‘Hide The Matches’ merges themes of disconnected clinical 'truths', genetic perspectives on inherited disorders; labelling as a tool of communication for neurodivergence; and learned shame in association with medical language. This project was catalyzed by personal reflections in psychotherapy and a desire to reanalyze the label that I have carried throughout my life: ADHD. The DMS-5 classifies individuals with ADHD as careless, intrusive, invasive, unreliable, distractable and impulsive. In rediscovering how ADHD traits are described under such a prominent medical textbook, I developed an immediate, visceral detachment to the label I had been classified under for nearly my entire life. Considering these terms, they seemed to depict a distant, temperamental child but, as an adult still living with this disorder, I no longer saw myself through the scientific truths created to explain the way I exist. I was diagnosed at 6 years old after my mother found me scaling 80-foot pine trees and displaying the outlined inattention and impulsive behavioural issues. Through this work, I took myself back to that tree and photographed it repetitively — replacing my initial impulses with careful, deliberate, creative meditations. Through these photographs, I’ve approached the criteria table through numerous sub-series, creating room to respond and debate the clinical language under the DSM5, while interlacing a personal narrative to blend fact, fiction, psychology and art.