There’s a new surge in ADHD diagnoses. The real problem is other people

April 8, 2026 — 5:10pm

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As a psychologist, I hear a lot about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Not only from patients, but increasingly from my female friends and acquaintances. The marked increase of ADHD diagnoses among middle-aged and older women is celebrated as empowering and an advancement of our understanding of women’s mental health. But there are risks in so readily reducing women and their life experiences to a singular diagnostic solution.

In what has become a popular quote – misattributed to either psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud or author William Gibson – anyone considering a diagnosis of depression or low self-esteem is reminded to first check the quality of their company (more precisely, to ensure you’re not “surrounded by arseholes”). Whoever coined this saying, it’s advice that is warranted before considering an ADHD diagnosis, particularly for women.

The surge in ADHD diagnoses of women is likely an overcorrection of a time when the disorder was primarily identified in males and school-aged boys. Better understanding of masking of neurodivergent traits and increased public recognition of ADHD have prompted more girls and women to seek assessment in recent years. Open discussion of women’s mental health and improved knowledge of neurodiversity in women........

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