30/10/2025
It’s time to be real!
For over 40 years I lived with ADHD, and anxiety — and didn’t even know it. I just thought I was broken, lazy, careless, or not good enough. Finding out later in life has been a mix of relief and grief. Relief because it finally makes sense. Grief because I spent decades thinking it was all my fault.
Every day is still a battle. Some days I feel like I’m making progress, other days I feel like I’m back at square one. My mind runs nonstop. Just tonight, I buttered a piece of toast and forgot to put the lid back on. I lose my keys almost daily. I left my camera sitting on the trailer last week and spent 20 minutes searching for it. It sounds small, but when it’s your every single day, it wears on you. It gets you down.
What also weighs on me is watching my son wrestle with ADHD too. It’s not easy — for either of us. We’re learning together. He’s teaching me as much as I’m trying to teach him, and while it comes with plenty of challenges, it also reminds me that neither of us is alone in this.
What makes it harder is that schools don’t always understand ADHD. Too often, instead of support, kids are penalized. They’re labeled as “problems,” suspended, or punished for things that aren’t bad behavior — they’re symptoms of something bigger. That breaks my heart, because these kids aren’t broken. They need patience, understanding, and a chance.
And it doesn’t just affect me — it affects my whole family. They live this with me. My wife, my kids, my sister… they see the good, the bad, the meltdowns, and the exhaustion. They carry part of this weight too, and I thank God for them. Without their love and patience, I’m not sure how I’d keep pushing forward.
I never thought I’d talk about this openly. I worry I’ll regret putting this out there. But I also know that too many of us are silently struggling. Mental health is real. ADHD is real. Depression and anxiety are real. And hiding it only makes you feel more alone.
So I’m choosing to be real, even if it’s messy. I don’t have the answers. I’m learning as I go, hitting plenty of dead ends along the way. Some days I feel strong. Other days I feel like I’m barely holding it together.
But I know this: I’m human. And if you’re fighting your own battles, you’re human too. You don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to have it all figured out.
We’re all just trying to keep going. And maybe by sharing this, someone out there will feel a little less alone.
