When My ADHD Diagnosis Made My Autism More Visible
Late-Diagnosed ADHD, Hidden Autism, and What Medication Revealed
After a few Instagram reels about my ADHD diagnosis took off, I found a community I didn't expect. In this solo episode, which opens a new series, I answer questions from my comments and DMs. I share my lived experience only. I'm not a doctor and I'm not giving medication advice.
In this episode
- I was diagnosed with ADHD around March or May last year. About a month into medication, I told my psychiatrist I strongly suspected I was also autistic.
- My psychiatrist said that in late-diagnosed women, about 50% find that ADHD masked their autism once they start medication. I haven't checked the research, but I trust her as a qualified psychiatrist.
- The autism wasn't new. The medication quieted the background noise, so I could see my sensory needs clearly: a specific cup, small spoons, the same song on repeat for hours, and running marathons to one song. I hadn't recognized these as stimming.
- Thinking itself, including constant food noise, can be a form of stimming. When my medication wears off in the evening, the inner chatter comes back.
- Sensory overwhelm is the cumulative load of noise, conversation, interruptions and environment. I link this to evening binge and emotional eating in my clients.
- I explain why the cinema and endurance sports feel regulating: the brain is engaged and nothing else is demanded of you.
- Grief can follow the "honeymoon phase" of medication: wondering how much easier life could have been. I was lucky to start from a curious, positive headspace and not a dark one.
- My most viral reels were about realizing your personality was a mask. I connect this to asking clients what foods they actually like, after years of living in service to others.
- A diagnosis changes how you understand yourself, not who you are. I won't make ADHD my whole personality.
- Neurodivergent people shouldn't force neurotypical nutrition advice. The barriers are consistency, self-criticism and time blindness, not a lack of protein guides.
- I validate the men who commented that they'll never take medication because of harsh childhood experiences. I also explain why hormones matter, since many women are diagnosed around perimenopause or pregnancy.
Timestamps
00:07 - How a few reels built an unexpected community
01:10 - Why I sought an ADHD diagnosis after a decade of coaching women
02:07 - Medication, my disclaimer, and the autism suspicion
03:06 - The 50% figure: ADHD masking autism in late-diagnosed women
04:05 - Cups, spoons, and songs on repeat: recognizing stimming
05:29 - Living in Bali and the ADHD and autism duality
06:28 - Why treating ADHD makes autistic traits more noticeable
06:56 - Mental fatigue, thoughts as stimming, and food noise
08:17 - Why socializing can be exhausting, not enjoyable
08:46 - Why cinema and endurance sports feel regulating
09:43 - Sensory overwhelm and evening eating
10:05 - The medication honeymoon phase and the grief after it
13:00 - Realizing your personality was a mask
14:24 - Diagnosis changes understanding, not identity
16:19 - What self-acceptance looks like without giving up on growth
17:17 - Why neurotypical nutrition advice fails neurodivergent people
18:43 - Late diagnosis in women and men's views on medication
20:30 - Hormones, perimenopause, and what's coming next
