'Very quiet, very bright,' no one knew she had ADHD
CBC
Two P.E.I. women are speaking out about missed diagnoses of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in women, with new research suggesting these missed diagnoses are more common than previously suspected.
Maggie Henry was partway through her degree at UPEI before she was diagnosed.
"My story is pretty classic. I was very quiet, very bright and a high achiever," said Henry.
"I don't really meet the stereotypes. Like, I don't lose things, very rarely lose things. I'm often overprepared. I'm rarely surprised or stuck having to improvise because I've anticipated any and all possible scenarios."
Henry was able to cope through to university, but then began to struggle. She couldn't keep the focus to get the grades she felt she was capable of, and she didn't know what the trouble was.
A recent survey by the Centre for ADHD Awareness Canada has found Henry is not alone in having to wait until she is an adult for a diagnosis.
The survey of women with ADHD found more than one in four had treatment delayed by two or more decades due to misdiagnosis.