OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — An Overland Park native is taking over TikTok by making videos about attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a neurodevelopmental disorder.
When 21-year-old Connor DeWolfe started making videos about ADHD, he had no idea the following he would gain.
He currently has 3.9 million followers for his account, where he posts quick, catchy, informative videos.
The video that made him blow up overnight is about what he calls "ADHD superpowers."
"I made a video about all of the wacky and weird talents I have learned over my childhood based off of really hyper-fixating on certain topics because of my ADHD," DeWolfe said.
DeWolfe gained 50,000 followers in a matter of eight hours. His videos cover a range of topics around ADHD, such as why people with ADHD have certain behaviors and what it is like to live with ADHD.
"I’m very honored that I do have the audience I have and the following because it enables me to spread more awareness," DeWolfe said.
DeWolfe was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 13 years old and was having trouble focusing in school. He said the diagnosis was a relief after feeling lost among his peers.
"There’s a reason why you felt like an alien in school and you were like 'Why can’t I initiate a task as well as the other kids in my class?'" DeWolfe said.
DeWolfe said his main goal for his TikTok is to help end the stigma around ADHD and mental health.
"There’s a lot of negative outlooks on neuro-diversity and mental health in general," DeWolfe said. "I just want to make people feel like they are not alone."
With every new video he creates, DeWolfe said he feels he achieves that goal. He said many of the comments he gets are people saying he inspired them to seek diagnosis.
"It’s just been really amazing that I have impacted the medical system and people's lives and getting diagnosed, like that is just crazy," DeWolfe said.
According to the National Resource Center on ADHD, about 11% of school-aged children are affected by ADHD, along with about 10 million adults.
Experts say people with ADHD can be very successful in life. However, without proper treatment it may negatively affect school, relationships or jobs.
DeWolfe said he wants people to understand ADHD is an explanation, not an excuse.
"It’s not that we can’t focus, we just can’t regulate our focus. So we will either hyperfocus on one thing or we will not focus at all on anything, and we are just focusing on like 1,000 things in the room," DeWolfe said.
He said he hopes to continue creating content about ADHD on other platforms so others will know they are not alone.
