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Kit 07

Work, school & relationships

Who you tell is your choice, every time. How to make the fit easier at work, in class, and at home.

At work

You are not required to disclose. If you want adjustments, you typically submit documentation to HR, and your evaluation report is the key document.

Try this
A low-pressure script: “I was recently diagnosed with ADHD. It explains a lot about how I’ve been functioning, and I’m figuring out next steps.”

You don’t have to invent what to ask for. Common, reasonable adjustments include:

  • Written recaps after meetings, so decisions don’t live only in memory.
  • Flexible or staggered deadlines, with big projects broken into milestones.
  • A quieter space or noise-cancelling headphones for focus work.
  • Agendas in advance, or permission to record meetings.

At school or university

Contact the disability services office and share your evaluation report. That report is the basis for support, and the process is usually more routine than people expect.

  • Extended time and a reduced-distraction room for tests.
  • A note-taker, recorded lectures, or copies of the slides.
  • Assignment extensions or a lighter crunch during exam weeks.
  • Priority registration, to build a schedule that fits how you focus.
Field note
Here for your child instead? Kit 08 walks through evaluations and school support plans for kids.

In your relationships

Disclosure isn’t only for HR. Telling a partner or close friend can change how the hard days get read, from “careless” to “this is the thing I’m working on.”

Try this
A script for someone close: “When I go quiet or forget things, it isn’t that I don’t care. My brain drops the ball on the stuff I most want to hold onto. Here’s what actually helps me.”

Rejection sensitivity, an intense, painful reaction to feeling criticized or rejected, shows up in relationships a lot. Naming it out loud can defuse a spiral before it starts.

ADHD can also tilt the invisible work in a household. Shared systems, like one calendar you both actually use, beat hoping a single person remembers everything.

Source: JAN; ADA.gov; U.S. Department of Education