Story

I'm taking part in the Active 4 ADHD UK Fundraising Challenge during ADHD Awareness Month, this October!

About me: I have AuDHD. My diagnosis of ADHD (combined type) came in March 2024, and shortly after I was also diagnosed with Autism. I of course didn't just suddenly have these neurodevelopmental conditions, I was born with them. From a young age I felt abnormal, like there was something wrong with me. I kept these feelings to myself and learned through diagnoses that I have spent my whole life 'masking' my differences, I spent a lot of time observing others and mimicking the way they behave to fit in better e.g. I learned that looking people in the eye is important and regardless of how uncomfortable it might feel, I must do it because if I don't I could be scolded for showing disrespect. I contained a lot of fear and anxiety, of what might happen if people worked out the truth.

Neurodevelopmental conditions usually always go hand in hand with mental health conditions such as an anxiety disorder (there are 7 types) and depression. Throughout my life I have gone through anxiety cycles that have led to depression, or have experienced burn out, that has led to depression. I can be quite a sociable, chatty person but during anxiety cycles/burnout/depression or all three, I withdraw and go into survival mode. For instance, after diagnoses, I had a lot to process, especially in terms of the Autism diagnosis, which I didn't suspect I had. It's taken over a year to understand and get my head around it. Including processing feelings of frustration - that if I had known this sooner and had the understanding on a personal level as well as the understanding and support from others I could have reached my full potential. I could have prevented severe bouts of depression and avoided many instances of burn out and I could have maintained more friendships.

It is because of my own life experience, of the negative affects, a lack of awareness of neurodevelopmental conditions can have on people that I am passionate about supporting causes that raise awareness. My main intention from getting involved with this challenge is to do just that - raise awareness. If you can spare some time to read some of the information below and watch some of the video links, I've included ,then that would be amazing. If you would also like to make a small donation to support the wonderful work that ADHD UK are doing then that would be wonderful too.

Thank you for reading

The Active 4 ADHD UK challenge, is a fundraising and awareness campaign by the charity ADHD UK that encourages participants to get active for 31 minutes each day for 31 days. The goal is to raise funds and awareness for ADHD and to highlight the benefits of physical activity for managing ADHD symptoms.

Improved Functioning: Regular physical activity can help individuals with ADHD function better and feel better overall.

Symptom Management: Exercise is a complementary tool that can help manage core ADHD symptoms and associated issues like anxiety and sleep disorders, according to the National Institutes of Health.