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It\u2019s no secret that much of the information we have on health, especially mental health, comes from research on cis men.<\/p>\n
This means that many of the criteria around mental health and well-being only apply to half of the population. Because of this, cis women and people assigned female at birth (AFAB) are often left in the dust.<\/p>\n
According to the United States National Institute of Mental Health Data, 3.2% of female adults aged 18-44 have a current ADHD diagnosis, versus 5.4% of males. That\u2019s only people who are currently diagnosed. Think of how many fly under the radar due to a lack of mental health care, resources, or because they don\u2019t want a diagnosis.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Many cases of ADHD, or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, in females go undetected because the symptoms don\u2019t always show up in the same way as they do for males. This leaves many people without the tools and resources they need to better navigate through the world with.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of the reasons so many cases of ADHD in females have been missed is because ADHD was previously thought to only affect males. This means that teachers, parents, and health care professionals didn\u2019t even consider it a possibility, and wrote off females who were experiencing symptoms.<\/p>\n
Another reason is that ADHD tends to show up differently in females than males.<\/p>\n
In many cases, the symptoms of ADHD are most apparent while people are in school. Teachers reporting this behavior is often the start of people with ADHD getting the support they need. Males are more likely to have symptoms like hyperactivity and impulsivity, while females are more likely to be inattentive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
These symptoms are much less obvious because they don\u2019t tend to cause a disruption, however, that also means females and girls don\u2019t get the same early diagnosis that their male classmates do.<\/p>\n
The most common symptoms of ADHD in adult females include:<\/p>\n
These symptoms are often chalked up to being personality traits, and not characteristics of ADHD. This prevents many females from getting an ADHD diagnosis when they\u2019re young, and often receive a misdiagnosis for another mental health disorder as they get older.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not uncommon for adults with ADHD to experience comorbidity of multiple mental health disorders like substance abuse, anxiety, sleep, mood, and eating disorders.<\/p>\n