Main roads
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Although often used as a survival tactic for the ADHD community, masking can backfire
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People develop poor mental health to hide their ADHD traits
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Such masking can worsen the problems that come with ADHD
MONDAY, June 8, 2026 (NewsDay News) – It can be extremely difficult for adults with ADHD to adjust to society.
But trying to hide ADHD symptoms can undermine their mental health and well-being, research suggests.
Adults with ADHD may get along better if they pretend to be paying attention, show their desire to reciprocate, rehearse conversations, or over-prepare for meetings, the researchers said.
But these “masking” mechanisms can lead to fatigue, anxiety, and depression, and even worsen problems associated with ADHD, researchers recently reported in the journal. Research in neural diversity.
“Masking or masking strategies can help you gain a footing socially, in relationships, or at work, but they often leave people exhausted, disconnected from their true selves, and less close or connected to others,” said the lead researcher. Marisa MailletPhD student at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada.
“Many participants reported an internal trade-off between safety and authentic expression, which may reflect the stigma and negative social reactions and feedback that people with ADHD often receive from childhood,” she said in a news release.
In the new study, researchers surveyed 202 adults with ADHD, and more than 91% said they hid their ADHD traits to some extent in order to fit in with others.
“The finding that many adults with ADHD feel they have to hide as a survival strategy suggests that there is much work to be done in society to reduce stigma and change norms to accept different neurotypes,” Mylett said.
The results showed that these masking mechanisms require a lot of brain power, which impairs people’s attention, memory and concentration – the very aspects that are already affected by ADHD.
As a result, camouflage tactics often lead to fatigue, anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. Some said they felt nervous or anxious and needed recovery days after periods of intense masking.
Many people also reported feelings of insignificance, impostor syndrome, and uncertainty about their identity.
Although it’s healthier for ADHD adults to be their true selves, researchers said these camouflage efforts are an ingrained response to past experiences and societal norms. As a result, learning to mask can take a lot of time and effort.
“It’s not that adults with ADHD have a way of distorting the world. They’re reacting to real social expectations and pressures and using masks to cope,” said the senior researcher. Grace YarochiProfessor of Psychology at Simon Fraser University.
“We need to understand how difficult their daily lives are, and how much cognitive effort or mental energy they put into daily life, so we can help them find healthy ways to manage it,” Iarocchi said in the release.
More information
Attention deficit association more about The mask of ADHD.
Source: Simon Fraser University, news release, June 3, 2026
What does this mean for you?
Having different neurotypes, such as ADHD, can help those with brain differences express themselves in an authentic way.
