Speaker
Jami Shapiro

Session Details

Identifying, Understanding and Supporting ADHD in Older Adults

Aging Trends

Date: Saturday, August 23, 2025
Time: 1:20 pm

ADHD is no longer just a diagnosis for rambunctious little boys. Unless you are living under a rock, you are hearing about ADHD on Tik Tok, newsstands and novels but no one is addressing its impact on older adults. ADHD remains largely unrecognized and misunderstood. Today, many middle aged women are discovering their ADHD diagnosis during perimenopause or when their children are diagnosed but we need to look backwards at our parents. This session explores ADHD in older adults, how we can identify it in seniors, how it complicates typical aging challenges and daily functioning. Senior advisors will learn to recognize ADHD indicators that may be masked by aging-related concerns or dismissed as normal age-related changes and most importantly will learn tools to support these clients/patients. We will discuss two of the major challenges for seniors often living with undiagnosed ADHD on their executive functioning and relationships. This knowledge enables senior advisors to better serve this overlooked population, potentially transforming their clients’ quality of life through improved understanding and targeted support strategies.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Identify the unique presentations and challenges of ADHD in older adults, including how symptoms may be masked by or confused with typical aging-related changes.
  2. Evaluate how undiagnosed or untreated ADHD impacts seniors’ daily functioning, including medication management, home organization, financial oversight, and social relationships.
  3. Apply specific strategies and tools to support older adults with ADHD in maintaining independence, managing daily tasks, and improving their quality of life.