Which of these 4 ADHD Personality Types Are You?
Many people with ADHD blame themselves for having bad personality traits when in reality, they have ADHD and their symptoms are on display, to themselves and the world. Do any of the below personality types sound like you? Or can you relate to all of them? Hey - no judgment! We get it, and we’re sharing so that the next time you forget your keys or can’t stop shopping late at night, you can also remind yourself you’re not a bad person. Instead, you’re just a person - one of many - with ADHD, doing the best they can.
The Impulsive Spender
Do you shop online buying random items you see advertised on Instagram? Hey, we’ve all been there from time to time. What’s different about this behavior in a person with ADHD is knowing what drives them to purchase and makes them extra likely to to shop without planning: dopamine. Dopamine or the reward chemical is released in the brain after buying an item on impulse. While a neurotypical might experience a rush of excitement, a person with ADHD feels the relief from having a lower starting level of dopamine in his or her brain. The effect is more pronounced or more potent for a person with ADHD than a neurotypical for this reason.
The Lost Stuff Searcher
Are you always late because you spent 20 minutes searching for your keys before getting out the door? Once again, many people can relate to this experience. However, the brain of a person with ADHD is different than the bran of a neurotypical. In one study, children with ADHD were shown to have a worse-performing working memory function than neurotypical children. While the precise cause is not known, the hypothesis amongst researchers is that the part of the brain responsible for executive function (think focus, decision making) operates differently somehow, impacting short term memory.
The Distracted Doer
Do you get in the car and scroll endlessly on Spotify when you should really be looking at the road ahead? In the brain of a person with ADHD, distraction can show up in different formats, such as visual, auditory or racing thoughts that move from topic to topic. Students with ADHD can sometimes struggle in school working nearby classmates who make noise or in an environment where there is movement, such as a café or busy library. A tell-tale sign of this personality type experiencing ADHD is going into a room, such as the kitchen, to retrieve an item and then picking up another item along the way, only to forget the original intention in coming into the room.
The Stopper-Starter
Did you take up painting only to quit before finishing one canvas and then moved on to rollerblading? And then your roller skates never actually get used because you're on to the next hobby or project? This is another all-too-common experience for a person with ADHD. The reason comes down to brain chemistry: ADHD brains are naturally low on norepinephrine, a chemical that helps to control brain arousal and attention levels by pumping more blood to the heart, leading to an elevated feeling. While neurotypicals may find that, when the situation calls for it, they can “buckle down” and force their brains to focus, a person with ADHD simply does not have the store of norepinephrine, which leads to an energized or focused feeling, in their brains to allow them to do the same.
Next time you notice yourself engaged in one or more of the behavior patterns above, you take comfort in knowing your experience is common. You are not alone. At Recoop, we know living and working with ADHD means traveling a mental health journey that is sometimes long and hard. We encourage you to show some compassion for yourself as a person with ADHD.
Image by Chris Madden / Getty Images
