Jean Ward, a 72-year-old woman, finally received a diagnosis of 'severe ADHD' at the age of 71, bringing a sense of empowerment and self-acceptance after years of self-doubt and societal pressures. Her lifelong struggles with focus, memory, and emotional regulation were finally understood, allowing her to accept her unique neurodiversity and find compatibility in her relationship with her partner, Derek.
ean Ward always wondered if there was something wrong with her, and hated herself for it. The feeling started at school, where she could see a stork in a knot of her wooden desk, but the blackboard failed to hold her attention. Her sense of shame and displacement grew until, at 71, she learned she had “severe ADHD ”, and finally began to accept herself.
Ward, 72, describes herself as “all over the place” – “I butt into Derek’s train of thought” – while Derek is “a well-organised person with a superb memory. I get rounded up and pulled back into the world. We dovetail together.” They have been together for 20 years, and the relationship has given Ward a longed-for sense of compatibility and belonging.
“A lot of people flit around,” she says. Not Ward, who clung to her job as a music teacher at a secondary school, “like a drowning person to a piece of driftwood”. She recovered and took a part-time teaching job, but the sense of being somehow flawed didn’t leave her. After her second marriage ended,
A degree in fine art followed, then a master’s – and Derek, whom she met through a friend. She worked part-time as a supply teacher, and sold paintings, based on family photographs, that captured her alienation in childhood, before eventually retiring from teaching at 65.
ADHD Diagnosis Neurodiversity Self-Acceptance Mental Health
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Woman Airlifted to Hospital with Severe Burns After Sydney House FireA woman in her 50s suffered severe burns after a fire broke out at a two-story home in Kingswood Park, Sydney. Fire crews responded to multiple calls and contained the blaze on the ground floor within 15 minutes. The woman was treated by firefighters and paramedics before being airlifted to Royal North Shore Hospital by CareFlight Helicopter.
Read more »
Woman Dies in Queensland House Fire, Man Hospitalized with Severe BurnsA fatal house fire in Sarina, Queensland, has claimed the life of a 71-year-old woman. A man in his 40s suffered life-threatening burns and was hospitalized. Two firefighters were treated for heat exhaustion.
Read more »
Woman charged after allegedly abusing Muslim woman in Sydney KmartVideo posted to social media of the Friday incident in Bankstown Kmart showed a woman taking issue with the "from the river to the sea" slogan on a T-shirt.
Read more »
Patients abandon ADHD diagnosis process due to delays, high costsDoctors say a health system overhaul is needed to improve the diagnosis and treatment process for ADHD. The federal government says it is supporting the creation of national prescribing rules, an ADHD inquiry recommendation.
Read more »
'Woefully inadequate': ADHD advocates 'disappointed' by government's inquiry responseAfter more than a year, the federal government has responded to a landmark ADHD Senate inquiry report, adopting just one of its 15 recommendations.
Read more »
Stimulant Drugs Most Effective ADHD Treatment for AdultsA new study published in The Lancet Psychiatry has found that stimulant drugs are the most effective treatment for reducing ADHD symptoms in adults.
Read more »