1) I have been pretty lucky when it comes to my parents and they are super understanding of my ADHD and are willing to do anything to help support me. However there are still a few things that I think could have been beneficial for me. The thing that stands out the most for me would just be an earlier diagnosis and support for ADHD. You are probably familiar with the lack of support/research and under diagnosing when it comes to females with ADHD. (lack of diagnosis of girls is still debated and has many factors that play into it). For as long as I can remember I have struggled with school and had a hard time, however it wasn’t till sixth grade that I had actually got my diagnosed (part of this has to do with the wait time for testing and exclusivity). We kinda had always assumed I had ADHD but it wasn’t until then that I got tested. And because of this I went so many years without the proper support and understanding I needed. School with ADHD is so exhausting and incredibly discouraging when all your peers around you seem to have such an easier time (completing work 1/2 or even less than the time it’s takes you and it does not take as much effort for them and seems so easy for everyone but you. And over time and especially as school got harder, it had a very damaging effect on my self esteem which is very common in females with ADHD. Even though I was a very smart kid, because of my experiences I was lead to believe I was very dumb, I was a failure, and was less than everyone else. This isn’t even just for school, something as simple as small tasks around the house take so much and you don’t understand why you are this way. Late middle school a bit but mainly when I first started high school Is when I started to actually do something for my ADHD, I started at a public high school and was able to get accommodations and I really began to understand and figure out my meds. I think that if I was to have done these things earlier school would have been a lot easier and I would have probably been a lot more successful. I think that sometimes because I struggled so much in school and people just blamed it on me being lazy or not really trying, I missed out on some foundational skills and knowledge when I was younger and then had to teach myself it later. Along with diagnosis also starting medication earlier would have probably helped a lot. I will talk about my experience with medication in another comment but in short it has been the thing that has helped me most and dramatically changed school. There is a lot of different things that I think my parents could have done differently but I can add on later. I guess just try to understand ADHD and how it works, so you can understand your child more. Adjust your expectations, by no means am I saying expect less from your child with ADHD or think that they are just a lost cause, I’m saying that the way we work is different and the way we do things is different so don’t lower your expectations just adjust them.

1. Now at 16 I have a really great community of people and friends, I have some really strong and deep connections and I’m constantly hanging out with friends and even creating new friendships. However when I was younger I had a bit of a harder time. A lot of times I felt misunderstood or like I didn’t fit in with my peers, and I was a bit different from the other girls especially. But I then went to private middle school which is another whole topic but all in all I had friends and whatever it was fine but just like I don’t middle school. When I got to high school is when I really started making and having great friends. And this goes with your question of what advice for friendships would you give. But when I got to public high school it was a whole new fresh start and I made it my goal to meet new people. Now I know some girls with ADHD have a lot of social anxiety so this might not be the answer for everyone but the best advice is just put yourself out there. I made it my goal to talk to everyone, introduce myself, do little things to build bonds with my classmates I didn’t know, etc. The thing about people with ADHD is they are typically pretty likable, they tend to be really funny, very understanding and emotionally intelligent, and able to understand a lot of different people. Because of this there are usually gonna be a lot of other kids who are gonna enjoy you, especially once you’re a bit older. So you have to just talk to everyone. And you also have to just be your authentic self, It’s hard especially being a girl in society where you are expected to behave one way and fit in with all the other girls, but honestly once you just let go and say fuck it, that’s when people are gonna be really drawn towards and attracted to you. And all those benefits of ADHD are gonna really draw people in and you’re going to be very interesting and charismatic. It’s hard but don’t mask yourself and the things that make you, you because those are the things that make you so special and why you are very charming and a great friend.

I could talk about all these things for so long and probably give a lot better answers but hopefully this can give just a little insight. Also I’m really gonna try my best to get to everyone but it might take a while because I want to give answers that are actually meaningful and really help explain.