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Girls and Women with ADHD (ADD)
Until that time, however, the reality is that many females – both girls and women – suffer from undiagnosed ADHD (ADD). Many, if not most of these females blame themselves for their struggles – for their failures and inability to fulfill their potential. Even today, many girls and women who seek a diagnosis are denied – too few professionals are trained to recognize ADHD (ADD) in females who have not shown behavior problems, who may have performed decently, even well, in school – yet who struggle daily with low self-esteem, with problems that they struggle to hide. Many girls and women with ADHD (ADD) feel that they don’t fit in and that they can’t meet the expectations that are placed on females, but have no understanding of why. Kathleen Nadeau, Ph.D., Director of the Chesapeake Center, has been a pioneer in writing and lecturing about girls and women with ADHD (ADD). She co-authored two ground-breaking books – Understanding Girls with ADHD and Understanding Women with ADHD, and co-edited the book for professionals, Gender Issues and ADHD. (These titles as well as all of Dr. Nadeau’s other titles are available at Addvance or Amazon.) At the Chesapeake ADHD Center of Maryland, we have a very strong interest in diagnosing and treating girls and women with ADHD (ADD), and in educating the mental health community so that when females (girls or women) seek assessment for ADHD (ADD) issues that their concerns are no longer minimized or misdiagnosed as anxiety or depression.
Articles about Girls and Women
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Our notions of ADHD (ADD) are a product of its history. Because we first paid
attention to hyperactivity and disruptive behavior, we erroneously believed
for many years that ADHD (called Minimal Brain Dysfunction or Hyperkinesis
in earlier years) was a disorder that primarily affected males. Much
later, we realized that there were many children who struggled with inattention
who were not hyperactive or impulsive. Still later, we recognized that
this disorder was not a childhood disorder, but a lifespan disorder.
And, last, but not least, we have come to realize that ADHD is a disorder
that affects many females. In fact, some experts now talk openly of expectations
that population studies will show that as many females as males are affected.
