How it started for me
Diagnosed with ADHD at 50: A Journey I Never Expected
Getting diagnosed with ADHD at 50 was a real shock for me, like the ground shifted under my feet. Suddenly, I had a new label. Was I no longer “normal”? Was I different now? On the one hand, I always knew. I always had different unusual solutions to questions. I was restless with ideas as thoughts flying in the swirl of cyclone. I had so many interests but forgot important dates, including my diploma defense.
The diagnosis brought a flood of emotions. I’ve always seen myself as someone open and accepting of others, embracing all kinds of people and ways of being. But when it came to myself, this news hit differently. Why was I feeling so shaken? Why did this new understanding stir something so deep?
Then I realized: I was grieving.
Grieving the version of myself I thought I was.
Grieving the idea of being “typical.”
And most of all, grieving who I might have been if this had been discovered earlier.
And yet, there’s something quietly powerful about having made it this far without knowing. Somehow, I adapted. I coped, found workarounds, made things work even if it was often harder than it had to be. That resilience is part of me too.
But the diagnosis didn’t just explain the past. It opened a door.
When my son was also diagnosed, our shared experience led me to enroll in an ADHD coach training at De Eerste Verdieping. That training was life-changing. It gave me insight into my own patterns — both healthy and limiting — and offered me tools to shift those patterns consciously. I learned how to turn away from chronic people-pleasing and toward honoring my own needs. I began cultivating self-compassion and reconnecting with my sense of self-worth.
I also rediscovered joy. I re-engaged my right brain, the creative, intuitive, playful side of me that had been left behind when life pulled me into structure, logic, and performance. It felt like returning to something deeply authentic.
Most importantly, I learned to focus less on problems and more on possibilities to build from my strengths, not my struggles. I reconnected with my inner and external resources and began creating a life that fits me, not the mold I thought I had to squeeze into.
And through that process, I discovered my passion:
connecting deeply with others and helping them find their own inner strength.
That’s what I now bring into every coaching session. Whether you’ve just been diagnosed, suspect you might have ADHD, or have known for years but still feel stuck — I’m here to walk beside you. To help you uncover your own patterns, strengths, and solutions. To remind you that you are not broken — you are wired differently, and there’s a lot of beauty and power in that.
Coaching, for me, is not just about managing ADHD. It’s about coming home to yourself. It’s about seeing yourself clearly, maybe for the first time, and beginning to live in alignment with who you really are. This is the journey I’ve taken — and it would be an honour to support you on yours.
So, you can Be You! Because you are beautiful inside and out.
This is what I tell my daughter every evening before she falls asleep. I hope she will embrace this simple message and I hope so will you!
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