For years my doc told me a diagnosis wouldn’t change anything. “Look how far you’ve come. Look how successful you are.” And he wasn’t wrong…from the outside.
But how I was feeling was the complete opposite. And I guess when i talked about that part, I was still too good at pretending (masking) to be flagged.
But by 47 (in the throes of perimenopause), I was really falling apart. And feeling angry and hopeless than ever about why I was having such trouble coping. So I paid out of pocket for the evaluation anyway.
That’s when I received my official “neurodivergent” diagnosis and from that point on, the way I saw myself…at 47, at 27, at 7…in a whole different light (still happening 3 years later…)
It also showed something else: I was in the 99th percentile for spelling. Which explained so much: from spelling bee nerd, to English Writing major to working for The Wall Street Journal, and then almost twenty years breaking news for Bloomberg.
Even my entrepreneurial dreams were related: I started my first business as a proofreader for small online businesses on that same skill (…then watched Grammarly and AI make it basically worthless within just a few years.)
The one thing I was measurably best at is the thing that got automated first.
So I pivoted. I kept going. I knew there had to be something else the world needed me for, if only in some tiny way I hadn’t tried to get paid for before.
And I was right. 🙂
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Who I am: I’m Allison. I’m 50 years old. I was an editor until automation took one job and a reorg took the next, three years ago. I got an ADHD diagnosis at 47 that changed my life personally and professionally, forever.
I’m navigating divorcing & trying to build a business (exclusively on a platform you’ve probably never heard of—yet—named Skool) across multiple income streams online so I can take the best care of myself and my kids (…my first and most important “job,” ‘cept it doesn’t pay the rent or my heavy ADHD taxes, let alone room to splurge and just enjoy my life.)
I won’t give up until I get where I know I can be, and I’m inviting you to come along with me if you have a similar dream (and perhaps even similar challenges.)
I’m not just looking for subscribers or followers—I’m looking for dreamers who are do’ers when they have access to the right kind of support (information, systems, people) who want to learn from and alongside me to reach their own goals in a private community space.
#adhd #midlife #solopreneur #audhd #startingover #financialfreedom #howtomakemoneyonline
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