Symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) include restlessness, impulsive behavior, and difficulty sitting still. The mental condition ADHD has numerous other symptoms, such as time blindness and impulsive spending, that are often disregarded. All of ADHD’s symptoms can have a significant impact on a person’s daily life.
Those less common symptoms of time blindness and impulsive spending make it extremely difficult for me to keep track of my money.
Inaccurate time perception, or “time blindness,” can have serious consequences.
ADHD Subtypes
First, ADHD exists on a continuum, with two or three distinct types depending on your criteria.
Hyperactive-impulsive and apathetic are the two most common categories. It’s unlikely, though, that your symptoms will fall into one of those two groups. A combination type diagnosis is given to a large percentage of the population.
Some people with the neurodevelopmental condition may be restless and fidgety, while others may stare blankly out the window or veer erratically between hyperfocus and distraction.
There is mounting evidence that persons with ADHD may experience serious difficulties with their perception of time, which can be just as devastating as the disorder’s more well-known manifestations.
Underdiagnosis is a possibility.
I was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 35, but I’d known since I was a kid that my brain was wired differently.
Among women my age, underdiagnosis of ADHD is rather typical. In reality, studies conducted between 1997 and 1998 indicated that only approximately 3% of females were diagnosed with ADHD.
That’s about the time I realized I needed to do something about my restless leg syndrome if I ever wanted to pay attention in class. The same time period saw a threefold increase in the number of male patients diagnosed by medical professionals.
There has long been a disparity between the sexes when it comes to ADHD diagnosis, despite the fact that the number of children diagnosed has increased dramatically since then (11.7% for men and 8.8% for girls in 2019). This void persists in the current diagnostic system.There are three places dedicated to preventing disease.
Adults might also suffer from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This mental illness has long-lasting consequences that can compromise an adult’s quality of life and professional prospects.\
Symptoms of Impulsive Behavior
Many individuals with ADHD have told researchers that they struggle to maintain employment and frequently face financial difficulties
A 2015 research published in the Lancet followed 1.92 million participants over 32 years; among them, 32,061 were diagnosed with ADHD. The study found that persons with ADHD had a greater death rate than those without the disorder. Researchers also attributed the elevated death rate to the following factors:
- Diverse forms of irrational conduct
- Disruptive actions
- Use of Substances
- Inattention
- Impulsivity
- Dangerous actions
Depression, anxiety, obesity, and diabetes are among diseases that may worsen in people with untreated ADHD.
Adverse health effects from ADHD can be avoided with early diagnosis and treatment. There is mounting evidence that many people are able to convert their symptoms into highly adaptable characteristics that help them lead fulfilling lives.6
Many potentially harmful actions, such as time blindness, stem from an inability to accurately weigh potential benefits and drawbacks.
What is “time blindness”?
Time blindness is the inability to see beyond the immediate.
“ADHD is, at its core, a blindness to time,” said Russell Barkley, PhD, an ADHD researcher, at a discussion for the Centre for ADHD Awareness Canada (CADDAC) in 2009. persons with ADHD are like nearsighted persons in that they can only focus on the immediate future.
West Chester, Pennsylvania-based psychologist Ari Tuckman, PsyD, concurs with Barkley’s characterization. Tuckman suggested that people with ADHD’s time blindness contributed to our propensity for impulsive attention.
According to Tuckman, “good attention regulation is choosing the right thing moment by moment,” while “distractibility” is defined as changing your focus when you should have maintained it. “The antithesis of that is hyperfocus. You refuse to move when you should.
All of these causes of time blindness can make people with ADHD more likely to rack up debt. They live for the moment and have an attitude of “I’ll spend now and pay later,” even when “later” never comes.
It seems like a failure to understand the significance of time in a way that leads to effective action. For instance, I know that I need to take a break from writing these lines in order to respond to a few emails. However, I cannot predict when I will stop or how far in advance I should prepare.
Leaving the house is another common example. The time it will take me to get ready is impossible to predict. I can only provide a rough estimate at this time.
I’m not trying to be difficult, and I can’t train myself to be good at judging time. Similarly, a person who is colorblind would always struggle to tell the difference between red and green.
Consequences of Time Ignorance
The consequences of failing to recognize the passage of time can be devastating. Meetings are missed by those with ADHD at work or in the classroom. They might be too preoccupied with work to remember to go to the office or retrieve their children from school.
If you have trouble keeping track of time, you can forget to do basic grownup things like go grocery shopping, fill up the gas tank, or pay the rent on time.
These actions might be interpreted as disrespectful or lazy by others. However, time blindness and other cognitive problems can be explained by reduced activity in the prefrontal brain. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that controls executive functions including attention and decision-making.
Time blindness has far-reaching monetary repercussions. Tuckman suggests that persons with ADHD may have poorer credit ratings because they are more likely to miss a bill payment. They may have trouble qualifying for a mortgage, auto loan, or any loan as all.
Tuckman coined the term “ADHD tax” to describe the financial penalties associated with hyperactivity disorder. However, people with ADHD face challenges in other, more subtle ways.
According to Tuckman, people with ADHD “have more traffic accidents [and] more speeding tickets,” which may lead to higher premiums for auto insurance.
Due to difficulties with planning and organization, people with ADHD may spend more money dining out than they would if they cooked their own food. Over time, the cost of all those little items adds up to a significant sum. The same holds true for giving in to impulsive purchases.
The ‘ADHD Taxa’ and Irresponsible Buying
The cognitive defect responsible for ADHD-related impulsivity is the same one responsible for nearsightedness to time. In patients with ADHD, problems with dopamine production can have serious consequences. Dopamine is a naturally occurring hormone that elevates your mood.
Substance misuse, gambling, and “antisocial behaviors” like violent outbursts or an inability to sit through a work meeting are all linked to disruptions in the hormone.
The inability to control one’s impulses might prevent someone with ADHD from adopting good lifestyle habits like regular exercise and a balanced diet. Tuckman described this as “the double whammy” of ADHD. It’s not a matter of not being aware. Doing it consistently, day after day, is the challenge.
Then there’s the problem of making hasty purchases. Almost everyone has made an internet purchase they later came to deeply regret. However, this occurs far more frequently and severely in those with ADHD. Debt, foreclosure, and bankruptcy are just some of the financial calamities that can result from spending money on the spur of the moment.
“Due to impulsivity, the person with ADD usually falls into the spender’ category,” said Stephanie Moulton Sarkis, PhD, and Karl Klein, JD, authors of the book ADD and Your Money. “This can cause arguments about money and cause strain on the marriage.”
Then, the arguments at home and the mounting debt are just another part of the “ADHD tax.”
For those of us with ADHD, delaying gratification may be a real challenge since we like to live in the moment.
I rule my finances with an iron fist since I’ve seen the consequences of laxity firsthand. My “ADHD tax” manifests itself in a stubbornness that might lead to fights in the home. I identify as a “saver,” yet I’m also one side of the same coin when it comes to ADHD symptoms. Just around the bend comes another perspective.
Learning more about how my brain works has helped me realize that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is not something we need to cure so that our children can do their assignments on time. This condition is a neurological disorder.
Without help, individuals would continue to suffer from a diminished quality of life, increased difficulties in meeting basic needs, and, yes, crippling levels of debt. But it’s not to say that our fate is sealed.
Despite the temporal distortion and impulsivity that come with ADHD, it’s a great part of who I am. I can pick up new material and abilities quickly because of my ADHD, and I can multitask like crazy so that I can keep up with my toddler when other people would be too tired to do so.
In some ways, having ADHD is a blessing. However, I need to be aware of the difficulties in order to take full use of the gift without completely emptying my financial account. Without bias and instead with inquiry, compassion, and pragmatism.
A Brief Summary
Despite common assumption, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic ailment that does not disappear after adolescence but rather worsens quality of life and increases the risk of death if left untreated.
Time blindness, the inability to see time as anything other than the instant at hand, is one of the less well-known symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Time blindness makes it difficult to keep commitments on time, which can have negative effects on one’s personal, professional, and social life.
Impulsivity is another sign, and it can lead to risky actions like spending without thinking.
However, some people with ADHD report beneficial outcomes, such as increased energy and the ability to multitask well. Many people might utilize their symptoms as motivation to achieve their goals. Having an understanding of your ADHD symptoms is essential to adjusting to them.