Table 2.
Themes and Codes.
| Theme | Codes | Example Quotes |
|---|---|---|
| Impacts on Social Emotional Wellbeing | Lack of self-efficacy | “Common for most of the women in this study, are their descriptions of how procrastination, motivational difficulties, and problems with planning and structuring work have presented them with academic as well as psychological challenges. In the absence of a better alternative, perceived personal flaws became the explanation for academic struggles, resulting in self-blame, and over time, to a negative self-image, which has followed several of the women into adulthood” (Holthe, 2013, p. 37). |
| Shame | ||
| Feeling different | ||
| Feeling lazy or stupid | ||
| Discrepancy between who they are and who they want to be | ||
| Discrepancy between potential and achievement | ||
| Negative peer relations | ||
| Social anxiety | ||
| Difficulty relating to others | ||
| Difficulty expressing self | ||
| Isolation | ||
| Withdrawal | ||
| Comparison to others | ||
| Difficult Relationships | Abuse | “This participant had experienced considerable rejection from her family and peers as she was growing up, and had been unable to achieve the academic benchmark set by her family because of her AD/HD” (Bartlett et al., 2005, p. 56). |
| Resentment | ||
| Difficulty in romantic | ||
| relationships | ||
| Poor relationships with teachers | ||
| Not meeting expectations of family | ||
| Poor relationships with parents and siblings | ||
| Lack of Control Self-Acceptance After Diagnosis | External locus of control | “The participants in this study expressed they often felt out of control when it came to managing the internal impact of functional impairments. This lack of control caused the participants to feel discouraged, angry, sad and overwhelmed” (Lynn, 2019, pp. 60–61). |
| Feeling not in control | ||
| Self-blame | ||
| Attributing ADHD symptoms | ||
| to personal flaws | ||
| Frustration | ||
| Guilt | ||
| Negative coping skills | ||
| Feeling relieved | “All participants explained that with diagnosis and treatment for ADHD, they were able to make more sense of their lives and more fully accept themselves. Their shame, anxiety, and depression appeared to lessen, replaced with feelings of pride as they viewed their “disorder” as strength” (Henry & Jones, 2011, p. 258). | |
| Explanation | ||
| External cause for their | ||
| struggles | ||
| Self-acceptance | ||
| New or clearer identity | ||
| Relief from self-blame | ||
| Less shame |