ADHD in women: Know the signs

Play Button Stop Button chevron-right chevron-left chevron-up search warning chevron-left-skinny chevron-right-skinny x clock calendar play-button cancel-circle user twitter facebook youtube instagram email linkedin Home News El Paso New Mexico Texas On the Border Xtra US/World ABC-7 Alert Center Education Military Health Weather ABC-7 StormTrack Doppler ABC-7 First Alert Traffic Gas Prices Sports UTEP NMSU El Paso Chihuahuas Your Voice, Your Vote Full Election Results 2026 Voter Guide Voter Resources Be Mindful Breast Cancer Awareness Play Share ABC-7 Listens Watch a Newscast Watch Live Events Watch Locomotive FC Life 7 in the City Community Champions Good Vibes Only Sunday Funday Heart Gallery of El Paso Military Monday Back To School Star Spangled Students Lifestyle Entertainment Events Calendar About Us Contact KVIA People of ABC-7 Email Alerts Download Our Apps Jobs Closed Captioning EEO Public Filing FCC Public File History of KVIA ABC-7 TV Listings Skip to Content Be Mindful By Hillary Floren Updated today at 5:39 PM Published October 20, 2026 5:49 PM EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — October is ADHD Awareness Month. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders affecting children, but experts believe it’s underdiagnosed in women.

There are surprising signs of ADHD that women specifically can struggle with that experts say are often overlooked — and even dismissed.

Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Jeffrey James said signs of ADHD presents differently in women.

ADHD affects executive function like focus, self control and emotional management.

People can have one or both ADHD subtypes: one causes inattention in women, and the second is hyperactivity and impulsivity.

Signs of inattention include constantly moving or displacing thing, having trouble being focused, being easily distracted and routinely forgetting things.

Hyperactivity can be seen through frequent fidgeting, constant interrupting, trouble being patient or restlessness.

There may also be rejection sensitivity, procrastination and large emotions.

“On the surface, it might look to a lot of people that they’re doing really well, and they are, but it doesn’t show how difficult it is to maintain that,” James said.

Hillary Floren co-anchors ABC-7’s Good Morning El Paso.

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