Examining the Link Between ADHD Symptoms and Menopausal Experiences

Interest in the role of female hormones in ADHD has grown in recent years and, with an increasing number of women diagnosed with ADHD later in life, it is important hormonal changes across the lifespan are considered. This exploratory study examines the relationships between ADHD status (diagnosis and medication use) and symptoms, and menopause stage (pre/peri/post) and symptoms.

Employing a cross-sectional approach, we recruited a sample of 656 women aged 45 to 60 years, of which 245 had an existing diagnosis of ADHD. Women completed several questionnaires assessing their ADHD symptoms (Adult Self-Report Scale, ASRS) and menopausal experiences (Women's Health Questionnaire, WHQ; Menopause-Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire, MENQoL; Hot Flush Rating Scale, HFRS; Hot Flush Related Daily Interference Scale, HFDIS).

ANCOVA revealed no significant effects of an ADHD diagnosis or interaction effects between diagnosis and menopause stage after applying an FDR correction. Similarly, when medication was considered (i.e., non-ADHD, ADHD with medication, and ADHD without medication) there were no main effects of group or interaction effects with menopause stage.

These results indicate women with ADHD do not experience greater menopausal complaints than women without at any menopausal stage. However, there were significant correlations between ADHD symptoms and menopausal complaints across all participants but at a group level, these were less prominent in those with ADHD, which could indicate different attribution of symptoms in women with ADHD. Future research should further explore menopause in women with ADHD considering longitudinal designs and qualitative studies to examine potential overlap of symptoms and symptom attribution.