Was my child born with ADHD, or did it “develop?”

In most cases, to the extent that ADHD is a genetic disorder, your child was born with ADHD. In other words, the genes that contribute to the disorder were present at birth. Some children born with the genes for the disorder do not develop ADHD symptoms at all; some have such slight difficulties with attention that it goes undetected throughout their lives. Nevertheless, the signs can appear and change over time, depending on a variety of circumstances. Environmental factors play a role even when the main cause is genetic. A child with a mild disorder can subsequently manifest extreme inattention or hyperactive behavior in the presence of certain environmental factors, such as parental abuse or neglect, poor living conditions, or other circumstances that stress children emotionally. If ADHD symptoms develop “suddenly,” it is likely that the disorder was present but hidden, only appearing when an environmental factor came into play.