AuDHD

AuDHD is a term widely used in the neurodivergent community to describe the experience of being both autistic and ADHD. It’s not a clinical diagnosis in itself — but it’s a powerful way of naming something that many people have lived with for years without ever having the right language for it.

Research now suggests that autism and ADHD co-occur far more often than was previously understood. Many autistic people also have ADHD, and many people with ADHD are also autistic. Yet the two are still frequently assessed and treated in isolation — and for a significant number of people, one or both are missed entirely.

Autism and ADHD can interact in ways that make both harder to identify — especially in women, girls, and those who have learned to mask or camouflage their differences.

• Masking makes both less visible. Many autistic and AuDHD people — particularly women and girls — become highly skilled at hiding their differences. By the time they reach an assessment, the presentation can look confusing or inconsistent, because so much is being suppressed.
• The conditions can cancel each other out on paper. Autistic traits like rigidity and need for routine can appear to offset ADHD traits like impulsivity and disorganisation — and vice versa. Clinicians who aren’t experienced with co-occurring presentations can miss the picture entirely.
• ADHD in women looks different. The hyperactive, disruptive presentations that shaped how ADHD was originally understood are less common in women and girls. Inattentive presentations — distractibility, overwhelm, difficulty sustaining focus — are frequently dismissed as anxiety, low mood, or personality.
• Late diagnosis is the norm, not the exception. Many AuDHD adults we see were diagnosed with anxiety or depression in their twenties and thirties. Some were told they were “too articulate” or “too high-functioning” to be autistic. Others were never referred at all.

People who come to us often describe feeling like they’ve been living with a set of contradictions that no one could explain. Some of what we commonly hear:

• Craving routine and structure, but struggling to initiate or sustain it
• Being deeply passionate and focused on certain things, while finding everyday tasks nearly impossible
• Feeling exhausted by social situations, but also restless and understimulated in quiet environments
• Having a strong internal sense of how things “should” be, alongside an inability to organise or prioritise effectively
• Being told you’re intelligent and capable, but feeling like you’re constantly failing at basic things
• Burning out repeatedly, without understanding why

If any of this sounds familiar, you’re not alone — and you’re not broken. An AuDHD profile is a genuine neurological difference, and understanding it can be genuinely life-changing.

At South London Psychology Partnership, we have been working with autistic people and those with complex neurodevelopmental profiles since 2012. We understand that AuDHD presentations require clinical experience that goes beyond assessing each condition separately.

• We use gold-standard tools. Our autism assessments use the DISCO (Diagnostic Interview for Social and Communication Disorders), developed at the Lorna Wing Centre — one of the most comprehensive and respected autism assessment tools available. For ADHD, we use the DIVA-5, based on DSM-5 criteria. Where both are indicated, we offer a combined AuDHD assessment.
• We specialise in women, girls, and those who mask. Our founders, Dr Caroline Gratton and Dr Kate Davis, have spent their careers working with autistic women and girls, and with people whose presentations have been missed or misunderstood elsewhere. We know what masking looks like, and we know how to create conditions in which people feel safe enough to be themselves.
• We look at the whole person. A diagnosis is a starting point, not an endpoint. Our assessments go beyond a label — we work to understand how your neurodevelopmental profile has shaped your life, your mental health, your relationships, and your sense of self. Our reports are detailed, personalised, and written in draft first so you can contribute to them.
• We offer support beyond assessment. For many AuDHD people, diagnosis is followed by a significant period of processing and adjustment. We offer therapy, mentoring, and ongoing support for those who want it — including for those navigating autistic burnout, anxiety, trauma, and the particular challenges of being AuDHD in a world not designed for you.

We offer AuDHD assessments for adults and young people from age 12 upwards. We particularly welcome:

• Adults who have received a partial diagnosis and suspect the full picture hasn’t been identified
• Women and girls who have been told their difficulties are anxiety, depression, or personality-related
• People who have previously been assessed elsewhere and felt unseen or misunderstood
• Those who self-identify as AuDHD and are seeking formal assessment for the first time

We are registered with a number of the UK’s leading insurance companies and can provide documentation to support insurance claims where applicable.