Her son got diagnosed in eleven days. One appointment, a referral, a questionnaire. She had been managing the exact same thing for over twenty years, with no name for it at all.

In this episode, Dr. Kelley breaks down why ADHD gets missed in women for decades, and the hormone connection almost no specialist discusses. Estrogen has a direct, mechanistic effect on dopamine signaling in the brain regions responsible for attention and follow-through. Research shows it's the decline in estrogen, not the absolute level, that worsens symptoms, which is why a woman in perimenopause can be told her hormones are "fine" while her focus falls apart anyway. One recent survey found 43 percent of women with ADHD were diagnosed for the first time between ages 41 and 50.

She also explains the "scattered, can't land on anything" feeling through a second, separate mechanism, chronic sympathetic activation flooding the prefrontal cortex with norepinephrine and dopamine at levels that impair rather than support it, drawing on Yale researcher Amy Arnsten's work, which specifically names ADHD among the conditions this affects. ADHD itself is fixed. This layer on top of it is not, and addressing it can measurably change how symptoms feel day to day.

Including a patient story of decades of masked ADHD finally surfacing during perimenopause, and what gets missed alongside an ADHD evaluation, including thyroid dysfunction, iron deficiency, and chronic HPA axis dysregulation.

You do not need to have been the kid bouncing off the walls to have ADHD. Most women with it never were.

You, Restored is hosted by Dr. Kelley Reis, Naturopathic Physician and founder of Liberty Natural Wellness — a fully virtual direct-care practice rooted in nervous system regulation, gut health, and hormones.

Learn more at libertynaturalwellness.com