Some ADHD group members have said that they often have thoughts of self-harm, sexual acts, or violence running through their minds. ADHD can cause these types of intrusive thoughts because it weakens the brain's executive functions responsible for controlling your emotions and behaviors.
Many people with ADHD express frustration with the frequency and depth of negative and intrusive thoughts. These thoughts can be painful, and they may grow and grow until they affect daily life.
Racing thoughts in ADHD can be a mental manifestation of restlessness, a result of your brain's unique self-regulation processes. While sometimes confused with racing thoughts in bipolar disorder, an ADHD active mind may last for an hour, a day, or a couple of days.
OCD and ADHD: Treatment Considerations
As stimulants increase attention and focus, they may also lead an individual with comorbid OCD to focus more on the obsessive thought. However, there are cases when stimulants can help treat OCD, especially if symptoms are triggered by inattentiveness and other ADHD symptoms.
They can take many forms, such as worries, doubts, or even violent or taboo images. These symptoms are often associated with mental health conditions such as anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression.
It's when your thoughts get caught in a loop, and you go over and over the same thoughts without feeling better or finding a resolution. Your thinking might get stuck on day to day worries or on future events.
Overthinking can be an all-natural process, it can also be the result if the creative and overly active ADHD brain. While most believe overthinking to be a symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder, it' actually relates more to ADHD.
Differences in emotions in people with ADHD can lead to 'shutdowns', where someone is so overwhelmed with emotions that they space out, may find it hard to speak or move and may struggle to articulate what they are feeling until they can process their emotions.
Executive functions have other roles which affect how someone thinks. In people with ADHD, these executive dysfunctions impact thinking in numerous ways. People with ADHD don't really think faster than people without it, but it can sometimes seem like they do.
The ADHD nervous system is overwhelmed by life experiences because its intensity is so high. The ADHD nervous system is rarely at rest. It wants to be engaged in something interesting and challenging. Attention is never “deficit.” It is always excessive, constantly occupied with internal reveries and engagements.
Traumatic stress can worsen ADHD symptoms. Up to 17% of trauma-exposed children meet ADHD criteria, and the co-occurrence of each worsens the effects of the other. Trauma also impacts specific brain regions that may also increase: Inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity.
Obsessing and ruminating are often part of living with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). No matter how hard you try to ignore them, those negative thoughts just keep coming back, replaying themselves in an infinite loop.
First, remember because of your ADHD working memory challenges your brain has a limited capacity to hold and process information in the moment. And, according to Dr. Parker, because you are not able to hold and consider multiple ideas at once, you may engage in counterproductive excessive thinking — rumination.
ADHD hyperfixation refers to an intense and often prolonged state of concentration on a particular activity or object. This may lead to happiness, satisfaction, and, at times, increased productivity.
High-functioning ADHD could mean: you experience severe symptoms but have developed “work arounds” to carry on with daily tasks and responsibilities. your symptoms are mild, and you're able to function with minimal impairment. symptoms are greatly impairing in some areas but you're highly functional in others.
Inattentiveness and difficulty concentrating may cause fatigue, especially among students and full-time employees working long days. Distractibility and poor focus can cause people with ADHD to quickly lose interest in activities or objects that once gave them pleasure as well.
Kids with ADHD often feel emotions more deeply than other kids do. When teens with ADHD fall in love, the feelings of joy and excitement can be even more intense for them. Teens might feel a deep sense of intimacy and acceptance, perhaps for the first time.
In general, ADHD doesn't get worse with age. Some adults may also outgrow their symptoms.
People with SCT have trouble focusing and paying attention, but they're less likely to be impulsive or hyperactive.
ADHD challenges with working memory, long-term memory, processing speed, emotional regulation and distractions can make it difficult for you to organize your thoughts into words.
This is why people with ADHD can often hold grudges against people, companies and locations; memories of an injustice or disservice can linger for a while, which can cause all sorts of other problems such as low moods and irritability.