Loneliness & ADHD

Having discovered that I have adhd so late in life... it can be very emotional to watch Dr. Barkley's such on point videos. I constantly have flashbacks of wasted and ruined life events and timelines.... which is such a big blur. All these things myself nor others could never understand, he explains with such ease. If only people could understand how in depth having adhd has on one's total existence would I fee comfortable even saying I have it.. For when I do... no one really understands what I am even saying.. They look at me like I am making things up. We isolate because its easier than dealing with the complete awkwardness of never really understanding how you fit in, in any given moment...with any given person. I now just tell people I have Executive Function Disorder.... just makes everything easier.

You are not decaying! You are BOOMING!

In my view, definitely a consequence. I was so ashamed of my so-called failures in life that I started avoiding people. Also, I have a very active internal world and get bored really easily so that's a factor in the other direction. I genuinely would rather walk alone in the woods with a good book on my headphones than with a tedious person. Undiagnosed ADHD has also trained me to believe that there's something wrong with me so I've spent a lot of effort trying to be more interested in people and trying to be more normal.

Diagnosed with ADHD at age 52. Never been good in making friends and maintaining friendships. I am 61 years old and have zero friends and are practically self isolated. Never could fit anywhere from childhood on. It is what it is. 🤷🏻‍♂️

I became a little bit more extraverted after starting stimulant medication. The reason? People didn't constantly annoy me - I could tolerate small talk for longer and stay engaged. People made me less irritable. It's great.

"This is the only channel where you can watch a boomer decay" GODDAMN LMAO Thank you for covering this topic. Learning how common this is with ADHD is healing in a way. Went through this very badly as a kid and it did a lot of damage. But getting an ADHD diagnosis as an adult helped reframe the experience.

I've personally found volunteering to be a good way to reduce feelings of isolation. When volunteering, you're doing good in the world, which is very satisfying. It gives a sense of meaning to your life beyond the narrow confines of your own personal issues. And if you choose an activity that gets you out of the house and interacting with others, you get to meet other people who also care about the same issues as you. These relationships are often deeper and more meaningful than what you may get at other activities because they are built on a foundation of some shared values.

Thank you for covering this! I've struggled with adhd throughout my whole life (of course, nobody ever noticed it until I got older) and developed severe social anxiety during highschool due to being severely bullied because of my hyperactive symptoms. I wasn't medicated. This caused me to isolate myself out of fear and shame. I felt like I was a problem and nobody wanted me around. It was painful watching myself going from someone who enjoyed talking to anyone with a heartbeat to worrying about every word I said, but I thought it was for the best because the bullying finally stopped. Nowadays, I still struggle everyday with being around other people, but now I'm medicated and life has gotten easier.

I can be very social, very funny and I can also mask very well. I've a lot of empathy and can connect and understand other people. But God do I find the whole normal social interactions incredibly fake, especially around things like flirting/dating. It's so weird, it's like other people are playing a role as an actor, pretending to be someone else that they 100% are not. I see it all the time with people I know. I can play those roles too but it's incredibly exhausting. I like being authentic. Everything else just feels like advanced coping mechanisms that are draining.

Never would I have expected dr. barkley to introduce himself as "your boomer barbie looking pretty in pink today" absolute legend

Dr Barkley, be kind on yourself: becoming older doesn't mean becoming a ruin! You are still a sanctum of knowledge! Thank you for the "well-behaved" and consiserate ad placement, the absence-of being a modern plague... Thanks for voicing opposition to those "reversing automatisms", another modern plague I find very commonly in the French mind-setting. My kid is diagnosed with ADHD and it is heartbreaking to see the landscape of things to come. I'm not even sure his medication is the right one for him yet...

AuDHD here - enough autistic traits to offset the ADHD sufficiently to make fitting in with other ADHD people problematic, and ADHD dominating the autistic traits to the extent that fitting in with autistic people is also less than ideal. And so the loneliness has been increased. In fact I'd go so far as to say I've just about given up on life entirely, there being no hope in any direction. The ADHD diagnosis has driven a tank through the china shop of my life. It was a mess before, now it's just carnage. It's not just anger that drives people away. ADHD/autistic emotional distance - that assumes that it is tolerated not liked, "put up with" and so remains cool and unavailable, until the relationship is given up on by the other. ADHD "intensity" scares a lot of people away. Always overthinking, analysing, reasoning out loud, running through imaginary what if scenarios, etc.

happy new persian year doctor Barkley! from a genuine ADHD based in Iran🎉❤

People hate people having emotions. 😅

You are right, loneliness cannot create ADHD; it may be a by-product of having ADHD in the 1st place. Thank you. My son has ADHD but also: emotional self-regulation/control - and lots of old/new friends.

i always doubt when something is claimed to ‘cause’ adhd. i immediately mentally translate it to ‘makes adhd persons existing symptoms more outwardly noticeable’.

Given the loneliness epidemic we’re in, this work and getting it it is so crucial 🙌🏻🙏🏻

I'm living this, right now. I was diagnosed with ADHD at 70y/o. It informed SO much of my personal history. The loneliness part: My husband died of cancer about 4 years ago. Since then, three of my friends have died, leaving me with just one friend, who lives across town. I don't drive, and never seem to have the energy to get out and get on a bus, to find a diversion. My income is just enough to get by, anyway. BUT - my little dog is my constant companion, and our personalities are perfect for each other.

20/10 intro

YES - its VERY appreciated that there isn't commercials in the middle of the talk!