Does ADHD Get Worse With Age?

Short answer: On average, ADHD doesn’t get worse with age — symptoms tend to decline,¹ and adults are more likely to keep inattention symptoms than obvious hyperactivity.² But about 7 in 10 children with ADHD still have symptoms as adults,³ and changing demands and hormones can make symptoms harder to manage at certain stages of life. You can’t develop ADHD for the first time as an adult, but you can be diagnosed for the first time as an adult.⁴

How ADHD changes from childhood to adulthood

ADHD persists into adulthood for most people. A review of North American follow-up studies found symptoms persisted in 60–86% of cases.² A meta-analysis found that while about 15% of people still met the full diagnostic criteria by age 25, about 65% had persisting ADHD once partial remission was included.¹

What changes is how ADHD shows up. Restlessness often becomes internal — feeling driven to stay busy rather than running around³ — and the impact shifts from the classroom to work, money, relationships and running a household.

Why ADHD can feel worse as you get older

For many adults it isn’t that ADHD gets worse, but that life gets more demanding. A more complex job, parenting, or losing the structure of school or of someone who used to manage the logistics can expose difficulties that were previously compensated for.

Hormones, pregnancy and menopause

Hormonal change may play a part. Clinicians report that ADHD symptoms in women often get worse in the lead-up to a period, and that many women’s ADHD is unmasked at menopause.⁵ Research is still catching up: the Senate inquiry into ADHD called for more research into the role of hormone changes, including pregnancy, breastfeeding and menopause.⁶ See ADHD in women.

ADHD in older adults

ADHD in older people is poorly understood, and symptoms can be put down to ageing rather than ADHD.⁶ Memory and concentration problems that start later in life have many possible causes, so they should be checked by a doctor rather than assumed to be ADHD.

Can you develop ADHD as an adult?

Under the DSM-5 criteria, ADHD begins in childhood: several symptoms must have been present before age 12.⁷ “Adult-onset ADHD” is sometimes discussed in the research literature, but it is usually explained as childhood symptoms that were masked or missed.²

So you can’t develop ADHD from scratch as an adult — but you can be diagnosed for the first time as an adult. That’s why an adult assessment looks for evidence that symptoms began in childhood, and you may be asked for school reports.⁴ A childhood history form completed by a parent or someone who knew you before age 12 is another common source.

Does ADHD go away?

For some people, symptoms reduce to the point they no longer meet the criteria — but most continue to have symptoms that affect them.¹ Treatment is associated with better long-term outcomes than no treatment.⁸

Frequently asked questions

Does ADHD get worse with age?

On average, no — symptoms tend to ease with age, and hyperactivity in particular becomes less visible. But most people diagnosed as children still have symptoms as adults, and bigger responsibilities or hormonal changes can make symptoms harder to manage at some stages of life.

Can you develop ADHD as an adult?

Not under the current diagnostic criteria — ADHD begins in childhood and several symptoms must have been present before age 12. But many people aren’t diagnosed until adulthood because their symptoms were missed or masked.

Can menopause make ADHD worse?

It can for some women. Clinicians report that ADHD symptoms can become harder to manage around menopause, and that many women’s ADHD is unmasked at that stage. Research into the role of hormones is still limited.

Does ADHD go away?

For some people, symptoms reduce to the point they no longer meet the criteria, but most continue to have symptoms that affect them — about 7 in 10 children with ADHD still have symptoms as adults.

Next steps

Read ADHD symptoms in adults and how to get diagnosed with ADHD in Australia, or start with the free ADHD self-assessment.

This article is general information only and is not medical advice. Only a qualified health professional can diagnose ADHD. ADHD GP is a private telehealth clinic staffed by AHPRA-registered Australian GPs.

Book your ADHD assessment

References

1. Faraone SV, Biederman J, Mick E. The age-dependent decline of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a meta-analysis of follow-up studies. Psychological Medicine. 2006. PubMed PMID 16420712 — About 15% still meet full criteria at age 25; about 65% have persistent ADHD when partial remission is included.
2. Australian ADHD Professionals Association. About ADHD (Australian ADHD Guideline). 2022. adhdguideline.aadpa.com.au — ADHD prevalence is 6–10% in Australian children and 2–6% in adults; heritability 70–80%; symptoms are present before age 12 though diagnosis may come later; 60–86% show symptomatic persistence into adulthood.
3. Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). ADHD — adults. 2026. www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au — About 7 in 10 children continue to experience ADHD symptoms as adults; treatment can include education, psychological support, coaching, practical strategies and medication.
4. healthdirect (Australian Government). Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). 2025. www.healthdirect.gov.au — ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition that begins in early childhood; around 1 in 20 people in Australia has ADHD; it is partly genetic; an adult diagnosis requires evidence that symptoms began in childhood; learning difficulties can occur alongside it.
5. RACGP newsGP. How do hormones alter women’s ADHD symptoms?. 2026. www1.racgp.org.au — ADHD symptoms in women often worsen before a period and can be unmasked at menopause.
6. Parliament of Australia — Senate Community Affairs References Committee. Assessment and support services for people with ADHD — Chapter 8. 2023. www.aph.gov.au — ADHD in older people is poorly understood; the committee called for research into the role of hormonal change including pregnancy and menopause.
7. Parliament of Australia — Senate Community Affairs References Committee. Assessment and support services for people with ADHD — Chapter 1. 2023. www.aph.gov.au — ADHD occurs in about 6–10% of Australian children and adolescents and 2–6% of adults; heritability is estimated at 70–80%; Deloitte estimated 814,500 Australians living with ADHD in 2019 at a cost of $20.42 billion.
8. Shaw M, Hodgkins P, Caci H, et al. A systematic review and analysis of long-term outcomes in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: effects of treatment and non-treatment. BMC Medicine. 2012. PubMed PMID 22947230 — Treatment of ADHD was associated with improved long-term outcomes compared with no treatment.

Sources were last checked on 5 October 2026. See all sources used on this site on our Sources page.