How a new job doing kitchen makeovers has helped Lucy Goffin get a grip on her ADHD

Not that she knew it at the time, but the 36-year-old had undiagnosed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

"I was a bit of a job-jumper, if you like. I'd done various things – caring, sales, cleaning, accounts assistant, loads of things, and I was going to join the police. I got offered a job to join the police as a PC, I had my start date and everything.”

However, with her husband working as a firefighter, and the couple having two young daughters, now aged three and six, they were going to call on family to help them out with childcare when they were both on shift.

“We would have needed family to help us out, or it wouldn't have worked. My dad was going to do a lot of that, but he passed away unexpectedly so I had to change what I was going to do.

“I had a little bit of inheritance money – not a huge amount, about £20,000 – so I decided to invest it into a business for myself.

“Having not owned my own business before I thought it would be a lot easier to invest into a franchise where you get the support at the same time. I started looking into them and came across Kitchen Makeovers.”

​Lucy is now celebrating her first anniversary running her own kitchen renovations business,

It was around the same time that Lucy was seeking a diagnosis for what turned out to be ADHD – a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. It can cause significant challenges in school, work, and relationships. According to ADHD UK, they estimate that 2.6m people have ADHD in the UK, but more than 80 per cent of those have not had a formal diagnosis.

Lucy, from Portchester, finally sought a diagnosis after years of struggling with mental health problems.

“My family has got a history of mental illness. My brother was diagnosed with ADHD when he was little, but the boys tend to be diagnosed more because they're hyperactive whereas women tend to be more inattentive – it's more internal. When you think of the label of ADHD you think of naughty little boys who are bouncing off the walls, but a lot of women don't get diagnosed until their 30s, 40s or 50s even because we tend to mask it, or just not put it down to ADHD.

“I didn't realise until last year, when one of my friends was diagnosed with it. I said to her: ‘You haven't got ADHD, you're not hyperactive.’ Then she explained it's and some of the symptoms, and I thought, ‘oh, that's me!’

“I looked into it a bit more and it just explained the way I am. Since my early 20s I've suffered with anxiety and depression and I've never managed to overcome that, and that's a big symptom that comes alongside ADHD.

“It's hard to balance responsibilities when you've got ADHD because your mind's constantly running – it all becomes overwhelming, and since having children I've struggled a lot with that balance.”

Using the NHS’s Right to Choose programme, which allows patients to pick their own mental health care provider, Lucy was able to speed up the process of diagnosis. “I was initially told I’d have to wait a year, but I looked around and someone where it was only six months, so I asked my GP to change it to them.”

Lucy says getting the diagnosis has been a “big relief”. “I can take better care of myself, realising that it's not my fault the way I am, and I can stop being so hard on myself. I also want to try other medications to see if they'll help, but that's another waiting list – that's another eight months to a year. I tried to come off my anti-depressants, but I got overwhelmed and had to go back on them.

“While the anti-depressants help with my anxiety, it's the focus that I struggle with. I get easily distracted, so I hope it will help with that.”

​Taking on her own business has been instrumental in Lucy finding her own way forward.

“It felt like taking a big risk starting my own company,” explains Lucy. “I’d never run my own business before and there was a lot to figure out. Traditional nine-five jobs never quite clicked with me. I’ve since learnt this is common with people who have ADHD – the rigid structure can be really tricky to manage.

“I just thought this was a really simple concept and I love renovating. And I thought with my skills in sales in the background that it would be a good job.

“I’ve found a role that allows me to be my own boss while supporting the community and I haven’t looked back! I’m so proud to have grown my business in the place I call home and I’m very excited to see where the next 12 months takes me.

“It's been easier than I thought it would be, but it hasn't all been smooth sailing. Being self-employed, seeing all of the money going out of the account before anything comes back in was a bit scary. There's ups and downs, but overall, I should have done it a long time ago!

“I love working for myself, I couldn't go back to working for someone again because I find it hard having people telling me what to do when it doesn't make sense to me. I like to see things my own logical way.”

How starting Kitchen Makeovers have helped her out

​ L ucy launched Kitchen Makeovers to offer a cost-effective, sustainable alternative to expensive home renovations.

In just over a year, she has become instrumental in ensuring the community has access to environmentally friendly kitchen renovations, servicing more than 60 homes.

Looking to build on her success as a solo entrepreneur with demand for her services growing, Lucy is passionate about showing others out there that having ADHD – or being a woman in a traditionally male industry – are challenges that inspire personal and professional growth.

Lucy says: “It’s really empowering to run my own business in a traditionally male dominated industry and to prove to other women out there that anyone, regardless of their experience, can become real successes. If nothing else, I want to continue showing other women and people with ADHD out there that the sky is the limit!

“I’ve used what many consider a disadvantage as my superpower and it’s vital that we continue to give a platform to diversity in our wonderful community.”

Lucy hopes that by sharing her story, she’ll encourage more women and people with ADHD to get started in business. Kitchen Makeovers Portsmouth has transformed the local community’s experience with home renovations. By retaining existing kitchen units, the company focuses on replacing key elements to give a fresh new look while minimising waste.

For more information about Kitchen Makeovers, visit the website: kitchenmakeovers.co.uk/branch/portsmouth

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