Understand your ADHD brain: Executive Function
One of the primary brain differences with ADHD is an impairment in the function of the pre-frontal cortex. This can be described as the control centre of the brain which allows us to focus and follow through on tasks. The pre-frontal cortex is the “doing” part of the brain. It is believed people with ADHD have at least a 30% delay in this part of the brain’s development. ADHD brains also have lower levels of dopamine; the neurotransmitter that gives us the feeling of reward, controls our attention and effects mood. These brain differences are responsible for a key component of ADHD: an impairment of Executive Functioning. So what does that even mean?
Simply put, these are the processes in the brain that help us to plan, prioritize, organize, make decisions and maintain the prolonged consistent effort needed to complete short term tasks and long term goals. These processes allow us to:
transition from task to task
pay attention
regulate our impulses and emotions
process and retain information while we work
evaluate our actions and make adjustments in order to change outcomes
In basic form, executive functions are what we use to plan breakfast, get ourselves out the door or follow simple rules in school. In a more complicated form it could be writing an essay, planning a move or launching a career. The steps involved may come easily for Neurotypical people but can be extremely challenging for someone with ADHD. It can cause someone to become:
easily overwhelmed
not know how to start
have perfectionist tendencies and procrastinate
be forgetful and overlook details
The pre-frontal cortex matures in the mid 20s but may still have impairments that will effect the rest of your life. If you subtract 30% from a child or teen’s age this is the ADHD EF age. So a 10 year old would have the EF of a 7 year old.
These EF impairments may cause parents and/or teachers to wrongly assume a child is:
“not trying hard enough”
being messy or disorganized
lazy and/or lacking motivation
“spacey”
“should know better by now”
Once we acknowledge this fundamental brain difference we can understand that it is not a lack of EFFORT or motivation but instead an Executive Function impairment and/or delay. As a parent, the first step is to embrace the notion “if they could, they would.” For younger children this repositions “naughty” as neurological. The more we understand, the less shame and negative feedback there will be.
Different ADHD brains my have varying levels of impairment in these functions. Some may have an unimpaired working memory and may learn very quickly. This same individual could have severe impulse control and could have a propensity toward addiction. Another ADHD brain may have impairments in ALL of the EFs which could present as severe behavioural challenges. What is consistent is that all people with ADHD will have some overall impairment of EF. This is important to note so we understand that ADHD presents as a spectrum of symptoms and explains why some people with ADHD fly under the radar of diagnosis or “noticeable” impairment.
ADHD coaching is a great starting point to help unravel the roots of individual executive function challenges.