Danielle Elliott

When I first considered that I might have ADHD, I read about the common aspect of the condition called hyperfocus. Some people consider that to be a strength. By 2023, though, public perception of ADHD on a whole seemed to have shifted. People were calling it a superpower. And I'm pretty certain that this new way of looking at ADHD contributed to the rise in diagnosis during the last few years.

When I first considered that I might have ADHD, I read about the common aspect of the condition called hyperfocus. Some people consider that to be a strength. By 2023, though, public perception of ADHD on a whole seemed to have shifted. People were calling it a superpower. And I'm pretty certain that this new way of looking at ADHD contributed to the rise in diagnosis during the last few years.

In many people's eyes, it went from an affliction, a source of shame, to a desirable attribute. Again, I can't say who started this, but after a little digging, I can point to one man who has taken it upon himself to rebrand ADHD.

In many people's eyes, it went from an affliction, a source of shame, to a desirable attribute. Again, I can't say who started this, but after a little digging, I can point to one man who has taken it upon himself to rebrand ADHD.

In the next episode, I'm going to try to see it through his eyes and to try to understand how that might have impacted the rise in diagnosis.

In the next episode, I'm going to try to see it through his eyes and to try to understand how that might have impacted the rise in diagnosis.

That's next time on Climbing the Walls. Climbing the Walls was written and reported by me, Danielle Elliott. It was edited by Neil Drumming. Sound design by Cody Nelson. Brianna Berry was our production director. Ash Beecher was our supervising producer. And Diana White was our associate producer. Fact-checking by Mary Mathis. Research by Karen Watanabe.

That's next time on Climbing the Walls. Climbing the Walls was written and reported by me, Danielle Elliott. It was edited by Neil Drumming. Sound design by Cody Nelson. Brianna Berry was our production director. Ash Beecher was our supervising producer. And Diana White was our associate producer. Fact-checking by Mary Mathis. Research by Karen Watanabe.

Our music was composed by Kwame Brant Pierce, with additional music provided by Blue Dot Sessions, and our mixing was done by Justin D. Wright. This series was brought to you by Understood.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia.

Our music was composed by Kwame Brant Pierce, with additional music provided by Blue Dot Sessions, and our mixing was done by Justin D. Wright. This series was brought to you by Understood.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia.

From understood.org, our executive directors are Laura Key, Scott Koshier, and Seth Melnick. A very special thanks to Ray Jacobson, Julie Zietz, Jordan Davidson, Sarah Greenberg, and Kathleen Nadeau. If you want to help Understood continue this work, consider making a donation at understood.org slash give.

From understood.org, our executive directors are Laura Key, Scott Koshier, and Seth Melnick. A very special thanks to Ray Jacobson, Julie Zietz, Jordan Davidson, Sarah Greenberg, and Kathleen Nadeau. If you want to help Understood continue this work, consider making a donation at understood.org slash give.

I've never been all that good at listening to instructions. When flight attendants ask passengers to put their phones on airplane mode, I don't. I usually scroll Instagram until we lose service. That's what I was doing one morning in February 2024. I was scrolling Instagram when the little red icon appeared in the top left corner of the app. A new message. I opened it. It was a link to a video.

I've never been all that good at listening to instructions. When flight attendants ask passengers to put their phones on airplane mode, I don't. I usually scroll Instagram until we lose service. That's what I was doing one morning in February 2024. I was scrolling Instagram when the little red icon appeared in the top left corner of the app. A new message. I opened it. It was a link to a video.

We met at her house in Ann Arbor, Michigan. As I walked in, she joked that it isn't usually so clean. She pointed to a tray of cheese and crackers and grapes and said, this is all for show. She knows it's what you're supposed to do when someone is coming over. It's expected. We set up in her office.

We met at her house in Ann Arbor, Michigan. As I walked in, she joked that it isn't usually so clean. She pointed to a tray of cheese and crackers and grapes and said, this is all for show. She knows it's what you're supposed to do when someone is coming over. It's expected. We set up in her office.

My thumb was hovering over it as the wheels lifted off the runway. I saw the top half of the news anchor's head and the logo for Fox News. The screen froze like that. At the time, I was working on a film about affirmative action, so I assumed that the link had something to do with that. We were in the air for about six hours, and as we landed, I opened Instagram again. I saw four more messages.

My thumb was hovering over it as the wheels lifted off the runway. I saw the top half of the news anchor's head and the logo for Fox News. The screen froze like that. At the time, I was working on a film about affirmative action, so I assumed that the link had something to do with that. We were in the air for about six hours, and as we landed, I opened Instagram again. I saw four more messages.

She seemed a little nervous, and she held her resume in her hands as we started talking, in case she forgot about any major moments in her career.

She seemed a little nervous, and she held her resume in her hands as we started talking, in case she forgot about any major moments in her career.