because suddenly my whole life made sense. i had given up trying to figure out why i was the way i was and just accepted it and i was just, this is me. reporter: ashley mcdermott and john daly are among the nearly 5% of american adults, 8 million living with adhd. both busy working parents got diagnosed because one of their kids got diagnosed. john s daughter kay began showing signs of adhd and john realized it was like looking in the mirror. when i was reading i saw not only kay our daughter but i saw myself. reporter: a doctor confirmed his suspicions and at age 36, john was diagnosed the very same day as his then 3-year-old daughter. it was a big relief, actually. it gave us it gave us a name. reporter: his three other kids are on the spectrum as well. but less severely. married authors matt and sue hallowell say adult women are underdiagnosed. women manifest differently. often this isn t true across the board, but many women are more the day-dreamy, inattentive ty