How do you tell the difference between ADHD and anxiety when both are present?

Telling ADHD and anxiety apart can be confusing because both can make your mind feel restless or scattered. One way to notice the difference is to look at what’s behind the distraction. With ADHD, your attention drifts or you feel stuck simply because your brain struggles to stay organized or engaged, even when nothing stressful is happening. You might also find yourself hyperfocused on things that interest you, which isn’t typical of anxiety. With anxiety, the mind feels chaotic or frozen mainly in response to worry, fear, or pressure, and your thoughts are often looping over “what if” scenarios. For people who have both, I found it helpful to observe patterns over time. I noticed that when tasks were boring or unstructured, I got distracted in a way that felt automatic and restless, which pointed to ADHD. When I was in situations that felt threatening or stressful, my mind froze or spun with worry, which pointed to anxiety. Using different coping strategies also helped me tell them apart: breaking tasks into small, timed steps worked for the ADHD-related scatter, while grounding or calming techniques worked when anxiety was taking over. Often both are present, but tracking when and why focus breaks down can reveal which part is ADHD and which part is anxiety.