ADHD is all over the internet, with people saying that it’s way different than we thought it was — and that tons of us might have it without even knowing it. Influencers are telling us that ADHD can cause all sorts of things, like hyperfocused states, serious emotional dysregulation, even something called rejection sensitivity dysphoria. So — is all this true? Plus, when you do have ADHD — what’s going on inside your brain? And what are the best ways to cope with it? We talk to Prof. Maggie Sibley, Prof. Philip Shaw, and Dr. J. Russell Ramsay. This episode does mention depression. Here are some crisis hotlines: United States: US National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Dial 988 (Online chat available); US Crisis Text Line Text “HOME” to 741741 Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14 (Online chat available) Canada: Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention (See link for phone numbers listed by province) United Kingdom: Samaritans 116 123 (UK and ROI) Full list of international hotlines here Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsADHD Chapters: In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Is ADHD everywhere?? (02:45) How do you really know if you have ADHD? (09:05) Is hyperfocus legit? (12:50) What’s up with ADHD and emotional issues? (18:05) ADHD in women and people who menstruate (20:07) So do is ADHD really everywhere? (21:34) ADHD in the brain (26:21) Meds, Therapy, Body Doubling?! This episode was produced by Rose Rimler, with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Meryl Horn, Michelle Dang, and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard and Marlowe Starling. Music written by Peter Leonard, Emma Munger, So Wylie, Bumi Hidaka, and Bobby Lord.Thanks to all the researchers we spoke to for this episode, including Dr. Robert Rosenthal, Dr. Miguel Garcia Pimenta, Prof. Michelle Martel, Dr. Maedbhe King, Dr. Edward Modestino, Prof. Edmund Sonuga-Barke, and Dr. Ashley Halkett. Again, big special thanks to all the listeners who called in and told us about their ADHD experiences! Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: Is ADHD everywhere?
Hi, I'm Wendy Zuckerman, and you're listening to Science Versus. Today, we're pitting facts against focus as we look at ADHD. Lately, it seems like more and more people are saying, I've got ADHD. And if you're pondering your ADHD status, there are plenty of TikTok listicles out there to help you out.
Top 10 signs of ADHD.
Chapter 2: How do you really know if you have ADHD?
Five things that are ADHD that I had no idea were ADHD.
The six surprising signs that could be signs that you, too, have adult ADHD.
Six signs? Ten signs? According to the internet, ADHD goes way beyond those classic symptoms of having trouble paying attention or being fidgety. We're hearing that it includes stuff like
Hyper-focus, you get so engrossed that you sort of lose track of time. You might forget to eat or sleep or go to the bathroom. I have trouble regulating emotions. Mood swings 24-7.
Having ADHD feels like you're on an emotional roller coaster. Either everything is great or everything is absolutely terrible.
But some aren't so sure about all these new so-called ADHD symptoms. They're worried that this ballooning definition of ADHD is making a bunch of people think that they have this condition when they don't. There are all these headlines screaming that we're over-diagnosing ADHD, medicating people for ADHD when we shouldn't be.
One British politician called it a fashionable disorder and said a lot of people who have it aren't actually sick at all. You hear this kind of thing a lot.
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Chapter 3: What is hyperfocus in ADHD?
There's a lot of people who are self-diagnosing. And I'm like, no, she's just late and she's a pain. And when I arrange to have a coffee with her, she needs to turn up and not tell me, oh, it's my ADHD. No, you're late, mate.
So today we're asking, when it comes to ADHD, what's real and what's just hype? We'll also find out what is going on in the ADHD brain. There's all these videos online saying that if you've got ADHD, you can blame your dopamine levels. But is that really true? The cutting edge neuroscience on ADHD, we'll give it to you.
Plus, for people who have this condition, we'll find out some tips and tricks that can help you out. When it comes to ADHD, there's a lot of... No, you're late, mate. But then there's science. Science versus ADHD is coming up just after the break.
Chapter 4: How does ADHD affect emotional regulation?
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Welcome back. Today on the show, ADHD. Tell us all about it is Rose Rimler, Senior Producer here at Science Versus. Hi, Rose. Hi, Wendy. Do you think you have ADHD?
No, I don't think so. No. Do you ever suspect that? Oh, whether you have ADHD?
Don't answer that.
It definitely feels like it's everywhere right now.
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Chapter 5: What are the unique ADHD experiences for women?
Yeah, I talked about that idea that it feels like it's everywhere right now with a professor and ADHD researcher. She's named Maggie Sibley. She's at the University of Washington. And she says there's a lot of reasons for this. One thing we talked about was these online quizzes about ADHD that have popped up.
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
The worst for me are the ones that say things like, experiencing indecision, you might have ADHD. Having trouble keeping up at work, you might have ADHD. Come take this five-minute quiz to see if you do. What'd you think when you saw that?
Chapter 6: What goes on in the ADHD brain?
Well, as somebody who has spent decades doing research trying to show that you cannot diagnose ADHD with a five-minute quiz, it definitely activated me a little bit.
Yes. I've totally seen, I've seen so many of these quizzes and been tempted to To do them, but haven't. So what are the symptoms for sure of ADHD?
Well, to find out, I thought you and I could take a brief quiz, actually. Rose! Which sounds bad, but really what I have for you is this is a valid science-backed questionnaire. Uh-huh, uh-huh. It doesn't diagnose you with ADHD. It's more of a checklist to see if you're at risk of having it. And this questionnaire has man's blessing. Uh-huh. And it basically maps onto the main symptoms of ADHD.
Oh, okay. Great. So I'll send, here's the link.
Wow. Here we go.
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Chapter 7: What are effective coping strategies for ADHD?
Yeah, put an X if it's never, rarely, sometimes, often, or very often. Okay. For all these symptoms.
All right. So how often do you have trouble wrapping up the final details of a project once the challenging parts have been done? Um, sometimes.
How often do you have difficulty getting things in order when you have to do a task that requires organization? I'm going to say sometimes.
I'm going to say never. Almost to the point where I don't understand the question. How often do you have problems remembering appointments or obligations?
I never do. I would say never. What about you?
Rarely. I will often forget that I've arranged to meet with my mom.
That one specifically? That one specifically. Let's not look too deeply into that.
Thank you.
Love you, mom.
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