Iris Wang

As you sit in a classroom, someone in front of you might be playing Dress to Impress while another is online shopping. Meanwhile, you’re thinking about what to make for dinner tonight.

These look like little distractions but could be signs of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. This ADHD Awareness Month, it’s important to recognize the signs and learn how to navigate them in the classroom. 

“There are professors who talk for upwards of two hours, (where) you just have to listen, and you’re like, ‘I’m catching about every other word,’” second-year law student Katherine Daniels said.

The National Institute of Mental Health reports approximately 5% of adults in the United States have ADHD, which equates to about 10 million people. However, ADHD often remains underdiagnosed in adults, so the actual number may be higher.

While UT may not offer ADHD testing, they offer multiple avenues of support for those diagnosed with the disorder and those who think they may have ADHD.

Not only is external support necessary for students, but internally professors should provide resources inside their classrooms.

“(I) talk a lot about Universal Design for Learning and implementing that framework within classes,” Emily Shryock, director of the Disability Cultural Center, said. “(I’m) trying to make the class as accessible as possible. That looks like sharing notes or PowerPoints with all students, not just those with academic accommodation.”

ADHD resources include the peer support group Navigating College with ADHD, academic accommodations, free CMHC therapy sessions, the Longhorn TIES program, Sanger Learning Center learning specialists and even an ADHD cohort for both student and staff support.

“It’s pretty special that the Disability Cultural Center creates a space where folks can gather regardless of their affiliation with UT and learn ‘What does that (disability) look like?’ in a staff role versus a faculty role versus a student role,” Shryock said.

The center also collaborates with the Disability and Access Center and the Center for Teaching and Learning to host Accessible Pedagogy Conversations every Wednesday and discuss accommodations and inclusion. 

Daniels said she started noticing her brain didn’t function the same as others early on but wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until 2022 while at the University.

“(In middle school) I would sit in a circle on my bedroom floor, and I would rotate and do my homework,” Daniels said. “Every 10 minutes I would switch to a different class (because) I could not focus for more than 10 minutes. That continued for my whole life, but I was doing really well in school, so my parents were like, ‘She’s fine.’”

There’s a stereotype that ADHD only exists in children because it often goes undiagnosed in adults, but it’s important to break the stigma and get help, even in college.

Upon diagnosis, Daniels began to take a low-dose medication, which started her improvement. 

“When I took it for the first time ever, I didn’t realize how much work my brain was having to do all the time,” Daniels said. “I remember talking to (people around me), who none of them have ADHD (saying), ‘Is this what your brain gets to just do? You can just wake up and know that you are going to get things done today?’” 

Without accommodations and extra resources, Daniels said she struggled to work in a healthy and efficient way. It’s important to ask for help. For students like her, ADHD awareness improved her quality of life.

No matter what ADHD looks like for you, just know there are plentiful resources to take advantage of, so don’t be afraid to reach out for help.

Harrison is a journalism senior from Dallas, Texas.