There were many moments when I found it difficult to explain how my mind works, what motivates me, and what makes me stay still for hours without starting a task. I never felt alone: whenever I finally managed to put into words what I felt, many people related to it. Only later did I realise that the common factor had a name: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).<\/p>\n
For me, it is as if I am constantly doing group work with someone who is extremely distracted.<\/p>\n
I am motivated, I write down all the instructions given, I research relevant articles, I come up with ideas that I consider valuable\u2026 I want to produce excellent work, and I put effort into it. But at the same time, I have a \u201cteammate\u201d in my head who disorganises me. She loses notes, postpones starting tasks, has no sense of time management, and is constantly distracted.<\/p>\n
For a long time, I felt that this was deeply unfair. In the end, the outcome is always assessed as a whole. nd I felt that my effort was not recognised, because the delays and procrastination coming from that \u201cother part\u201d were also visible.<\/p>\n
I thought that \u201cI\u201d and \u201cshe\u201d should not be seen together.<\/p>\n
For example, in secondary school I achieved an average of 19 while balancing my studies with competitive sport and school clubs, while she would arrive late for tests and often be missing materials.<\/p>\n
I would do all my homework and she would forget to have dinner. I would make to-do lists and she would never know what needed to be done.<\/p>\n
I was \u201cintelligent\u201d and \u201chard-working\u201d, while she was \u201clazy\u201d and \u201cundisciplined\u201d.<\/p>\n
For a long time, I believed that these two parts should not be seen together, as if one cancelled out the other. Until I realised that this separation does not exist: there is no \u201cme\u201d and \u201cher\u201d. There is only the way my brain works.<\/p>\n
Learning to live with ADHD means accepting that. It is not about separating or eliminating a part, but about understanding how it works and finding ways to manage the frustration that comes with it<\/p>\n
Over time, I realised that attention deficit is not just about not being able to focus. Sometimes it is exactly the opposite: not being able to \u201cunfocus\u201d (hyperfocus). It is becoming so absorbed in a single task for hours that I lose track of time and realise far too late that I should have already left the house for another commitment, that I have not eaten, or that I have not even showered. It is falling asleep on the floor while studying a subject that was only meant to be a light review, planning to then focus on another that was more urgent, but never managing to leave the first. It is making to-do lists and, still, not knowing how to prioritise, which results in not even starting.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
I then understood that the \u201cme\u201d and the \u201cher\u201d are simply two sides of the same coin. For a long time, I chose to identify only with the traits that are valued and distance myself from those that are less understood. Today, I understand that they are all part of me.<\/p>\n
The Student<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Testimony collected by the Career and Development Service of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Porto<\/i><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>