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Annette's Story

“From the first day I found ADDA I felt so welcome!”

Christen's Story

“Even though I sometimes feel hopeless, I am not helpless.”

Lyssue's Story

“The idea of belonging somewhere, that was really important.”

Julie's Story

“I feel supported by ADDA and I am giving back.”

AZ Hippy's Story

“Connection lets me know that I too can grow and improve.”

Annette's Story

What life was like before finding ADDA?

Confusing. Frustrating sad all the time Did not feel successful.

My life was confusing and I was very sad! As hard as I tried and as much as I wanted to communicate and interact with other people I could not! I felt alone and afraid and sort of lost. I knew I could do things differently and talk to people but I could not find my voice. Instead of low self-esteem I had NO SELF-ESTEEM!

How ADDA’s resources, peer support, and training helped?

Learned so much about ADHD and me! When I found ADDA I was amazed that these friendly and smart people understood me and talked about things I thought and wondered about all my life but could never find any help or any suggestions of things I could do to help me get organized and feel better about myself! I joined other ADHD groups and learned a lot about ADHD but at ADDA I found things and ideas of things to do that would help Me with My ADHD.

How ADDA has positively Impacted my Life.

ADDA helped me find my VOICE! For the first time in my whole life, I could volunteer to talk, to express and share My thought! From the first day I found ADDA I felt so welcome! I BELONGED and I am accepted!

Where you are now, thriving with ADHD?

Yes. It has been 30 years since my diagnosis I am thrivng! I feel like it is a dream but I am an ADDA Board member! I started as a Volunteer snd I I was welcome and accepted ! I finally belonged! And the journey is not over yet! By the way I was diagnosed with ADHD at age 40 and I am now a happy 73 year old woman thriving and growing still with my ADDA peers! Thank you to all of you my ADDA friends!

Christen's Story

What was your life like before ADDA?

Well, I didn’t know I had ADHD until I was in my mid-thirties and experienced some depression around not being able to find work after preparing to change careers in 2017. I was a journalist turned teacher and I wanted to get back into journalism. I was handling more than 30 children in my class at a time and my executive functions were fried. I finally landed a job in my desired career field and suddenly ADHD reared its head. I was learning new skills and didn’t have the proper supports in place to withstand the pressure of meeting new demands of it.

How has ADDA’s resources, peer support, and training helped?

Finding ADDA was a tremendous God-send. I was in the dark about getting a supportive community surrounding my symptoms. I thought you just took a magic pill and viola; your life is better. But that wasn’t the case. 

ADDA’s supportive community has allowed me the space to forgive myself for the things I didn’t know while still trying to understand my condition. It’s a safe space where I can unmask and develop lasting relationships where I’m understood at a basic level.

Where you are now, thriving with ADHD?

Now, I am on the right path at least. I know where I can get fed and cared for. I want to make ADDA’s resources the place where I can “cure” myself. With the virtual support groups, and welcoming friends there, I can seek to be understood without the need to perform. ADDA has helped heal from the insecurities I have faced professionally. I have gained not only confidence, but also self-compassion, knowing that I am just a human being.

Lyssue's Story

I was, I was diagnosed when I was six, so I knew for a long time that I had ADHD, but I have never studied. So, when I started to find out more about what it means, and well, I live in Chile, so we don’t have much information about it here, so I started to look for places with information, basically, and that’s when I got to ADDA.

I was trying to study and, I mean, find out a little more. But I, because of these support groups, that’s the thing that called my attention, basically. And well, the webinars and all the information were really important. But for me, the idea of belonging somewhere, of belonging somewhere that was really important, because felt for a long time that I was weird, like I didn’t belong.

I found the International support group. I feel like I have company, now.

I’ve been going to them, it’s more than almost a year now, it allowed me to meet a lot of different people and really interesting people. They are loving people who care. And I know that we have formed a beautiful community. We communicate with each other outside of the group sometimes, and we basically are taking care of ourselves.

Can you name some of the other countries that are represented in the International Support Group?

Well, there’s a lot of people that it’s not living exactly where they are from, but there’s people from Turkey, from Canada, Kuwait, & India.

I’m forgetful. That’s my problem. But when I realized that my life was a mess, my life was chaos and I didn’t know how to handle it, and I will. I got stuck and paralyzed when I realized that had to do with ADHD. That’s when everything started changing, because I’m so much aware now of what’s going on with me, and I think that talking with other people has helped so much to work on this self knowledge path.

AZ Hippy's Story

What life was like before finding ADDA?

I felt overwhelmed with all of the questions I had after being diagnosed with ADHD as an adult. Like many others, I suddenly had a drive to learn everything there is to know about ADHD and what having it means. I looked back at my life through this new lens of ADHD and saw how it was impacting me. After scouring the internet and watching countless YouTube videos I had a lot of tips and tricks, though no clear indication about how to use it all. That’s when I found ADDA. ADDA’s approach feels different, instead of a bunch of useful tips ADDA provides a path to thriving with ADHD. I spent a long time talking with my peers in the connect phase, which helped me start growing in new ways. Then I decided I wanted to give back to the ADHD community and chose to volunteer with ADDA.

How has ADDA’s resources, peer support, and training helped?

The peer support groups, webinars and ADDA Library have been the most helpful for me. In the peer support groups I interact people with who have similar experiences to my own. The webinars and ADDA Library have both been a wealth of useful information for me. The peer support groups is where I get to talk with people who have lived through the same kinds of challenges and frustrations, which lets me know that I’m not alone with ADHD.

I look forward to the support groups because of how much better I feel after them. We share strategies, successes, as well as what didn’t work for us. Often times it is digging into why something didn’t end with the desired result that I find better strategies.

 Through talking with my peers I’ve also realized there are somethings I’ve made work that are still challenging for others and by sharing my experiences they build something that helps them. I also learn from others about how they succeeded where I am struggling, and use that to help myself. Sometimes simply talking about how ADHD is effecting our lives with people who truly understand leaves me with the feeling that I’m not alone in dealing with ADHD.

The webinars and ADDA Library feel like two sides of the same coin to me because of the targeted materials they contain. Looking through the ADDA Library is always a special treat for me because I often find things I didn’t realize were related to my ADHD. The articles always contain a detailed description and, most importantly to me, different ways to improve the situation. The webinars are great when I want to focus on someone else sharing and explaining the information to me instead of reading and thinking through it on my own.

What is your favorite program that ADDA offers and why?

My favorite ADDA program is the peer support groups because I get to connect with others going through similar situations and for me that connection lets me know that I too can grow and improve the areas of my life that are a challenge today.

Julie's Story

What life was like before finding ADDA?

a bit bereft of people who understood me well

How has ADDA’s resources, peer support, and training helped?

brought me alongside like-minded people who were friendly, supportive and non-judgmental

What is your favorite program that ADDA offers and why?

this question’s intent is confusing. I am in Australia. I am not in many regards thriving as I lost my long term (16 years) casual employment last year and have not yet found an adequate alternative so I am currently struggling finance wise which has left me with ongoing elevated stress levels. I feel supported by Adda and I am giving back but I need some solutions to my lack of employment (impacted by my ADHD and anxiety) so that I can journey towards thriving

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ADDA delivers reliable information on ADHD. But ADDA’s content and services are no substitute for professional mental health or medical advice. Nor is it an alternative to ADHD diagnosis or treatment. Seek advice from your physician or qualified health provider for any medical condition.

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