Ummm Is ADHD Considered a Disability?

Even though ADHD is often considered a disability, it’s not frequently referred to as a *mental* disability. Though mental disorders like anxiety, ADHD, or bipolar disorder are sometimes associated with disability, they don’t always go hand-in-hand.

If ADHD impacts day-to-day life, then it may be considered a mental disability.

The American Psychiatric Association defines ADHD as a disorder rather than an illness or disability. ADHD technically also meets most of the criteria to be considered a mental illness as outlined by the association, including:

• being a treatable health condition
• involving significant changes in emotion, thinking or behavior
• being associated with distress
• affecting social situations, work or relationships

The National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) uses the terms “mental disorder,” “mental illness” and “mental health condition” interchangeably, so basically, ADHD could also be considered any of these.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a U.S. federal law that went into effect in 1990 to help protect the rights of people with disabilities. It’s meant to:

• make discrimination against people with disabilities in the public sector illegal
• make sure people with disabilities receive equal opportunities and the same protections as others, regardless of ethnicity, sex, age, religion, etc.

Meanwhile, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 aimed to prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability in federal programs.

Under both acts, ADHD is considered a disability in the states — though with special stipulations.

It’s only considered a protected disability if it’s severe and interferes with your ability to work or participate in the public sector. If you can work and function in society no prob, you’re unlikely to receive benefits from federal or state governments.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ADHD is considered one of the common developmental disorders or disabilities among children, meaning that it impacts neurodevelopment. Developmental disabilities may impact one or all of the following:

• learning
• language
• behavior

Along with other conditions like autism, cerebral palsy, and hearing loss, ADHD is considered a developmental disability.

According to the NINDS and the Learning Disabilities Association of America, ADHD isn’t considered a learning disability. Still, according the National Resource Center on ADHD, up to 50 percent of children with ADHD may have a coexisting learning disability.

Learning disabilities are a subtype of development disabilities. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, someone with a learning disability has difficulty:

• understanding written or spoken word
• performing calculations and other tasks

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), companies with more than 15 employees legally can’t discriminate against workers with disabilities and must make reasonable accommodations for them.

This law *might* apply to people with ADHD in some cases. According to the ADA, your job only has to make accommodations that don’t cause “undue hardship” — basically things that aren’t wildly expensive, time-consuming or result in a major productivity loss for the biz.

If you’re working for a company with less than 15 workers — you’re not necessarily SOL. You still might be protected under your state’s anti-discrimination laws.

Disability advocates recommend waiting to bring up your ADHD until a situation arises where you feel it’s necessary. For instance, if you’re really overstimulated by the loud AF part of the office you’re in, you might ask to be moved to a quieter space.

If your boss is hesitant, it may be a good time to bring up your ADHD.

If your employer refuses to make accommodations for your ADHD, consider taking some or all of the following steps to protect yourself:

• Document the interactions with your employer in a notebook with the date. (Pro tip: Don’t leave these on your office computer!)
• Consider consulting an employment attorney.

Technically, you *can* get disability benefits in the U.S. if you have ADHD — but there are super strict rules about which people with ADHD qualify for them.

In order to apply for social security disability (SSDI) for ADHD in the first place, you have to:

• have been diagnosed with the condition since childhood
• prove that your ability to participate in work or school is severely hindered by your ADHD
• have ADHD diagnosis documentation from a medical professional that confirms symptoms including inattentiveness, impulsiveness, and hyperactivity
• have documentation that at least 2 out of 3 of the following are a direct result of ADHD: problems communicating, functioning in social settings, or functioning in one’s personal life relative to people of the same age

A government official will scope out your school, work, and life by looking for patterns of severe functional impairments. They may delve into your grades, test scores, life history, medical docs, and more.

ADHD treatment options vary widely for children and adults with ADHD. They can also be different from person to person depending on how ADHD personally affects you.

Some treatment and ADHD management tools include:

• therapy such as cognitive behavioral therapy
• meditation
• enlisting a work or life coach
• prescription meds like Adderall
• natural remedies including melatonin, light therapy, zinc, exercise, and probiotics
• essential oils like rosemary, frankincense, or vetiver