Why are so many adults with ADHD undiagnosed?
Adults with ADHD: Why are adults (in the age range 35-75) who seek help for ADHD, ignored, shunned, or gaslighted? Why are their mental health claims completely ignored by not only the medical community, but their family and social circles?
The answer is complicated.
Mostly, it is because the individuals have been undiagnosed by a then-mental health unaware medical community. ADHD falls under the mental health affliction category, and back then, families (some still do) swept these notions under the carpet or flat denied them based on shame, personal biases and culture. These adults with ADHD, sadly mostly women, have been forced to cope with this disorder their entire lives and endure the ridicules of others for their symptoms and misdiagnosis from uninformed medical personnel. These people, now in their mature years, have used coping skills they innately improvised without even knowing to get through each day and perform as moms, dads, sisters, brothers, employees, employers, and spouses.
For decades, they have endured nasty comments and judgements from people in the workforce, social circles and even their own family members based on their ADHD behavior, fallout, symptoms and struggles. Every day for these individuals is a day on the ADHD Struggle Bus.
It is common for them to hear comments from others such as: “Oh, she is just on her period”, or “Oh, she is just going through the change,” or “She or he is just crazy sometimes,” or “I have given her or him the assignments to read over and over again, she or he is just lazy.”
An adult with ADHD probably has multiple thoughts racing like a Formula 1 driver in his or her mind: “I can’t focus. I can’t focus long enough to finish the multiple projects I have started by myself and the ones instituted by my work. Oh no! I lose my glasses, I lose my coffee, I lose my keys, I can’t remember why I walked into this room to do this thing and I know it was really important. I know I have to do all these things and I feel overly-pressured to do them and I know if I don’t do them, my family or my boss will be very disappointed in me. I have to do these things and I have to do many other things. I can tell others how to run their schedule, but I have a hard time running my own schedule. Wait! Where is my schedule? Haha!”
These individuals have experienced not only decades of humiliation, lack of academic modification or psychological help, but many family members and friends have been unable to acknowledge the existence of such an affliction or show compassion towards them. This is based on others’ insecurities, internal shame and ignorance.
In the year of 2022-2023, the medical community is still quick to prescribe children, teens ADHD medication. Will they offer this same opportunity to adults suffering from this acute disability? Maybe, maybe not. As of 11/2022 the federal government has restricted production of Adderall, an ADHD medication based on the black-market circulation of that drug for individuals who do not have a diagnosis of ADHD or ADD. The proposed new ADHD drug introduction date is 4/2023. In the meantime, individuals who require that medicine find it to be unavailable or in scare supply. This includes children, teens, and adults. This situation simply exacerbates the ongoing situation where adults, especially women, cannot access the medication necessary to assist them with ADHD situation.
Additional hurdles for adults seeking diagnosis and treatment for ADHD are: Doctors must order additional tests of adults who have the bravery to even ask for help in treatment of this disorder. There are laws in place. Adults must pay for a full physical and a heart EKG testing. Depending upon those results, they may have to see several additional doctors, pay out of pocket or wait for the insurance referral to be approved and then wait for those results to be forwarded to the psychiatric doctor who can prescribe them the proper ADHD medication, if it is even available.
Speak out if you are an adult who has been suffering with ADHD your entire life. Talk about childhood memories on the subject with family members and the medical community. Continue to self-advocate for yourself, no matter what your age! Mental health issues have no claim age. We are all in this together. We need to uplift each other and retire that ADHD Struggle Bus!
