ADHD or Anxiety? How Women Get Misdiagnosed for Years and What to Do About It with Kate Moryoussef
Episode Description
I have been waiting to release an episode about women and ADHD and this conversation has been so worth the wait! In this episode, I speak with Kate Moryoussef about what late diagnosis actually looks like, why it takes so long, and what women can do to move their care forward when the system keeps calling it something else.
Kate is an ADHD coach, author of the DK-published ADHD Women's Wellbeing Toolkit, and host of the ADHD Women's Wellbeing Podcast with 3.5 million downloads,
Kate was diagnosed mid-life with ADHD when she was advocating for her nine-year-old daughter for an ADHD diagnosis during lockdown. She really saw herself for the first time in the symptoms that her daughter was struggling with, but her GP told her it was anxiety. She pushed back: "I have had this for all of my life. This is not new COVID anxiety." She found a psychiatrist privately, and within weeks had the ADHD diagnosis she'd been living without for 40 years.
We get into why so many women arrive at an ADHD assessment carrying years of prior dismissals, heavy periods written off, migraines managed without investigation, mental health concerns attributed to stress. Kate talks about why the fear of being pushed back again makes speaking up harder every time, and what actually helps: voice-noting your history before an appointment, using AI to turn it into bullet points a doctor can act on, recording the session on your phone so you're not relying on executive function under pressure.
We also cover what a diagnosis changes and what it doesn't. It doesn't give you a new brain. It does give you language, permission to stop blaming yourself, and access to support you couldn't ask for before. Kate's framing: "turn the lights on." See the ADHD clearly enough to know where you need scaffolding and stop calling it a personality flaw.
I was diagnosed with ADHD as a teenager, and ask Kate about the women who've masked so thoroughly they've built brilliant career and then hit midlife, perimenopause, and burnout simultaneously. Kate talks about why so many ADHD women quietly downsize their ambitions when what they actually needed was flexibility and someone in their corner.
About Kate Moryourseef
The More Yourself Membership by Kate Moryoussef
The ADHD Women's Wellbeing Toolkit Book by Kate Moryoussef
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Disclaimer: The Hairy Chin does not provide medical advice. All content is for informational purposes only. Please consult a qualified healthcare professional for personal medical concerns.
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