Living Beyond ADHD

We have a multi-dimensional mental health problem in the world.  Many professionals aren't trained to recognize nor address issues with ADHD or executive function training.  Our family members might have had the same challenges we experience and just made the best of them.  And of course, whatever they modeled for us is what we learned.  Plus, nowhere along the way was it ever mentioned that...

The topic of menopause and ADHD is an important one and not often talked about. It's important if you're pre-menopause, peri-menopause, going through menopause or post-menopause, and wondering at any point what hit you! And it's important even if you're a male listener, since you most likely live with or work with such women. In this episode Dr B talks about: Drops in estrogen...

Today's episode is part 4 of 4 of my interview with Danny, a writer and director who has been sharing the ups and downs of his life with ADHD. We begin this section discussing the use of alcohol or other substances to slow down what Danny calls the "cacophony" going on in his head. And then we dive into all the ways your brain can be retrained so that you can get better outcomes for...

Today I'm continuing my interview with Danny, who, in the last episode, described how getting diagnosed with ADHD and learning about wins from something I taught at our local MeetUp group pulled him out of darkness and started him on a bright new path. In Part 3 of this interview I discuss "cognitive hyperactivity," which is barely being talked about even though it causes huge probl...

Today I'm continuing my interview with Danny, an artistic soul who was diagnosed with ADHD in his 40s. When we left off at the end of the last episode, Danny had just experienced an epiphany that ADHD might be the source of many of his struggles in life. This episode starts with Danny's revelations from listening to an audio book on ADHD and then he describes a very dark time in his life...

Are you someone who struggled with ADHD your whole life and finally received a diagnosis later in life?  If so, then you're not alone.  Today I'm interviewing Danny, a writer and director whose story is similar to a lot of folks. We met at a local ADHD MeetUp group back in 2013 and have been friends ever since. He's come a long way, and I want you to hear from him how ADHD almost ru...

Hey ADDers!  So glad you could join me for today's episode – ADHD and Executive Function Skills Through Dr B's Eyes.   Back in the late 1970's I had Graves Disease, which simply put is an overactive or hyperactive thyroid gland.  ...Being an options thinker, I explored acupuncture, which addresses issues of energy directly and visualization techniques, which have been researched as...

Hey ADDers!  So glad you could join me for today's episode - Executive Function Basics about Focus, Priorities and Effective Decision Making.  I wanted to share some important tools with you that I've taught students before. Without the skills to focus, prioritize and make effective decisions, you are most likely going to be stressed and spinning your wheels a lot, seeing very little res...

Hey ADDers! So glad you could join me for today's episode about Executive Function Basics - Planning, Scheduling and Following Through. I decided to change up the format for a couple of weeks and provide you with some important tools that I've taught students before. Without the skills to plan, schedule and follow through there is a lot that you won't be able to do very efficiently....

Hey ADDers!  So glad you could join me for today's episode about ADHD Coaching and Therapy – Differences and Similarities.  Before I talk about the similarities and differences, I'd like to take you on a little journey. ADHD that is diagnosed in adulthood doesn't travel alone; rather it often comes with "companion challenges" such as depression, anxiety, addictions, trauma...

Hey ADDers!  So glad you could join me for today's episode about getting organized – the fun way.  If you're like other adults with ADHD and under-developed executive function life skills, you may be thinking, "no way can getting organized be fun!" And then there's the maintenance after you get organized, so you can stay that way.  It's the #1 issue that many of you v...

Hey ADDers!  Many of you are living without well-developed executive function skills and strategies and perhaps don't know it.  Or maybe you do…but you don't know what can be done.  You've had these struggles in one form or another for most of your life and if they were going to improve, they certainly would have by now.  Fair enough…  You've come to the conclusion that you mus...

Hey ADDers!  We're going to start off a little different today and look at a correlation I've been thinking about for some time. The title of today's episode comes from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, and pertains to more than just those in recovery from alcoholism.  And even if you don't favor AA for whatever reasons, please do listen for the deeper logic and meanings th...

Hey ADDers!  Do you feel as if you're on a runaway train? Is valuable time – and your life – passing you by in the blink of an eye?  Do you feel lost or overwhelmed because you're not getting the important things done in your life? I was once there, too.  I spent thousands of dollars on programs, therapists and books that promised to show me the way out of the chaos in spite of my ADHD b...

Hey ADDers!  Foresight is the secret ingredient to success, because without foresight you cannot prepare for the future.  With our fast-paced lives, it is becoming harder and harder to establish foresight because our world is changing faster than ever before.  Are you someone who has no idea of what sort of world you should prepare for?  And if that is you, have you given up and decided that you c...

Hey ADDers! Do you have trouble "shifting" from your current task to the next task? Or maybe you have the opposite problem – where you are shifting way too quickly from thing to thing and leaving a trail of unfinished tasks in your wake. Even though most of the executive function assessments typically look at the behavioral stuff, like moving with ease from one situation, activity or asp...

Hey ADDers!  If you're married, living together, dating, have close friends or it's you and you…these are all different forms of relationships that you are in.  And where there are relationships, there are potential challenges and delightful times to be shared.  I look at relationships as kind of a progression. First, there is the relationship you have with yourself.  Then there is the r...

Hey ADDers!  Do you have trouble "inhibiting" your impulses?  Even though most of the executive function assessments typically look at the behavioral stuff, like blurting out, touching things you shouldn't, cutting people off and more, to me there is so much more to understanding Inhibiting than just the behavioral manifestations.  What about Inhibiting your thoughts and feelings? ...

Hey ADDers!  As adults, we need certain capabilities to succeed in life - this success being things like responsibly raising children, getting and keeping a job, managing a household and contributing to our communities.  Without these capabilities, our successes are iffy at best.  If you know that you're missing Executive Function Skills and Strategies, like Initiating, Planning, Organizing a...

Hey ADDers!  Do you have trouble getting yourself to focus on things you need or want to focus on?  Do you even know what the right things are to be focusing on?  And what about following through?  Is that something that comes easily to you or do you have years of projects or tasks that you never quite followed through on and they are still waiting for their turn for completion?  If I am talking a...

Living Beyond ADHD, a podcast hosted and produced by Dr B, explores why so many adults with ADHD or Executive Function challenges never get past their challenges and live beyond them.  That's what Dr B's work in the world is really about, and she so want that for you, if you want that too.  You've heard her say many times that you are more than your ADHD; that you are a precious &qu...

Hey ADDers!  Do you struggle with any addictions or have you in the past?  Addictions are a BIG deal for those of us with ADHD and EF deficits for so many different reasons.  In fact, the stats on frequency are about twice that of those adults without ADHD or EF deficits, if these issues aren't being fully addressed.   In this episode, I talk about: The nucleus accumbens (pleasure center of t...

Hey ADDers!  Who do you think you are?  Seriously!!  Is your self-talk positive and encouraging?  Are the stories you tell yourself and others about you positive and encouraging?  Or, are they the kind of statements and stories that are contributing to holding you back and keeping you in an emotional ditch of underachieving and less than status?  Are you as happy as you want to be? If you resonate...

Hey ADDers! Do you ever wonder about the heritability of ADHD or how your emotions and feelings impact your executive functioning? In fact, do you know the difference between your emotions and your feelings? If yes and no, this episode is for you!! According to Pema Chodron, an American Tibetan Buddhist and ordained nun, if you allow an emotion to exist for 90 seconds without judging it, it will d...

Hey ADDers!  Do you get overwhelmed, have meltdowns and generally have a hard time calming yourself down when you experience an intense emotion or emotional situation?  If so, this episode is for you!! And if you haven't yet listened to episode 050, it's an important milestone for me and I shared four special things in that episode, including a free gift giveaway for you.  Be sure to lis...