Through my research and as I get tested for ADHD and autism, I keep having these AHA moments. This is another one. Started suffering from PCOS basically the second I hit puberty but wasn't diagnosed until around 25. Now I'm 32, and after my life falling apart multiple times I've finally gotten to this point of having to figure out what's truly "wrong" with me. I will still have some doubt in the back of my mind until I actually hear my psychiatrist say the words, but I can't believe how many answers I've been getting, for questions I didn't even realize I had. My mom suffered with IBS her whole life but it almost disappeared after menopause. She had thyroid cancer and had her thyroid removed, and you know what, it might've been since then that her attention has gotten a lot worse. Everything is so genetic, and everything is so hormonal. As someone who suffers with PCOS, I definitely know how hormones control every single thing, and any doctor who thinks PCOS is just a fertility problem and writes it off, or doesn't even know it exists, makes me want to scream. We need more education and awareness. I'm tired of us women suffering in the dark because no one cares about our pain. How many of us have lost so many years of our lives because no one had the answers, and didn't care to ask. My whole life I thought I was failing everyone else...turns out, it was the world failing me. The sexist medical community, and society's suffocating confines and punishments.
Time blindness is huge… I managed to forget to sign up for college classes for a full year and lost the chance to go to college again… so happy to be able to finally understand my brain!
"is there a name for what's wrong with you?" lol this used to be a joke when I was younger, little did I know it would end up being the name of my biography! 😆😞
I am in tears. This is so my story as well. Great student, procrastinator, PCOS, binge eating, thinking I had early onset dementia. But I was just diagnosed a couple months ago at 43 and am still a huge mess, lol.
Me too, but it’s great to know we’re not alone. I relate to all that’s being said here. I love these ladies their being so honest. We need to be kind to our selves.
Kirstie, it helps to listen to all you can on ADHD, Attitude is the best in my opinion. I was diagnosed at 75 last year, it was a shock and a relief. For me it was better to have ADHD than having dementia. It’s really hard, but we can learn to manage it. Good luck to you, and all the ADHDs out there. 🙏
I'm so glad that you're having these conversations. I have not even been diagnosed, and I strongly believe that I have ADHD. The symptoms you are pointing out are so accurate in describing my experience. I am 55 and have never been diagnosed. I thought my symptoms were a result of menopause or just being stressed at work. But now I know that there is an actual definition for my behaviour. I began to suspect I had ADHD I would be listening to my husband and daughter at different times and would realize that I had wandered off in my thoughts and couldn't give a response, when needed. This podcast along with other research has let me know that I am not alone, and I can be more patient with myself.
Just had my aha moment 5 days ago. I am 47 and have been struggling probably for my whole life but my life has become unmanagable since perimenopause has hit. My son has ADHD and I did figure that I had it as well but it was last week when I took one of his pills just to see and for the first time I was calm!!! About an hour after taking the pill I felt calm and as I realized this I almost started crying. These meds have been in my house for years and it never occurred to me to try one. Now, I do have to get officially diagnosed. However everything makes sense to me now. Thank you for this podcast. I
I also had a similar aha moment. Years ago I was at work when one of my coworkers gave me an Adderall. I found my job to be nothing but drudgery. After I took the pill, I was calm and able to be focused on my tasks for the rest of the day, without a problem. That's when I realized that I should probably get tested, but I never did. I am now 60.
As an adult of 25 starting to date my now fiance, soon to be wife( 22 days). She pretty quickly had an idea that I had ADHD. She is a registered phycologist so she apparently knows what she's talking about. My younger brother has what I'd consider severe adhd with autism so growing up my mom refused to believe I had adhd because my brother was her baseline for what adhd is. But talking with her and going through the habits and signs of adhd has allowed me to own my diagnosis, and do alot of self reflection and really accept and be comfortable with who I am and things in the past that left hurt in my heart from past relationships and friendships and family relationships. And it's crazy to just check boxes off of things I thought were just struggles everyone had, but was better at managing than me.
I am learning soooo much listening to aha. I have had an eating disorder forever since 11 and I am 62. My therapist and psychiatrist still don't really get the hormone piece, really everything. Catie has hit almost everything I've gone thru. If only I could get the right help...........
This was a great video and very relatable. I have the same story where my adhd went very under radar until after I got my thyroid removed and everything was amplified
Thank you for making this video! I was also diagnosed with PCOS August 2022. It was brought to my attention that I have been displaying ADHD symptoms and I was like oh wow have I been masking this whole time? I didn't know. So I started doing research on ADHD and I was relating to a lot of the common symptoms of ADHD and the not so commonly recognized ones( not in the DSM 5) like emotional regulation, imposter syndrome, delayed sleep/ sleep issues, irritability and more. In addition, I noticed my mom displaying symptoms and brought it to her attention. She joked and said she has ADD but is too old to get diagnosed as she's 60 and has lived her whole life undiagnosed so why get diagnosed now. I have an appointment on Friday with a psychiatrist. I'm nervous as I've never seen a psychiatrist before but I'm excited to find out if I truly have ADHD as I believe I do. Thank you for showing me that I'm on the right path to seeking an assessment 🙏 🙂
I feel so SEEN right now!!!❤ Thank you so much for sharing your story! When you were talking about time blindness & not realizing you hadn't called your mom in ages, it just made me feel so SEEN and not alone! ❤
This. All of it, is profoundly relatable on a cellular level. Thank you Catie, for telling your story and Laura, for asking the questions I would have! I really needed to hear this today.
Thank you!! I’m autistic just in process of formal diagnoses at 65 - I had a brain bleed that affected exec function in my 30’s (which I had extra of as a kid) and when menopause happened around 50 my exec function got so much worse that I relate to the adhd predicament though the diagnostics do not place me on that end of the spectrum otherwise. I couldn’t understand why it was hard for others (who we now know or have reason to infer are adhd) in my family to just make a list, calendar it in, and then accomplish the whole thing as I did by dint of bloody minded focus and ramping my system up like I was on speed to get it done. I can’t take hormones or many meds due to brain bleed condition so now just coping with it taking all day to get one thing done at times or overworking once I get started or needing my husband to be happily elsewhere so I can get things done at all. I am a little feeling like a jerk in retrospect for not understanding why others were struggling and not in fact uncaring about how their actions or lack thereof impacted others, I feel regret for judging or being frustrated with them for being incompetent or willfully irresponsible which was unfair and not true. This diagnostic and educational process has made me realize that people I find difficult might also be on the spectrum too and people who are not are also just relating and living within their own neuro emotional perceptive soup also involuntary on their part. So more tolerance for differences and more compassion for self and others is helpful. These channels like yours where I can hear women who share my experiences are a lifeline- I don’t have any women friends who are conversant in these differences and I have many broken relationships w women friends over misunderstandings including that I’m mostly homebound and so maintaining friendships can be challenging. Thank you so much. It’s like having coffee w some really interesting and accepting friends who can commiserate w my challenges to watch you gals! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Wow! I knew what you were going to say right before you said it! The whole dementia thing!! I was running red lights and all these things I shouldnt be doing and I had my thyroid removed before I got diagnosed, and maybe my hormones brought it all out. Thank you for this realization.
I have so many of these.. I was crying this whole video. Struggled with this since I was single digits. I've been crying this whole time. Ty for sharing. Ty so much😭
That really was an Ah-Ha Moment! What a delight to listen in on your conversation. I just cringed when Catie was talking about that teacher dumping her desk. I'm so sorry that happened to you. Naturally organized people think it's somehow a moral failing or a choice to be lazy or that you're not trying hard enough. I realize listening to Catie's experience, that it was when I went thru menopause (and the death of my mother) that I really lost control of my house. I, too, have hired professional organizers. Exhausting and demoralizing. I'm FINALLY getting a handle on it because I'm working WITH my brain instead of trying a system that doesn't work and then blaming myself for "failing" yet again. There are 3 ADHD-friendly organizers that have really helped me. All 3 deal with clutter and disorganization, but also have deep compassion and a lack of judgement because they've all struggled with it. All have podcasts and would be great to interview (AND to interview you both): Dana K. White at A Slob Comes Clean. She's been unofficially "diagnosed" by her ADHD followers who use her strategies. She says she has TPAD: Time Passage Awareness Disorder. "It's a term I made up but it's totally real." In addition to addressing Time Blindness, she also says that she doesn't see mess; there is no in-between mess/no mess. Cas at Clutterbug, another ADHD-er diagnosed as an adult. In her system of organizing styles, I would guess that Catie is a Butterfly; Visual/has to see it, and Macro/Big Picture. Clear bins with no lids, hooks in every room. "Out of sight, out of mind." I have a white board & a big calendar that I use for tasks, appointments, etc. because I've finally realized that I can't trust myself to open a planner everyday. K.C. Davis at Struggle Care (AWESOME TED Talk)! Psychologist recently diagnosed with ADHD, she focuses on the mental health aspects of disorganization. "Dishes are morally neutral. Dishes in the sink mean that you fed yourself." I think for many ADHD-ers, organization is the final frontier!
Former burnout gifted kid here. Finally got my diagnosis this week! Right before my 45th birthday. I started the journey when I was finally getting my gifted endorsement this past school year. It has been incredibly eye opening, affirming, and challenging to see the world and myself with this new knowledge.
Hi! I'm 64 and got my diagnosis a couple of years ago. I've been in therapy probable 10 years all together and done all the medication available, but I've had more aha moments listening to you for 10 minutes than all these other things together. Thanks!
It's so affirming to hear other share experiencs.similar to mine. My ADHD went out of control after having my first child. I've never struggled so much to function - any compensation strategy I built went out the window.
I am so happy I ran into this video. I feel like I am listening to my own story!!! Looking for more of your content and like minded friends for support ❤
Hi lenaree75 - we're glad you found the video, too! You can find our content on our website, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, UA-cam, the Wunder app, Pinterest, and our podcast network!
Thank you for this - ☝️So important!☝️ Omg... I am following from Denmark and find this is so relatable... A very lengthy natural menopause (14 y so far) have made my ad(h)d and all my struggles explode! Had I known this earlier I would have fought every discourse against hormonal supplements coming from my doctors , for sure! But, we should be able to rely on doctors for an educated counsel based on the unique history of the individual patient, right? But I guess this falls under the grey area of “women’s issues” that carry so little medical interest as it is...
👋 I know what you mean, I'm 46 and live in rural Canada, ADHD is something I thought (until a few months ago) was just little boys who were hyper or poorly behaved. I'm dismayed at my own ignorance. Recently, I found out I'm "2e" which I had never even heard of. ADHD and Autism, but "gifted". I had a rich vocabulary and could read books at 2 years old, I graduated at 16, but I struggled with friendships and developed binge eating disorder, making me the fat girl in the 80's/90's in school. The bullying was brutal, and I was both highly sensitive and emotionally disregulated. My explosive reactions to bullying only further alienated me from peers and encouraged more bullying. My parents blamed me for my lack of will and inability to "ignore the bullies". My childhood was awful, no one could understand why if I seemed so bright, I didn't seem to "apply myself" or live up to my potential. My parents unfortunately we're the "punish bad/undesirable behaviours" like messiness, lack of organization, etc. type. But it was not because they didn't live me, it was because they didn't know any better. Still, I was regularly criticized, invalidated, shamed, punished, etc and that traumatized me, resulting in C-PTSD. I actually hated myself as an adult because I never seemed able to keep my life together. I'd work so hard, would excel, burn out, get sick, quit my job/find another when managers started getting annoyed. Oh, yeah - and I have PCOS too. Any these days, perimenopause is making me loony. I've been in therapy the last year, including DBT, which is how all these diagnoses starting coming to light. It all clicks. I can't believe how long I hated myself for being "bad" just because I didn't know I was just different.
I was one of the tare girls diagnosed with "ADD" in the 70s when I was 8. All my reportcards said, "plays well with others but can not finish tasks." I very thankful for the diagnosis; however, all I would be taught about the disorder is how to focus on school, I will distract easily, and remembering anything will be a challenge. I would learn some things to keep myself organized, and I didn't hate myself for being forgetful. I thought my ADHD symptoms began and ended there, and everything else I struggled with was just me being lazy, dirty, messy, and stupid. Flash forward to me being 50, and I am no longer having periods, and the over stimuli in my brain has increased 10 fold. I figured out it was due to menopause. I'm not sure how, but there had to be a link. Now, I am on social media and people are talking about symptoms of ADHD. Things I never knew were a part of it. My aha moment. Realizing that all ADHDers forget the laundry, leave piles of stuff on the floor forever, have a messy house that you are embarrassed by, struggle with self care, are over sensitive for good reason. I no longer felt alone. Thanks for talking about all of these things. Hormones are so important to talk about. I know many women my age who were never diagnosed with ADHD but think they have it and their symptoms got worse after stopping their periods, and the doctors just call it menopause. This is a conversation that needs to be told over and over. Thank you.
I’m not diagnosed with ADHD but I have a strong inclination that I do. I related to so many of the experiences and conditions that Catie expressed. It’s so validating and a bit relieving to have someone relate/articulate my lived experience, let alone through a lens that can give an explanation for them. An explanation that offers me a bit of grace I’m happy I came across this today
I have PCOS and waiting to get assessed for ADHD. Listening to her story made me feel so seen. Time blindness is also the hardest thing for me to deal with. I’m late for everything and it makes me so angry bc it makes me look careless and disrespectful of peoples time but it’s not on purpose and I get so mad at myself bc I always think how did this happen AGAIN!?
So now I can see why my personal life at home is in shabbles. I was masking in childhood, childrearing years, then menopause hit things got out of hand: fast paced stressful time/tasks job requirements/ expectations,.... total overwhelmed burnout and energy crashing after work daily to bed, and in bed all first day off, 2nd day off too many things need to be done because of crashing 6 days of the week. And then repeat... Weekly for years. Hormones changed.... Menopause.... No more masking .... I wondered why I never caught on to my ADHD sooner in life. This makes total sense to me personally. Thank you.
I was lucky. My mom (adopted me at birth) worked as an aide in a newborn nursery. She noticed something off the first time she held me, that i never focused on her for long, that i was constantly looking all over the place. So, she kept a watch for symptoms as i got older and had me tested at 4 years old. Then i retested in adulthood too as part of an adhd awareness month thing. Mind you, she didnt want to put me on medications, she just wanted to know for raising me. She didnt even broach the topic of medications until i was coming home from school crying because no one wanted to be my friend.
When I learned about the connection between ADHD, PMDD, and PCOS, everything started coming together. I had to fight for 2/3s of those diagnosises. My pediatrician wrote off my irregular periods for years. When I did have my period, my PMS symptoms were so intense and disruptive that I was diagnosed with PMDD. My psychiatrist suggested I get another opinion on my periods, so I went to a gynecologist, who gave me the PCOS diagnosis. It would not be for another 8 years that I would finally convince them to test me for ADHD, though. I kind of felt like I was seen as a dumb girl who convinced herself she had all of these disorders from being on the internet too much. Finally, though, I got the ADHD piece. But it didn’t make sense until I learned about how all three of these disorders interacted. How PCOS messes with your hormone levels, which triggers the panic alarm of PMDD, which intensifies the regulation issues of ADHD. And it wasn’t until I got a treatment plan that addressed all three of these issues that I finally got relief from the emotional roller coaster I felt like I’d been strapped in on since I was 12. I’m proud of myself. I was the one who advocated to get diagnosed, who did the research to put it all together, who insisted on getting appropriate treatment when doctors were hesitant to offer me the medications that are the standard for treatment. I wish we had more providers that would take a holistic view and help their patients. But for now, it’s mostly up to us to do the heavy lifting to ensure we get the care we deserve, and to come together to share our stories to help others who might be in similar situations. Sometimes I look back of all of the years of pain and struggle and wonder where I might be today if I had been properly diagnosed and given the correct treatment much earlier on. You can’t change the past, but you also can’t help but mourn for what you have lost once you are treated and realize this is how you should have felt for the past 10 years. This is why I think spreading awareness of this connection is so vital.
Thank you for sharing this! I love learning and hearing people share their stories, especially other women. It really helps remind me that I'm not alone and not crazy.
It’s 71’ - 72’, high school physics. I’m running around helping fellow students understand the lab. Everyone’s so grateful. Next day the test. 💣 Day after that, after class I’m getting the look from the prof. “Wood you like to know what you got on the test?” “No.” “What happened?” 🤷♂️ There was nothing to say. There was nothing more to be said. It had happened again (and again and . . . ) There were no answers. I just wanted to get away. Now in my 70’s at least I can BEGIN to understand all the struggles I experienced trying to do right and still disappointing everyone.
I turned 50 in March this year.. I was diagnosed 2 months before that. My realisation came after watching catieosaurus on tic tock. Once you see it, you can't unsee it. I was then scratching my head thinking, how did i not know! So many things make sense now, not only for myself, but for many members of my family. Hormone changes magnified everything, & was unquestionably driving me mental. Things i used to be able to do, i couldn't do anymore. I felt like a useless scatterbrain. My only motivation & drive came by putting myself in a state of anxiety. Until i felt that feeling, i wasnt doing anything. Thank you for crossing my path Catie, you quite honestly, saved my life 🫶🏼
So many relatable things especially the impact of hot(r)mone changes. I survived very late stage 3 TNBC & after my mastectomy, holy cow!! 😳 Things got ugly. I'm now, and not surprisedly, dx Autistic & ADHD. I just turned & learned this, this year 🎉 Thank you for so many neuro affirming things. Bless you both ❤
Didn't know i was still beating myself up for the circumstances that lead to me eventually getting gastric bypass at nearly 400 pounds...thank you for giving me the understanding for it beyond "a lack of self control" and giving me permission to stop kicking myself over it
Could this also tie in with autism in women, neuro diversity in general? Although I’m in the UK I know of a lot of late diagnosis of neuro diverse conditions. The mix of hormones and genetics it suggests there could be so many people struggling that are undiagnosed, and therefore unsupported.
Exactly ! Hopefully this question will start getting asked much more frequently, and become part of the collective discussion. Thanks for putting it on the table
Thank you for the video, about 2 years now I realized I'm losing my speech. I am a teacher, and I find it hard to flow in conversation. I have to stop and think about what I'm going to say which is embarrassing. I don't know what to do.
Same. It's crippling! Perimenopause is a killer. And then discovering i have ADHD and autism on top of it. I can't think properly or get my sentences out anymore.
Thank you so much for this story, it made me understand and also telling me what I understand wrong in my relationship with my Foster daughter. It will help me so much to deal with it and it will change my way of dealing with it also. Thank you, thank you , thank you.
Ok, I'm not a woman (so I obviously didn't lose an ovary), but everything you're describing sounds exactly like what is happening to me. I was attributing it to depression, leading to Vitamin D deficiency (which has ALL of those symptoms, including anxiety and depression again) and some home emergencies that kicked my ADHD into overdrive. Since I have to organize a basement and garage I want/need to clean, but I don't know where to put stuff (or I can't find what's in front of me). Oh and there's a tree about to fall on my house...hi anxiety!😤
I was really concerned about a previous head injury I got from a car crash. In short, "I thought I had dementia". That was the start to my ADHD journey too.
Yep! The hyperfiction, losing track of time, being in my own dimension. The teacher placed my desk on the opposite side of my classmates, separate from them, cuz my persistent stream of Q. was distracting to the teacher and assumingly disruptive to the class. Anyhow I didn't get diagnosed until last year when I was 65.
As someone who is not diagnosed yet and who struggles to believe it will say I have adhd, I really find it hard to believe that it is not like that for neurotypical people. Like it has always been like that and my mom would always say it is normal. Like I feel life would also be soooo boring without these problems even though they are extremely exhausting
Haaaa, who remembers to keep track of your period? For me with the whole time perception difference is an experiential thing that is probably some form of as yet unrecognized synesthesia. Time is a feeling attached to emotions of fear, anxiety, boredom, apathy, enthusiasm, wonder, etc. Within these emotional time flavors (for lack of a better description) is a spectrum of gauged time awareness that I think is learned from past positive, negative or neutral experiences. For example, I know that if I am hyper focused on an activity that I will experience time moving normally but have learned that it is actually moving much faster than I would have felt it to. I know that if this is going to be an issue I will feel compelled to keep an actual clock on myself or right near me to get a grip on the pace of the rest of the world. I know that minutes will feel like hours if I am doing something I find tedious. (I believe this emotional/task/time thing is universal, but what I experience is on a spectrum that is not necessarily predictable or even remotely logical; it’s not uncommon for the lost time when I am content to be equal to time lost when I am unhappy). Anyway I guess my point is that time perception is linked to the stability of my emotional state which makes the ability to “manage” time in a regular and consistent way predicated on my entire emotional capacity, which unfortunately can be thrown off by the majority of challenges going through life with ADHD. It becomes a moving goal post that I am better at predicting sometimes but often it can surprise me and really illogically mess up my intentions. I’m sure from the outside it just seems nuts. I know how much I’ve tried to explain why I’m late for the 50th time to jobs that I do extremely well (and guiltily stayed extra late for) but end up being fired for this. Unfortunate. Embarrassing. I’ve let this external judgement go because I know this kind of thing will only turn into shame. I’m done with taking on excessive burdens from the world that I wasn’t designed to carry around. The more I learn about everything the more ludicrous and restrictive the way we’ve been taught to live our lives becomes. We seem to set ourselves up to fail and then revel in our collective suffering and most never ask why?
5 місяців тому
I am pretty sure now I have it and I'm 47. For a while, I've been thinking I have ADHD. Videos came on my TT feed without looking for them. Then I saw videos of signs/symptoms in women, and it clicked. A few months ago, my nephew told me he was diagnosed. Then I saw somewhere it.does have a genetic component. The lists thing resonated with me. I make them and then can't find them. I collect notebooks, I've got like 20 unused notebooks. They're supposed to be for journaling/diary and devotional stuff, but I can't seem to get started. Just this past week, I read/saw something that it's also related to ED. I have always had weight problems and developed bulimia as an adult. When I sought help, I was diagnosed with dysthymia, now called permanent depressive disorder. Listening to all this motivates me to look for help, but I think I can only afford a diagnosis at the moment.
I am in perimenopause, and I just got diagnosed. I thought I was going nuts. I wish this would have found out years ago. So many relationships would have been saved.
Do we wanna talk about how annoying when people say : slow down! Calm down! I mean, DUDE, my brain is running at 200km/h , I literally CANNOT slow down
Yep, time perception…and a family that beat me up about it so bad, and still do, that it became its own disorder. I came up with a solution that required my lovely family to tell me the time of the event starts two hours earlier than it actually does. I can trick myself as long as all parties just play along and pretend the time is earlier, but there can’t be any discussion about it. This part makes me sad…they decided, either individually or collectively, that they feel they should not have to remember to play along with my “silly” game because I’m “an adult” and ridiculous for expecting other people to have to remember to help trick me to be on time. Because I’m not a child, and I should just be on time, especially since I’m aware I asked them, that I’m being tricked. Truthfully, I can’t explain why it works. But only if it isn’t discussed, I guess it’s kind of like acting. I’m pretending I’m someone who is on time, so my brain allows me to pretend like I’m not pretending, but the other players have to play along. Apparently, that is too much to ask of the people who are supposed to love you the most. My family is the “poster family” for things you should never do or say to someone struggling with mental disorders, or as they often remind me, someone who is “crazy”. You would think I was asking them to rob a bank, or cut off a limb. They are just so opposed to telling me a time a couple of hours earlier, but they are the one’s that are perpetually upset with me, and bitch at me, and make me feel like shit…but also can’t be bothered to help me because “how ridiculous of me” to expect “grown ups” to humor my mentally ill games. On top of everything else, it has been so disheartening to realize how unwilling, narrow-minded and judgmental they are towards me. But they are absolutely always willing to make me feel like a defective piece of shit.
I've been pregnant or breastfeeding for most of my 30s (including right now) and have written things off as pregnancy brain, sleep deprivation, new mom brain, post-partum anxiety, etc but I've really been starting to wonder, especially as I talk to girlfriends who were recently diagnosed with ADHD, if I have ADHD and it's just been exacerbated by my low levels of estrogen 😮
We live in a capitalist society, we are valued only by our productivity. I'm sure this is why we are more focused on how neurodivergency impacts work/school. Just when I start to ponder if the two medical professionals that diagnosed me were wrong, I hear things like this that reaffirm my ADHD.
Wow. And here I thought that I had my adhd well in hand. This is pointing out a lot of side effects I consistly struggle with but never managed to identify
Yeah, the hormone thing really needs more research. For example, I would like to know if hormone replacement therapy could help with ADHD getting worse during menopause. And now on to the “crazy” part, my own thoughts about this. I am 55, male, waiting for ADHD and autism assessments (waiting times in the UK are years now). About 10 years ago, my executive functions got really really bad. I could sometimes not even bring myself to get up to make a meal, for a day or so. (I was not having major depression, I could work on my laptop on my projects, from bed … just not do anything that required executive control.) Around the same time, I lost much of my sense of smell. (I thought it was related to an influenza that I could not really take time to cure, because of project work. But I since learned dopamine is also the neurotransmitter used for transmitting smell sensations.) My sense of smell sometimes gets a little better now, but also disappears again. Could it be that I, as a cis-gendered male, have an estrogen insufficiency that parallels menopause for females, albeit at a much lower baseline level? - A neuroscientist said that she cannot ask a laboratory to check my estrogen levels in my blood, because there is no research about that in males. I do not know if I have estrogen problems, but I had this quirky thing during puberty where I started developing breasts … which after a year or so completely disappeared again. So, my estrogen could be, well, quirky, right? And a therapy that normalizes my estrogen levels, for a male, might actually help me a lot, right? Sigh … I guess I have to live with the fact that nobody will look into this any time soon.
ever since I began learning more about ADHD, really just in the past week or two, I feel like almost every symptom that is described applies to me. The time dilation / issue thing is one that I really have a hard time with. but at the same time though because I've been living my life and I've been unaware that I might have ADHD and because I am the protagonist in my life story and I don't know any other way I just feel like isn't this the same way for everybody..?
What recent article / research is Catie referring to, early on in the interview? It would be interesting to know, so that we can independently see it directly. Would be very appreciative if this could be made available, since it would assist in disseminating important info. Thanks in advance...
Hi Nina Romm - Thanks for your question. The article is "Cognitive functions of regularly cycling women may differ throughout the month, depending on sex hormone status; a possible explanation to conflicting results of studies of ADHD in females" and can be found here: www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2014.00191/full. We hope this helps! The Understood Team
@@UnderstoodOrg . Thanks so much for providing the article. After an initial scan, I do have some observations / a potential critique suggestion... how would I get to speak to one of your team about this ? I am in South Africa. Best regards, N
I have both. Been diagnosed as by dyslexia in the 70s and in my 40s diagnosed with ADHD! They say is severely disability in both now I'm screwed need some help. I been to school many times for different things. I can always get the job I just can't keep it. I've been asked ahead head injury for my writing. What can I do to be successful please help. Plus, thank God I found your thing hormones I've never had a period on my own. I thought it was a pituitary tumor. Nope been shoved under the table by many doctors and we can fix it and they can't but maybe it has to do with my severe disability, how do I help get help? My life is almost over.
Hi Anna, You mentioned that you were diagnosed with ADHD but not whether or not you're receiving treatment for it? Are you on ADHD meds, or seeing a therapist to help manage your symptoms like executive function issues?
well my complete journey ...birth...pandemicland plus 40-44 now explained! this IS SO important to put on billboards so we dont keep silent or isolated and fold into shame and fear...its not dementia is a fem body w neurodiversity plus perimenopause/hormones shifting /flux/monthly weekly!!! this oh my goddess! tell the world! suiside levels are so high for this age of woman. its all education!
@UnderstoodOrg The intersection of ADHD and PMDD has been hard but I've recently found more info about it (including this video) and it's been helpful. Thanks!
There is still quite a bit to be learned about how ADHD is impacted by hormones. Check out this video: ua-cam.com/video/OONIFvlnvyI/v-deo.html and this page www.understood.org/en/articles/adhd-hormones-women
Clicked because I find the topic fascinating, but I was nervous about bioessentialism rearing its ugly head (I'm trans and have to deal with that a LOT) -- when Catie used the phrases "people with ovaries" and "people with testicles" I INSTANTLY relaxed. Thank you for being mindful about this language, it helps a LOT for those of us who have the intersection of both ADHD & gender non-conforming. 🙏💖
Hi Antonio Rodriguez - If you suspect that your child might have ADHD (u.org/2Y9yCnk), you can look into requesting a free evaluation through the school or seek clinical testing and evaluation for ADHD. A good way to start might be to share your concerns with your child's pediatrician. We hope this helps! The team at Understood
@UnderstoodOrg Yes, so it would seem😳 Thank you very much for replying and for posting your content - it's such a crucial message to raise awareness for everyone. I knew I was a bit odd/weird, but it never occurred to me that I might have ADHD, until I became perimenopausal and felt like I was loosing my mind....
Your ADHD symptoms may have been mild before perimenopause. Perimenopause can affect ADHD in women by causing more severe symptoms. During perimenopause, estrogen and other hormone levels drop, which can lead to lower dopamine levels. This can make ADHD symptoms like anxiety, depression, moodiness, and difficulty concentrating worse. www.understood.org/en/podcasts/missunderstood/adhd-and-hormones www.understood.org/en/articles/adhd-hormones-women
Through my research and as I get tested for ADHD and autism, I keep having these AHA moments. This is another one. Started suffering from PCOS basically the second I hit puberty but wasn't diagnosed until around 25. Now I'm 32, and after my life falling apart multiple times I've finally gotten to this point of having to figure out what's truly "wrong" with me. I will still have some doubt in the back of my mind until I actually hear my psychiatrist say the words, but I can't believe how many answers I've been getting, for questions I didn't even realize I had.
My mom suffered with IBS her whole life but it almost disappeared after menopause. She had thyroid cancer and had her thyroid removed, and you know what, it might've been since then that her attention has gotten a lot worse. Everything is so genetic, and everything is so hormonal. As someone who suffers with PCOS, I definitely know how hormones control every single thing, and any doctor who thinks PCOS is just a fertility problem and writes it off, or doesn't even know it exists, makes me want to scream. We need more education and awareness. I'm tired of us women suffering in the dark because no one cares about our pain. How many of us have lost so many years of our lives because no one had the answers, and didn't care to ask. My whole life I thought I was failing everyone else...turns out, it was the world failing me. The sexist medical community, and society's suffocating confines and punishments.
Time blindness is huge… I managed to forget to sign up for college classes for a full year and lost the chance to go to college again… so happy to be able to finally understand my brain!
"is there a name for what's wrong with you?" lol this used to be a joke when I was younger, little did I know it would end up being the name of my biography! 😆😞
I am in tears. This is so my story as well. Great student, procrastinator, PCOS, binge eating, thinking I had early onset dementia. But I was just diagnosed a couple months ago at 43 and am still a huge mess, lol.
Me too, but it’s great to know we’re not alone. I relate to all that’s being said here. I love these ladies their being so honest. We need to be kind to our selves.
Kirstie, it helps to listen to all you can on ADHD, Attitude is the best in my opinion.
I was diagnosed at 75 last year, it was a shock and a relief. For me it was better to have ADHD than having dementia. It’s really hard, but we can learn to manage it. Good luck to you, and all the ADHDs out there. 🙏
That procrastinating behavioural pattern has seriously interrupted many of my academic opportunities, that is what bothers me the most.
I'm so glad that you're having these conversations. I have not even been diagnosed, and I strongly believe that I have ADHD. The symptoms you are pointing out are so accurate in describing my experience. I am 55 and have never been diagnosed. I thought my symptoms were a result of menopause or just being stressed at work. But now I know that there is an actual definition for my behaviour. I began to suspect I had ADHD I would be listening to my husband and daughter at different times and would realize that I had wandered off in my thoughts and couldn't give a response, when needed. This podcast along with other research has let me know that I am not alone, and I can be more patient with myself.
I totally understand your tears in response to this. I had the same response when I finally began to understand what was happening to me. ❤❤
Just had my aha moment 5 days ago. I am 47 and have been struggling probably for my whole life but my life has become unmanagable since perimenopause has hit. My son has ADHD and I did figure that I had it as well but it was last week when I took one of his pills just to see and for the first time I was calm!!! About an hour after taking the pill I felt calm and as I realized this I almost started crying. These meds have been in my house for years and it never occurred to me to try one. Now, I do have to get officially diagnosed. However everything makes sense to me now. Thank you for this podcast. I
I also had a similar aha moment. Years ago I was at work when one of my coworkers gave me an Adderall. I found my job to be nothing but drudgery. After I took the pill, I was calm and able to be focused on my tasks for the rest of the day, without a problem. That's when I realized that I should probably get tested, but I never did. I am now 60.
As an adult of 25 starting to date my now fiance, soon to be wife( 22 days). She pretty quickly had an idea that I had ADHD. She is a registered phycologist so she apparently knows what she's talking about. My younger brother has what I'd consider severe adhd with autism so growing up my mom refused to believe I had adhd because my brother was her baseline for what adhd is. But talking with her and going through the habits and signs of adhd has allowed me to own my diagnosis, and do alot of self reflection and really accept and be comfortable with who I am and things in the past that left hurt in my heart from past relationships and friendships and family relationships. And it's crazy to just check boxes off of things I thought were just struggles everyone had, but was better at managing than me.
I am learning soooo much listening to aha. I have had an eating disorder forever since 11 and I am 62. My therapist and psychiatrist still don't really get the hormone piece, really everything. Catie has hit almost everything I've gone thru. If only I could get the right help...........
This was a great video and very relatable. I have the same story where my adhd went very under radar until after I got my thyroid removed and everything was amplified
I have sever ADHD and just hearing her be like "omg im sorry im talking so long" makes me feel like... GIRL I FEEL YOU. PREACH
Thank you for making this video! I was also diagnosed with PCOS August 2022. It was brought to my attention that I have been displaying ADHD symptoms and I was like oh wow have I been masking this whole time? I didn't know. So I started doing research on ADHD and I was relating to a lot of the common symptoms of ADHD and the not so commonly recognized ones( not in the DSM 5) like emotional regulation, imposter syndrome, delayed sleep/ sleep issues, irritability and more. In addition, I noticed my mom displaying symptoms and brought it to her attention. She joked and said she has ADD but is too old to get diagnosed as she's 60 and has lived her whole life undiagnosed so why get diagnosed now. I have an appointment on Friday with a psychiatrist. I'm nervous as I've never seen a psychiatrist before but I'm excited to find out if I truly have ADHD as I believe I do. Thank you for showing me that I'm on the right path to seeking an assessment 🙏 🙂
I feel so SEEN right now!!!❤ Thank you so much for sharing your story! When you were talking about time blindness & not realizing you hadn't called your mom in ages, it just made me feel so SEEN and not alone! ❤
This. All of it, is profoundly relatable on a cellular level. Thank you Catie, for telling your story and Laura, for asking the questions I would have! I really needed to hear this today.
You are so welcome, Nik the Booksmith!
Thank you!! I’m autistic just in process of formal diagnoses at 65 - I had a brain bleed that affected exec function in my 30’s (which I had extra of as a kid) and when menopause happened around 50 my exec function got so much worse that I relate to the adhd predicament though the diagnostics do not place me on that end of the spectrum otherwise. I couldn’t understand why it was hard for others (who we now know or have reason to infer are adhd) in my family to just make a list, calendar it in, and then accomplish the whole thing as I did by dint of bloody minded focus and ramping my system up like I was on speed to get it done. I can’t take hormones or many meds due to brain bleed condition so now just coping with it taking all day to get one thing done at times or overworking once I get started or needing my husband to be happily elsewhere so I can get things done at all. I am a little feeling like a jerk in retrospect for not understanding why others were struggling and not in fact uncaring about how their actions or lack thereof impacted others, I feel regret for judging or being frustrated with them for being incompetent or willfully irresponsible which was unfair and not true.
This diagnostic and educational process has made me realize that people I find difficult might also be on the spectrum too and people who are not are also just relating and living within their own neuro emotional perceptive soup also involuntary on their part. So more tolerance for differences and more compassion for self and others is helpful. These channels like yours where I can hear women who share my experiences are a lifeline- I don’t have any women friends who are conversant in these differences and I have many broken relationships w women friends over misunderstandings including that I’m mostly homebound and so maintaining friendships can be challenging. Thank you so much. It’s like having coffee w some really interesting and accepting friends who can commiserate w my challenges to watch you gals! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Wow! I knew what you were going to say right before you said it! The whole dementia thing!! I was running red lights and all these things I shouldnt be doing and I had my thyroid removed before I got diagnosed, and maybe my hormones brought it all out. Thank you for this realization.
I have so many of these.. I was crying this whole video. Struggled with this since I was single digits. I've been crying this whole time. Ty for sharing. Ty so much😭
That really was an Ah-Ha Moment! What a delight to listen in on your conversation. I just cringed when Catie was talking about that teacher dumping her desk. I'm so sorry that happened to you. Naturally organized people think it's somehow a moral failing or a choice to be lazy or that you're not trying hard enough.
I realize listening to Catie's experience, that it was when I went thru menopause (and the death of my mother) that I really lost control of my house. I, too, have hired professional organizers. Exhausting and demoralizing. I'm FINALLY getting a handle on it because I'm working WITH my brain instead of trying a system that doesn't work and then blaming myself for "failing" yet again. There are 3 ADHD-friendly organizers that have really helped me. All 3 deal with clutter and disorganization, but also have deep compassion and a lack of judgement because they've all struggled with it. All have podcasts and would be great to interview (AND to interview you both):
Dana K. White at A Slob Comes Clean. She's been unofficially "diagnosed" by her ADHD followers who use her strategies. She says she has TPAD: Time Passage Awareness Disorder. "It's a term I made up but it's totally real." In addition to addressing Time Blindness, she also says that she doesn't see mess; there is no in-between mess/no mess.
Cas at Clutterbug, another ADHD-er diagnosed as an adult. In her system of organizing styles, I would guess that Catie is a Butterfly; Visual/has to see it, and Macro/Big Picture. Clear bins with no lids, hooks in every room. "Out of sight, out of mind." I have a white board & a big calendar that I use for tasks, appointments, etc. because I've finally realized that I can't trust myself to open a planner everyday.
K.C. Davis at Struggle Care (AWESOME TED Talk)! Psychologist recently diagnosed with ADHD, she focuses on the mental health aspects of disorganization. "Dishes are morally neutral. Dishes in the sink mean that you fed yourself."
I think for many ADHD-ers, organization is the final frontier!
Former burnout gifted kid here. Finally got my diagnosis this week! Right before my 45th birthday. I started the journey when I was finally getting my gifted endorsement this past school year. It has been incredibly eye opening, affirming, and challenging to see the world and myself with this new knowledge.
I have been actively educating myself on my adhd for years now and oh my GOSH I learned SO much from this video. TYSM!~🖤
I literally burst out in tears of relief. Thank you for sharing ladies. Now i know whats up with me😢❤
You are so welcome
Hi! I'm 64 and got my diagnosis a couple of years ago. I've been in therapy probable 10 years all together and done all the medication available, but I've had more aha moments listening to you for 10 minutes than all these other things together.
Thanks!
We're so glad you were able to get so much out of this episode! Thanks for listening, and commenting!
It's so affirming to hear other share experiencs.similar to mine. My ADHD went out of control after having my first child. I've never struggled so much to function - any compensation strategy I built went out the window.
I am so happy I ran into this video. I feel like I am listening to my own story!!! Looking for more of your content and like minded friends for support ❤
Hi lenaree75 - we're glad you found the video, too! You can find our content on our website, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, UA-cam, the Wunder app, Pinterest, and our podcast network!
Thank you for this -
☝️So important!☝️
Omg... I am following from Denmark and find this is so relatable...
A very lengthy natural menopause (14 y so far) have made my ad(h)d and all my struggles explode! Had I known this earlier I would have fought every discourse against hormonal supplements coming from my doctors , for sure! But, we should be able to rely on doctors for an educated counsel based on the unique history of the individual patient, right?
But I guess this falls under the grey area of “women’s issues” that carry so little medical interest as it is...
👋 I know what you mean, I'm 46 and live in rural Canada, ADHD is something I thought (until a few months ago) was just little boys who were hyper or poorly behaved. I'm dismayed at my own ignorance. Recently, I found out I'm "2e" which I had never even heard of. ADHD and Autism, but "gifted". I had a rich vocabulary and could read books at 2 years old, I graduated at 16, but I struggled with friendships and developed binge eating disorder, making me the fat girl in the 80's/90's in school. The bullying was brutal, and I was both highly sensitive and emotionally disregulated. My explosive reactions to bullying only further alienated me from peers and encouraged more bullying. My parents blamed me for my lack of will and inability to "ignore the bullies".
My childhood was awful, no one could understand why if I seemed so bright, I didn't seem to "apply myself" or live up to my potential. My parents unfortunately we're the "punish bad/undesirable behaviours" like messiness, lack of organization, etc. type.
But it was not because they didn't live me, it was because they didn't know any better. Still, I was regularly criticized, invalidated, shamed, punished, etc and that traumatized me, resulting in C-PTSD.
I actually hated myself as an adult because I never seemed able to keep my life together. I'd work so hard, would excel, burn out, get sick, quit my job/find another when managers started getting annoyed. Oh, yeah - and I have PCOS too. Any these days, perimenopause is making me loony.
I've been in therapy the last year, including DBT, which is how all these diagnoses starting coming to light. It all clicks. I can't believe how long I hated myself for being "bad" just because I didn't know I was just different.
I was one of the tare girls diagnosed with "ADD" in the 70s when I was 8. All my reportcards said, "plays well with others but can not finish tasks." I very thankful for the diagnosis; however, all I would be taught about the disorder is how to focus on school, I will distract easily, and remembering anything will be a challenge. I would learn some things to keep myself organized, and I didn't hate myself for being forgetful. I thought my ADHD symptoms began and ended there, and everything else I struggled with was just me being lazy, dirty, messy, and stupid.
Flash forward to me being 50, and I am no longer having periods, and the over stimuli in my brain has increased 10 fold. I figured out it was due to menopause. I'm not sure how, but there had to be a link. Now, I am on social media and people are talking about symptoms of ADHD. Things I never knew were a part of it. My aha moment. Realizing that all ADHDers forget the laundry, leave piles of stuff on the floor forever, have a messy house that you are embarrassed by, struggle with self care, are over sensitive for good reason. I no longer felt alone.
Thanks for talking about all of these things. Hormones are so important to talk about. I know many women my age who were never diagnosed with ADHD but think they have it and their symptoms got worse after stopping their periods, and the doctors just call it menopause. This is a conversation that needs to be told over and over.
Thank you.
You might enjoy this episode ADHD and Hormones (Catie's story) www.understood.org/en/podcasts/adhd-aha/adhd-hormones-catie-osborn
I’m not diagnosed with ADHD but I have a strong inclination that I do. I related to so many of the experiences and conditions that Catie expressed. It’s so validating and a bit relieving to have someone relate/articulate my lived experience, let alone through a lens that can give an explanation for them. An explanation that offers me a bit of grace
I’m happy I came across this today
I have PCOS and waiting to get assessed for ADHD. Listening to her story made me feel so seen. Time blindness is also the hardest thing for me to deal with. I’m late for everything and it makes me so angry bc it makes me look careless and disrespectful of peoples time but it’s not on purpose and I get so mad at myself bc I always think how did this happen AGAIN!?
So now I can see why my personal life at home is in shabbles. I was masking in childhood, childrearing years, then menopause hit things got out of hand: fast paced stressful time/tasks job requirements/ expectations,.... total overwhelmed burnout and energy crashing after work daily to bed, and in bed all first day off, 2nd day off too many things need to be done because of crashing 6 days of the week. And then repeat... Weekly for years. Hormones changed.... Menopause.... No more masking .... I wondered why I never caught on to my ADHD sooner in life. This makes total sense to me personally. Thank you.
I was lucky. My mom (adopted me at birth) worked as an aide in a newborn nursery. She noticed something off the first time she held me, that i never focused on her for long, that i was constantly looking all over the place. So, she kept a watch for symptoms as i got older and had me tested at 4 years old. Then i retested in adulthood too as part of an adhd awareness month thing.
Mind you, she didnt want to put me on medications, she just wanted to know for raising me. She didnt even broach the topic of medications until i was coming home from school crying because no one wanted to be my friend.
When I learned about the connection between ADHD, PMDD, and PCOS, everything started coming together.
I had to fight for 2/3s of those diagnosises. My pediatrician wrote off my irregular periods for years. When I did have my period, my PMS symptoms were so intense and disruptive that I was diagnosed with PMDD. My psychiatrist suggested I get another opinion on my periods, so I went to a gynecologist, who gave me the PCOS diagnosis. It would not be for another 8 years that I would finally convince them to test me for ADHD, though. I kind of felt like I was seen as a dumb girl who convinced herself she had all of these disorders from being on the internet too much. Finally, though, I got the ADHD piece.
But it didn’t make sense until I learned about how all three of these disorders interacted. How PCOS messes with your hormone levels, which triggers the panic alarm of PMDD, which intensifies the regulation issues of ADHD. And it wasn’t until I got a treatment plan that addressed all three of these issues that I finally got relief from the emotional roller coaster I felt like I’d been strapped in on since I was 12.
I’m proud of myself. I was the one who advocated to get diagnosed, who did the research to put it all together, who insisted on getting appropriate treatment when doctors were hesitant to offer me the medications that are the standard for treatment. I wish we had more providers that would take a holistic view and help their patients. But for now, it’s mostly up to us to do the heavy lifting to ensure we get the care we deserve, and to come together to share our stories to help others who might be in similar situations.
Sometimes I look back of all of the years of pain and struggle and wonder where I might be today if I had been properly diagnosed and given the correct treatment much earlier on. You can’t change the past, but you also can’t help but mourn for what you have lost once you are treated and realize this is how you should have felt for the past 10 years. This is why I think spreading awareness of this connection is so vital.
We're proud of you too! And so glad you are here.
Thank you for sharing this! I love learning and hearing people share their stories, especially other women. It really helps remind me that I'm not alone and not crazy.
It’s 71’ - 72’, high school physics. I’m running around helping fellow students understand the lab. Everyone’s so grateful. Next day the test. 💣 Day after that, after class I’m getting the look from the prof. “Wood you like to know what you got on the test?” “No.” “What happened?” 🤷♂️ There was nothing to say. There was nothing more to be said. It had happened again (and again and . . . ) There were no answers. I just wanted to get away. Now in my 70’s at least I can BEGIN to understand all the struggles I experienced trying to do right and still disappointing everyone.
I turned 50 in March this year.. I was diagnosed 2 months before that. My realisation came after watching catieosaurus on tic tock. Once you see it, you can't unsee it. I was then scratching my head thinking, how did i not know! So many things make sense now, not only for myself, but for many members of my family. Hormone changes magnified everything, & was unquestionably driving me mental. Things i used to be able to do, i couldn't do anymore. I felt like a useless scatterbrain. My only motivation & drive came by putting myself in a state of anxiety. Until i felt that feeling, i wasnt doing anything. Thank you for crossing my path Catie, you quite honestly, saved my life 🫶🏼
So many relatable things especially the impact of hot(r)mone changes. I survived very late stage 3 TNBC & after my mastectomy, holy cow!! 😳 Things got ugly. I'm now, and not surprisedly, dx Autistic & ADHD. I just turned & learned this, this year 🎉
Thank you for so many neuro affirming things. Bless you both ❤
Didn't know i was still beating myself up for the circumstances that lead to me eventually getting gastric bypass at nearly 400 pounds...thank you for giving me the understanding for it beyond "a lack of self control" and giving me permission to stop kicking myself over it
We're so glad you're here!
Could this also tie in with autism in women, neuro diversity in general? Although I’m in the UK I know of a lot of late diagnosis of neuro diverse conditions. The mix of hormones and genetics it suggests there could be so many people struggling that are undiagnosed, and therefore unsupported.
Exactly ! Hopefully this question will start getting asked much more frequently, and become part of the collective discussion. Thanks for putting it on the table
Thank you for the video, about 2 years now I realized I'm losing my speech. I am a teacher, and I find it hard to flow in conversation. I have to stop and think about what I'm going to say which is embarrassing. I don't know what to do.
Same. It's crippling! Perimenopause is a killer. And then discovering i have ADHD and autism on top of it. I can't think properly or get my sentences out anymore.
Wonderful guest. Thank you and g'day from Australia 🦘 Xx
Thanks for listening, Sloane Delaney!
I think you just changed my life. ❤ jaw on the floor. Thank you from the bottom of my heart
Thank you so much for this story, it made me understand and also telling me what I understand wrong in my relationship with my Foster daughter. It will help me so much to deal with it and it will change my way of dealing with it also. Thank you, thank you , thank you.
We're SO glad the episode was helpful!
Ok, I'm not a woman (so I obviously didn't lose an ovary), but everything you're describing sounds exactly like what is happening to me. I was attributing it to depression, leading to Vitamin D deficiency (which has ALL of those symptoms, including anxiety and depression again) and some home emergencies that kicked my ADHD into overdrive. Since I have to organize a basement and garage I want/need to clean, but I don't know where to put stuff (or I can't find what's in front of me). Oh and there's a tree about to fall on my house...hi anxiety!😤
You talking about time perception really hit home for me. Yes! ❤
2ND HAND SMOKE REALLY TRIGGERS MY ADHD SYMPTOMS.
I was really concerned about a previous head injury I got from a car crash. In short, "I thought I had dementia". That was the start to my ADHD journey too.
Hugely grateful for this video, thankyou
We're so glad you enjoyed listening!💙
Yep! The hyperfiction, losing track of time, being in my own dimension. The teacher placed my desk on the opposite side of my classmates, separate from them, cuz my persistent stream of Q. was distracting to the teacher and assumingly disruptive to the class. Anyhow I didn't get diagnosed until last year when I was 65.
As someone who is not diagnosed yet and who struggles to believe it will say I have adhd, I really find it hard to believe that it is not like that for neurotypical people. Like it has always been like that and my mom would always say it is normal. Like I feel life would also be soooo boring without these problems even though they are extremely exhausting
Haaaa, who remembers to keep track of your period? For me with the whole time perception difference is an experiential thing that is probably some form of as yet unrecognized synesthesia. Time is a feeling attached to emotions of fear, anxiety, boredom, apathy, enthusiasm, wonder, etc. Within these emotional time flavors (for lack of a better description) is a spectrum of gauged time awareness that I think is learned from past positive, negative or neutral experiences. For example, I know that if I am hyper focused on an activity that I will experience time moving normally but have learned that it is actually moving much faster than I would have felt it to. I know that if this is going to be an issue I will feel compelled to keep an actual clock on myself or right near me to get a grip on the pace of the rest of the world. I know that minutes will feel like hours if I am doing something I find tedious. (I believe this emotional/task/time thing is universal, but what I experience is on a spectrum that is not necessarily predictable or even remotely logical; it’s not uncommon for the lost time when I am content to be equal to time lost when I am unhappy).
Anyway I guess my point is that time perception is linked to the stability of my emotional state which makes the ability to “manage” time in a regular and consistent way predicated on my entire emotional capacity, which unfortunately can be thrown off by the majority of challenges going through life with ADHD. It becomes a moving goal post that I am better at predicting sometimes but often it can surprise me and really illogically mess up my intentions. I’m sure from the outside it just seems nuts. I know how much I’ve tried to explain why I’m late for the 50th time to jobs that I do extremely well (and guiltily stayed extra late for) but end up being fired for this. Unfortunate. Embarrassing. I’ve let this external judgement go because I know this kind of thing will only turn into shame. I’m done with taking on excessive burdens from the world that I wasn’t designed to carry around.
The more I learn about everything the more ludicrous and restrictive the way we’ve been taught to live our lives becomes. We seem to set ourselves up to fail and then revel in our collective suffering and most never ask why?
I am pretty sure now I have it and I'm 47. For a while, I've been thinking I have ADHD. Videos came on my TT feed without looking for them. Then I saw videos of signs/symptoms in women, and it clicked. A few months ago, my nephew told me he was diagnosed. Then I saw somewhere it.does have a genetic component. The lists thing resonated with me. I make them and then can't find them. I collect notebooks, I've got like 20 unused notebooks. They're supposed to be for journaling/diary and devotional stuff, but I can't seem to get started. Just this past week, I read/saw something that it's also related to ED. I have always had weight problems and developed bulimia as an adult. When I sought help, I was diagnosed with dysthymia, now called permanent depressive disorder. Listening to all this motivates me to look for help, but I think I can only afford a diagnosis at the moment.
I am in perimenopause, and I just got diagnosed. I thought I was going nuts. I wish this would have found out years ago. So many relationships would have been saved.
Do we wanna talk about how annoying when people say : slow down! Calm down! I mean, DUDE, my brain is running at 200km/h , I literally CANNOT slow down
6:38 No joke, I had the exact same thought about early onset dementia.
Yep, time perception…and a family that beat me up about it so bad, and still do, that it became its own disorder. I came up with a solution that required my lovely family to tell me the time of the event starts two hours earlier than it actually does. I can trick myself as long as all parties just play along and pretend the time is earlier, but there can’t be any discussion about it. This part makes me sad…they decided, either individually or collectively, that they feel they should not have to remember to play along with my “silly” game because I’m “an adult” and ridiculous for expecting other people to have to remember to help trick me to be on time. Because I’m not a child, and I should just be on time, especially since I’m aware I asked them, that I’m being tricked. Truthfully, I can’t explain why it works. But only if it isn’t discussed, I guess it’s kind of like acting. I’m pretending I’m someone who is on time, so my brain allows me to pretend like I’m not pretending, but the other players have to play along. Apparently, that is too much to ask of the people who are supposed to love you the most. My family is the “poster family” for things you should never do or say to someone struggling with mental disorders, or as they often remind me, someone who is “crazy”. You would think I was asking them to rob a bank, or cut off a limb. They are just so opposed to telling me a time a couple of hours earlier, but they are the one’s that are perpetually upset with me, and bitch at me, and make me feel like shit…but also can’t be bothered to help me because “how ridiculous of me” to expect “grown ups” to humor my mentally ill games. On top of everything else, it has been so disheartening to realize how unwilling, narrow-minded and judgmental they are towards me. But they are absolutely always willing to make me feel like a defective piece of shit.
I HAD A TURBINECTOMY. I STARTED HAVING EXTREME ANXIETY AND ADHD SYMPTOMS.
I've been pregnant or breastfeeding for most of my 30s (including right now) and have written things off as pregnancy brain, sleep deprivation, new mom brain, post-partum anxiety, etc but I've really been starting to wonder, especially as I talk to girlfriends who were recently diagnosed with ADHD, if I have ADHD and it's just been exacerbated by my low levels of estrogen 😮
We live in a capitalist society, we are valued only by our productivity. I'm sure this is why we are more focused on how neurodivergency impacts work/school.
Just when I start to ponder if the two medical professionals that diagnosed me were wrong, I hear things like this that reaffirm my ADHD.
Wow. And here I thought that I had my adhd well in hand. This is pointing out a lot of side effects I consistly struggle with but never managed to identify
Yeah, the hormone thing really needs more research. For example, I would like to know if hormone replacement therapy could help with ADHD getting worse during menopause.
And now on to the “crazy” part, my own thoughts about this. I am 55, male, waiting for ADHD and autism assessments (waiting times in the UK are years now). About 10 years ago, my executive functions got really really bad. I could sometimes not even bring myself to get up to make a meal, for a day or so. (I was not having major depression, I could work on my laptop on my projects, from bed … just not do anything that required executive control.) Around the same time, I lost much of my sense of smell. (I thought it was related to an influenza that I could not really take time to cure, because of project work. But I since learned dopamine is also the neurotransmitter used for transmitting smell sensations.) My sense of smell sometimes gets a little better now, but also disappears again.
Could it be that I, as a cis-gendered male, have an estrogen insufficiency that parallels menopause for females, albeit at a much lower baseline level? - A neuroscientist said that she cannot ask a laboratory to check my estrogen levels in my blood, because there is no research about that in males. I do not know if I have estrogen problems, but I had this quirky thing during puberty where I started developing breasts … which after a year or so completely disappeared again. So, my estrogen could be, well, quirky, right? And a therapy that normalizes my estrogen levels, for a male, might actually help me a lot, right?
Sigh … I guess I have to live with the fact that nobody will look into this any time soon.
You might enjoy this episode about ADHD and hormones www.understood.org/en/podcasts/adhd-aha/adhd-hormones-catie-osborn
I didn’t get my dual diagnosis of ASD and Combined ADHD until the tender age of 42 all due to pandemic and perimenopause
OMG this is the most incredible thing .. the adhd and menopause monent... everything me !
ever since I began learning more about ADHD, really just in the past week or two, I feel like almost every symptom that is described applies to me. The time dilation / issue thing is one that I really have a hard time with. but at the same time though because I've been living my life and I've been unaware that I might have ADHD and because I am the protagonist in my life story and I don't know any other way I just feel like isn't this the same way for everybody..?
What recent article / research is Catie referring to, early on in the interview? It would be interesting to know, so that we can independently see it directly. Would be very appreciative if this could be made available, since it would assist in disseminating important info. Thanks in advance...
Hi Nina Romm - Thanks for your question. The article is "Cognitive functions of regularly cycling women may differ throughout the month, depending on sex hormone status; a possible explanation to conflicting results of studies of ADHD in females" and can be found here: www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2014.00191/full.
We hope this helps!
The Understood Team
@@UnderstoodOrg . Thanks so much for providing the article.
After an initial scan, I do have some observations / a potential critique suggestion... how would I get to speak to one of your team about this ?
I am in South Africa.
Best regards, N
Hi Nina Romm - For questions about our network of podcasts or to share feedback or your own personal story, email us at podcasts@understood.org.
I had an ovarian cyst removed as well also endometriosis which is very painful x
I have both.
Been diagnosed as by dyslexia in the 70s and in my 40s diagnosed with ADHD!
They say is severely disability in both now I'm screwed need some help. I been to school many times for different things. I can always get the job I just can't keep it. I've been asked ahead head injury for my writing. What can I do to be successful please help.
Plus, thank God I found your thing hormones I've never had a period on my own. I thought it was a pituitary tumor. Nope been shoved under the table by many doctors and we can fix it and they can't but maybe it has to do with my severe disability, how do I help get help? My life is almost over.
Hi Anna, You mentioned that you were diagnosed with ADHD but not whether or not you're receiving treatment for it? Are you on ADHD meds, or seeing a therapist to help manage your symptoms like executive function issues?
I have never felt this hear. i have ADHD for sure.
well my complete journey ...birth...pandemicland plus 40-44 now explained! this IS SO important to put on billboards so we dont keep silent or isolated and fold into shame and fear...its not dementia is a fem body w neurodiversity plus perimenopause/hormones shifting /flux/monthly weekly!!! this oh my goddess! tell the world! suiside levels are so high for this age of woman. its all education!
How does being post menopausal affect ADHD?!
Time blindness!!! 😩 YESSSS! Anyone have any natural remedies/supplement advice to help?
Here's an article that has some information and ideas on managing time blindness www.understood.org/en/articles/adhd-time-blindness
When I was a kid they said it would go away when I got older lol, it gets worse every day 🫠
A common misconception used to be that kids would outgrow ADHD :(
@UnderstoodOrg
The intersection of ADHD and PMDD has been hard but I've recently found more info about it (including this video) and it's been helpful. Thanks!
There is still quite a bit to be learned about how ADHD is impacted by hormones. Check out this video: ua-cam.com/video/OONIFvlnvyI/v-deo.html and this page www.understood.org/en/articles/adhd-hormones-women
Adhd feels like an avalanche of emotions. How does it effect your sex life
Oookay, I will get an appointment
Clicked because I find the topic fascinating, but I was nervous about bioessentialism rearing its ugly head (I'm trans and have to deal with that a LOT) -- when Catie used the phrases "people with ovaries" and "people with testicles" I INSTANTLY relaxed. Thank you for being mindful about this language, it helps a LOT for those of us who have the intersection of both ADHD & gender non-conforming. 🙏💖
You're so very welcome!
How to detect a 10 years child with ADHD please?
Hi Antonio Rodriguez - If you suspect that your child might have ADHD (u.org/2Y9yCnk), you can look into requesting a free evaluation through the school or seek clinical testing and evaluation for ADHD. A good way to start might be to share your concerns with your child's pediatrician.
We hope this helps!
The team at Understood
NO WONDER I NEVER COULD HOLD DOWN A JOB.
I bet her OBGY-Nobi is proud of Han Sol-Ovary.
Catie, I feel like your life closely mirrors my own..... I feel like my perimenopause has derailed my life! 😮
I think it might be fair to say perimenopause derails quite a few women's lives.
@UnderstoodOrg Yes, so it would seem😳
Thank you very much for replying and for posting your content - it's such a crucial message to raise awareness for everyone.
I knew I was a bit odd/weird, but it never occurred to me that I might have ADHD, until I became perimenopausal and felt like I was loosing my mind....
Your ADHD symptoms may have been mild before perimenopause. Perimenopause can affect ADHD in women by causing more severe symptoms. During perimenopause, estrogen and other hormone levels drop, which can lead to lower dopamine levels. This can make ADHD symptoms like anxiety, depression, moodiness, and difficulty concentrating worse.
www.understood.org/en/podcasts/missunderstood/adhd-and-hormones
www.understood.org/en/articles/adhd-hormones-women
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤😢😢😢🎉🎉🎉🎉
Hans sol-ovary 😂
"People with periods" so women, just say women.
'people who have ovaries' ??? Seriously???
People who have periods...
You mean women came in