Ted, ADHD, and the Boy Nobody Understood

 

Why I wrote Ted

December 23, 2025

People see Ted as the “outsider.” The kid who does not fit the system, does not fit the room, and often gets judged before he even speaks.

That part is real.

Ted is not a copy of me, but he carries pieces of me and pieces of people I have known. I grew up on a council estate in Roehampton, near Putney Heath. I have ADHD and dyslexia, and as a kid I was a handful. Restless. Loud. Stubborn. The kind of child adults label before they understand.

I did not write Ted to make a point. I wrote him because I recognise him.

Ted is not “bad.” He is overloaded.

A lot of kids like Ted get treated as if they are choosing chaos. As if they want to be difficult. But what it often looks like from the inside is simpler and harder to explain.

It is frustration that comes out sideways.
It is emotions arriving too fast.
It is trying, failing, then deciding you must be the problem.

When school is built around sitting still, reading cleanly, and behaving on command, a kid with ADHD and dyslexia does not just struggle. They get trained to think they are behind as a person, not behind in a system.

That is where the damage starts.

Why I gave Ted a soft centre

I did not want Ted to be another stereotype.

People with ADHD get boxed into two lazy story roles: the “troublemaker” or the “quirky chaos machine.” Both are shallow. Both are safe for everyone except the person living it.

So I wrote the part people miss.

I wrote the tenderness.
The loyalty.
The way Ted keeps showing up, even when he feels like he has messed everything up.

That is not fantasy. That is the reality for a lot of people. They care deeply. They just get punished for how they move through the world.

The point I wanted readers to take away

A label is information. It is not a life sentence.

Having ADHD or dyslexia can make childhood harder, and without support it can push people into spirals they never asked for. But with the right support, the right environment, and even one person who sees them clearly, that same brain can become a strength.

That is why Ted matters to me.

Not because he is perfect.
Because he is still worthy while he is figuring it out.

Why this belongs in a romance story

Romance is not just about chemistry. It is about being seen.

Ted’s arc is not “boy meets girl.” It is “boy learns he is not broken.” And love becomes part of that, not the cure, but the place where he finally believes he can be fully himself and still be chosen.

That is the kind of love story I care about.

Reader question: Did you ever get labelled as something as a kid that you later proved wrong?

Next post will be about Soo-ah. Not as a dream girl, but as a survivor. The kind of person who had to be excellent just to stay afloat.