ADHD and Rejection

WHY CHILDREN WITH ADHD ARE MORE PRONE TO REJECTIONS 

The Children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) experience multiple negative emotional outcomes as teens and adults. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) makes it harder for the individual to focus, pay attention, and sit still. Most people who have ADHD are also very particular towards what other people think or say about them. Up to 90% of children and adults with ADHD are more sensitive than usual towards rejection. And nearly 1 of the 3 say it’s the hardest part of living with ADHD syndrome .

This condition is called rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD), which is not a medical condition , but it is a another way of describing certain symptoms associated with ADHD.

The “Dysphoria” comes from a Greek word that means “hard to bear or resist ” People who have RSD cannot handle the rejection well. They get very upset if  someone has shunned or criticized them, even if that’s not the case. Even after the evidence-based treatment, Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is associated with poor long-term outcomes. These outcomes can be partly explained by difficulties in peer functioning, which are common among teens and children with ADHD and which do not respond optimally to standard ADHD treatments. Many health experts have examined whether peer rejection and lack of dyadic friendships experienced by children with ADHD after treatment contribute to a negative long-term emotional and behavioural problems and global impairment, and whether having a reciprocal friend buffers the negative effects of these  rejection. People who have this  condition generally work hard to make everyone like and admire them. Sometimes they might stop trying and stay out of any situation where they might get hurt. This social withdrawal can look like social phobia, which is a serious fear in the ADHD people of being embarrassed in public.

RSD can affect a persons relationships with it’s family, friends, or a romantic partner. They belief that being rejected by other people can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

Symptoms of People with RSD:

• Be easily embarrassed

• Generally People Get very angry or have an emotional outburst when they feel like someone very close has hurt or rejected them. 
• Set a very high standards for themselves they often can’t meet
• Have a low self-esteem
• Feel anxious, especially in social gathering

• Have problems with there relationships
• Stay away from social situations and withdraw from meeting other people
• Feel like a failure because they haven’t lived up to other there high expectations
• Sometimes they might think about hurting themselves

Why ADHD makes it hard for people to cope up with rejection

Most kids and adults with ADHD struggle with managing emotions . Being rejected by others can bring up a very strong and long-lasting feelings of depression and sadness. 

Many kids have found there ways of making themselves feel better if they’re rejected.  But the executive functioning issues can make this kind of self-talk difficult for kids with ADHD. Handling rejection requires the chief executive skills that most kids with ADHD lack. These also include the cognitive flexibility and self-control.

The Executive skills allow kids to come up with explanations for what happened and what they are going through inside to develop a plan to move on. This kind of thinking helps kids to put emotional things in perspective. But kids with ADHD generally get stuck here. They find it hard to shift their thinking from one thing to another and move on. 

Kids with ADHD often  feel like they’re on different side from others . They’re more likely to struggle in school and have social issues of emotional control which can lead to poor self-esteem . They are also very sensitive and aware that they’re quite different from other kids. 

In extreme cases, the rejection triggers such painful feelings that kids go to great lengths to avoid it And might turn to hurt themselves. They  spend a lot of there energy in pleasing other people, so they won’t be rejected by them . Or they may withdraw themselves from the situations that might lead to  rejection, like joining a games at recess.  This only makes them feel more isolated and lonely . And it can contribute to many mental health issues such as anxiety and depression , which are very common in kids with ADHD.

Although treatments van improve functioning in children but , they fail to normalize long-term outcomes.  .