Become an ADHD Activist in 5 minutes to change lives forever.

Johnny Vegas. Sue Perkins. Nadia Sawalha. Olivia Attwood. Jermaine Pennant. Matt Haig. Dr Alex George. Every time I read about a new celebrity being diagnosed with ADHD, my stomach drops a little for the thousands of people being sold a fairytale.

Increased ADHD awareness is great news. As adults were previously unable to be diagnosed until 2008 in the UK, there are lot of us who've spent our lives struggling. We didn't know we were working from a different operating system to everybody else, beating ourselves up for the inability to be 'normal'.

However, awareness without action, is not. With no accessible NHS support, vulnerable people are exposed to extreme exploitation with no protection.

When I was diagnosed, I was told the NHS waiting list was 7 years long. I paid over £1000 for my assessment because I had decided to end my life after finishing writing The Model Manifesto. So I didn't think I needed the money anymore.

This is how I know ADHD is real. For years, I lived with daily suicidal ideation, which stopped when my ADHD was treated properly.

If I hadn't been able to afford an assessment, you would not be reading these words right now, because I wouldn't be alive.

People should not have to reach this point to get a diagnosis.

They shouldn't be left in the lurch for years, with the possibility of a diagnosis like a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. This time may be spent falling down vortexes online, gaslighting themselves, and wondering if they should dare risk seeking help when they haven't been 'officially' stamped with a formal diagnosis.

The mystical assessment doesn't involve any physical test, like a brain scan to verify that yes, you do indeed have ADHD. It involves questions similar to those the person has probably ruminated on for a significant period of their life, and maybe some feedback forms.

If the person scrapes the money together to pay for this assessment privately, they may unwittingly join the most expensive subscription around: medication. I had to pay £300 a month for the privilege of staying alive to take pills that made me extremely ill.

They made me lose 10kg, turned my skin grey, gave me panic attacks and acne. I had to pay £200 to speak to my psychiatrist, who just wanted to increase the dose and give me more medication on the side. I was told the NHS wasn't an option, but demanded a letter for my GP letter, because I had literally no money.

Being diagnosed with ADHD doesn't stop the rollercoaster: it sends it shooting backwards.

It can give us self-acceptance, understanding, compassion, and confidence - especially to use the legal rights we'd already have been entitled to under the Equality Act, for example. However, it can also give us an identity crisis, grief, anger, confusion, and exasperation, especially as we find that no one is around to explain what to do with this diagnosis.

It was only when I had ADHD coaching that I understood how to use this diagnosis to adapt my environment to take control of my own life. This is what led me to write ADHD: an A to Z - I shouldn't be the exception.

Reading about celebrities being diagnosed with ADHD makes me feel for people who will resonate with the symptoms and find themselves on this rollercoaster. Even those who can afford private assessments may experience exploitation, because there's no clear guidance of what 'should' be happening next.

Awareness must be accompanied by action.

Without this, the risk of stigma increases, as it may hide the lack of resources past peer support on social media. The risk of discrimination increases, as organisations are left unclear on how to apply the laws to people who may be disabled. The risk of poor mental health increases, with the overwhelm of how difficult it is to access the help you can read about in the news every day.

Parliament is debating a petition calling for a review of ADHD funding for assessments and waiting times on 6 February.

When I worked in mental health and disability legal policy, I learned how Parliament works. Laws don't get changed overnight. Petitions rarely make it to this stage. This debate is important, but it could easily pass by without much notice. It could happen in a side room, with nothing more than a passing nod and increased 'awareness'.

The way to make sure this doesn't happen is to email your MP and ask them to go to the debate. That's all.

Training for GPs and professionals like teachers is an easy first step to improving support. Signposting to existing services like coaching and support groups, and improving 'official' information online is even easier.

Over 20,000 people viewed my post about this petition. This newsletter will hit almost 5000 people's inboxes. There are 15,000 people following me on LinkedIn. I have never cared about metrics, but each and every person that reads this, has the opportunity to use their voice as one. Your MP has to reply to you.

Please spare 5 minutes to copy and paste this letter to your MP to get this on their agenda. Feel free to add your own experiences into it. Feel free to share it with others. Please, use this opportunity to turn your ADHD awareness into action.

Send this letter to your MP in under 5 mins by:

a) copying the letter below

b) clicking this link & your MP’s name

c) pasting the text (& adding in anything you’d like e.g your personal stories!) & send

d) confirm your email address

Dear [insert MP name]

I am writing to you as a constituent to ask you to join a Parliamentary Debate on 6 February 2023 to raise awareness of the under-resourcing for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder within the NHS.

ADHD diagnoses of famous people, such as Johnny Vegas, Sue Perkins, and Nadia Sawalha are featured in the national media almost every day. Most of them are fortunate enough to get speedy private assessments and treatment options.

In contrast, most people experience NHS waiting lists of up to 7 years long in some parts of the UK. Private assessments often cost over £1000, with medication costing £300 per month.

As I’m sure you’ll agree, access to support for ADHD should not be a privilege only for the rich and famous.

This can literally mean the difference between life and death, as adults with ADHD are 5 times more likely to attempt suicide than their neurotypical peers.

As ADHD awareness is increasing, largely due to social media, the capacity to meet this growing demand through the NHS must be addressed.

In response to this petition calling for a review of management and funding in relation to ADHD assessments, Parliament is holding a debate on 6 February 2023.

By attending and sharing this debate, you can help to raise awareness of how important it is for the Government to respond to this demand responsibly, and avoid the creation of a two-tier, exploitative healthcare system for highly vulnerable people.

Yours sincerely,

[insert your name]