Jason Olin PhD
ADHD in High-Performing Adults
When focus fades and pressure rises, you're not lazy. You're overloaded.
You’ve always made it work. Until now.
Many of the professionals I work with are bright, capable, and accomplished. They’ve compensated for years. Over time, the strain catches up. That’s when we slow down, assess carefully, and build systems that actually work.
Deadlines used to motivate you. You used to thrive under pressure. But lately, distraction, overthinking, or forgetfulness are getting in the way: at work, in your relationships, or just in your day-to-day life.
You might be wondering if it’s anxiety. Or burnout. Or if something else is going on.
You're not alone and you’re not imagining it.
How ADHD Looks in High-Functioning Adults
ADHD doesn’t always show up as hyperactivity or poor grades. Many of the adults I work with are bright, accomplished, and capable, but they’re overwhelmed by:
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Chronic procrastination
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Forgetting appointments, texts, or even why they walked into a room
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Starting lots of projects, but finishing none
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“Time blindness.”Underestimating how long things take or getting stuck in a time sink
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Feeling guilty, ashamed, or like a fraud despite outward success
Often, what looks like anxiety or disorganization is actually undiagnosed ADHD, especially in high performers who have masked symptoms for years and built careers around compensating for them.
Need an ADHD Evaluation?
Some clients come to me already knowing they have ADHD. Others are seeking clarity.
I offer:
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Formal ADHD assessments for adults
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FAA-approved neuropsychological evaluations for pilots
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Written reports suitable for medical, academic, or professional purposes
These evaluations are handled with precision and professionalism, and I’ll walk you through the process from start to finish.
My Approach
I offer structured, compassionate therapy that helps you understand how ADHD affects your life and what to do about it.
Together, we focus on:
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Strengthening executive functioning under real-world pressure
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Reducing shame and self-criticism that follow performance dips
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Improving decision-making and follow-through
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Building sustainable systems rather than short-term hacks
My style is structured, direct, and clinically grounded. Sessions are collaborative, focused, and built around measurable change.
Ready to stop white-knuckling your way through the week?
You don’t have to work twice as hard to keep up anymore. Whether you need therapy, assessment, or both, I’ll help you move forward with clarity and structure.
Serving adults in-office at Newport Beach, California and via telehealth throughout California, New York and 43 states.
FAQ
How do you diagnose ADHD?
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First, I identify if you had symptoms of ADHD in childhood and have symptoms of ADHD now.
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Second, I check to see if those symptoms were affecting your function in childhood and are affecting your function now.
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I will look at education, work, social life, free time, relationships, and home life.
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Third, I rule outs other factors that could explain your symptoms.
If it's not ADHD, what is it?
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Some inattention, but not clinically significant
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Worry, anxiety, depression
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Your personality, perfectionism
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Specific learning problems
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Normal aging
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A significant life event distracting you (pregnancy, bereavement, moving)
I thought ADHD is only diagnosed with cognitive and neuropsychological tests.
Cognitive testing is time-consuming and expensive. It’s appropriate when documentation is required for accommodations or licensing. For clinical diagnosis alone, it’s often not necessary.
Do I need medication to treat ADHD? You don't prescribe stimulants.
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Not everyone with ADHD wants to take stimulant medication.
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Medication does not directly improve the tendency to procrastinate or to become disorganized.
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If I recommend that you consider stimulant medication, I will explain why that might make sense for you.
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Note that a physician or nurse practitioner can prescribe stimulant medications (Vyvance, Ritalin, Adderall, Concerta, etc.).
What are some recommendations that you might make?
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Take more time than you usually do to take breaks and do the activities that you love to do. Many people I see tend to start doing tedious and unrewarding work when they are feeling tired and lousy.
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Reduce the number of ADHD tools you use to a minimum. It's hard for anyone to juggle more than one calendar or more than one to-do list.
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Build a short list of the three biggest distractors in your life and take steps to reduce their effect on you.
What do those computerized tests show?
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Those tests measure your attention. The CPT-III is often used for this purpose.
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This can include sustained attention, distractibility, divided attention.
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A diagnosis of ADHD is not simply due to impairment in the type of attention evaluated in computerized tests.
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