Paris Hilton Says ADHD Became Her Superpower Long Before Anyone Took Her Seriously

This week’s episode of The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast features a hot conversation with 2000s pop culture icon, Paris Hilton, and what it was like being one of the original influencers. Hilton sits down with hosts Lauryn and Michael Bosstick for a wide-ranging conversation about how she’s built a lasting career while being consistently underestimated, and how her ADHD diagnosis became her superpower. 

Rather than revisiting her image or cataloging achievements, she explains how she’s always operated—instinct-first, future-oriented, and largely unconcerned with fitting into whatever box was assigned to her at the time. She describes what it’s like to be underestimated for decades and why reclaiming her voice later in life mattered more than proving anyone wrong. 

Below are the highlights from the episode, adapted from The Skinny Confidential.

How did you end up building the influencer blueprint without trying to?

“In my whole life, I’ve always been very ahead of my time, and it’s something that just is in my DNA. And it all really happened very just authentically. I wasn’t planning, like, oh, I wanna be an influencer, it was just me living my life, paparazzi, the world was watching and It just all happened. It’s amazing to see that it’s inspired so many other people and really created this blueprint. And I’m really proud.”

Did you realize you were changing the culture while it was happening?

“I wasn’t even thinking about it in that way. Again, I was just so authentic. It was literally just me living my life and I think also with my ADHD it’s like something that just gives me this creativity and like a million thoughts going at once and willing to take risks, and that’s why I’ve been such a trailblazer and an innovator and just doing things first.”

How did ADHD shift from something you struggled with to a competitive advantage?

“Growing up no one was talking about it when I was a teenager, especially for girls and women. Everyone just would say, ‘Oh, this is like something little boys have.’ I was always so confused, and in school, it was so difficult for me. As hard as I would study, I could never remember anything. I was always failing my tests. I was just always in detention, getting in trouble. It was always just very difficult for me, and back then, everyone always only said the negative parts about it, and that’s why I really wanted to reframe it, and I see it as my superpower, and I wouldn’t be the entrepreneur I am today without it. It gives me like this drive and always being in the future, and there’s like the hard parts about it too, it’s very overwhelming and with the RSD—which is Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria—where you just feel things on such a deep level…it’s very difficult at sometimes, but now I know it’s not real, it’s just like the RSD kicking in. So there’s so much to learn…I’m obsessed with learning more about it and spreading the message because I want people to know that it doesn’t have to be something that holds them back in life. It could be something that they can harness as a superpower to really go for their dreams in life.”

What is RSD?

“99 percent of people with ADHD suffer from RSD…My doctor told me this…it’s basically like any thought of a negative perception—if you think someone is being rude or you feel something—you will feel it like physical pain…It’s not even real, like what the other people are thinking. It’s almost like a demon in your mind that’s saying negative self-talk to you…After talking to so many people with ADHD, they all feel the same way.”

When did you realize the attention could become a real business?

“I realized very early on the power of building a personal brand, and I think it really started when I moved to New York, with this whole, like, I lived a very sheltered life before. My parents were very strict in LA. I was not allowed to go on dates or go to school dances, wear makeup, anything. So then moving to New York, living at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, started getting invited to like every single event. People are paying me to go to parties and every designer is giving me all these gowns and designer clothes and handbags…And then when I would wear something, it would be in the media, and then it would sell out, and then I remember the first night The Simple Life aired, and it had 13.5 million viewers, and that next day I was like, no, I can actually parlay this into like a business or a brand, and that’s when I started developing my first fragrance.”

What does your daily wellness routine actually look like?

“Every morning I go into my red light bed first for 20 minutes, and then into the red light sauna for like 25 minutes…and while I’m in there, I’m just doing interviews or working the entire time because I am the queen of multitasking…Sometimes two or three times a week I’ll do like three-hour facials, again while I’m working the whole time laying there…I probably get the most work done doing that because I’m optimizing my time as much as possible…And then the hyperbaric chamber, which is amazing—that is like the number one thing for longevity.”

Did you know right away that your husband Carter was different?

“I knew there was something really special about him, like, it was Thanksgiving Day, and I just walked into my mom’s friend’s house for lunch, and he was sitting there with this huge smile on his face and with his mom, and he was so sweet, and right away I just like thought he was so nice and different, and I loved watching him with his mom. And I’m so happy that I met him that day, cause my life has changed so much ever since, and he’s the first one that really tore those walls down that I had surrounding my heart. And he’s lifted me up in so many ways that no one ever has and supports me. He’s my biggest cheerleader.”

What is the part of fame people almost never see or prepare for?

“The night before The Simple Life aired, my mom said, ‘When this airs tomorrow, your life is going to change forever, and I just want you to never forget the sweet, down-to-earth girl that you are, and never let this get to your head…’

…That’s something I’ve always kept close to my heart, and I’ve never changed or let it get to my head…I’ve seen so many people come and go in this business because they start feeling like they’re better than other people and they completely forget who they are and where they came from…You never know when the rug can be pulled out from under you, and then you’ve lost even your real friends by the way you treated people…You also have to be careful because there are so many people whose intentions you don’t know—whether they like you for you, or they’re just using you.”

Why did you finally decide to speak publicly about what happened at Provo Canyon School?

“After going through that, I was so traumatized that I made a promise to myself that when I get out of here, I’m never gonna talk about this, not tell anyone, and pretend it didn’t happen…I didn’t even tell my parents, my sister, my best friends—no one…It wasn’t until my documentary, This Is Paris, when the director showed me that this had become a $28 billion-a-year industry and that thousands of children were still being sent to these places…She said that by telling my story I could really help other kids, and I was so scared because I had never spoken it out loud before…But I’m so grateful that I did, because telling that story has changed my life in so many ways and has been so healing for me…Now it’s illegal for what happened to me to happen to kids today, and that has been the most meaningful work of my life.”

To listen to Paris Hilton’s full conversation, listen to The Skinny Confidential Him & Her wherever you get your podcasts.

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