Dr Faisal Shaikh, Consultant Psychiatrist and founder of Mentis Clinic, delivered this keynote at the Autism and ADHD Show in London in June 2026.
Speaking to a room of individuals, families and professionals, he opens with a confession. For much of his early career, across more than two decades in psychiatry, he was not convinced that ADHD existed in adults. He describes questioning Professor Philip Asherson, a leading figure in adult ADHD research, at a conference in 2008, and how his view changed over the years that followed. What changed it was not only the science, but his own family. His eldest daughter, Nawaal, was diagnosed with autism at the age of two, and neurodivergence became part of daily life at home.
From that starting point, the talk sets out three messages.
Diagnosis is a beginning, not an end. Addressing the current debate about overdiagnosis, Dr Shaikh argues that we are not creating autism or ADHD, but finally recognising people who were overlooked for years, particularly women and adults. His conclusion is supported by the independent ADHD Taskforce commissioned by NHS England, which found that population prevalence has not risen while recognition has.
Different does not mean defective. Using the example of left-handedness, he explains how the world is often built around one way of being, and how what looks like difficult behaviour is frequently overwhelming distress rather than defiance.
Thriving happens through understanding, not masking. He describes the exhaustion of masking and why belonging and psychological safety allow neurodivergent people to thrive as themselves.
He closes with a tribute to his parents and a thought he leaves with the audience: you are not a failed version of someone else; you are the first version of yourself. A diagnosis does not define who you are; it helps explain who you have always been.
#Neurodiversity #ADHD #Autism #MentalHealth #BeYourselfBeHeard #AdultADHD #AutismInAdults
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