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While doctors generally consider attention deficit hyperactivity disorder () as a neurodevelopmental disorder that develops during childhood, adults still have the chance of being diagnosed with late-onset ADHD.

Two examples of late diagnoses for ADHD, Gray Miller, a freelance writer in behavioral science who specializes in late diagnosis of adult ADHD, and KIRO Newsradio host John Curley, joined together to have a frank discussion on dealing with ADHD as adults.

“So I have dyslexia,” Curley shared. “I didn’t get diagnosed in my senior year of high school, and then I was really having a whole bunch of trouble with reading. What have you found? Is it overly diagnosed with young kids?”

“I found that it’s kind of like how diabetes went up a whole lot once they discovered that there was something called diabetes and they had a good test for it,” Miller responded. “It’s not that suddenly ADHD is spreading everywhere and there’s an epidemic.”

Two factors for the increase in ADHD diagnoses

Miller, who revealed he wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until he was 52, believes the increase in ADHD diagnoses comes down to two factors: better testing, especially in women, and that modern generations overall are having a harder time with attention. In 2025, it’s estimated that 404 million adults have ADHD globally, including 16.1 million adults in the U.S.

“Are we born with it, those that have it? Or can you actually create it in a child when you reduce their attention span?” Curley asked.

“I am not a medical professional, but I do not believe that you can instill it in someone,” Miller answered. “I think that it certainly can be aggravated or had. There are certainly environments that are conducive to it and things that treat it. The main thing is, it’s not a matter of whether or not you cause it, it’s more a matter of whether or not you create an environment where people can function without it, or can function even though they have it.”

Listen to the full conversation here.

Listen to John Curley weekday afternoons from 3 – 7 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.