Translator: Leonardo Silva
Reviewer: Mile Živković Hello, brains! I say that to you
because, if you think about it, it wasn't really you that decided
to come here today. It was your brain. And whether you decided to walk,
or drive, take a taxi, or ride a bike, that decision was made by your brain. Behavior, all behavior,
is affected by the brain. This is a story about my brain. So, I was a smart kid. By 18 months, I was speaking
in full sentences. By third grade, I was scoring
post-high school on standardized tests. I had, as all my teachers agreed,
so much potential. I was also struggling. I didn't have many, any, friends outside of books. I was easily overwhelmed.
I spaced out in class. I lost things constantly. And trying to get my brain to focus
on anything I wasn't excited about was like trying to nail jello to the wall. But I was smart, so nobody was worried. It wasn't until middle school, when I was responsible
for getting myself to classes on time and remembering to bring
my own homework, that being smart wasn't enough anymore,
and my grades started to suffer. My mom took me to the doctor
and, after a comprehensive evaluation, I was diagnosed with
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD. If you're not familiar with ADHD,
it has three primary characteristics: inattention, impulsivity,
and hyperactivity. Some people with ADHD have more
of the inattentive presentation. Those are the daydreamers,
the space cadets. Some have more of the
hyperactive-impulsive presentation. Those are the kids
that usually get diagnosed early. (Laughter) But the most common presentation
is a combination of both. (Laughter) My doctor and my parents decided
that, given my shiny, new diagnosis, maybe stimulant medication would succeed
where spankings and lectures had failed. So I tried it, and it worked. The first time I took my medication, it was like putting on glasses and realizing I could see
without squinting. I could focus. And without changing anything,
my GPA went up a full point. Honestly, it was kind of miraculous. By 14, I had friends that liked me. By 15, I had published my first poem. I got a boyfriend. By 17, I knew I wanted to be a journalist. My local college had a program
that would guarantee admission to USC. They had a really great
journalism program. So, I signed up at my local college
and I started taking classes. I moved in with my boyfriend. Things were going great, until they weren't. I started having trouble
making it to class on time. I aced a statistics course, but I forgot to sign up in time,
so I never got the credit. I took classes so I could help
my boyfriend with his career, but I completely lost sight of mine. I never made it to USC. By 21, I dropped out of college
and moved back home. Over the next ten years, I started
and quit, or was fired from, 15 jobs. I ruined my credit. I got married, and was divorced within a year. At this point, I was 32, and I had no idea
what I was doing with my life, besides reading self-help books
that didn't seem to be helping. What happened to all that potential? Was I not trying? No!
I worked harder than anyone I knew. I didn't even have time for friends. I was that busy. I had potential, though. So, my failure was clearly my fault. I just hadn't done
what I need to do to reach it, and, honestly, I was tired of trying, putting more effort into life
than everyone else and falling farther and farther behind. At this point, I could
have given up on myself, I could have decided that everyone
who'd thought I had potential was wrong. But I didn't, because I knew that it was my behavior
that had gotten me here, and behavior is affected by the brain, and my brain has ADHD. Looking at my behavior, I knew: even with medication, even as an adult, my ADHD was still
interfering with my life, and what I needed to know was how and why, and, more importantly,
what could I do about it. I started to do some research, and I found a lot of great information. I found a lot of bad information too,
but that's another talk. But there's good information out there. Websites, podcasts, talks,
by researchers and medical professionals; books that would have been
way more helpful than the self-help books I'd been using
that were clearly written for normal - well, there's no normal -
neurotypical brains. A lot of what I found, though,
was either super technical or seemed like it was written
for parents and teachers trying to deal with ADHD kids. There wasn't a lot
that seemed intended for us, the people who have ADHD. So, I started a YouTube channel. I had no idea how to start
a YouTube channel, but I started a YouTube channel. I almost called it "How Not To ADHD," because that was about all
I knew at the time. But my boyfriend, Edward,
talked me out of it. It turns out lots of people
need help understanding ADHD, including, maybe especially,
those who actually have it. I was no exception. I thought ADHD was
kind of the same for everybody. I thought it was mostly
about getting distracted. I thought having ADHD was maybe
the reason that I was failing at life. And I thought I was what needed to change,
in order to be successful. I couldn't be successful and still be me. Spoilers: I was wrong. So, let's go back for a second, let's
go back to what brought us here today: the brain. Understanding the brain you're working
with, it turns out, is kind of important, and that's true whether that brain
is your employee's, your student's, your kid's, your significant other's, or your own. ADHD affects between 5 and 8%
of the global population, which means, statistically speaking, there's between 37 and 60 of us
just in this room. You can't tell who we are just by looking,
but it's fun to watch you try. (Laughter) So, at some point, you're going to meet
someone with ADHD, work with them, give birth to them, or fall in love with them. Chances are you already have. And, at some point,
you're going to ask yourself, "What is going on in their brain?!" So, after two years of learning about ADHD
and a lifetime of experience with it, after having the honor of connecting
with researchers, and doctors, and ADHD experts, and tens of thousands
of ADHD brains all over the world, what can I tell you to help you
understand ADHD? By the way, many of them
helped with this talk. First of all, it's real. It's not bad parenting
or lack of discipline. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder. It's currently the most
well-researched mental condition, and there are actually
measurable differences in the brain. These differences are larger in children,
but, for most people, they never go away. In other words, adults have ADHD too. While rates of ADHD diagnosis
are increasing, it's not because of an increase
in sugar or technology, or lack of spanking; it's not, any more than people drowning in swimming
pools is because of Nicolas Cage. Correlation does not equal causation. Those are real numbers. (Laughter) It's from both an increase
in understanding that ADHD exists, that girls, adults, and gifted
students can have it too, and ironically a lack of understanding that being hyper, misbehaving,
or struggling in school does not mean you have ADHD. ADHD is more serious than I realized. The primary characteristics - inattention,
impulsivity, and hyperactivity - don't sound all that serious,
and I didn't think that they were, but, in real life, they translate
to people getting into more accidents, being more likely
to get fired, get divorced, significantly more likely
to struggle with addiction. I learned that ADHD is on a spectrum. Raise your hand
if you've ever lost your keys, or spaced out in the middle of a lecture. If you're not raising your hand, I'm going to assume you spaced out
in the middle of this one. (Laughter) The thing is, while everyone experiences
ADHD symptoms sometimes, an actual diagnosis is based
on how many of those symptoms significantly and chronically impair
multiple aspects of your life. Just like you can get sad
and not have depression, you can get distracted and not have ADHD. And just like you can have
mild depression or severe depression, ADHD can range from mild to severe. I also learned ADHD
is a terrible name for ADHD. It creates a lot of confusion. We don't have a deficit of attention! What we have trouble with
is regulating our attention. As ADHD coach Brett Thornhill puts it, it's like your brain keeps switching
between 30 different channels and somebody else has the remote. Sometimes we have trouble focusing at all, and other times we get stuck on a channel
and can't pull ourselves away, which in real life might seem
we don't want to do homework because we'd rather play video games,
and short, sometimes that's the case. But the truth is there are plenty of times
we want to able to focus, we try, and we just can't. Current understanding
is that this difficulty has to do with the way our brains produce
and metabolize neurotransmitters, like dopamine and norepinephrine. I learned ADHD is highly treatable. Stimulant medication boosts
these neurotransmitters, which is why it helps us focus. It's very effective for around 80%
of people with ADHD. And I learned that
medication isn't enough. ADHD affects much more than our focus. It impairs executive functions
like planning, prioritizing, and our ability to sustain
effort toward a goal. It affects our ability to regulate
our emotions, our behavior, our sleep. It's not one program in our brain
that works differently; it's the whole operating system. It can affect every aspect of our lives. And there are a ton of strategies
out there that can help. Cognitive behavioral therapy, coaching,
even meditation or regular exercise can help make a huge difference
understanding your brain. I knew I had trouble focusing,
and I knew my medication helped with that. What I didn't know was that getting
overwhelmed all the time had to do with poor working memory,
and that making lists helps; or that the reason I ran late all the
time wasn't because I didn't care, it's because ADHD'ers
have a skewed sense of time, and that using a timer could teach me
how long things actually take. Mostly, I expected to learn
what I actually learned: that ADHD is real; addressing it is important; and medication is not enough. What I didn't expect to learn: that I wasn't alone; I had an ADHD tribe; what a difference it would make
to connect with it. There are people with ADHD
in every country, every culture across the globe. Yes, even in France. (Laughter) And this tribe is awesome. Comparing myself to people
with neurotypical brains, I felt really bad about myself. Why couldn't I keep my house clean
or finish a project in time, instead of waiting
till the very last second? But seeing the positives
in fellow ADHD brains helped me recognize
and appreciate my own strengths, ones I couldn't see when I was
just staring at my weaknesses, which is what I'd been doing for decades. But ADHD brains have
a lot to offer the world. We tend to be generous, funny, creative. ADHD'ers are 300% more likely
to start their own business. We not only think outside the box; we're often not even aware
that there is a box. (Laughter) We may struggle when
our brains aren't engaged, but ADHD brains are great
at tackling tasks that are urgent, working with ideas that are new, wrestling with problems
that are challenging, and dedicating themselves to projects
that are of personal interest. This YouTube career I'd stumbled into
was all of those things. At 32, I was divorced, miserable, and had no idea
what I was doing with my life. At 33, I'd started my own business,
and was connecting with ADHD experts. By now, at 34, I have a team of volunteers
helping with the channel. I'm engaged to this amazing man
who helps me produce the channel, works right alongside with me,
is doing the slides right now - and, as we discovered, also has ADHD. (Laughter) I'm working on reaching out to schools so that kids don't have
to wait until they're 32 to learn about their brains. And I'm doing my very first TEDx talk
here with you today. (Cheers) (Applause) But wait! There's more! Wait. (Applause) That did sound like the end
of the speech. I'm sorry, it's not. (Laughter) I'm happier and more successful
than I've ever been in my life. So, what happened?
How did I reach my potential? Three things: one, I learned
about my brain, my ADHD brain, both on my own and by connecting
with others who have it. If you judge a fish
by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life
believing it is stupid, unless it happens to chat
with another fish and realizes fish aren't great
at climbing trees, and that's okay, there's plenty of ocean. Two, in learning about my brain, I found and stumbled
into a job that engages it. If you spend all your time trying
to get a fish to able to climb a tree, you'll never see how far it can swim. It turns out I can be me
and still be successful. I just had to find my ocean. Three, I learned strategies
for challenges I still face. I have no fish analogy
for this one, I'm sorry. (Laughter) I guess I learned how to swim. Once you know what
your brain's challenges are, you can find solutions to them. Once you look past the stereotypes
and assumptions about people with ADHD, and dig deeper, you learn
what ADHD actually is. It's not people who won't stop fidgeting,
or getting distracted. It is brains that are
chronically underaroused, trying to get the basic level
of stimulation all brains need. It's not about procrastinating
or not caring. It's having executive function deficits
that make it hard to get started. And it's not people being lazy
or not trying enough. It's kids and adults struggling to succeed with a brain that doesn't always
want to cooperate in a society that wasn't built for them. Society is our user's manual. We learn how our brains and bodies work
by watching those around us. And, when yours works differently,
it can feel like you're broken. So, what I'm trying to do
is reach out to these people wherever they are
in the world, and tell them, "You are not weird. You are not stupid. You do not need to try harder.
You are not a failed version of normal. You are different, you are beautiful, and you are not alone." If you don't ADHD yourself, chances are
you know somebody who does. They're your employee, your boss,
your friend, they're in this room. I hope this talk helps you
understand them better. If you do have ADHD, welcome to the tribe. (Applause) (Cheers)
Jessica McCabe is like the patron saint of ADHDers. Hers are the most helpful and relatable videos about this topic!
Love her videos! She does a great job of keeping them engaging and helpful
I haven't watched her TedTalk yet but I have been watching her 'How to ADHD' channel, and her videos are super insightful and helpful. Hello fellow brains!
This was actually really good, it's crazy how the stories are so similar for lots of girls with ADHD. She could have described my life I was gifted and talented, in all the top sets, then barely attended school for 2 years because I couldn't get focused enough to get there. I was predicted all A* but took the lower GCSE papers as my attendance was so bad. Even for my current job i had a years training and lots of exams that i passed top of the class but the paperwork side was and still is the bane of my life trying to focus long enough to complete it
Whelp that made me cry.
Love her, and so glad I have an internet community to connect with. :)
Fuck. I literally had tears from minute 1 to the end. I saw how long it was and assumed I wouldn’t finish it but couldn’t turn it off. Sending it to my husband now.
This TED Talk was what clicked the last little puzzle piece of self-acceptance into place and got me to talk to my doctor about medication. I love her so much, I hope she knows how many people she’s helped.
Shout out to Jessica!! She's helped me navigate through so much these past few years. The How To ADHD YouTube is an amazing resource.
I’m currently taking my millionth break this morning trying to finish a giant work project that’s due tomorrow. I also thought I would be immune from the crying. The alligator tears rolling down my face prove otherwise. Thank you for posting this today. I needed it. ❤️