ADHD in Adults: How to Tell It's Not Laziness

You forget where you put your keys, start five things and finish none, can't sit down to write a simple email for hours, and then suddenly work until night. For years you've explained this as laziness and lack of willpower — and that only makes it worse.

Maybe it's not about character. Behind this set of difficulties may be ADHD — a difference in how attention and self-regulation work, and it doesn't occur only in children.

One important thing right away: this article doesn't diagnose anything and doesn't replace an evaluation by a specialist. It's about how this difference looks in adults, how it differs from laziness, and what you can do about it.