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submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) by pineapple@lemmy.ml to c/adhd@lemmy.world

I'm not really sure if I have adhd or not at the moment and I just realised this. I'm not sure if this is related to adhd at all but I just find it weird looking into peoples eyes, when I listen to people I usually look out a window or something and sometimes people ask me weather I am listening and I didn't even realise I was looking out a window I kind of just assumed they knew I was listening.

Also as a side note, I have a lot of symptoms of adhd but I'm not sure if to enough of an extent, since I see a lot that everyone has the symptoms of adhd just not to the extent of someone that actually has adhd has.

Do you also have that one comment in the bottom of your lemmy inbox that you've been meaning to respond to for the last several weeks or months but you keep putting it off?

Do you also sit on your couch or bed and just stair out the window for like 30 minutes or longer at a time?

I also have struggle focusing on school work, this hasn't always been the case but it's a lot more now. Once the coffee from the morning wears off I can't focus for long enough to finish a small portion of a single Maths question before I'm staring out the window thinking about something completely unrelated, then about 5-10 minutes later I realised I'm distracted.

You've probably also noticed a pattern at this point, I love staring out windows!

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[-] 18107@aussie.zone 9 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Avoiding eye contact is typically associated with autism, but there is a lot of overlap between autism and ADHD. See also AuDHD

I often get overwhelmed with too much information when making eye contact, and I'm rarely able to listen/understand while making eye contact. The easiest way for me to listen is to be looking anywhere else. This does not always go well in a corporate environment, and did not go well when my parents were trying to reprimand me.

Phone calls or online meetings instead of face-to-face meetings can help (if you can cope with that). Otherwise, learning when eye contact is socially necessary and when you can relax a little can go a long way (or so I've heard, I still haven't mastered this one).

[-] squirrel@piefed.kobel.fyi 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

See also ! AuDHD @ lemmmy.world (edited to remove link)

That link doesn't work. Correct link !autisticandadhd@lemmy.world

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 0 points 1 week ago

do kinda doubt I have autism. I have many pretty good friends and while I do find it uncomfortable talking to new people I think thats pretty normal to some extent. Although I may be wrong.

[-] erebion@news.erebion.eu 2 points 1 week ago

I definitely am like that and definitely am autistic.

Did you know autistics not only often struggle to talk to new people, but can also have friends... unlike what many people claim?

[-] erebion@news.erebion.eu 0 points 1 week ago

Also, please don't say "have autism", that's painful to read. People might be autistic, but they don't "have" it.

Another thing to avoid: "person with autism" (It is: autistic person)

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 0 points 1 week ago

Sorry, I will have a look into the other symptoms of autism.

[-] erebion@news.erebion.eu 0 points 1 week ago

There are no specific symptoms, it's too complex. There are things that often occur, but for some people the opposite might be true and they are still autistic.

The best to learn more is to read as much as you can and make sure what you read is good quality, as there's a lot of bullshit out there when it comes ro autism.

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 0 points 1 week ago

Thanks. That was really arrogant of me to say I have friends so I mustn't be autistic, the only autistic people I actually know have many friends and I am friends with quite a few of there friends.

Anyhow I do notice that I have a few tenancies like extra attention to detail such as when choosing a spoon from a cutlery draw I will usually go through a few spoons to find one I like the look of. I also find things that move in nature really interesting, like creeks or rivers. Also I mentioned this before I recently found a recording of me watching an entire washing machine cycle. I'm not really sure if that is even a symptom or if it's just me, I'll look into it.

[-] erebion@news.erebion.eu 0 points 1 week ago

To me there are more things in there that seem autistic, but then it is also impossible to tell for sure from just one comment.

One thing in particular is noteworthy: Being friends with quite a few autistic people. Autistic people often end up becoming friends without knowing they're autistic, just because they often connect much better than with neurotypicals.

One thing that is often associated with being autistic is fascination with flowing water, but ADHD folks could also find that fascinating, of course.

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

I ment i am friends of friends of autistic people, I'm not directly friends with autistic people. Sorry I phrased that kinda badly.

[-] Rhynoplaz@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

I am right there with you. Eye contact makes me so uncomfortable, and I listen so much better when I'm looking at nothing.

[-] Noodle07@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

Look at the ground and orient my ear towards them or I'm not hearing anything they say

[-] hoshikarakitaridia@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

I do but I also have autism. For me it's definitely more of an autism thing. I'm curious what it is for ADHD folks in here.

[-] Seasm0ke@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

When I was a kid yes but my dad took it as disrespect so i traded it for masking and general anxiety

[-] erebion@news.erebion.eu 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

To me this sounds like AuDHD, but this is obviously far from a diagnosis and I'm not a professional, I merely have read so much that I sometimes know better (lol)

Jokes aside, try this: https://rdos.net/eng/Aspie-quiz.php

It's so far the only online test that gets somewhat close to what a diagnosis would probably say and I've asked diagnosticians and they said it's useful to get a first idea whether to seek a diagnosis, as this mostly looks the same as their questionnaires. Don't forget to save the PDF with the full results at the end or you will have to do it again.

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 0 points 1 week ago

Yeah ok thanks. I am currently looking into getting profesionally tested.

[-] erebion@news.erebion.eu 0 points 1 week ago

Depending on your country it can sometimes take years to get an appointment, so you might have to ask several places and be patient. That's why many people educate themselves and self-diagnose before they finally get an official diagnosis. Which makes sense, as it is mostly about understanding yourself better and not much else, so there's little risk something could go wrong there, lol.

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Oh wait that other lemmite was you...

Anyhow I did the test and got 100% neurotypical.

Are any semi reliable tests for adhd?

[-] sem@piefed.blahaj.zone 2 points 1 week ago

Sometimes, but not always.

[-] Worx@lemmynsfw.com 1 points 1 week ago

Tip for eye contact: look at their nose instead. Apparently it looks like you're making eye contact but it's much less weird to do. Thank you the my college teacher for that tip, it's served me well over the years

[-] masta_chief@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 week ago

I start to think about which eye to look at and that distracts me, so for close friends I do much less eye contact than with people I'm meeting or working with

[-] SpicyTaint@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

I don't struggle with eye contact because I purposefully avoid it.

[-] supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz 0 points 1 week ago

Do you also sit on your couch or bed and just stair out the window for like 30 minutes or longer at a time?

Yes!

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

I just found an old recording of me watching an entire washing machine cycle as a kid, I have no memory of this wth.

[-] Atherel@lemmy.dbzer0.com 0 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I don't do it intentionally, but my wife often tells me to look at her when she's talking so she knows I'm listening.

The rest you wrote sounds a lot like ADHD inattentive type, especially executive distinction. And caffeine is a stimulant which can have similar effects as meds. If you can still sleep without problems or even better after drinking coffee, that's an additional indication.

The problem with ADHD is that most of our struggles are things "everybody has once in a while" but it's so much more often and extreme that it makes our lives harder.

Get checked if you have the possibility.

[-] pineapple@lemmy.ml 0 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Coffee does help but I dont notice it a ton, and it only lasts for like 2 hours.

I always thought caffiene was overhyped because it had like no effect on me. But now i have noticed it helps me focus.

[-] Atherel@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 week ago

Yeah, that's why I drank about 8 coffees a day before I even suspected having ADHD. I just knew I can work better with it and thought that this is the effect others experience too when they say that they need one.

[-] blimthepixie@lemmy.dbzer0.com -1 points 1 week ago

I used to look down but then I got para that the person would think I was staring at their chebs so now I just look at the eyebrows.

Not that it matters because I usually forget what was said within seconds anyway.

I grew up in a rural area during the 80/90's so any diagnosis would just be 'shy or awkward kid'

[-] tanisnikana@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Looking at someone’s chebs is natural. It’s right there, and it just sticks out. Sometimes people show a bit too much chebs though, and you can kinda see the knee weenus.

[-] sem@piefed.blahaj.zone 4 points 1 week ago
[-] titter@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Im out of the loops but chebs appears to refer to a wooden box with a hinged lid that you can store blankets inside of

[-] tanisnikana@lemmy.world -1 points 1 week ago

You really telling me you went your whole life without stretching your chebs?

this post was submitted on 18 Dec 2025
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ADHD

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