I'm in a similar situation. I was a gifted student in school, so I breezed through school without actually ever having to put in any effort. It didn't matter that I couldn't focus on anything because I didn't need to.
Then I started in the workplace and I really struggled. Sitting in meetings was a special kind of torture, but even at my desk I was struggling to actually stay on track.
Anyway, I'm on dexamphetamine now, which is good because it actually means I can get some work done. It's bad though because I feel like a fucking zombie. I actually like being scattered, it feels like a big part of my personality. I hate the concept of having to take drugs so that I can fit in and be a "productive" member of society.
Part of me wants to try the experience you've had. I also breezed through school and am tortured by office mundanity, and I waited until 29 to finally get on medication for ADHD. It helped a lot, but it's definitely not a solution. I'm more focused than I was, but I'm still very scattered.
It's a bit like buzz lightyear saying he's flying when really he's "falling with style". Adderall takes me from falling like a ragdoll to falling with style. Better than nothing, but I still don't feel like I have the mental properties that "normal" people seem to.
Off the meds, I have the apparently typical ADHD mentality of "totally gone 90% of the time, uninterruptible superhuman flow state 10% of the time". Have you found that this dynamic changes or is evened out fully by the meds? I've found that it's tamed slightly but not nearly in full, and not sure if that's as good as it gets or if I should be trying to make more adjustments.
I'm someone with ADHD and I've had it diagnosed and medicated since I was around 10.
Medication is only half the battle. It takes the edge off, but it's not a cure-all.
For me, therapy was by far the most impactful thing in my life. I learned how to externalize things so my forgetfulness or distractions don't cause them to be forgotten, I learned how adhering to a strict schedule can be extremely beneficial for me, and I learned that the "superhuman" state you talk about isn't actually a good thing to be in (it's more of a "manic" state when I really looked at it. I feel superhuman at the time, but when I go back and look at what I actually accomplished, it's often I got sucked down a rabbit hole that wasn't actually on task), and that I could almost "trick" myself into getting into a good amount of focus (not hyperfocus, and not constantly-distracted) with a combination of all of it.
It's taken years, and the medication is still a very integral part of it, but it's only part. And every year I feel like I get better at managing it.
I had the same experience growing up; never had to pay attention in class but always got good grades. I took meds (Ritalin) when I was 7 but stopped because it made me feel like I was trapped in a cage.
Now I use caffeine to control my symptoms, which only works because I'm extremely sensitive to stimulants.
I breezed through until 6th grade or junior high, then my grades began a slow decline. I was diagnosed half way through college. I've been on stimulants since.
Then I started in the workplace and I really struggled. Sitting in meetings was a special kind of torture, but even at my desk I was struggling to actually stay on track.
Anyway, I'm on dexamphetamine now, which is good because it actually means I can get some work done. It's bad though because I feel like a fucking zombie. I actually like being scattered, it feels like a big part of my personality. I hate the concept of having to take drugs so that I can fit in and be a "productive" member of society.