Problems for Men with ADHD

Submitted by MelissaOrlov on 05/07/2019.
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Not long ago, ADDitude Magazine approached me to write an article about the specific issues that men with ADHD face in their relationships.  I'll admit I had to think a bit about this request, as I think much of the research and conversation about ADHD is biased to be thinking about men, rather than women.  But the more I considered the idea, the more I realized that there are issues that men face that will resonate both with the men who have them and with their female (or male) partners.

So I did write that article, isolating these factors:

Shame over job related issues and job searches
Emotional regulation issues, particularly as relates to anger and how men express (and embrace) anger
Conflict avoidance issues (it's physiologically difficult for men to self-soothe) and using retreat as a common coping strategy
Difficulty expressing emotions (including not being taught this skill)
For some, resistance to accepting (or even seeking) an ADHD diagnosis

For Men with ADHD - and Those Who Love Them lays out these issues in more depth and provides specific next steps for both ADHD and the non-ADHD partners who love them to help deal with them.  I hope you'll read it.

Tags: ADHD men, anger, emotional dysregulation, ADDitude