the inattentive subtype, which
is characterized by a difficulty with focus, concentration and paying attention.
(30:43):
There's the hyperactive subtype, which is characterized by difficulty with
sitting still or feeling like you always want to be
on the move. And then there's the combination where we
have a combination of inattention and hyperactivity. Third, don't be
fooled by myths that say that ADHD is a lack
(31:04):
of discipline. It's not. And last of all, talk to
your GP or a health professional if you think that
you might be struggling with ADHD. Explore behavioral therapy and
medication treatment options.
Speaker 3 (31:17):
If you have a burnie question for us, there are
a few ways to get in touch with us.
Speaker 1 (31:20):
Links are in the show notes.
Speaker 2 (31:22):
And remember, while I am a psychologist, this podcast isn't
a diagnostic tool, and the advice and ideas we present
here should always take into account your personal medical history.
The executive producer of But Are You Happy? Is Niama Brown.
Speaker 1 (31:38):
Our senior producer is Tarlie Blackman.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
Sound design and editing by Jacob Brown.
Speaker 1 (31:43):
I'm a Shany Dante.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
And I'm doctor Anastasia heronus. The names and stories of
clients discussed have been changed for the purpose of maintaining anonymity.
If this conversation brought up any difficult feelings for you.
We have links for more resources in the show notes
around the topics we discussed today. You can also reach
out to organizations like Beyond Blue or Lifeline if you're
(32:06):
wanting more immediate support.
Speaker 3 (32:09):
Tune in next week as we unpack adulthood, anxiety, and
how to build real confidence and competence in everyday life.
Mumma Bea studios are styled with furniture from Fenton and Fenton.
Visit Fenton Andfenton dot com dot au. Thanks for listening,
See you next time.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
Thank you so much for listening to today's But Are
You Happy? Episode. We're keen to understand how you're looking
after your mental health these days. There's a survey link
in the show notes. It only takes a few minutes
and you'll go in the drawer to win a one
thousand dollars gift voucher. We'd love to hear from you.
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