Recently more and more people I encounter have either been diagnosed with ADHD or find themselves wondering what their symptoms mean: Are they related to being neurodivergent or are they potentially related to childhood trauma (PTSD – Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or C-PTSD). 

So I thought it was important to help you to make sense of your experiences and what type of support you might want to consider. I will here list the main symptoms and then talk about the support there is available. 

If you have ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder), you may find it challenging to focus, stay organized, sit still and/or you struggle with emotion regulation and setting boundaries with people. ADHD presents differently from person to person, but the core symptoms are often grouped into inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.

You might notice:

• Difficulty paying attention to details, leading to mistakes at work or school.
• Feeling like your mind is always wandering or you’re easily distracted.
• Struggling to finish tasks or follow through on projects.
• Frequently forgetting things like appointments or responsibilities.
• Finding it hard to sit still or fidgeting often, even in quiet settings.
• Acting impulsively—maybe you blurt out answers, interrupt conversations, or make decisions without thinking things through.
• Restlessness or feeling “on edge,” especially in situations where staying calm is expected.

This is by no means all in inclusive list. 

If you are a woman in either perimenopause or menopause, you may have coped with certain symptoms up to now and only recently started to struggle with life, as the changes in the hormonal balance make your stress management more challenging and impact your symptoms and coping with life. 

1. Inattentive Type – Primarily characterized by difficulties in paying attention and staying organized, but without noticeable hyperactivity.
2. Hyperactive-Impulsive Type – Involves physical restlessness, impulsive actions, and hyperactive behavior.
3. Combined Type – This is the most common form, where individuals show symptoms of both inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity.

For years many people have not been diagnosed with ADHD, as they have learnt to mask their symptoms by being perfectionistic or playing small. 

If you relate to many of these, especially if they’ve been ongoing since childhood and you are struggling with coping, it might be worth talking to an appropriately qualified professional about an evaluation for ADHD if this has not happened yet.

PTSD & C-PTSD: Could This Be You?

When it comes to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Complex PTSD (C-PTSD), the symptoms arise after experiencing a traumatic event (or prolonged trauma in the case of C-PTSD). But while the origins may differ, the experiences people go through often overlap.

Trauma comes in many different forms. It can be a single event like a road traffic accident or being being mugged on the street.

Many people think that only BIG T traumas count which are the types of events such sexual assault or abuse, war or natural disasters. 

However, also small t-traumas like losing a parent at an early age, growing up with a critical parent or childhood emotional neglect (CEN), which happens numerous times and can be equally traumatising over time when no appropriate support is in place. 

Many clients I work with come with a large selection of different types of traumas and often they have not aware of the significance of their experiences to their mental health.

I have also written about PTSD and C-PTSD in these previous posts. 

How EMDR can help to heal childhood trauma https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/healing-childhood-trauma-with-emdr-therapy-a-path-to-hope-and-recovery/

How you may have had to adapt to survive your childhood https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/childhood-trauma-how-did-you-have-to-adapt-to-survive-your-childhood/

Father Wound https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/8-consequences-of-the-father-wound-on-well-being-and-relationships/

Healing the Mother Wound https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/healing-your-mother-wound/

The impact of Mother Wound on men https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/how-does-the-mother-wound-impact-men/

Childhood Emotional Neglect https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/ending-the-loneliness-and-emptiness-of-childhood-emotional-neglect/

With PTSD, you might:

• Re-experience the trauma in flashbacks or vivid nightmares, making you feel like you’re reliving the event.
• Have emotional flashbacks of remembering the feeling of being in a traumatic event(s).
• Feel hypervigilant, always on edge, scanning your surroundings for danger, even when you know you’re safe.
• Have trouble sleeping because your mind is racing or you’re plagued by nightmares.
• Experience sudden waves of anxiety, especially when you encounter reminders of the trauma.
• Find yourself avoiding certain places, people, or activities that remind you of what happened.
• Feel emotionally numb or detached from others.

For C-PTSD (which usually follows long-term, repeated trauma and often includes attachment trauma combined with other adverse life events), many of the symptoms are the same as PTSD, but there are a few more that often show up:

• Emotional dysregulation—feeling like your emotions are wildly unpredictable or out of control.
• Negative self-view, where you might feel ashamed, guilty, or see yourself as fundamentally flawed.
• Difficulty maintaining relationships, often due to mistrust or a sense of isolation.

Surprisingly, ADHD, PTSD, and C-PTSD can share some symptoms, which is why they’re sometimes confused. For instance:

• Hypervigilance in PTSD can look like restlessness in ADHD.
• Both conditions can involve distractibility and difficulty concentrating, but the reasons differ—ADHD is neurological, while in (C-)PTSD, it is due to experiencing trauma that gets triggered in the here and now.
• People with either condition may struggle with impulsivity or emotional regulation—in ADHD, this might be due to executive functioning challenges, while in PTSD, it can stem from overwhelming emotions linked to trauma and being in the fight and flight state.

Many of the clients I work with come with having various traumatic experiences both BIG T and little t events. If you have a combination of ADHD and trauma history, learning to help yourself with your ADHD symptoms can be helpful but if not quite enough.

So whilst ADHD coaching can be helpful, it will not help to address your trauma related symptoms.  

With my clients who have addressed their underlying trauma, managing ADHD related symptoms has become easier too. 

When you learn to recognise your triggers, regulate your emotions better and address the underlying distress as well as create an environment and a lifestyle for yourself that helps to sooth your nervous system, life can become more manageable and enjoyable. 

If have worked with many clients who have benefitted from processing their (childhood) trauma.

Self-awareness is the key in helping yourself. The better you understand your unique situation, the easier it is to find the right kind of support and coping strategies for you.

If you recognize aspects of your experience here, whether it’s ADHD or trauma-related symptoms, seeking help can bring clarity and relief. You don’t have to navigate this alone!

Finally, 

I hope you found this useful! If you would like to know more about having help to address your symptoms, book a free 15 min consultation here. https://www.drmarikovanen.co.uk/book-on-line/