Busy Philipps Opens Up About Learning She Had ADHD Later in Life: ‘A Lightbulb Went Off’

Busy Philipps is opening up about being diagnosed with ADHD — a discovery that came as a surprise later in life.

The actress, 46, appeared on CBS Mornings on Thursday, June 18, where she recalled taking her daughter to a doctor’s appointment and unexpectedly learning something about herself in the process.

While promoting her upcoming new legal drama Cupertino, Philipps discussed how her daughter’s evaluation led her to recognize many of the same symptoms in herself.

“As he was sort of going through the checklist with my daughter, all of a sudden a lightbulb went off and I was like, ‘Wait a second that’s me!’ Every single thing was me,” Philipps explained.

The mother of two joked that it came as no surprise to her daughter. “Of course, my daughter’s like, ‘You make everything about you!’ I was like, but for real,'” she said.

Her daughter’s physician suggested she discuss the possibility with her own doctor. She later did and ultimately received an ADHD diagnosis.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health website, ADHD stands for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and is a developmental disorder characterized by an ongoing pattern of one or more symptoms including hyperactivity, impulsivity, inattention and more.

“It’s been several years now, actually. Sort of a whole new world opened up in my life in terms of being able to see how it had affected my life up until my late 30s, early 40s, which was when I was diagnosed,” the Freaks and Geeks alum added.

Philipps said she takes a “once-a-day” non-stimulant medication and has learned “different coping mechanisms,” adding that she is grateful for “being able to have the language behind it.”

“You know because of medical bias, women are less likely to be diagnosed with ADHD because it presents differently than what we’ve heard ADHD, the symptoms, to be,” the star said.

Philipps explained she never struggled with some of the more commonly recognized symptoms associated with ADHD, such as hyperactivity.

“While I have a lot of energy and certainly live up to my name, I was sort of internalizing so much of my disorganization and not being able to keep things straight,” she said. “For many years in my life I would think there was something wrong with me. I would look around and see so many seemingly having a much easier time. That goes way back to school, high school and college.”

Philipps stars in the upcoming legal drama Cupertino, coming to CBS this fall.

“We’re having a really great time filming it. I’ve never done a legal procedural and it’s just been the greatest experience,” she said of the series, which also stars Mike Colter, Ella Stiller and Gilles Geary.