“Everything went blank”- Jordan Chiles gets real about her struggles with ADHD during her elementary school

Jordan Chiles recently reflected on her childhood experience with ADHD. Chiles began her gymnastics career as a six-year-old when her parents Timothy and Gina signed her up for classes at Naydenov Gymnastics in Vancouver.

In the Beyond the Records podcast hosted by Olympian Noah Lyles, Rai Benjamin, and Grant Holloway, Chiles described her experience with ADHD as a child, stating she had difficulty focusing and sitting still in her elementary school. She further recalled that her school informed her parents of her inability to focus.

Moreover, her father noticed an unusual pattern in her behavior while having a conversation with her. When Timothy talked to Chiles, she couldn't focus on the conversation until she was allowed to move, making him realize that physical activity might help her manage her ADHD:

“My dad was trying to have a conversation with me and I was giving him the full conversation as I was flipping and moving and trying to grab things, but the moment he stopped me everything went blank," Jordan Chiles said. [44:00]

"I couldn't talk to him, I didn't know what I was saying, but then the moment he let go I could give him the full conversation again. So that’s when they started to realize, okay maybe activity is what can help her kind of calm down.”

Following her Paris Olympics victory, Jordan Chiles penned her first memoir 'I'm That Girl: Living the Power of My Dreams', where she opened up about struggles with racist remarks, suicidal thoughts due to her coach's verbal abuse, and eating disorder.

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Jordan Chiles revealed how she named her first memoir

Jordan Chiles of the UCLA Bruins during a meet against the Stanford Cardinal in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Getty Images)

During her appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show earlier this month, Jordan Chiles said:

"I was on the Renaissance tour, and I went to Beyoncé's concert, and the saying 'I'm that girl' just resonated in my brain throughout the whole time. I was just like, you know what, after watching her documentary on how she's become super most global star who she is, it made me realize no matter times that you fall or no matter how many times you look at yourself and you know, are dishonest with yourself, you can rise back up and be the person you're trying to be."

At the Paris Games, Chiles bagged a gold medal in the team event with Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera.