Anyone else hate the term ‘naughty kids?’

ADHD is overlooked by so many people because they think it’s only for those who were always in trouble at school, or always running around on the go and talking fast.

Generation X in particular seems to be massively underdiagnosed in my opinion for many reasons. ADHD wasn’t really talked about when we were young but it doesn’t mean that it wasn’t there. We just hadn’t recognised it and didn’t talk as much about feelings/mental health. Our parents were children of the war generation and getting on with it and maintaining a stiff upper lip was commonplace for them, naturally some of that was drilled into us.

In the very early years, children as babies are egocentric necessarily, their world is small and everything revolves around them for survival. As they grow they have to fit into societal norms, the school environment etc and their needs if ADHD are largely ignored or overlooked and when they show difficulty it’s described as them being naughty and disruptive. When they are tiny they are in survival mode, if they cry it’s normally because they’re hungry, hot, cold etc and they’re too young to manipulate their parents/carers and yet even so early in their development they can be labelled as difficult or naughty and ignored, left to cry it out.

It takes a great teacher to spot potential neurodivergence and often that one teacher can be a lifeline for the child who may feel seen for the first time.

I am awaiting ADHD assessment but wasn’t a typical naughty disruptive school kid. I had my moments though when I got into trouble for daydreaming and not doing schoolwork or joining in when others would goof around.

I did disrupt at times and my worst punishment was a psychological one which induced shame, it makes me laugh now but I had to stand throughout a break time holding up a piece of A4 paper against the corridor wall with my nose, hands behind back.

I also got into fights a lot and as a sensitive soul I used a lot of energy holding my feelings in. I was an excellent procrastinator too and even for the most important exams I’d cram revision into the last night. It didn’t always serve me well.

Since starting to write about my awaking that I may have ADHD several people has said the same as they relate to my posts but they sound surprised. “I never even suspected”, well of course you didn’t but now you have the gift of curiosity.

But just because you weren’t the archetypal naughty kid it doesn’t rule out ADHD and we need to look deeper at behaviours and what they may mean. If you were the quiet, sensitive child at school who didn’t race around it doesn’t mean that you can’t have ADHD. Everyone is different, the way ADHD is observed is different for everybody too and comparing with others doesn’t help.

Don’t force conformity, do encourage empathy.