Feeling rejected

Suzie’s ADHD story

Suzie told me that she was walking down the corridor at work and saw a colleague looking at some papers whilst he was walking. She said a friendly ‘Hi!’ and thought he might stop and chat briefly but he kept on walking. She felt physically wounded.

She admitted that most people might sensibly shrug it off and accepted that her colleague might not have heard or seen her, but she was unable to think logically about this or any of the other similar perceived rejections she experienced on a regular basis.

Feeling shunned, irritated or angered was a daily problem, causing her and many of those around her to feel unhappy. It caused her moods to swing and she could not stop herself brooding on why people were not more friendly or cooperative or interested in her, and why all these thoughts kept going around and around in her head. She admitted that she was too sensitive and she should not let this affect her moods. Other people had said they felt that they were ‘walking on egg shells’ around her as she could be so easily upset.

Suzie realised that she continued to struggle with many of the ADHD symptoms she was treated for as a child – she was still very disorganised and forgetful. However, she was now wondering if she also suffered from traits of a personality disorder or bipolar disorder – perhaps this was why she was so moody. No one had suggested that her mood instability might be part of ADHD and going back on ADHD treatment may also improve this.