Is ADHD a disability?

It's complicated. Let's talk about it.

A thread. 1/15

I recently asked #ADHDTwitter whether y'all thought that your #ADHD was a disability, and the majority of you said yes, at least in some contexts.

This makes a lot of sense to me and, honestly, really fits with my personal experience 2/

In many ways, ADHD _is_ a disability. In the US, Canada, and the UK, a diagnosis of ADHD opens the door
to academic and work accommodations.

At University, an ADHD diagnosis allows access to University disability services, accessibility tech, and disability grants 3/

In Canada, ADHD'ers can qualify for disability tax credits and a disability savings account (if it is deemed impairing enough).

And Canadians with student loans qualify for permanent disability status making loan forgiveness faster, and repayment assistance easier 4/

However, in a lot of ways ADHD _isn't_ considered a disability at the same time.

Some (if not most) ADHD'ers do not require external supports or technological interventions (beyond those used by everyone else) to live their life or contribute to the economy. 5/

Because of this, our capitalist society makes it so ADHD'ers almost never qualify for governmental disability support payments or disability housing subsidies (in the US, UK, or Canada) without co-occuring conditions. 6/

Likewise community organizations, including some community organizations dealing specifically with neurodevelopmental disability, specifically exclude ADHD from their eligibility (without a co-occurring condition) 7/

Basically, on a legal and service level, ADHD seems to be a bit of both... a disability and not a disability at the same time.

On an individual level, there's also a lot of disagreement among ADHD'ers as to whether they are disabled, or whether ADHD is a disability 8/

Some ADHD'ers are super clear in their stance that ADHD is a disability for them, while others are just as clear that it isn't.

At the same time, there is a vocal minority who argue that ADHD is a superpower (or was evolutionarily) 9/

It is not my place to tell other people how they should feel about their ADHD or whether they should identify as being disabled or not. That is for each ADHD'er to decide for themself.

For me, though, I consider myself disabled, but I didn't always 10/

While I was in university, where there is a lot of required reading and writing, I knew that I required technological support to cope with my dyslexia.

At the same time though, I didn't feel that my ADHD (or unrecognized social issues) impacted me this badly. 11/

There were times that my ADHD made university more difficult than it needed to be, but my coping strategies were good, and I was doing well.

Then I graduated. Little did I know that the structure and routine of university was largely what was holding me together, and... 12/

little did I know that the social issues I was having in university would become quite disabling outside the academic setting.

While it took me a while to put the pieces together, today I recognize that these barriers have a substantial impact on my life and my productivity* 13/

I require screenreading software to cope with my dyslexia, technological supports for my ADHD, and substantial lifestyle adaptations for my ADHD (and probable autism).

So, I consider myself disabled by my neurodivergent conditions together... 14/

and, for me, its impossible to say whether any one is a disability on its own.

This may differ for you, and that's okay. The moral of the story though, is that ADHD, disability, and whether ADHD is a disability is complicated. 15/15

*NB - A couple times in this thread I use a capitalist definition of disability. This is unavoidable living in a capitalist society.

There are other definitions of disability, and it is important to push back against the capitalist definition. PS/15