What If ADHD Isn’t the Problem—The System Is?

ADHD isn’t a disorder—it’s a different way of being. Here’s why it’s pathologized, and how we can start to reclaim it on our own terms.

Rethinking how we define disorder in a world built for sameness.

ADHD diagnoses are rising.
You probably know someone who has it. Maybe that someone is you.
And yet, even now, the dominant message is that ADHD is a “disorder” that needs to be managed, controlled, or medicated.

But here’s the question we don’t ask enough:
If so many of us have ADHD, why is it still treated like a personal flaw?
What if the problem isn’t how we think—but how the system expects us to behave?

ADHD Challenges the System—And That’s Why It’s Labeled a “Problem”

Let’s talk about what we’re really up against:

Under capitalism, productivity is the measure of worth.
Be efficient. Be linear. Get more done in less time.
If you’re organized, on time, and focused on a task you hate—congratulations, you’re “functional.”

ADHD doesn’t play by those rules.

We move in bursts.
We hyper-focus on what lights us up and struggle to start what doesn’t.
We question systems that feel meaningless—and often refuse to comply with rules that don’t make sense.

And in a world where obedience and output are valued above all else? That makes us inconvenient.

But inconvenience is not the same as disorder.

“When a system only values one way of being, anything outside that mold will always look like a problem.”

Then There’s Patriarchy

Layer on patriarchy, and the message is clear:
Be calm. Be consistent. Be quiet. Be accommodating.

For many of us with ADHD—especially women and nonbinary folks—our traits have been labeled “too much” for as long as we can remember.

Too emotional.
Too distracted.
Too sensitive.
Too loud.
Too scattered.

And when those traits don’t match the expectations of control and emotional restraint, they’re dismissed—or pathologized.

No wonder so many ADHDers go undiagnosed or misunderstood for decades.

So… Who Decided ADHD Was a Problem?

A system that demands compliance will always see resistance as dysfunction.

But maybe it’s time to ask:
What if ADHD isn’t dysfunction at all?
What if our impulsivity is actually intuition?
What if our nonlinear thinking is exactly what’s needed to solve nonlinear problems?
What if our restlessness is a signal—not a flaw?

We’ve internalized so much of this.
We’ve carried the weight of not being “disciplined” or “productive enough” like a personal failing.

But the system was never built with us in mind.
So why are we still trying to force ourselves to fit?

What We Can Reclaim

It’s easy to feel like ADHD is the obstacle.
But here’s what’s helped me:

Stop measuring success in neurotypical terms.
Stop forcing yourself into productivity systems that drain you.
Start noticing what actually works for your mind and body.

ADHD is not just a list of symptoms.
It’s a way of processing life—intensely, honestly, and often creatively.

Let’s stop apologizing for being the canaries in the coal mine.
We notice what doesn’t work. We feel what’s misaligned.
And we’re often the ones who imagine something different.

“We’re not here to comply. We’re here to reshape what’s possible.”

You are not a problem to solve.

You’re a human being living in a system that wasn’t built for your kind of brilliance.

So the next time you feel like you’re “too much” or “not enough,” ask yourself this:
Who benefits from me believing that?
Because it’s not you.💗

Categories: : RESTORE → Self-Worth & Identity, ROOT → Collective Healing