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.
#81
Adhd handwriting, forgetting things, being hyper for no entire reason, saying random things
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8points
#82
Doing 5-7 tasks at once? I thought I was just great at multitasking 🤦♀️
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8points
#83
Having my best friends tell me about the coolest things we’ve done together in past, and I have no memory of them 😔 wish I did
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8points
#84
having layered thoughts constantly, maladaptive daydreaming, listening to a song/eating the same thing over and over till i’m sick of it, having “a thing about textures”, burst of motivation that cuts short randomly. the list goes on lol…
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8points
#85
Auditory processing disorder. I used to call it auditory dyslexia until i found out the actual name. I can hear people, i just dont understand what theyre saying cause it sounds like gibberish
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8points
#87
Maladaptive daydreaming, being calm under enourmous stress and pressure but blowing up over tiny things that aren’t a big deal, hyper focusing on tasks I find interesting but unable to start/do tasks I loath.
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8points
#88
being able to actually read people. almost like knowing all the answers to a book...before you even open it
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8points
#90
deep dives. I thought everybody took a deep dive out of curiosity every now and again.
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8points
#92
Remembering people's birthdays you haven't seen in 30 years. Knowing what year most movies came out.
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8points
#93
Being able to physically feel music and sound. I never knew that wasn’t normal. Found out I have synesthesia 2 months ago. I just turned 49 🤷🏽♀️
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8points
#94
When ppl make small talk and I didn’t know what to say so it became awkward immediately
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8points
#95
Deconstructing food and not making direct eye contact with people. Also, maladaptive daydreaming.
7points
#96
I hip check everything. I'm suuuper clumsy. Always in need of stimulation, but can't be overly stimulated.
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7points
#97
Everything is a soundtrack. The need to overshare. Having 400 tabs open on ur iPad. Listening to the same song hundreds of times. Waiting until the last minute to do everything.
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7points
#100
That normal people don't ruminate over every task for twice as long as it takes to do the task. They just do it? apparantly, I guess.
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7points