Allison O’Keefe, a UX designer in Detroit, always felt she rubbed people the wrong way. Then, in her early teen years, one of her friends confirmed it when she called Allison “the annoying friend” behind her back. This made Allison more cautious in social situations, which often overwhelmed her. Worse, she also found herself accidentally “ghosting” people, forgetting to respond to their messages.  

Eventually, a therapist asked her if she’d ever been diagnosed with ADHD, and the diagnosis started to make a lot of sense. She now feels less isolated — even as she still grapples with how open she wants to be about her ADHD.  

How do folks with ADHD navigate these choppy social waters? Listen in as Laura and Allison sort through these questions and more.  

To find a transcript for this episode and more resources, visit the episode page on Understood.org.  

We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at [email protected].  

Related resources

• 5 ways ADHD can affect social skills
• ADHD and oversharing
• ADHD and feeling guilty or remorseful

Listen to Everyone Gets a Juice Box, a new podcast from Understood.org where host Jessica Shaw has honest talks with parents raising kids who learn and think differently.

Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give

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