作者在32岁时被诊断出患有注意力缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）。在此之前，她多年来一直在无意识地使用各种应对机制来让生活变得更容易。确诊后，她开始学习如何与ADHD共处并茁壮成长，这种诊断带来的认同感让她感到欣慰。作者分享了自己发现ADHD的经历，包括在需要长时间专注的任务中表现出的困难，以及她如何通过选择自己感兴趣的专业、制定详细的待办事项清单、频繁使用语音备忘录、精细规划日程以及在工作时隔离手机等方式来发展出了一系列应对策略。她还提到，ADHD在女孩中容易被忽视，因为她们更倾向于掩饰症状。如今，她正积极学习相关知识，融入ADHD社群，并将过去的应对机制视为一种优势。

💡 迟来的确诊与自我认同：作者在32岁时才获得ADHD诊断，远晚于平均诊断年龄，但这一确诊不仅解释了她长期以来难以集中注意力、容易分心等行为模式，更带来了强烈的自我认同感和“被看见”的欣慰，开启了她理解和接纳自己的新篇章。

📚 隐形的应对机制：作者分享了自己多年来为应对ADHD症状而发展出的各种“隐形”策略，例如在学业和职业选择上偏爱自己真正感兴趣且能长时间投入的领域（如心理学、英语、写作），制定详尽的每日待办事项清单，频繁使用语音备忘录记录想法，精确规划日程，以及在工作时隔离手机以避免不必要的干扰。这些策略并非刻意为之，而是自然融入生活以克服困难。

👩‍🏫 ADHD在女性身上的隐蔽性：文章强调了ADHD在女性群体中容易被忽视的现象。作者的朋友对她“如此高效”感到惊讶，这反映出许多ADHD女性通过努力学习和发展应对机制，能够在外人看来表现得十分“正常”，甚至成为“高成就者”，从而掩盖了其内在的挣扎，导致诊断的滞后。

✍️ 职业选择与自我调整：作者的职业选择也围绕着她对ADHD的理解进行了优化。她选择从事她真正热爱的旅行写作，并避免那些令她感到枯燥乏味的任务。作为一名自由职业者，她得以灵活安排工作，并将其与个人兴趣相结合，例如指导他人撰写个人随笔，而“过度分享”的特质也被她联系到ADHD的表现。

🚀 拥抱新认知，积极学习：获得诊断后，作者积极投身于学习如何与ADHD共处并从中受益。她阅读相关书籍，关注社交媒体上的ADHD社群，主动寻求归属感。尽管她认为这并非“智慧的开端”，但她将其视为一个重要的“开始”，预示着积极的转变和成长。

I recently received an ADHD diagnosis at 32. I've used coping mechanisms for years to make life easier without knowing why I was doing it.Now, I'm learning about thriving with ADHD, and the confirmation of a diagnosis is validating.

Aristotle said that knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. My latest 'ah-ha' moment is a long-suspected ADHD diagnosis, made official this month. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the median age for a mild ADHD diagnosis is 7. I'm 32.

I was hesitant to assign myself the label, since finding ADHD memes relatable is hardly a diagnosis, even when those memes feel like they were made with me in mind. Now that I've seen a specialist who confirmed my suspicions, the feeling of vindication is kind of exhilarating.

I've suspected I had ADHD for about 10 years

"When was the first time you suspected this?" the doctor asked.

Ten years ago, I was team-marking with other teachers, trapped for a full weekend with the task of grading hundreds of senior exams before the deadline. The other teachers were flying through essays, their red pens a blur.

I watched them for a bit, wondering how they were able to tune each other out. I graded two essays and then made some tea. I rewarded myself for finishing another essay with the slow removal of my jacket. Many buttons. Thrilling. And then one more essay, followed by a snack. The sound of my colleagues' pens was distracting. The sound of the kettle boiling, even more so. Speaking of which…more tea? A bathroom break? I was bored senseless.

"How many have you done, Tayla?" I'd tackled four in the time the others had each graded 12. I told myself it was because the other teachers were more experienced.

I developed coping mechanisms long ago to mask symptoms

I shared the news of my diagnosis with a friend from school. "Seriously? But…you're so productive?" she said, shocked. It was easy to slip through the cracks as a high achiever. ADHD diagnoses are often missed in girls — the ratio of boys to girls with ADHD is 3:1 in childhood, but in adulthood it's much closer to 1:1. Apparently, girls with ADHD are more likely to make an effort to mask symptoms.

I got straight As in school (bar physical science, which felt like torture) and graduated from university magna cum laude. Along the way, I'd unknowingly been developing coping strategies, weaving them into my daily life. A major one was the subjects I chose.

In high school, I dropped two math classes in my final year; it wasn't my strong suit. In university, excelling in psychology and English was easy — I loved both majors and would happily fixate on them for hours.

I've had a daily to-do list for decades. I voice note myself constantly. My calendar is so detailed that it looks encyclopedic. I schedule meetings and my toughest tasks during my most productive hours. I lock my phone away during work because I'll scroll fruitlessly. And now I can see all of this for what it is: a plethora of coping mechanisms.

Even pursuing my writing career, I curated it around an ADHD diagnosis I didn't yet have. I struggle to write on topics I don't care about, so I built a roster of clients and publications in travel, a subject that obsesses me. Being self-employed has allowed me to tap into other interests, like coaching people in writing personal essays. I've always gravitated toward the form. After a quick Google, it turns out many associate oversharing with ADHD, too. Hmm.

I'm throwing myself into learning. I'm reading books about thriving with ADHD. I'm following relevant accounts on social media, knowing that I now belong in these communities. The best time to get this diagnosis was probably 25 years ago. But I have it now. I'm not convinced this is the "beginning of wisdom" as Aristotle says, but it's the beginning of something. That's good enough for now.