ADHD Resource Hub
ADHD in Girls & Women
Diagnosis and identification
ADHD Can Present Very Differently in Girls & Women
A note about gender and sex in ADHD
Gender and sex are not binaries, and might affect ADHD symptomatology in different ways.
For instance, people who menstruate might feel the effect of hormonal changes on their symptoms, while those who display femininity may have learned behaviours shaped by societal expectations, leading to masking of ADHD traits. However, for the sake of page, we generally use the term “women” because existing research on the interaction between sex/gender diversity and ADHD is sparse. Where research notes “female” participants, we will use ‘female’ (or afab = assigned female at birth) to stay consistent with the data.
ADHD in girls and women is often also misdiagnosed, and emerging evidence supports having another look if you’ve been in treatment for other disorders for many years, but have not been getting better.
Many women with ADHD are diagnosed in adulthood, and research has demonstrated its due to a combination of interesting factors.
- 61% of women have received their ADHD diagnosis during adulthood, compared to 40% of men.
- 25% of women received an ADHD diagnosis before age 11, compared to 45% of men. (Reference)
Why have girls and women been overlooked?
Girls are often overlooked as children, internalizing symptoms like hyperactivity, and having more inattentive symptoms. Hormones at puberty might be blamed for more emotional swings than they should be, and girls start to become very adept at masking, which ‘hides’ their symptoms from detection.
While some adapting to adversity certainly proves beneficial at times, without the underlying insights about why such vigilance to organization (for example) is necessary, adaptations run the risk of becoming maladaptive – like perfectionism.
Women are also more likely to be misdiagnosed as what the presenting symptoms might suggest – with anxiety or depression, and never actually having a chance to have the most effective treatments for what has led to the anxiety and depression in the first place.
The downsides for women are not the same
“Distracted from their own self-care, women with ADHD postpone checkups and procedures, and function with serious sleep deficits. Inconsistent eating patterns, shaped by inattention and impulsivity, can result in complications. Chronically stressed, they may depend on prescription medications to manage anxiety, mood disorders, sleep, or pain, or they may self-medicate with alcohol or drugs.”
Brain-driven dopamine seeking behaviours in women manifest in similar ways in men – finding efficient ‘hits’ in food, sex, work, driving interpersonal conflict and a cycle of lower self-esteem, underemployment and not living up to their potential.
However it’s not a benign situation.
In addition to a higher risk of additive co-morbid conditions, like anxiety, depression, substance use or complex PTSD, ADHD also comes with a higher relative mortality rate (due in large part to risky and impulsive decisions, leading to more accidents), and women have double the mortality rate of men with ADHD.
Did you know?
Women with ADHD are 6X more likely than neurotypical mothers to experience postpartum anxiety, and 5X more likely to experience postpartum depression.
The science about women
Current research describes why girls and women are understood to have a unique presentation of ADHD.
- A list of ADHD symptoms as they present in girls.
- Co-occurring functional problems in girls and women, by age.
Why ADHD in Women is Routinely Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Treated Inadequately by Dr. Ellen Littman
ADHD and interactions with hormones
- Potential Hormonal Mechanisms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder: A New Perspective
- The Complete Picture: How Estrogen Affects Women with ADHD
- Potential Hormonal Mechanisms of Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder: A New Perspective
- Changing Estrogen Levels Affect Women’s ADHD Symptoms
- Reproductive Steroids and ADHD Symptoms Across the Menstrual Cycle
- Could ADHD Medications Improve Memory, Focus & Organization in Menopausal Women? The Research Says Yes
- The Etiology of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder: 5 interwoven pieces.
Hear from the Experts!
Females, Hormones and ADHD with Dr. Sara Binder, via CADDAC
E86: ADHD in (peri) menopause and beyond, with Dr. Dora Wynchank
ADHD and pregnancy, postpartum
Pregnancy
- In utero exposure to ADHD medication and long-term offspring outcomes
- The effects of drugs used for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) on pregnancy outcome and breast feeding: a critical review
- Journal of Attention Disorders: The Course of ADHD during Pregnancy
- How ADHD affects pregnancy outcomes in women and their babies
- Good News: More Data on the Use of ADHD Medications During Pregnancy
Postpartum
ADHD in Menopause
- ADHD Impairment Peaks in Menopause, According to ADDitude Reader Survey
- How effective and safe are stimulant medications for older adults?
ADHD & relationships
- Why Women With ADHD Are More At Risk Of Gaslighting & Coercive Control
- The lost girls: ‘Chaotic and curious, women with ADHD all have missed red flags that haunt us’
- Reasons Why It’s Tough to Keep Friends When You Have ADHD
- The challenges faced by teens with ADHD
- ADHD, Women, and the Danger of Emotional Withdrawal
- Behavioral Treatment for the Social-Emotional Difficulties of Preadolescent and Adolescent Girls with ADHD
ADHD and late-diagnosis
- The Reckoning: Reflecting on a late (ADHD) diagnosis as an adult, by Christina Crowe
- ADHD in adults can be life-threatening when left untreated: experts
- Late Diagnosis: Was ADHD to Blame All Along?
- ADHD in Adults Looks Different. Most Diagnostic Criteria Ignores This Fact.
- A Critical Need Ignored: Inadequate Diagnosis and Treatment of ADHD After Age 60
- Anxiety? Depression? Or ADHD? It Could Be All Three
- A Critical Need Ignored: Inadequate Diagnosis and Treatment of ADHD After Age 60
- Untreated ADHD Reduces Life Expectancy
Parent of a child with ADHD?
Interested in assessment and diagnosis for yourself?
ADHD treatment is very effective.
In particular, for mothers, research also supports that mothers who are treated, have children who also do better with their ADHD management.
Medications reduce ADHD symptoms in parents.
- A recent study demonstrated that parents taking medication experienced less negative talk and commands, and more praise.
- It also reduced negative and inappropriate behaviours in their children.
Studies suggest that treating ADHD adults with medication will also improve some parenting skills.
Parenting is a skill that must be learned. Because ADHD interferes with learning, parents with the disorder need time to learn these skills.
Medication can eliminate some of the worst behaviours, but ADHD-trained therapists can also provide behavioural or behavioural therapies that can help ADHD parents learn parenting skills and achieve their full potential as parents.
Our Trained and Clinically experienced ADHD therapists
Alexandra Weedmark, BA, MA, R.B.A. (Ont.)
Alexandra Weedmark, BA, MA, R.B.A. (Ont.)
Alicia Sumner, H. BA., MACP, RP
Alicia Sumner, H. BA., MACP, RP
Carole Gionet, BSc., BScN., NP-PHC., MNNP-PHC, Director, Integrated Mental Health
Carole Gionet, BSc., BScN., NP-PHC., MNNP-PHC, Director, Integrated Mental Health
Christina Crowe, H. BSc., MACP, RP
Christina Crowe, H. BSc., MACP, RP
Christina D’Angelo, BHRM, MACP, RP Qualifying
Christina D’Angelo, BHRM, MACP, RP Qualifying
Connie Marasco, H. BA, MACP, RP
Connie Marasco, H. BA, MACP, RP
Ildemaro Ponnambalam, BSc, MSc, RP Qualifying
Ildemaro Ponnambalam, BSc, MSc, RP Qualifying
Jen Nash, BSc, BEd, MBA, RP Qualifying
Jen Nash, BSc, BEd, MBA, RP Qualifying
Jill Roberts, BSc. (Hons.), MSc. (OT), OT Reg. (Ont.)
Jill Roberts, BSc. (Hons.), MSc. (OT), OT Reg. (Ont.)
John Foulkes, BSC., OPC-D, RP
John Foulkes, BSC., OPC-D, RP
Julia Farquharson, BScN, RN, MN, NP-PHC
Julia Farquharson, BScN, RN, MN, NP-PHC
Julia Muscoiona, H. BA, MACP, RP
Julia Muscoiona, H. BA, MACP, RP
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