Sam Thompson praises girlfriend Zara McDermott for spotting ADHD as he opens up on mental health struggle
SAM Thompson has praised his girlfriend Zara McDermott for helping him spot signs of his undiagnosed ADHD.
The reality star, 30, will follow in Zara into factual film-making and show a more serious side for a new Channel 4 documentary exploring ADHD.
Sam Thompson: Is This ADHD? will show him as he undergoes testing after years of exhibiting signs of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
The Made In Chelsea star said some of the signs include him “struggling to pay bills”, “replying to texts” and being a “people pleaser”.
Sam opened up about the symptoms and behavioural problems that have affected him since childhood.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, he said: “It was really hard to process things at school – it was really easier to tell when you’re at school because you’re report cards are ‘need to focus more’ or ‘needs to apply himself more’ and I am, I’m trying.
“I’m forgetful, I really lack of focus – for example if I’m talking to anybody, it could be a friend, a girlfriend, family, I really struggle to focus on what they’re saying.
“I feel really selfish and self-absorbed.
“If something drops over there and I look over there and it looks like you’re not present in the room.
“Zara noticed it all the time and would say ‘you’re not listening, are you?”
Speaking about how his undiagnosed ADHD affected his relationship with Zara, Sam said: “She is amazing, if I didn’t have Zara I would say it would affect more but she’s so relaxed and just loves me for me.
“I wake up every morning and I’m like surely that can’t be real.”
The hour-long film, which will air on E4 on Monday, includes self-shot video diaries to show what makers say is a “rawer side of Sam”.
“It was like a six hour conversation with a therapist, she was amazing,” Sam said about the ADHD assessment process at the ARIAS Awards in London where he rubbed shoulders with British radio’s elite
“To me, it wasn’t medication, it was more about being self-aware.
“I have fidget toys, I have little clocks that I have in my office, I have timesheets that I write down. But a lot of it, is just being aware of it.”
Sam admitted that he often struggles to “pay bills” and described himself as a “people pleaser”, but said the process has helped him to become more “self-aware”.
When asked what he learned about about himself, he replied: “I thought I had layers, I thought I was a f****** onion, I have no layers at all. My therapist looked at me and said I know exactly the type of person you are.
“The classic overpromise underdeliver, people pleaser, I overbook when I know I can’t do it, I struggle to reply to messages, I struggle to pay bills – it’s so annoying.”
The reality telly joker said he is lucky to live in a time where people are more open to learning about themselves.
“It was something I never really expected to do, I’m not really a serious guy but the timing couldn’t of been better as it was something I’ve been thinking about for so long,” Sam said.
“I had loads of people telling me I had ADHD for years and years but I never really cared and then as I got older, life has been happening a little bit more and I feel like I really wanted to get to the bottom of who I was reall.
“I want to be a dad and I want to look after kids and not be able to look after myself – so it came at a perfect time.
“We are lucky enough to live in a time where we are more emotional – we look inwards a lot more and I think we can be more self-aware and people are finding out a lot more about themselves.
“I don’t think I’ll be doing anything that serious moving forward but it was the one thing that I thought I really wanted to do.”
Sam went onto praise Zara for her support and said he will be popping the question in the future.
“I’m 30 and she’s 26, she’s young and she’s killing it at the moment and doing so well and really finding herself and what she wants to do.
“I want to spend the rest of my life with her, we have the rest of our lives to do the marriage, engagement if she’ll have me.
“F*** yeah I’ll marry her,” he laughed.