I was diagnosed at 25 in March 2018 with ADHD.
Before, I carried the diagnoses of Bipolar disorder, Depression, Anxiety, and OCD. My whole life I was told I was bright, but also lazy, stupid, harebrained, in a fog, etc. I almost failed out of college. I watched as people passed me by, and felt I wasn’t living up to my potential. I felt that something was wrong but my fatigue/mood swings were attributed to depression and bipolar.
However, SSRIs and mood stabilizers never “fixed” me. I lost my first professional job after college and fell into a suicidal depression. I couldn’t organize a job search. I felt like a failure.
I finally saw a documentary about ADHD and talked to my doctor about it. He trialed me on medication and it was like wearing glasses for the first time. I landed my dream job and am doing much better now.
I never considered ADHD before because I had a misconception of what the disorder was. I now know it’s more than not paying attention and being hyper. There is hope.