Hi, I’m Sam. After decades of missing any signs, I was diagnosed with ADHD in January 2025. Looking back, the signs were always there, but the changes brought about by perimenopause made it impossible to mask and finally pushed me to seek desperately needed answers. Receiving my diagnosis brought huge relief. In the weeks awaiting the diagnosis result, I’d convinced myself I wasn’t neurodivergent so when the confirmation came I was so hugely relieved to have an answer. Not only did it give me clarity, but also a passion to share my story so others don’t feel alone, along with the chance to unlearn a lifetime of the unhelpful narratives I’d been carrying.

For much of my life, I thought I just wasn’t trying hard enough even though I’d make huge efforts. I struggled to stop myself interrupting others, complete the tasks that didn’t capture my interest, and incessant over thinking. My diagnosis re-framed all of this: my brain isn’t faulty, it simply works differently. While ADHD does bring challenges, it also comes with real strengths — creativity, resilience, problem-solving, and the ability to hyperfocus when I’m fully engaged and enthused.

Since then, I’ve been learning to work with my brain rather than against it. That’s meant trying out strategies, tools, and environments that allow me to thrive and treating it as an ongoing process of discovery.

Alongside my professional work as an Inclusive Design Consultant, I also serve as a Parish Councillor. Living and working with ADHD in this role has given me a direct perspective on how neurodivergent thinking can shape community leadership and decision-making. It’s shown me that while there are challenges, ADHD also brings fresh insights and approaches that can be a real asset in public service.

For me, becoming an ADHD UK Ambassador is about helping to shift the narrative, especially by challenging misconceptions like the idea that ‘everyone is a little bit ADHD’

Within the workplace, ADHD is still too often seen as a weakness and annoyance, when in reality it represents a different way of thinking that adds genuine value. Neurodiversity at work isn’t just about making adjustments — it’s about recognising and harnessing the strengths that neurodivergent people bring. I’m passionate about raising awareness and encouraging more open, balanced conversations about ADHD — so that others can recognise themselves sooner, and so that together we can create spaces where neurodivergent people are fully supported to thrive.