ADHD Symptoms and Signs
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a developmental difference in attention regulation, impulse control and activity level, present before age twelve and showing up in more than one setting.
Also called: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADD, Attention deficit disorder.
ICD-10 F90 · ICD-11 6A05
Not a shortage of attention. Trouble aiming it.
Everybody loses focus sometimes. ADHD, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, is not more of that. It is a lifelong difference in how the brain controls attention, activity and impulses. It starts in childhood.
The name does not help. Attention is not low in ADHD. The problem is aiming it where you choose, and keeping it there when the task is boring. On something new or urgent it can lock on for hours. On a form due next month it will not start at all.
FROM INSIDE
What it is actually like
Time comes in only two kinds. There is now, and there is not now. A deadline next week is not now. Then suddenly it was yesterday. This is not about caring less. Studies show that people with ADHD judge the length of time less accurately than other people.
Starting is the hardest part. The task itself is often easy. Getting into it is not. People describe sitting in front of a task for an hour, wanting to begin, and not beginning.
In adults, the restlessness usually moves inside. There is less running around. Instead the mind jumps from track to track, a leg will not stop moving, and anything more interesting pulls hard at you.
A torch with a loose switch
The beam is bright. Point it at something interesting and it lights the whole thing up. The switch is the problem. It flicks off in the middle of a job, and it does not always come on when you press it.
WHAT IT DOES
Four things it takes
None of these is "not paying attention". They are what uneven attention costs a person over years.
Time
People run late, arrive far too early, or guess badly at how long a job takes. Bills, forms and appointments slip. Each one adds a small cost, and the costs build up.
Starting
A task with no deadline and no interest never begins. So work piles up until panic arrives. Panic then becomes the only thing that reliably gets it done.
Emotions
This is not in the official criteria, but it is common. Between a third and two thirds of adults with ADHD report fast, strong reactions that are hard to bring back down.
Other people
Forgotten plans and half-heard conversations get read as not caring. That reading is usually wrong. It is also usually the part that hurts most.
7.6% — CHILDREN
2.6% — ADULTS
74% — HERITABLE
2/3 — PERSIST
When it tends to begin
Peak age of onset: 10.
Median age of onset: 12.
ADHD starts earlier than almost any other condition on this site. For a diagnosis, several symptoms must have been present before age 12. But being present is not the same as being noticed. Many people are not diagnosed until their twenties, thirties or later. This happens to women most often.
How it is actually diagnosed
A diagnosis needs six or more symptoms of inattention, or six of hyperactivity and impulsivity, or both. From age 17, five is enough. The symptoms must also meet all of the conditions below.
- They have lasted at least six months
- Several of them were present before age 12
- They show up in two or more settings, such as home and work
- They clearly get in the way of work, school or relationships
- They are not better explained by another condition
ADHD comes in three forms. It can be mainly inattentive, mainly hyperactive-impulsive, or a combination of both. The inattentive form is the easiest to miss, because it is quiet.
If it is worse than that right now
ADHD raises the risk of accidents. It also often comes with anxiety and depression. Thoughts of not wanting to be here are more common than people expect. They can be treated.
If you are thinking about harming yourself, contact emergency services or a crisis line now.