Writing down my feelings made them true and real. Our first assignment was to write about the most humiliating thing that had ever happened to us. Not long after I was diagnosed with ADHD, I took a creative writing class. How did you get into writing and take the leap to be a full time author? I learned that by advocating for my needs, surrounding myself with people who saw me the way I wanted to see myself, learning to appreciate my super powers, and writing down my feelings, I was able to succeed in work and at home. I started to be honest with my family about what I needed and how they could help. Over time, I became more confident and made friends who understood my challenges, saw my strengths, and wanted to cheer for me. It was a big advantage to be able to see things differently than other people.

I loved listening to clients, learning about their challenges, and helping them find unique solutions.

Before I was a writer, I worked in marketing and communications. For example, I’m a great problem solver and a quick thinker, and I have a lot of practice messing up, so finding solutions comes naturally to me. With the help of therapy and medication, I started to realize that there were a lot of situations in which my deficits were actually super powers. Alyson and her sister on the first day of school I didn’t believe in myself or feel like I deserved help or support or praise, so I was more comfortable around people who didn’t appreciate me or see my strengths. I was used to blaming myself for everything, and on top of that, I surrounded myself with people who were hard on me and gravitated toward relationships where I was made to feel like the problem. It wasn’t just school that was hard for me, I struggled with friendships and relationships, in part because I had very little self-confidence. It took me a long time to accept my diagnosis, to believe that my ADHD was real, and to understand how it impacts my everyday life. It wasn’t until my much younger brother was diagnosed with ADHD that I finally got tested.

I got used to taking responsibility for everything that went wrong. I was frustrated that I kept underperforming and very hard on myself. Despite my hard work, there were challenges I couldn’t identify, much less overcome on my own, because of the neurodevelopmental disorder I didn’t know I had.

I struggled through school and had very low self-esteem, but I’m a determined person, so I never let anything stop me from getting back up and trying again. I was twenty-one when I was first diagnosed with ADHD.

Focused alyson gerber