Written by:
Lauren Pflug, Digital Content Strategist at Blueprint Evolution
Neurodivergent has been a bit of a buzzword lately, and there’s a good reason for it! Neurodiversity is a spectrum that includes autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and dyspraxia. A human without any of these disorders is considered neurotypical— their brains function as they “typically should.” As a culture, we have been seeing more and more adults receive ADHD diagnoses. A lot of adults are receiving life-changing answers and finally gaining clarity on why they’ve always felt like something was off.
Psychology and neurology professionals are discovering how easily ADHD symptoms can be mistaken for depression symptoms; as a result, there were many humans misdiagnosed and treated for depression for years, even decades. In addition to the misdiagnosis issue, there are other reasons for the uptick in ADHD diagnostics: the pandemic giving us more time to evaluate ourselves and the high rate at which we consume and share information (i.e. TikTok). People are consuming ADHD-related content and having these lightbulb moments where they finally feel understood. (To learn more about the increase in diagnoses, visit https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jun/02/tiktok-trends-or-the-pandemic-whats-behind-the-rise-in-adhd-diagnoses )
(Disclaimer: Gendered language is difficult to avoid here as the data is based on current research limited to binary terms often conflating gender and sex assigned at birth. Moreover, I believe it is important to know how these gender norms/roles were harmful to the under-diagnosed children turned adults.)
For decades, ADHD was viewed as a disorder that only occurred in males. Although we now know that this isn’t true, it is still disproportionately diagnosed in boys. Additionally, it leaves a lot of people who were overlooked as children, diagnosed with depression as adults, prescribed antidepressants, and fell right through the cracks. We are still learning about ADHD as a society, and as a person with an ADHD brain, it can sometimes feel like something that I should hide, especially in professional settings. I tell myself that higher-ups may think that I am less qualified because of my disorder.
This should not be the case, and we are hoping to change this for both the neurodivergent human and the potential “higher-ups”.
ADHD is in every workplace.
The more we know about the disorder and its symptoms, the better we can understand and support our neurodivergent colleagues. When colleagues feel supported, it provides them with an environment in which they are much more likely to thrive. There are numerous methods to support colleagues with ADHD in the workplace… let’s start with the basics.
Here are 5 things companies should know when supporting neurodivergent colleagues.
1. Dopamine
You will commonly hear about dopamine in regard to ADHD. This is because ADHD is a direct result of low levels of dopamine in the brain. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that enables us to feel pleasure, satisfaction, and motivation. You may commonly hear dopamine referred to as the brain’s reward and pleasure center. Having low levels of dopamine induces stress, depression, and fatigue, affects mood and sleep, impairs executive function (more on this later), attention, organization, and emotional regulation. As a result, impulsivity, inattention, and hyperactivity are increased. Sounds fun, huh? ADHD brains are constantly looking for little hits of dopamine, which can help explain why we get so easily distracted… once the dopamine from a new idea or task wears off, our brains are instantly looking for more.
2. Symptomology
There is a wide range of symptoms that accompany ADHD. Cognitive symptoms include difficulty focusing, lack of concentration, forgetfulness, short attention span, racing thoughts, fatigue, and time blindness. Time blindness is a weak perception of time or the inability to sense the passing of time. It’s kind of like when you’re positive you can get ready in 30 minutes, just to realize that an hour and a half has gone by. Symptoms affecting mood include anxiety, excitement, mood swings, and boredom. Behavioral symptoms include hyperactivity, fidgeting, difficulty sitting still, risk-taking behaviors, difficulty completing tasks/jumping from task to task, difficulty prioritizing, and a tendency to interrupt others. Any human with ADHD can experience a different variety of these symptoms, some of which occur constantly, others occurring occasionally.
3. Hyperactivity
This is an important symptom to understand because it can manifest in different ways. The average person hears hyperactivity and correlates it to how it sounds: hyper… active. While this can certainly be true for some, in a lot of adults, hyperactivity presents inward and manifests as constant racing thoughts. It is quite literally having an inner dialogue that never shuts up. As you can probably imagine, this can be especially frustrating when you need to focus on an important task. Instead of being able to zero in on that task, your brain would rather think about the ending of that show last night, what you should have for dinner tonight, that phone call you need to make, the gift you need to buy, the dog food you can’t forget to pick up, etc. Someone could be suffering from constant hyperactivity, and you would never know by just looking at them.
4. Executive functioning
Simply put, executive function is the way humans get things done. Executive function is a skill that enables mental processes that we use to focus, plan, follow instructions, access memory, and juggle tasks. It relies on brain function in the areas of working memory, mental flexibility, and self-control. These three areas are very interconnected and rely on each other to operate concurrently so that executive functioning is successful.
ADHD has a large impact on executive functioning; it is an executive function deficit disorder. Humans with neurotypical brains can rely on their executive function to easily prioritize tasks without using much brain power. Neurodivergent humans require significantly more brain power since their executive functioning is impaired. (To learn more, visit https://www.additudemag.com/7-executive-function-deficits-linked-to-adhd/ )
5. Tips for support
Now that you have survived the ADHD crash course, you are better equipped to understand and support your neurodivergent colleagues! Now, every ADHD brain is different, and different humans require different types of support. That being said, there are numerous ways to achieve an ADHD-friendly workplace. ADHD can make self-motivation extremely challenging, but having accountability can help to improve this.
Scheduling regular check-ins where short-term goals and timelines are made clear is a great start to assist in making sure your employee is staying on track. Proactively supporting time management can be huge. Remember, time blindness is REAL. It is not uncommon for an ADHD brain to work differently; if the tasks are being completed, being picky about how they’re being completed is a waste of time. Support them in getting things done their way… even if it’s different. Give them the freedom to design their approach. Assigning a task buddy to help get work done is one of my favorites; accountability can help to kickstart that motivation, and having an “accountabilibuddy” is a great support option.
I like to call this my “ADHD Crash Course”. If you get creative, there are endless ways to support colleagues with ADHD. That being said, I think that half the battle is actually understanding the disorder. Ignorance can lead many to believe that these symptoms are just laziness—which is an ADHDer’s worst nightmare.
A common thread for neurodivergent brains is struggling from perfectionism while lacking the motivation to achieve said perfection. This is overwhelmingly frustrating to live with, and is only managed by learning to be patient with yourself and trying to find your own quirky life-hacks. As an employer, leader, or colleague, your main goal should be to first understand this disorder. Once you are armed with that knowledge, you can use these tips to better equip your neurodivergent peers, and lead them to the success they so desperately strive for.
Sources:
- Korducki, K.M. (2022). TikTok trends or the pandemic? What’s behind the rise in ADHD diagnoses? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jun/02/tiktok-trends-or-the-pandemic-whats-behind-the-rise-in-adhd-diagnoses
- Blum, K., Chen, A.L., Braverman, E.R., Comings, D.E., Chen, T.J., Arcuri, V., Blum, S.H., Downs, B.W., Waite, R.L., Notaro, A., Lubar, J., Williams, L., Prihoda, T.J., Palomo, T., Oscar-Berman, M. (2008) Attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder and reward deficiency syndrome. National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2626918/
- Adult ADHD Overview https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/adult-adhd/symptoms-causes/syc-20350878
- Barkley, R. (2023). What is Executive Function? 7 Deficits Tied To ADHD. ADDitude – Inside the ADHD mind. https://www.additudemag.com/7-executive-function-deficits-linked-to-adhd/
- Images courtesy of Canva
