Hyperfocus and ADHD often get talked about together, and for good reason. Alison used Neil as an example of what it looks like from the inside: before he did coaching work, when he was still in academia, coding would absorb him completely. He’d go into his office and not come out for hours at a time. Something about that particular task made everything else disappear.
When it works, it works well. If what you’re hyperfocused on happens to be your PhD, you go deep, you get a lot done, and it feels far better than grinding something out under deadline pressure. That’s part of why it gets described as a superpower in the first place.
What hyperfocus and ADHD can cost you
The bit that gets missed is what it costs to stay there. Some people with ADHD find it hard to disengage once they’re that absorbed. Neil described feeling uncomfortable and not knowing why, then realising he hadn’t moved in four hours. He developed blood clots in his twenties from being so still, which is about as clear a signal as a body can send that something needs to change. For people managing hyperfocus and ADHD together, that discomfort is often the only warning they get.
The pattern is usually quieter than that. It’s the "I’ll just do this one thing" that turns into three hours, without you ever deciding to skip a meal or cancel plans with a friend. Nothing about it feels like a choice at the time.
Hyperfocus and deadline-driven working can both be genuinely useful ways to get things done. We wrote a while back about the deadline burnout pattern that keeps academics stuck, and the same question applies here: is this way of working supporting you, or has the price crept up without you noticing?
If you’re not sure how to answer that honestly on your own, it’s the kind of pattern coaching can help you see more clearly.
