Dr. Yath Ramesh

I realized that we were trying to create all these different software updates when we didn't even know what operating system we were dealing with.

And this links in to my mission now.

So first of all, I want to reduce the anxiety that people can have around seeking an ADHD assessment.

There are going to be people listening to this podcast today

who are terrified about having an assessment.

And the reason that they're terrified is because they're worried that what happens if I get a diagnosis but it doesn't actually help explain me, it doesn't join the dots up for me.

Or I get a diagnosis and I get pigeonholed into starting medication that may not work for me, what do I do then?

And for all those people, I want you to know that there are clinicians who will see you for you, who will see you beyond all of that, see both your strengths and your challenges and can help you through that.

And tied in with this is my second mission, which is to challenge the notion that there is a one size fits all approach to treating ADHD.

There are going to be people who have questions like, am I too old to have medication for ADHD?

If I treat my ADHD, will the anxiety go away?

And I want those people to be, one, better informed at having conversations about what's going to work for them, but also to appreciate how individual those decisions are.

In the era of information, it's really easy to be both heard and feel so lonely and isolated at the same time.

It's really easy to hear a story and think, that's me, and question whether any of the advice linked to it should be applied in your own life.

And I want those people to know that there is support and there are ways to help you.

There is really good data on this.

So...

historically it has always been the case that boys are more likely to get diagnosed than girls during childhood and it's only at a later stage in life that where the gender gap narrows so if we look back 10 years ago so 10 years ago five times as many boys were diagnosed with adhd compared to girls

And that gap would narrow over time.

Now, what's happened is, and the most recent data, so this is publicly available data for the 2024 to 2025 year, is that at every age group, we're getting better at being able to diagnose ADHD in girls and women, which is great.