Doctor shares five signs of ADHD - and they're 'often missed'
A doctor has shared the signs he often sees in people with ADHD, and explained that they are "often missed"
A doctor has highlighted the signs he frequently observes in people suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The expert suggests these signs are "often missed", which can lead to ADHD being undiagnosed or unnoticed.
Dr Ali Ajaz, a consultant psychiatrist, regularly imparts information and guidance to his over 94.6k followers on TikTok. In a recent video, he outlined five symptoms that could potentially indicate someone has ADHD.
ADHD is a behavioural condition. According to the NHS, individuals with ADHD may appear restless, struggle with concentration and act impulsively.
ADHD symptoms usually become apparent at a young age and can become more noticeable when a child's circumstances alter, such as starting school. Occasionally, ADHD may not be identified during childhood, resulting in a diagnosis later in adulthood.
A recent video from Dr Ajaz was captioned: "Five common signs of ADHD that are often missed!" In the clip, the doctor said: "Five signs of ADHD that most people miss. Hi, I'm Doctor Ali Ajaz consultant psychiatrist and it's my day job to help people with ADHD thrive.
"First up, we have time blindness. People with ADHD often struggle to estimate just how long things take, leading to chronic lateness or underestimating tasks. It's not laziness, it's more biological."
He added: "Second is emotional reactivity. ADHD just isn't about focus, it's about feeling everything intensely, small frustrations can lead to big emotional outbursts that feel impossible to control in the moment.
"Third is mental restlessness. Even if someone looks calm on the outside, the brain might be racing non stop, jumping from thought to thought. It's exhausting and it's invisible."
The doctor said the fourth sign is 'interest-based attention.' He said: "Now ADHD brains don't struggle with attention across the board, they struggle more when things aren't stimulating, like the more mundane things in life. But when something is interesting, total hyper-focus is a big risk."
The fifth sign, according to Dr Ajaz, is chronic procrastination. He added: "It's not about poor discipline, it's difficulty starting tasks without a dopamine hit. The brain resists even simple things until the last minute panic kicks in."
Signs of ADHD in adults
According to NHS guidance, identifying ADHD symptoms in adults presents more of a challenge. While the core symptoms—namely inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness—are similar across ages, their impact on adults will diverge significantly from their effects on children.
For instance, adults may experience less overt hyperactivity but maintain difficulties with inattention as the complexities of adult life escalate. Symptoms tend to be considerably subtler when compared to those noticed in children.
Experts have proposed this list of symptoms indicative of ADHD in adults:
inability to deal with stress
carelessness and lack of attention to detail
taking risks in activities, often with little or no regard for personal safety or the safety of others – for example, driving dangerously
poor organisational skills
inability to focus or prioritise
blurting out responses and often interrupting others
forgetfulness
extreme impatience
difficulty keeping quiet, and speaking out of turn
continually losing or misplacing things
mood swings, irritability and a quick temper
continually starting new tasks before finishing old ones
restlessness and edginess
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