Portsmouth Labour Party Standing up for you and our city
With ADHD Awareness month coming to an end Cllr Tom Coles has written a blog about his experience of living with ADHD.
“I was diagnosed with adhd in my teens, generally considered quite late for a childhood diagnosis. I had medication and regular appointments with a child psychologist but I had no SEN support at my secondary school and was taught ‘not to put the blame on ADHD’ for anything that I did wrong, something which, despite no longer being considered appropriate to tell someone with ADHD, has always stayed with me. When I reached eighteen, I had a final meeting with my psychologist who told me as I was now an adult my support for ADHD would have to end.
I put my ADHD to the back of my mind, using several methods to mask my symptoms with varying success until eventually, in 2019, I suffered a bout of depression and was prescribed antidepressants. Whilst on antidepressants, I was referred to Talking Change and through my one-to-one sessions there came to understand that my depression was caused by my ADHD and reflected on the nearly twenty years since my NHS support ended for the condition. She made a referral for me to the local ADHD NHS service, which is based in Basingstoke and I am now receiving some support”
Neurodevelopmental conditions are quite complex. Each person has a different scale of challenges and strengths.
Learning about neurodiversity can help you move the focus from impairments towards everyone’s different abilities.