For many BIPOC adults, receiving an ADHD diagnosis isn't simply about learning they have ADHD. It's about realizing there were countless moments throughout childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood when their struggles were misunderstood, minimized, or explained away.

If you were diagnosed with ADHD during college- or if you're beginning to wonder whether ADHD might explain struggles you've had for years- you might be feeling a strange mix of emotions.

One of the biggest misconceptions about ADHD is that it suddenly appears in college. In reality, college often acts like a magnifying glass. The symptoms may have always been there, but the increased demands of college life make them much harder to ignore

Maybe you've always felt a little out of step with the people around you. Maybe friendships have felt confusing, even though you've wanted them deeply. Maybe you leave social gatherings completely drained while everyone else seems energized. Maybe you've been called "too sensitive," "too intense," or "an overthinker" more times than you can count

For years, much of what we understood about autism came from research that focused primarily on boys. As researchers have learned more about autistic women, it's become increasingly clear that many women experience autism differently- and because of that, they're often overlooked or diagnosed much later in life (Rynkiewicz et al., 2019).