With the help of the Maybank Momentum Grant, Unlocking ADHD provides essential information and support for people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and their families. In the third of this four-part series on charities Maybank supports, we look at how the non-profit organisation enables this overlooked community to live life to the fullest.

Another spelling test, another bad score.

Chng Li Ming was an outstanding student in primary school, but somehow always struggled with consistent work like spelling tests and revision. In class, she would often space out or doze off and be sent out of class as a result. Yet, Li Ming managed to do well in her exams and went on to graduate with a Masters in Mass Communications from Nanyang Technological University (NTU). This incongruence was something she struggled to understand all her life – until she turned 36.

It was 2021 and the tightened COVID-19 safety measures at one stage meant Li Ming was often stuck at home alone. Insomnia began to plague her as she struggled to cope with the sense of isolation, and she resorted to using alcohol to lull her to sleep every night.

Desperate, the Senior Manager in the education industry, scoured the Internet for solutions and realised that the traits she had tried to make sense of all along might be signs of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). “The more I read, the more it spoke to me – that’s totally me.”

After a few rounds of therapy and assessments with a psychologist, Li Ming was diagnosed with mild inattentive ADHD at age 36.

Seeking more help and answers, she chanced upon a Zoom webinar where the Founder of Unlocking ADHD was a guest. Unlocking ADHD is a non-profit organisation that supports people with ADHD and their families. One of Unlocking ADHD’s main aims is to fill the information gap on the condition.

Through the group, Li Ming has found useful resources as well as a support system. For example, in contrast to the common stance of being medication-adverse, information provided by Unlocking ADHD taught Li Ming the importance of medication in managing her condition. She has also found a community in the fellow volunteers she serves with, as well as the individuals that come to Unlocking ADHD for help.

“One of the biggest areas in which Unlocking ADHD has helped me is the network of ADHDers that it has brought together,” said Li Ming.

While she still has problems focusing and falling asleep, Li Ming is now better able to manage her condition with the help of medication, therapy and support from Unlocking ADHD.

“Unlocking ADHD is doing something not just for parents and children but also for adults,” she said.