ADD & ADHD Health Center

Tools & Resources

Font Size

ADHD and Stress

Does ADHD cause stress? Can stress cause ADHD? Is living with ADHD just a vicious cycle? How can the cycle be interrupted?

Whether you're looking for information about ADHD and stress for children, teens, or adults, you’ll find answers here.

Recommended Related to ADD-ADHD

Sharing a Diagnosis: When You and Your Child Have ADHD

Your son or daughter was just diagnosed with ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. And as you sat there in the office, listening to the doctor tick off the symptoms – the attention problems, the disorganization, the fidgeting – you recognized yourself. Suddenly, you wonder: Could I have adult ADHD? You very well might. ADHD runs in families, and experts say that for any child with ADHD, there’s a 30% to 40% chance that one of the parents has it. But for many adults, the idea...

Read the Sharing a Diagnosis: When You and Your Child Have ADHD article > >

Is ADHD Linked to Stress?

It's not surprising that anyone living with ADHD might also experience stress. ADHD symptoms, such as trouble focusing, short attention span, hyperactivity, and poor organizational skills can lead to frustration and feelings of loss of control and hopelessness – a sure set-up for daily stress. ADHD may also be accompanied by other mental health conditions -- conditions that are also linked to stress including:

Depression
Negative thoughts
Anxiety
Difficulty sleeping

Are these conditions secondary to ADHD or themselves causes of stress? No one knows for sure, but it's important to address stress, in addition to your ADHD.

Why Worry About ADHD and Stress?

Everyone feels stress. Stress helps you focus on something that requires your attention -- and that's good. It can make you work harder and react quicker. Otherwise, you might stumble into something dangerous.

Stress becomes bad when it overwhelms your ability to act. When stress levels remain high for long periods, problems like depression and heart disease can result.

So what's the connection between stress and ADHD? ADHD presents ongoing challenges that can make stress and frustration become out of control. If you have ADHD and a lot of unmanaged stress, it could raise your risk of some health problems and worsen symptoms of others, including:

Tics or Tourette's syndrome
Depression or anxiety attacks
Fibromyalgia or chronic pain syndrome

Suggestions for Dealing With ADHD and Stress

Anyone with ADHD -- children, teens, and adults -- can do a lot to manage ADHD and reduce stress. These strategies can be adapted for any age and include the following suggestions:

Follow through on your ADHD treatment plan

Follow through on the ADHD treatment plan,whether it's medication and/or behavior therapy. Talk to your doctor before making any changes to your treatment plan.

Learn stress management skills

You can learn skills to deal more effectively or minimize stress. Here are some areas to consider:

Strategies for dealing with or avoiding stressful situations
Developing more effective problem-solving skills
Improving communication skills
Learning to speak up for yourself and your needs (self-advocacy)

Develop relaxation techniques

Learn techniques for meditation, prayer, or relaxation. Biofeedback may also be useful to help monitor your level of stress and how you respond to it.

Remove stressors when appropriate

Some stressors can simply be removed or avoided altogether. For example, for a child with ADHD, you may want to schedule play dates with only one other child and monitor the play closely. A teen or adult may want to cut back on extra activities during stressful times.

1 | 2

Next Page >

WebMD Medical Reference