Tom Holland reveals ADHD struggles for the first time in emotional admission

Tom Holland has opened up on living with ADHD and dyslexia in a candid new interview.

The Spider-Man actor, 29, has lifted the lid on how the diagnoses can affect him on a day to day basis at work, as well as what can help make things easier.

For those unfamiliar, as per the NHS website, ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is a condition where your brain works differently to most people. Common symptoms involve struggling to pay attention to things and concentrate, having high energy levels, being impulsive, and lacking time management.

Meanwhile, dyslexia is a common learning difficulty that mainly causes problems with reading, writing and spelling. Intelligence isn't affected, and it's estimated that up to one in every 10 people in the UK has some degree of dyslexia.

Holland's admission came about when he was discussing his new collaboration with LEGO - a short film called ‘Never Stop Playing,' to promote the idea that growing up does not have to mean giving up on play.

Tom Holland has explained how his ADHD and dyslexia diagnoses affect his life (Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)

And it seems that this is a message that's stuck firmly with the Hollywood star.

When asked about the importance of play, he told IGN: "I think it really does help. I have ADHD and I'm dyslexic, and I find sometimes when someone gives me a blank canvas that it can be slightly intimidating."

Relating to his career, he added: "And sometimes you are met with those challenges when developing a character."

The Marvel actor continued: "So any way that you can, as a young person or as an adult, interact with something that forces you to be creative and forces you to think outside the box and make changes that might be in an instruction manual or might not be in an instruction manual just promotes healthy creativity.

"And I think that the more we do that sort of stuff, the better."

As well as building LEGO, Holland revealed that in his spare time, he enjoys sports like golf and paddle tennis, as well as playing online chess with his brother Harry, 26.

Although the actor hasn't previously opened up on his ADHD struggles, he has mentioned dyslexia before and how it affected him in his school days.

The Spider-Man actor talked about how being creative and encouraging play is always helpful (Karwai Tang/Getty Images)

In July 2023, he appeared on Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast and discussed how his parents, Dominic Holland and Nikki Holland, supported him.

On the podcast, he explained: "My dyslexia, it’s really just my spelling.

"My spelling was really the biggest hurdle. I worked really hard at school. I didn’t do particularly well but my parents said, ‘As long as you try your best.’"

And when quizzed on how he perseveres in his career, in 2021 he told YouTuber Jazlyn Guerra that patience really is the key.

Holland said: "It’s just about taking your time… giving yourself an appropriate amount of time to do the things you need to do.

"The better prepared you are for anything, the more you’ll be able to do and accomplish things that are fantastic."

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