Many people discover, sometimes much later than expected, that they are not neurotypical, often because the signs were there, but just interpreted as, say, a fun, personal quirk. So we’ve gathered examples of neurodivergent and ADHD traits that people thought were just “normal” behaviors for the longest time.
An important note, don’t diagnose yourself from an online list, many of these behaviors are not necessarily exclusive to neurodivergence. Settle in as you scroll through, upvote your favorites and be sure to share your own experiences and thoughts in the comments down below.
#41
Unable to watch movies without subtitles. Unable to understand verbal instructions unless provided written text or making notes so I don’t forget.
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16points
#42
Racing thoughts/music playing in my head at night that kept me awake for hours
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16points
#43
remembering all negative things that happened to me on a loop randomly through my life. multiple times a week.
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16points
#45
Running through social scenarios in my head just in case. for example "if the cashier asks why they havent seen me in a while ill explain I had lots of leftovers after going out"
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15points
#46
watching people's mouths while they talk so I can 'hear' them better
15points
#47
Are those ADHD signs? Been walking into door jams & corners my whole life. Who knew?
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15points
#49
Making random noises and repeating phrases that feel nice - my latest one is pizza pie (no idea why)
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15points
#50
Recognizing in the moment that the thing I am stuck on doing is the thing that’s going to make me late, but not being able to stop until it’s done.
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14points
#51
Talking too loudly, too fast, dominating conversations and over-sharing 😳
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14points
#52
Deciding something only takes 20 minutes (when in fact it takes hours) while at the same time avoiding tasks because your brain has decided said task takes hours, when in fact, it really is a 5 minute task. Or when you doom scroll for “5 minutes” that turns into 5 hours.
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14points
#53
Putting things in very safe places and then forgetting where that safe place was. Four years later I still can’t find the very safe place I hid my daughter’s bracelet charms.
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14points
#54
Feel energy shift in different environments, conversations and people
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14points
#55
Learning everything about an activity/hobby I am interested to include buying all the required tools. Map out a routine with an end of year outcome with quarterly, weekly, daily goals. Them, never do said activity.
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13points
#56
Not wanting to wear certain type of fabrics/ clothing because it made me feel like a million tiny critters were running over my skin….now I understand 🥹
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13points
#57
Always and I mean always having a song playing in my head. Even when I’m thinking of other things, the song is there.
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12points
#58
People at work always called me “Rainman”because I remember every detail of something but I can’t remember big things. I thought they were strange. Also, I hate turtlenecks and anything that wraps up around my neck and it seems like everyone else loves it.
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12points
#59
Constantly needing stimulation but NOT TOO MUCH. if I don’t have the tv or music or podcast on in the background my mind just won’t stop.
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12points
#60
ADHD paralysis i knew i wasn't lazy just at times I couldn't get my self to do things and I didn't know why
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12points