It is estimated that nearly 10 million American adults suffer from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).  It is one of the most common behavioral disorders whose symptoms include inattentiveness, hyperactivity and impulsiveness. But despite the problems ADHD causes, many famous people who have been diagnosed with it have managed to overcome the condition and achieve great results in their careers. Keep on reading and find out who they are.

Howie Mandel

 

 

 

 

 

This game show host and stand-up comedian is known for his vivacious personality as well as for his disorders. Mandel has both ADHD and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). He grew up with the disorders during a time when they weren’t officially diagnosed or understood. It even got Mandel expelled from high school, and he continued to struggle with his attention span for the next 20 years before his doctor finally gave him an ADHD diagnosis. “I found it difficult to sit down and read a script for work, or even have a conversation,” he says. Today, Mandel takes medication and attends therapy to help him deal with the disorders.

Justin Timberlake

 

 

 

 

 

Grammy-winning singer and actor Justin Timberlake has OCD and ADD/ADHD. While he doesn’t often speak publicly about his conditions, he shared his frustration with his diagnoses with Collider.com in an interview, saying: “I have OCD mixed with ADD. You try living with that.”

Paris Hilton

 

 

 

 

 

The heiress and TV personality says she’s had ADD since she was about 12. She told CNN’s Larry King that she took Adderall to manage it. She insisted, though, that ADD didn’t negatively affect her. “It’s something I’ve dealt with it my whole life… I learned to deal with it. I’m doing fine.”

Ryan Gosling

 

 

 

 

 

As a child, Ryan Gosling was reportedly unable to read and was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), prescribed Ritalin, and placed in a class for special-needs students. Consequently, his mother quit her job and homeschooled him for a year. Gosling has said that homeschooling gave him “a sense of autonomy that I’ve never really lost”.

Michelle Rodriguez

 

 

 

 

 

Michelle fears she may never fulfill her dream of directing, as she suffers from ADHD. She has such trouble focusing she knows it will affect her career choices – but she is reluctant to take medication to treat the frustrating affliction. She tells Cosmopolitan magazine, “I want to write and direct, but it’s not easy with ADHD. I have a hard time focusing when I’m alone. I’m a scatterbrain, but I’m nervous of taking medication. I don’t really want to depend on anything to control my brain.”

Will Smith

 

 

 

 

 

The two-time Oscar nominee told Rolling Stone that as a child he was “the fun one who had trouble paying attention… I was a ‘B’ student who should’ve been getting A’s… Today they’d diagnose me as a child with ADHD.” Will even admitted before that he has trouble reading movie scripts.

Woody Harrelson

 

 

 

 

 

Although the actor is quite outspoken about certain things, like marijuana reform, he’s pretty tight-lipped when it comes to his alleged ADHD and dyslexia. However, according to a 1988 profile of the actor in People magazine, Harrelson was diagnosed as hyperactive as a child and prescribed Ritalin. Other outlets have also reported that he suffers from dyslexia.

Liv Tyler

 

 

 

 

 

In a 1995 interview with Details magazine, the then-17-year-old actress and model was asked what books she was reading. “I’m supposed to be starting Moby Dick for school, but I’m not. I’m reading this book Bastard Out of Carolina, which is really good. When I was little I hated to read. I was so hyperactive and I had such a bad attention deficit.” Her mom Bebe Buell wrote about Liv’s diagnosis in her memoir Rebel Heart: An American Rock ‘n Roll Journey, saying that she sent her daughter to NYC’s York Preparatory for junior and high school since it could accommodate her ADHD. In 2012 Liv has revealed she meditates to deal with attention deficit disorder. “I have ADHD. Meditation definitely helps. It helps with everything,” she said.

Jim Carrey

 

 

 

 

 

Jim Carrey has been making us laugh for over two decades and he has a serious case of ADHD. Carrey has always been open about his ADHD disorder and depression and said that he has been undergoing treatment since childhood. To deal with his depression, the actor took Prozac, eventually deciding to get off medications. He has stated that he no longer takes medications or stimulants of any kind, not even coffee.