As a teenager, skipping school or cancelling plans last minute wasn't unusual for Lucy Roue - in fact, she was well known for it.
But as she made her way through adulthood, her difficulty holding attention began to trouble her. She'd splash money on new hobbies only to lose interest after a couple of weeks.
She'd often forget to pay her bills on time, and never wanting the party to end, her friends described her as hedonistic.
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This summer, her self-esteem hit rock bottom. She struggled to get out of bed, and felt an overwhelming sense of dread about having to manage a team of twelve people - something which had never phased her before.
She'd experienced bouts of depression in the past, suffering four breakdowns in four years, but other episodes she could pinpoint to trauma in her life, such as when her dad died.
But this time felt different, and with the anti-depressants she'd been taking for the last three years failing to make a difference, she began having dark thoughts and turned to self-harm.
"I couldn't understand why I was getting so bad," she recalled. "The first time these breakdowns happened was when my dad died when I was 28 so I could at least rationalise why. But in this instance nothing had really changed.
"Out of nowhere I just couldn't cope and that was what really got me down. I started thinking I was crazy. That feeling of being out of control drove what eventually happened in the summer."
Things hit a crisis point in June this year, when Lucy recalls the first she self harmed, something she'd never even thought about before, let alone gone through with.
"At that moment I was just so desperate to switch my mind off," she said. "I went to the doctors three times. I understand I was presenting as depressed but to me it didn't make any sense.
"I started thinking it was some kind of mood disorder or personality disorder. I went through every option in my head because I'd never really thought of ADHD.
"The annoying thing with the NHS is that they will give you antidepressants quite readily but the side effects are really strong. They can make you feel more suicidal and it's horrible. Every time I went to the doctors they just upped my dose."
Following a serious episode of self-harm whilst her partner Dan was away for the weekend, Lucy's mum came to stay with her at her home in Northern Moor. They desperately hoped it would help.
"I had a good house, a good job, a lovely family and boyfriend but I was still self-harming," she recalled. "I told my family about it and they were really worried so my mum moved in with us.
"The real flash point came when I self harmed when my mum was in the house. She panicked and realised we needed professional intervention as she no longer knew how to keep me safe."
Lucy says she was advised by 111 to go to the A&E department at Manchester Royal Infirmary where she claims she waited seven hours to be seen by a doctor in a "dirty" side room with no windows.
"Ultimately I was deemed not high risk enough because I hadn't made a serious attempt on my life," she said. "They still thought it was depression and anxiety at that point.
"But I was losing control more and more. They talked about getting a home intervention team to get me some support but they said I wasn't high risk enough to qualify in the area I lived.
"In the end they just gave me some leaflets which genuinely looked like they were from the 1980s and then just sent me home." She couldn't fault the 'amazing' staff who saw her, but left feeling let down by a system supposed to help.
Exhausted and frustrated, Lucy decided to start researching her symptoms herself. She'd never considered ADHD until her friends sent her a post they'd spotted on social media.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a neurological disorder that can lead to a pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity or impulsivity that interferes with day-to-day functioning.
"I started reading it and I thought 'oh that sounds a lot like me,'" she said. "Things like poor impulse control resonated with me because my friends describe me as hedonistic and that I like to live in the moment a lot.
"Emotional dysregulation was another flag as I tend to have very emotional reactions to things that are different to other people. Poor time keeping and an ability to hyper-focus related to me too.
"At school and college I wouldn't turn up to lessons and would truant all the time but I still got three A's at A-Level because I was able to hyper-focus on revision."
Disillusioned with the NHS, Lucy took the decision to pay £170 for a private ADHD assessment - something she recognises she was fortunate to be able to afford.
She came across an online service called ADHD 360 and booked in for a two-hour consultation with an expert, which delved into her experiences as a child and young adult. In September this year she received a formal diagnosis of ADHD.
Lucy has since been prescribed medication called Elvanse, which is commonly used to treat the symptoms of ADHD. It has helped her control her behaviour and remain focused on daily tasks.
"I was fortunate enough to go private but if this was 20 years ago when I was living on a council estate there is no way we'd have even considered going private," she said.
"People ask me if I was relieved when I got my diagnosis and I guess I was but I kind of felt a bit sad for the past me who had to live through all these terrible breakdowns.
"But now I am seeing ADHD in a different light and I think it's a blessing as well as curse as long as you are diagnosed and understand it. I was most sad about the situations I found myself in when I was younger."
Debs Davies is a self-employed ADHD coach and believes there is evidence that some traits displayed by people with the condition, such as impulsivity, can heighten vulnerability.
"There's also a link that is not so well researched about how women with ADHD are much more likely to find themselves in a vulnerable position even without doing something impulsive," she said.
"What is not yet particularly known is why that is, but my opinion is that people with ADHD tend to show more people pleasing presentations. That won't be the same for everyone but a lot of people might find that puts them in more vulnerable situations."
Despite affecting an estimated 2.6m people in the UK, those living with ADHD, especially in adulthood, are often misdiagnosed - something local health services in Greater Manchester are working to address.
Unlike other health disorders, there are no specific national standards on ADHD waiting time for diagnosis or access to services.
Lucy says she wants to share her own story in the hope that more people silently suffering with symptoms of the disorder will be able to seek diagnosis and treatment.
"I don't mind telling my story if it helps other people and I really care about that," she said. "Especially with women I think it tends to be harder to diagnose because we internalise things.
"I also want to work to make sure everyone is able to see a psychiatrist if they need to. It shouldn't matter which part of Manchester you're in or whether you can afford to go private."
Having finally received her diagnosis, Lucy says she's determined to use her ADHD to her strength. She set up her own content consultancy business, Time and Tide Content, the day after she was diagnosed.
Through her new venture, she plans to work alongside local charities - particularly those specialising in children's mental health - to provide better support for ADHD diagnosis and treatment.
"I don't want people to think just because they've got ADHD they can't lead a successful life," she said. Before setting up her business she'd held several management roles in creative services and tech firms.
Debs Davies says ADHD can be particularly hard to diagnose, and advises people to research symptoms in depth, and chat to those around them before visiting their GP.
"It's not just about what is happening in that moment but very much about what that person was like in their childhood too," she says.
"When you go to a GP go with information you've found and the reasons why you think you may have ADHD. Everyone's presentation is different and sometimes people do get misdiagnosed if they don't fit the stereotype.
"It can be really difficult and I would encourage people to take someone with them to the GP because it can be hard to advocate for yourself especially if you're suffering with anxiety."
What the NHS say
Steve Dixon, chief delivery officer, NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care said: "Like many areas of the country, we are seeing a significant rise in demand for people needing ADHD assessment services and recognise that waiting for a diagnosis and support can be difficult and unsettling for people.
"Locally, we are working with our partners in primary care and across mental health and disability services to support the diagnosis of ADHD in children and adults - and then helping people access treatment, including where appropriate, medication, talking therapy and coaching/ educational support.
"We have put more money into diagnosis support and invested in additional staffing across mental health services to try and meet the needs of people coming forward for help. We regularly encourage feedback on how we can further improve services."
A spokesperson for Manchester Royal Infirmary, part of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust said: "We are sorry to hear Lucy didn’t find the hospital environment as she expected when she attended in the summer.
"There are extensive hospital building upgrades being undertaken as part of an ongoing £40m investment in expanding the A&E and adding new theatres, and we do ask people to bear with us during this time."
For more information about symptoms and treatment for ADHD, click here.
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