Head, heart, hormones: Why women’s ADHD care should treat the whole person

Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls now.

Earlier this year, Hyperfocus took a field trip to San Diego for an ADHD conference called APSARD, which stands for the American Professional Society of ADHD and Related Disorders (quite a mouthful).

A conference of ADHD professionals might not sound fascinating, but it was — and we learned a ton. But there was one person and one talk I really wanted to find: A keynote speech about how ADHD affects women’s bodies by Dr. Sandra Kooij. 

What Sandra is doing is something so sensible and radical: Looking at ADHD as a whole-body issue. Digging into how it can affect women’s hormones, our health, and especially our hearts. 

I find Sandra’s research fascinating and was thrilled when she agreed to sit down for a conversation with me. We didn’t waste any time and quickly set up a makeshift studio for this week’s episode of Hyperfocus. 

Also, a quick note on the audio this week: We had to record this episode outside the conference hotel, on a bustling patio full of ADHD professionals and some noisy birds. So, please forgive the extraneous sounds. 

Related resources

• MissUnderstood: The ADHD in Women Channel
• Did my ADHD make me more likely to have postpartum depression?
• ADHD Powerbank: Sandra’s video platform
• The Head, Heart, Hormones foundation (in dutch with translations) 
• Prevalence of hormone-related mood disorder symptoms in women with ADHD 
• The heart health and ADHD connection

Timestamps

(4:07) Swedish registry study data on diseases in people with ADHD

(7:06) ADHD and hormones  

(13:56) Cardiovascular disease in women

(20:21) Talking to your doctor about diseases related to ADHD

For a transcript of this episode and more resources, visit the Hyperfocus page on Understood.org.

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