The Emotional Side

“To Me, ADHD Feels Like…”

“…Setting your car radio to ‘scan’ all of the stations. You hear clips of music and, before you can get into one particular song, it changes to the next station.”

By ADDitude Editors Verified Updated on April 11, 2022
A climber on a difficult ascent of a mountain, a good depiction of what adhd feels like.
A climber on a difficult ascent of a mountain, a good depiction of what adhd feels like.
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The Adventurous Journey Called ADHD

We asked men and women for honest words about what living with ADHD feels like. Their experience: frustrating, overwhelming, and sometimes paralyzing. Can you relate to any of their descriptions?
A hampster on a wheel - a metaphor for what ADHD feels like
A hampster on a wheel – a metaphor for what ADHD feels like
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Hamster Wheel

"To me, ADHD feels like I'm running on a hamster wheel, nonstop at full speed."
Dice shaken out of a Yahtzee cup - a metaphor for what it feels liek to have ADHD
Dice shaken out of a Yahtzee cup – a metaphor for what it feels liek to have ADHD
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Yahtzee!

"ADHD feels like someone put your brains in a Yahtzee cup, shook it like dice, and then scattered it all over the floor. You spend the whole day trying to get your brain together again."

[Free Resource: The All-Time Best Books on ADHD]
Slow like a bowl of molasses - a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
Slow like a bowl of molasses – a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
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Molasses

"When you have ADHD, it feels like you have to trudge through a layer of molasses."
A man looks toward the horizon and contemplates what it feels like to have ADHD
A man looks toward the horizon and contemplates what it feels like to have ADHD
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Self-Talk

"For me, ADHD is like having a non-stop conversation with myself."
A computer glitch: a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
A computer glitch: a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
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Computer Glitch

“Having ADHD is like walking around all day with a computer glitch in the brain.”
A woman gives a presentation about what it feels like to have ADHD
A woman gives a presentation about what it feels like to have ADHD
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Never-Ending Presentation

“Have you ever watched a PowerPoint presentation that seems to go on forever? That's what ADHD is like for me.”

[Free Handout: 9 Truths About ADHD Emotions]
A man looks through a set of binoculars and thinks about what it feels like to have ADHD
A man looks through a set of binoculars and thinks about what it feels like to have ADHD
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Back to the Future

“ADHD is like living five minutes in the future. When I hyperfocus the world doesn't exist. Nothing exists, not even time.”
A radio set to scan: a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
A radio set to scan: a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
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Radio Head

“For me, ADHD is like having your car radio set to 'scan' all the stations. You hear clips of music and, before you can get into one particular song, it changes to the next station."
A jumble of calendar dates: what ADHD feels like depends on the day
A jumble of calendar dates: what ADHD feels like depends on the day
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Day By Day

“When you have ADHD, sometimes you feel misunderstood, undervalued, and on edge. Other times you feel brilliant, confident, and on top of the world. It really all depends on the day.”
A woman sits on the couch with her laptop and ponders what ADHD feels like
A woman sits on the couch with her laptop and ponders what ADHD feels like
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Too Many Tabs

“ADHD is like a browser with 600 tabs open, each to a different website.”
an illustration of a blender: a metaphor for what ADHD feels like
an illustration of a blender: a metaphor for what ADHD feels like
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Blender Brain

“ADHD is like having your thoughts whirled around in a blender.”
Running up stairs: a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
Running up stairs: a metaphor for what it feels like to have ADHD
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All and Nothing

“ADHD feels like I want to do everything and nothing at all — at the same time, all of the time!”

[Free Resource: Secrets of the ADHD Brain]

2 Comments & Reviews

  2. Add is more like “Attention Displacement Disorder” rather the “Attention Deficit Disorder”. I don’t lack attention; I have lots of attention. My brain seems to to jump ahead from one interesting topic to another in a seemingly incoherent pattern (but trust me, it makes sense in my head). I also have times where my focus can be centered (hyper-doused), especially when it’s something that I find very intriguing. It’s like my concept of time constantly changes. Boring task last forever, but when my mind is actively engaged, time slows down.

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