u/Comfortable-Site-106

I’ve been researching ADHD, autism, OCD and dyspraxia for a long time and I honestly relate to way too many things. I know Reddit can’t diagnose me, but I wanted to ask if this sounds serious enough to see a psychiatrist or get a full evaluation.

Since childhood I’ve always felt very different from other people. Adults described me as “in my own world”, daydreaming and very shy. I preferred being alone and I got my first real friend very late in elementary school.

Even as a kid, instead of playing soccer with the other boys during recess, I would run around a tree alone in an isolated corner while making up scenarios and imaginary worlds in my head.

I barely go outside except for school. Outside of school I only leave the house a few times a year.

I constantly zone out. It feels like the world becomes blurry/foggy and I have to reread things multiple times with highlighters just to stay focused. In class I drift into thoughts or fictional scenarios without realizing it. Sometimes I’m physically present but mentally completely gone.

I procrastinate a lot unless there’s pressure, but when I’m interested in something I become obsessed with it for hours or days. I can forget to eat while researching topics like nuclear physics, bacteria, viruses, etc.

Socially I feel like I’m acting all the time. Eye contact is very uncomfortable and I constantly analyze my tone, what I said, how people perceive me, whether I sounded weird, etc. I reuse jokes/scripts because improvising socially is hard. I feel like I wear a “social costume” that changes over time.

I also have sensory issues:
- repetitive noises drive me insane
- high-pitched or deep voices stress me
- some textures are unbearable (like cooked carrots)
- certain smells are overwhelming

I pace constantly in my room for long periods while daydreaming.

I also have checking behaviors that are becoming exhausting:
- reopening/relocking doors many times
- checking gas/furnace repeatedly
- checking my bag/table constantly
- I KNOW rationally things are fine but my brain keeps doubting it
- I get mental “what if” scenarios until I repeat the action

I also have contamination fears. For example on a boat trip I was terrified of sleeping in the beds because they felt contaminated to me.

Coordination-wise I’m terrible:
- my handwriting is constantly criticized and almost unreadable
- I bump into things often
- I get lost very easily, even in familiar places
- I rely on Google Maps even for short routes I already know
- I’m extremely bad at sports involving coordination, precision or fast reactions, especially racket sports
- I struggle with things like shoelaces and movements don’t seem to become automatic easily

I’ve even had situations where I almost got hit by a car because I misjudged distance/danger while other people immediately saw the risk.

Does this sound like something worth seeing a psychiatrist or neuropsychologist for? Has anyone here had a similar mix of symptoms?

Hi everyone, I’m 16 years old and I’m posting this because I’ve spent my whole life feeling like I’m living in a fog. I’m wondering if anyone else relates to this. Since I was a little kid, I’ve always been "in the moon." On every single school report, my teachers wrote that I was "quiet" but "never attentive." Some teachers even used to make fun of me because they didn't understand why I was so disconnected. It made me feel really bad and it completely destroyed my self-confidence growing up.

I spend almost all my time building infinite scenarios or parallel worlds in my head. I replay the past with different choices I could have made, or I simulate future situations in high definition. It’s so intense that it feels like I’m living in a world apart. To keep these thoughts going, I have this uncontrollable need to walk in circles or pace around for hours. I literally clock in kilometers every single day in my room just to fuel my imagination. It’s like my brain needs my body to be on a motor to think properly, but I feel a lot of shame if someone catches me doing it.
The weird thing is that I also have these huge peaks of attention. When I’m interested in something, like science, I can spend hours researching it and nobody can compete with me. But as soon as I lose interest, it's over. My brain shuts down and the fog comes back so thick it feels like I’m drowning or suffocating in my own head.

Socially, it’s really hard. I only have two friends I can truly be myself with. With everyone else, I force myself to act "normal" so I don't "slip up" or look too weird, but that just makes me feel exhausted and boring. I’ve ended up staying home almost all the time I only go out a few times a year besides school because being "outside" is just too draining.
Does this sound like ADHD to you? How do you guys deal with this feeling of being disconnected from reality and the shame of needing to pace around all the time? Thanks for reading.