Grimes Gets Real About ADHD, Autism, and the Double-Edged Sword of Not Knowing Sooner

The artist’s recent self-discovery sheds new light on the creative intensity behind her music.

Photo by Robyn Beck

Grimes has never fit neatly into any box—sonically, visually, or philosophically. But in a candid post to X this week, the Canadian avant-pop icon opened up about a different kind of complexity: her recent diagnoses of ADHD and autism and the mixed emotions that come with finally putting a name to something that shaped her entire life.

“Got diagnosed w ADHD/autism this year and realized I’m prob dyslexic,” she wrote, adding that she can’t spell “at all without spellcheck.” But instead of regret, Grimes expressed a kind of strange relief that she didn’t know sooner. “Had we known this when I was a child, I would have worked so much less hard,” she explained. “I’m glad I overcame [those challenges].”

For fans who’ve followed Grimes since her Visions and Art Angels days, the revelation feels less like a surprise and more like a missing puzzle piece. Her obsessive attention to detail, her genre-defying production choices, and even her resistance to mainstream norms all make a new kind of sense. But what’s most compelling is how Grimes uses her experience to reflect on the current culture of self-diagnosis and armchair mental health advice that dominates social media.

“I think the nature of this uninformed social media mental health subculture is really a big concern,” she wrote, pointing to ADHD-themed accounts that discourage behaviors like reading—one of the things she says helped her symptoms most.

This nuanced take on mental health discourse is rare in a digital world that often rewards oversimplification. And in typical Grimes fashion, she’s not interested in easy answers. “So many of the weird obsessions and motivations I had would have been seen as pathological,” she mused, “but I’m glad I didn’t write them off.”

It’s a striking statement from someone who’s built an empire on so-called “weirdness.” Grimes hasn’t released a full-length album since Miss Anthropocene in 2020, but her creative drive hasn’t slowed. In February, she dropped “Idgaf,” a long-unreleased demo that finally found its way to streaming platforms. The timing now feels serendipitous: raw, unfiltered, and a little chaotic—like the mind behind it.

Beyond the music, her post also touched on the importance of consent when it comes to fame, especially for her 4-year-old son, X, whom she shares with Elon Musk. Following a media storm over the child’s appearance at the White House with Musk, Grimes made a clear request: “I would really like people to stop posting images of my kid everywhere.”

It’s a boundary that echoes everything else she’s been saying—about control, perception, and the freedom to evolve outside of the public’s pathologizing gaze.

In a world quick to diagnose, define, and debate, Grimes reminds us that self-discovery is messy, ongoing, and deeply personal. And sometimes, the very traits that seem like obstacles are the ones that build brilliance.