Episode 56: “What is ADHD?” (Part 2): Unpacking ADHD-Inattentive Traits
May 31, 2024
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AuDHD mental health professionals, Patrick Casale and Dr. Megan Anna Neff, delve into the DSM-5 criteria for ADHD inattentive subtype. They share personal struggles with inattentive traits like decision fatigue, coping mechanisms, project management challenges, and organization difficulties. Listeners can relate to their experiences and gain insights on navigating daily life with ADHD traits.
Understand the DSM-5 criteria for ADHD subtypes - inattentive, combined, and hyperactive.
Explore coping strategies for daily struggles with ADHD, from time management to decision fatigue.
Reflect on the challenges of completing tasks, managing distractions, and coping with executive functioning difficulties.
Deep dives
Key Points of ADHD Inattentive Symptoms
The podcast episode delves into the inattentive symptoms of ADHD, highlighting difficulties in sustaining attention, organizing tasks, following instructions, and engaging in tasks requiring mental effort. Personal experiences are shared, such as struggles with daily activities like chores and errands, distraction from extraneous stimuli, and forgetfulness of daily tasks like returning calls or keeping appointments.
Struggles with Organizing Tasks and Sustaining Mental Effort
Individuals with ADHD find it challenging to organize tasks and activities, often resorting to hyperfocus to cope with distractions and overwhelming stimuli. The narrative reflects on the mental strain in prioritizing and executing tasks efficiently amid constant distractions and struggles with maintaining organization and time management in both personal and professional endeavors.
Difficulties in Completing Tasks and Following Through
The podcast explores the struggles of individuals with ADHD in completing tasks and following through on commitments, leading to half-finished projects, procrastination, and feelings of inefficiency. The impact of executive functioning challenges is evident in the difficulty of managing sequential tasks, maintaining focus, and navigating through multiple demands.
Challenges with Engagement in Sustained Mental Effort
The conversation addresses the aversion to tasks requiring sustained mental effort, highlighting avoidance behaviors and struggles in engaging with work that demands prolonged attention. Insights are shared on the mental stress associated with enduring mental tasks, especially when they do not align with personal interests, indicating the complexities of managing cognitive efforts.
Addressing Daily Forgetfulness and Avoidance Behaviors
The podcast sheds light on the daily forgetfulness and avoidance behaviors experienced by individuals with ADHD, impacting their ability to remember and execute daily activities like running errands, responding to calls, or keeping appointments. Personal anecdotes reflect the challenges of managing hygiene, household chores, and self-care tasks effectively amidst cognitive limitations and competing priorities.
ADHD has many nuances and is often misunderstood and stereotyped. In an attempt to better understand the ways ADHD can present in daily life, this episode uses the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria as a framework for discussion—this is not an endorsement of the DSM-5.
In this episode, Patrick Casale and Dr. Megan Anna Neff, two AuDHD mental health professionals, talk about the DSM-5 criteria for the inattentive subtype of ADHD, as well as share their personal experiences.
Top 3 reasons to listen to the entire episode:
Understand the DSM-5 criteria for ADHD, offering a deeper understanding of the inattentive, combined, and hyperactive subtypes.
Hear about Dr. Neff and Patrick’s struggles with inattentive traits of ADHD, including household chores, daily activities, the overwhelming feeling of decision fatigue, and the resulting “ADHD Tax.”
Discover some ways that Patrick and Dr. Neff cope with the day-to-day struggles of ADHD, from managing time and prioritizing tasks to overcoming the hurdles of incomplete projects and decision fatigue.
As you listen, you might find parts of these criteria and stories that resonate with your own life, whether you have ADHD or simply face similar struggles. We encourage you to stay curious about your own experiences and continue exploring these important topics.
DISCLAIMER: We're using the DSM-5 criteria as a framework for this conversation, but this is not our endorsement of the DSM-5.