Skip to main content Accessibility Feedback

Traits, not symptoms

Whenever I’m talking about ADHD on a podcast, I find myself uncomfortable with using the word symptoms to describe the various ways that ADHD impacts me and how my brain works.

It feels like I’m describing a disease or something that’s wrong with me.

But nothing’s wrong with me. Having ADHD in a neurotypical world can be challenging sometimes, but I’m not broken. I don’t need fixing. I’m just different.

Yesterday, one of my coaching students used the word traits.

I love that. It’s the perfect word to describe the various aspects of having ADHD without passing judgement.