Yes, an ‘ADHD tax’ is a real thing. I know because I pay it every day

Every day begins the same way: I forget something. My glasses, keys, phone, earbuds, lip balm, wallet, hairbrush, myki, hair tie, my toddler’s shoes, hat, mittens, jumper, socks, bottle, or breakfast. It could be any of them.

I spend at least 10 minutes each morning searching for one or more of the above. It drives me, and my partner, completely mad.

The ADHD tax costs Australians more than $20 billion annually.Credit: Getty Images

Sometimes I lose these items for good. I’ve left my phone in a taxi or public toilet more times than I care to admit, and on my latest journey abroad, I left my glasses on the plane and my headphones at the hotel. Neither were cheap to replace.

So why don’t I have a dedicated space for all these items? Believe it or not, I actually do. But when I get home and am distracted, I plonk my stuff wherever it fits and then forget about it.

Welcome to the life of a person with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) – and the tax we pay every day.

In case you think the term “ADHD tax” is a joke or a self-diagnosis social media phrase, it’s not. A 2019 analysis from Deloitte Access Economics estimates 800,000 Australians have ADHD (though many experts believe the number is now closer to one million), with the social and economic cost of the neurodevelopmental disorder costing more than $20 billion a year.

Of this, $12.83 billion relates to financial costs – GP visits, specialist services reimbursements, medications etc — and productivity costs including reduced productivity and participation at work. The other $7.59 billion is what’s known as wellbeing losses – the reduced quality of life due to impaired functioning, mental health problems and premature death.

The symptoms and traits of people with ADHD vary, but commonly include impulsivity, forgetfulness and trouble regulating emotions.

“These include having to pay late fees because of forgetting to pay bills; having to pay speeding/red light/traffic fines because of impulsive driving; not knowing what items you have and then buying them again because you forgot you already had one,” says psychologist Dr Tamara May, who works with adults with ADHD and other neurodivergent conditions. “There is also paying for hobbies and courses [but] not completing them due to boredom, and impulsive spending to get a quick dopamine hit without considering the long-term consequences.”

In addition to losing things, I find it impossible to keep track of bills, subscriptions and sending invoices, which means I don’t always get paid on time, amass a pile of late fees, and have auto-renewal deductions taken from my account for services I sometimes don’t even remember signing up to and haven’t budgeted for.

Why don’t I use a calendar and set reminders? Again, I do. But when the reminder to pay a bill appears, I’m so put off by how dreary the task is I procrastinate until I forget.

I regularly underestimate how much time it will take to get somewhere, only to then run late and have to pay for an Uber or taxi I haven’t budgeted for, or park in a short-term space and risk a fine because it’s the closest space available to where I’m going.

Adults with ADHD study, work and strive to live normal lives. But the problem is, the financial, workplace, education and legal systems in place are designed for neurotypical people. Those of us with ADHD are expected to fit into pre-existing systems and cultures – and that comes with a cost, both personally and to society as a whole.

“It’s more difficult to understand than a physical condition, such as cancer, which has a huge tax on individuals and the system,” says May. “But ADHD is lifelong, and in many cases, it is more hidden.”

And with the average academic performance of people with ADHD below those without, May says the tax is cumulative. “People with ADHD are already at a disadvantage even before they get to the workforce, and once they get there, they can experience significant periods of burnout, where they can’t do anything for long periods of time,” she says.

Many people still don’t believe ADHD is a real condition, and that we should all just get control of ourselves and act like adults. And at times, most of us exhibit some of the symptoms that define ADHD (forgetfulness, financial irresponsibility, disinterest). The difference is, the advice and expectations for money management we hear are not even remotely sufficient for people whose lives are often governed by anxiety, shame, emotional dysregulation and low impulse control.

May says governments and organisations need to do more to address this financial burden, such as providing more government-funded assessments and subsiding treatments.

“We know that medication and therapy can help people reduce the negative impacts of symptoms, including financial difficulties,” she says. “For example, having all of your bills paid through automatic direct debit so you don’t have to remember, learning to develop a financial budget, and use of supportive technology and people to make it easy and fun.”

In many ways, I am lucky. While it usually takes an emergency to get me to do anything I find boring (taxes, administrative tasks and bureaucracy are my trinity of hell), once I am interested in something I go all in. I also have an understanding boyfriend who manages the majority of the boring stuff that keeps me housed, watered and fed. But not everyone is so lucky.

Even with medication, therapy and coping strategies in place, sometimes I lose things and run late. That’s not poor planning or being flaky, it’s a very real neurological condition that millions of people live with – and pay a tax for – every day.

Caroline Zielinski is a freelance writer.

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