Naomi, 28 (SHEFFIELD)

procrastination has always been the devil for me. i’ve always wanted to create high-level work, but my focus comes in waves. i can spend hours thinking about what i need to do, and still not do it. then i’ll have a ‘chill’ day that doesn’t feel chill at all, because the work is still sitting in my head. i would’ve been better off just doing it in the first place.
over the last eight years, i’ve photographed basically everything. street, landscapes, people, whatever caught my eye. i love this art because it’s limitless and subjective. sometimes that’s a gift, sometimes it’s torture. i’ve built a style i’m proud of, but being a creative with ADHD means i hyper-fixate on that style. if something feels slightly off from it, i call it bad and hide it. i care too much about my image, about what people think of my work. i hold myself to this impossible level, like i’m meant to do something great, but i’ve convinced myself there’s only one right way to get there.

i never really understood why i was like this. i didn’t grow up around women who felt the same way, so i didn’t connect the dots. i thought once i got to university, i’d finally create the kind of ‘top-grade’ work i’ve always chased. visually, i did. but when it came to writing and focus, i had to force every word out. i know i’m capable of so much more and if i could just manage time, the possibilities feel endless.

social media was firstly what made me start questioning things. i kept seeing traits that felt too familiar, and when i started reading more, i related to almost everything. i cried. it explained so much. it made me sad for my younger self, the one who tried so hard to keep up with a world that wasn’t built for her. i was scared to tell my family because i didn’t want it to sound like 19 years of excuses. but one of my goals for 2024 is to finally get diagnosed. (fun fact, 2025 and i'm still waiting!) even though i’ve learned that an ADHD diagnosis doesn’t define you. when you know, you just know.

this is where undiagnosed and misunderstood came from. all those years of bottled-up emotion needed somewhere to go. this project is for the women with ADHD who’ve felt unseen, unheard, or misunderstood. meeting these people made me feel at peace. for the first time, i saw myself in others.

talking about the harder parts of it isn’t about excuses. it’s about explanations. it’s about showing that our world wasn’t designed for neurodivergent minds (if it was, time wouldn’t even exist).
the most important thing for me was showing a diverse group of people, true inclusivity. i’m so grateful to everyone who took part; you made this project what it is. each of you brought something real, something human and it reminded me that i’m not alone in this.
sometimes we’d go off on tangents mid-shoot, forgetting what we were even doing. but honestly, what else do you expect when two ADHD brains collide?

-       madison julie, 2024