{"id":134612,"date":"2024-11-19T10:36:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-19T14:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=134612"},"modified":"2025-09-15T11:06:36","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T15:06:36","slug":"what-is-attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/what-is-attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Attention-Deficit\/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is Attention-Deficit\/Hyperactivity Disorder? How is ADHD diagnosed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For many people, struggling with commitments and time management rises to the level of a clinical condition that significantly impairs how they live. That\u2019s precisely what ADHD is\u2014a neurological condition that inhibits how your brain processes information, regulates emotions, and predicts the consequences of your actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s discuss how ADHD is defined, where it comes from, and how it’s diagnosed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s note: This article is part of Shortform’s guide on ADHD<\/a>.\u00a0If you like what you read here, there\u2019s plenty more to check out in the guide!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is ADHD?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What is Attention-Deficit\/Hyperactivity Disorder? According to Russell A. Barkley, Attention-Deficit\/Hyperactivity Disorder is a condition arising from a biological deficiency of dopamine and norepinephrine<\/strong>\u2014two chemicals commonly found in the brain. These chemicals are both neurotransmitters <\/em>that govern how nerve cells respond to stimuli. When they\u2019re lacking, certain mental functions don\u2019t work, such as those involved in controlling impulses<\/a>, making decisions, and planning ahead. People with ADHD also exhibit slower development and less neural activity in the regions of the brain<\/a> associated with those functions. The root cause may be genetic\u2014the risk for ADHD can run in families\u2014but ADHD can sometimes be traced to brain injuries early in life or even during prenatal development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: In his 1999 book Scattered Minds<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Gabor Mat\u00e9 argues in favor of an alternate view of ADHD\u2014that it isn\u2019t just <\/em>a biological disorder but one with social and psychological roots. Mat\u00e9 attributes ADHD to early childhood stress that prevented you from developing certain emotional-cognitive capacities that you need to fully thrive. However, Mat\u00e9\u2019s critics accuse him of oversimplifying complex health issues<\/a> without providing scientific evidence to support his holistic approach to health care\u2014one that focuses on psychological healing as a substitute for medicinal treatments.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barkley is careful to point out that having ADHD isn\u2019t anyone\u2019s fault.<\/strong> Your symptoms don\u2019t reveal that you lack moral fiber, and they aren\u2019t something you can make go away by force of will or self-motivation<\/a>. Likewise, ADHD symptoms don\u2019t result from either lax or too-strict parenting, nor are they caused by sugar, caffeine, video games, or any of the other myths bandied about by the uninformed from time to time. You can\u2019t help that you have ADHD; you can only control what you do with that knowledge once you\u2019ve been diagnosed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: In addition to the ADHD symptoms we\u2019ll list in the following section of this guide, people with ADHD sometimes struggle with depression, negative self-talk, and feelings of shame<\/a> related to their condition. These feelings are often caused by not being able to accomplish simple tasks that others take for granted, such as arriving at appointments on time or being able to focus without distractions. While mindfulness<\/a> practices and therapy can help cope with these feelings when they arise, so too can understanding the reason for your struggles, as Barkley advocates for in the following section.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diagnosing ADHD<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In the overwhelming majority of cases, ADHD symptoms begin during people\u2019s formative years. However, while some are diagnosed early, others don\u2019t learn that they have ADHD until well into adulthood.<\/strong> ADHD disrupts your ability to function in numerous ways, but the world of an adult is starkly different than the world of a child\u2014as such, Barkley says that ADHD presents itself differently in adults than in children. To diagnose adult ADHD, doctors assess the following range of factors:<\/p>\n\n\n\n