Overthinking
Replaying conversations, worrying about mistakes or mentally rehearsing tasks before starting.
Online CBT for ADHD and anxiety
ADHD and Anxiety
Specialist online CBT for adults with ADHD and anxiety, including racing thoughts, overwhelm, avoidance, perfectionism, rejection sensitivity and emotional regulation difficulties.
Understanding the overlap
ADHD and anxiety can become tangled together.
Anxiety may build when life repeatedly feels hard to organise, remember, finish or predict. ADHD can create uncertainty, missed steps, emotional overwhelm and a sense of being constantly behind, which can feed worry and avoidance.
This does not mean anxiety is your fault. It means the pattern deserves to be understood in context.
What this can look like
Anxiety can become a way of trying to stay in control.
Avoidance
Putting off emails, decisions, admin or conversations because the anxiety around them feels too much.
Perfectionism
Trying to prevent criticism or failure by over-preparing, over-checking or waiting until things feel exactly right.
How CBT can help
CBT can help with both worry and the ADHD patterns underneath it.
CBT can help you identify the thoughts, emotions, body cues, situations and avoidance patterns that maintain anxiety. When ADHD is part of the picture, therapy also considers executive functioning, emotional regulation, routines, rejection sensitivity and self-criticism.
The work may include practical planning, reducing avoidance, managing uncertainty, building realistic routines and responding to anxious thoughts without relying on self-attack.
Specialist support
Online CBT therapy across the UK.
Cally Farrer is a BABCP-accredited CBT therapist with 15 years experience in various clinical roles. Therapy is available for adults looking for support with ADHD and anxiety, emotional dysregulation, procrastination, burnout and related patterns.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Can ADHD and anxiety overlap?
ADHD and anxiety can overlap when executive functioning difficulties, overwhelm, uncertainty, rejection sensitivity or repeated stress make daily life feel hard to manage.
Can CBT help ADHD and anxiety?
CBT can help identify anxiety triggers, reduce avoidance, manage worry, build realistic routines and develop emotional regulation strategies adapted for ADHD.
Do I need an ADHD diagnosis?
You do not always need an ADHD diagnosis to begin therapy for anxiety, overwhelm or suspected ADHD patterns. Therapy is not a formal ADHD diagnostic assessment.
Do you offer online CBT across the UK?
Yes. Online CBT therapy is available across the UK for adults with ADHD, anxiety, emotional dysregulation and related patterns.
Free 15-minute consultation
Anxiety can make reaching out feel harder.
You can start with a brief enquiry and take the next step at a manageable pace.