Overview
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is a condition that affects the development of your brain. It starts in childhood. While people commonly outgrow this condition, many don’t.
In children, ADHD can affect things like school performance and social skills. It can have very similar effects in adults, affecting things like work performance, friendships, relationships and mental health.
How does this condition affect my body?
People with ADHD are “neurodivergent.” This term means your brain developed differently. When those differences are big enough, they can cause conditions like ADHD. People who don’t have those brain differences are “neurotypical,” meaning their brains developed in a typical way.
People with ADHD tend to have lower-than-expected activity in certain brain areas. The affected areas regulate communication between other brain areas, giving you a set of abilities known as “executive functions.” These include your ability to plan, reason, make decisions and steer and focus your attention. ADHD disrupts these abilities, a symptom known as “executive dysfunction.”
Advertisement
