WordstedWhy traditional therapy often fails people with ADHD

Why traditional therapy often fails people with ADHD

The problem with traditional therapy for ADHD

Traditional therapies are often designed for mood disorders like depression and anxiety. When applied to people with ADHD, attempts to tackle executive function challenges are not only ineffective, they can make things significantly worse. Instead of helping, they reinforce feelings of failure, further damaging self-esteem. This is particularly true for women with ADHD, who often have a daily history of being misdiagnosed due to societal biases.

Lack of ADHD-specialist mental health support

A widespread lack of specialist services and support also means that individuals with ADHD may get pushed into mental healthcare services that are not designed for their needs.

Although therapy can be helpful in some cases, many of the techniques used in traditional therapy like CBT are often inaccessible for someone like me because they assume all people have the executive function capacity to:

•	Maintain routines
•	Complete “homework”
•	Track moods or behaviours
•	Be consistent with cognitive strategies.

My experience with CBT and ADHD burnout

When I was struggling with my own mental health in 2022, I hoped for a referral to a therapist or counsellor who understood ADHD.

I was repeatedly pushed down the depression and anxiety treatment pathway and told to trust the professionals. I doubted Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), was compatible with my ADHD, but I tried my best.

The therapist discussed techniques to work on at home. At the time, my burnout was so severe I could barely read. The homework I was given just added to my stress.

“How can I be expected to keep a mood diary when I can’t even keep a to-do list?”

Research shows many ADHD patients feel worse after CBT

And I’m not alone.

The majority of participants in this study reported feeling worse off after CBT. Many described:

• Lowered self-esteem
• A stronger sense of failure
• Feeling frustrated with themselves
• Increased emotional dysregulation
• Hopelessness about the future.

For many people with ADHD, therapies that rely heavily on self-management tasks can unintentionally reinforce negative beliefs.

When therapy feels like gaslighting

Many people report feeling gaslit by the CBT process. They know full well that their problems of social isolation are not the result of their own negative thought patterns, but of societal stigma.

People with ADHD are more likely to be bullied.

Autistic people are often disliked by their neurotypical peers.

If the purpose of therapy is to change the way we think without addressing how society views us, is that any different from conversion therapy?

The training gap in mental health professionals

As I’ve discovered to my cost, therapists who lack appropriate training, often struggle to see or understand the link between the frustrations that come with disability and mental health.

Without this understanding, therapists may misinterpret executive dysfunction as:

Lack of motivation
Resistance to treatment
Negative thinking patterns

In reality, these challenges often stem directly from the neurological differences associated with ADHD.

Until mental health services develop a deeper understanding of neurodiversity, many people with ADHD will continue to receive treatment that doesn’t meet their needs.

About the Author

Ruth Bartlett is a Neuroinclusive Communications Specialist and founder of Wordsted. She combines her background in communication and community support with her neurodivergent lived experience to help organisations and teams bridge the gap between systems, processes, and their neurodivergent consumers and employees.