Beth Joiner and Kirsty Pringle were both good students. They loved learning, particularly in the subjects in which they were most interested. When it came to homework and revision, however, both women struggled with getting things in on time, often leaving things right to the last minute. Both women also have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) - but were not diagnosed until adulthood.
ADHD is a behavioural disorder that includes symptoms such as inattentiveness, hyperactivity and impulsiveness. While symptoms tend to be noticed at an early age, women have spoken on their experiences of not getting a diagnosis until adulthood. Beth, for instance, was diagnosed at the age of 28, Kirsty, when she was 40.
"No professional, nobody at school picked up on it," Kirsty said. "Obviously, as I was, as I was growing up in the 90s, there wasn't any awareness and knowledge around it, but I was quite academically capable." Kirsty said her GCSE results were good and, despite struggling more with the switch to A Level, she still attained high grades.
