Caren van Herwaarden

Not always being able to express or show what is going on in the tangled thoughts inside your head. Trying to keep all those immediate thoughts to yourself, never quite sure whether you can control the impulse. Wanting to offer a listening ear, yet struggling to listen and stay focused. Coming across as uninterested, even though the interest is genuinely there. The emotions are sometimes unmistakably visible and hidden at the same time. Having the urge to be expressive, but not always being able to show it. Until the inner turbulence become too much. And then there is the silence you can never hear, because the chaos takes over.

These contradictions, and finding a balance between them, can be a reality for people with ADHD, even though this is not always visible because of the mask they wear. Just as with Ceramic Boy and people with autism, there is often much more beneath the surface than what people see. As a network, we are committed to fostering greater understanding and acceptance of neurodiversity by making it a topic of open conversation.

Not always being able to express or show what is going on in the tangle of thoughts inside your head. Trying to keep all those immediate thoughts to yourself, never quite sure whether you can control the impulse. Until the inner turbulence become too much. And then there is the silence you can never hear, because the chaos takes over.