What can masking look like in women and girls with ADHD?
Plus: đžïž Zendaya and Tom Holland đ Women's health updates 𫶠Advice for a happier community
ADHD is often thought of as a problem with attention, but thatâs not really what it is. At its core, itâs a difference in executive function â the brainâs system for things like starting tasks, managing time, regulating emotions and prioritising workload. And for women, those differences often go unnoticed, hidden behind years of masking and trying to appear like weâre coping.
ADHD coach Tamsin Morris unpacks how traits like procrastination, perfectionism, time blindness and rejection sensitivity often show up differently in women. She explains why so many of us miss the signs, what masking really costs, and how understanding the way your brain works can make life feel a little easier.
Take The Lead is all about women (and allies!) and our mission is to bring you interesting, informative and uplifting stories that keep you in the loop with whatâs happening in the world.
This week, we hit the red carpet for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, where we spoke to Zendaya and Tom Holland about what it really means to be a âfriendly neighbourhoodâ hero. Their answers, given separately just minutes apart, were surprisingly similar and a lovely reminder that making your community a better place can start by just reaching out to people.
Weâre also looking at two positive developments in womenâs health: more than 300,000 women have now accessed free emergency contraception through NHS pharmacies in England, and researchers have developed a new breast cancer risk tool that could help identify more younger women who need earlier screening.
Across our channels, weâll continue sharing the latest stories, research and conversations affecting women.
Enjoy, share with your friends, and let us know what you think!
The Female Lead Team
Weâre talking aboutâŠ
đ More women can now get free emergency contraception â More than 300,000 women have already accessed free emergency contraception through NHS pharmacies in England since the service launched. Instead of needing a GP appointment or prescription, women can now get the morning-after pill directly from participating pharmacies, making it much quicker to access within the short window when it's most effective. Campaigners say the change removes barriers to reproductive healthcare and gives women faster, easier access when they need it most.
đ©ș New breast cancer risk tool hopes to spot more women earlier - Researchers at the University of Cambridge say current guidelines miss around 95% of women under 50 who will develop breast cancer because they rely too heavily on having a family history of breast cancer. A new model, which also looks at genetics, lifestyle and reproductive history, identified eight times more women at higher risk. Researchers hope it could eventually lead to earlier screening and diagnosis.
Inspire meâŠ
Itâs a Zendaya summer and weâre very happy about it. âïž
Zâs advice on being a better neighbour â not just to the people next door, but to everyone around you â really stuck with us. Reaching out, checking in and making time for the people you care about is what keeps those meaningful relationships strong.
When was the last time you spoke to your neighbour?
ADHD is not a deficit of attention, as the name suggests. It is, at its heart, a difference in executive function, which is the brainâs management system. So things like starting tasks, sensing time, planning, regulating emotion, and deciding what matters most.
In an ADHD brain and AuDHD brain - AuDHD is a non-clinical term used to describe individuals who live with the co-occurrence of both Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) - that system isnât rigid, so it can be brilliant one hour, and completely unreachable the next. The attention is there, but it just doesnât always go where itâs told.
Final thoughtâŠ
We couldnât share our interview with Zendaya and not follow it up with our chat with Tom Holland⊠especially when he is literally talking about her.
Weâre also obsessed with the fact that Tomâs advice on channeling your inner âfriendly neighbourhood Spider-Manâ is something heâs learnt from Z. đ„č
We love them!
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