Steph Claire Smith has revealed she has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The model and fitness influencer, 30, bravely spoke about her health update in a vulnerable confession, admitting she felt ‘relieved’ when a doctor confirmed her diagnosis.
Speaking on KICPOD, the podcast she co-hosts with fellow influencer and business partner Laura Henshaw, Steph said she first asked to get tested after inviting Em Rusciano on the show to discuss her experiences with ADHD.
“I was recently diagnosed with combined ADHD,” she said in the podcast.
“I had Em on and she was talking about her subsequent ADHD diagnosis, and during the conversation there was so much I didn’t realize, but I nodded along and agreed with and shared her story.
‘At one point she said I might be a bit neuro-spicy, and at that point I thought, “I don’t know”.’
The model went on to describe the screening process she underwent for a woman in her 30s and confessed that she was afraid she wouldn’t get a diagnosis.
“I think one of the scariest parts of the process was, ‘What if I don’t get diagnosed?’ And then I just feel more lost than ever, because there are all these things, there are these qualities that have really frustrated me in my life,” she added.
Steph Claire Smith, 30, has revealed she has been diagnosed with ADHD. The model and fitness influencer bravely spoke about her health update in a vulnerable confession on her podcast
“I’ve never been able to change them or habits that I feel like I can’t shake, or things that I think are so much more challenging than anyone else around me seems to find them.
‘Now that I’ve been diagnosed, I’m keen to learn more about it and discover different tactics and ways I can help myself a little more. And I can also just talk about it with my loved ones and the people around me, so that they can understand it better too.
“It’s made me understand myself a little better about why things may have been more challenging than they should be.”
In a tearful video shared to Instagram, Steph documented her emotions after her screening appointment for ADHD.
In a tearful video shared to Instagram, Steph documented her emotions after her screening appointment for ADHD
The model broke down in tears over concerns about not receiving a diagnosis.
“It felt good to talk about it, but I just hope this process helps me understand myself,” she said through tears.
‘I’m not afraid of being diagnosed. I think I’m more afraid of not getting a diagnosis. If I don’t have it or something else, what’s wrong with me?’
The next clip then showed Steph after her third and final screening, during which she was diagnosed with a combined ADHD.
‘I actually didn’t know when I was going to feel. “I didn’t know if I was going to feel confused or angry or…I don’t know,” she said.
‘I’m not afraid of being diagnosed. I think I’m more afraid of not getting a diagnosis. If I don’t have it or something else, what’s wrong with me?’ Steph said through tears
She also thought about her younger self and wished she hadn’t ignored the symptoms.
“Maybe I could have been less hard on myself, but also found ways to cope,” she continued.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder affects approximately one in twenty Australians.
It is characterized by persistent patterns of inattentive, impulsive and sometimes hyperactive behavior, and is often accompanied by challenges with emotional regulation, according to ADHD Australia.
Although ADHD is the most common condition among boys aged four to 11, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare says around half as many girls of the same age are diagnosed with it.
That’s not because girls don’t have ADHD, experts say, but because they usually have the inattentive type of the condition, meaning their symptoms can fly under the radar.