While her mates could sit down and study for more than three hours, Garnett would get easily distracted and find she had written two sentences in that same time.

"And it just kind of got to the point where I was like, 'What the hell is wrong with me? Why can I not do this?'" she said.

"I was getting really frustrated and quite upset … I wouldn't say school was tough, but it instilled a lot of self-doubt and I'd obviously compare myself to my mates who could sit down and actually study and get their stuff done, whereas I just simply could not."

Then it was a footy teammate, one who also has ADHD, who hinted she might have the same disorder.

"We just kind of shared experiences and she told me a lot of things and it was just like a light bulb moment," Garnett said.

"I was like, 'Oh, yeah, makes so much sense.' I do all those things as well, or can't do all those things."

Acknowledging that seeing a psychiatrist and going through the process of getting diagnosed can be an expensive one, she said they're lucky the footy club covers those costs for them.

"And then it was trialling different medications until I found the one that works," she said.

How sport has helped many world-class athletes with ADHD

ADHD is often characterised by difficulty with inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity.

Depending on the person, symptoms can include trouble with attention or concentration, disorganisation and difficulty completing tasks or forgetfulness.

Many famous athletes have ADHD including Simone Biles, Noah Lyles and Michael Phelps.

There are few studies regarding the prevalence of ADHD in elite athletes.

However, one review published by the British Journal of Sports Medicine found 8 per cent of high-level athletes had ADHD, compared with about 2.5 per cent in the general adult population.

The majority only captured data from those who openly take medication for an ADHD diagnosis, the actual estimate is predicted to be higher.

Garnett is not surprised by this.

"To me, it makes sense. The fact that we can, I don't know, not just play, but also train for like three hours and like not be bothered by it … It actually doesn't surprise me. I think you'll find, especially I think in the AFLW, I know quite a lot of people who have been diagnosed," she said.

One reason for this, research suggests, is that children with ADHD may be drawn to sport due to the positive impacts of movement on attention, including calming racing minds.

Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, explained in his book Beneath the Surface that while he struggled as a kid to focus on one thing at a time and often couldn't sit through a class without fidgeting, he felt calm while swimming.

"Once I figured out how to swim, I felt so free," Phelps said.

"I could go fast in the pool, it turned out, in part because being in the pool slowed down my mind. In the water, I felt, for the first time, in control."

An extra weapon on the field

Garnett found that her ability to fixate was actually a benefit on the football field. Moreover, common ADHD symptoms like impulsive decisions which can be regarded as reckless, for example on a highway, are deemed as quick-thinking on a sports field.

"I know one of my weapons is my footy IQ and not just knowing all the structures and all that, but [making] split decisions," she said.

"And I think it's funny. In games, I used to take my medication … I tried it last year and I actually found I wasn't myself when I was playing, like it wasn't me. I found when I haven't been taking it, I actually feel like I perform better."

However, there are parts of the game where it can also be a distraction, such as trying to focus when head coach Cam Bernasconi is addressing the group at quarter breaks.

"At half-time, I can hear every conversation that's going on except for that one," she said.

"But when it's in the game, I can, I don't know, it's weird, I can just block out other things and just really focus on what is happening ball in hand."

Garnett's teammate Pepa Randall, who has spoken publicly before about her ADHD, said the diagnosis helped clarify a few things about how her brain works.

"It was quite illuminating and quite revolutionary, really, and I think it's helped really positively in how I deal with my teammates and how I understand a couple of different character traits that I have that can maybe come across pretty intense or full-on, or quite aloof sometimes," Randall told Code Sports in 2022.

'To me, that's pretty cool'

For Garnett, it's more having to manage the off-field parts of her career, such as keeping focus while sitting through meetings or managing time.

"I know if I take my medication before gym, I could be in that gym for four hours just because I'm so entrenched and concentrated in what I'm doing," Garnett said.

"But if I don't like it, I'm going to find it extremely hard to stay on task and do something."

Staying engaged in a task or environment can take a lot more energy for Garnett than some of her peers. For example, in meetings, if they go for more than 10 minutes, it can "zap" all her energy.

"And then to go out and train and try and pick myself back up, it's obviously extremely hard to do," she said.

During the season, this can mean other parts of her have to take a back seat. During this year's condensed AFLW fixture, where teams had four-day breaks between games, Garnett had to put her DJ'ing on the backburner — something, she admits, she needs outside of footy to keep her sane.

In the gym, this has often led to Garnett finding creative ways to motivate herself, such as doing basketball shots between sets.

"But whatever works has to work … And I think that the ability to fixate on something, for me, is a bit of a superpower. I like to think the neurotypical person wouldn't be able to do that," she said.

"To me, that's pretty cool. But I do think it has had a really positive impact. I can bring a lot of energy when I'm on."