Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast

Nikki Kinzer and Pete Wright aim to explore the meaning of joy, the differences between joy and happiness, and practical ways to cultivate more joy in daily life living with ADHD. This episode dives into the essence of joy, including surprise moments as well as practices that help align us to experience joy more frequently. Nikki shares insights from a recent retreat focused on sound, music, and v...

The world can be a tough place. We know that our ADHD doesn't make that any easier. But our health and well-being depend heavily on the worldview we cultivate in spite of our challenges. This week, we're talking about optimism, how we find it, and how we make it a practice in the face of struggle.  We’ll talk about the things that get in the way of our efforts to feel optimistic like emotional dys...

In this episode, we welcome James Ochoa, a counselor, coach, mentor, and intuitionist who has been helping adults with ADHD for over thirty years. James shares his insights on the importance of community in our ADHD journey and updates us on his upcoming book, "When the Shiny Wears Off: Navigating the Lifetime Storms of Adult ADHD." We discuss the value of being part of a community and what it mea...

The esteemed Hall of Fame ADHD Podcast Guest and dear friend Dr. Sharon Saline graces the show once again! This week: why is it hard for ADHDers to be authentic joiners? Sharon offers her wisdom on the value of community in managing ADHD, addressing the fears and hesitations that can often prevent individuals from seeking out communal ties. One of the main topics we discuss is avoidance behaviors...

We come to you with a pivot today and a follow-up discussion to last week's conversation on ADHD stigma. What is normal? Why is it such a charged word? And what can we do to reprogram the world around normal to represent any point on the vast neurodiversity spectrum? (00:00) - Welcome to Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast (04:20) - The ADHD Stigma ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Kody Lukens has been an entrepreneur since the age of 15, when he filed his first LLC. Now, he is the creator behind Stimagz - a successful magnetic fidget toy that was funded on Kickstarter.  When Kody was first diagnosed with ADHD as an adult, he was frustrated by the lack of resources tailored for adults dealing with ADHD. He started searching online for recommendations and communities that cou...

This week, we delve into the complex issue of emotional dysregulation, a common but often misunderstood symptom of ADHD. Emotional dysregulation refers to an impairment or inability to regulate feelings, which can lead to an overreaction to minor setbacks or challenges. This issue is deeply rooted in the science of emotion regulation. And it's central to the sabotage we use on ourselves when we us...

We had something of a scheduling snafu this week and our guests didn’t show! Don’t worry, they’ll be back. Bun in the mean time, Nikki and Pete carried on an impromptu AMA-QA show with members in the live chat and we decided to share a piece of it with you.  The question that sparks the answer is, “how do you help others with transitions when you suck at them yourself?” Great question, and that ge...

Buckle up for an episode packed with laughter, real talk, and maybe just a dash of existential dread. We've roped in our buddy and partner-in-podcasting-crime, Tommy Metz III, who you might recognize from that other awesome show, "What's That Smell Presents: All The Feelings".  Kick back as Tommy spills some tea about himself, the mysteries of his life, and why on Earth he's hanging out with us to...

In this episode, we're shifting gears from our prior focus on games to delve into the world of transitions, particularly from the perspective of individuals with ADHD. The first area we explore is the concept of micro transitions. These are small changes that occur throughout our day, whether it's switching tasks, moving from one conversation topic to another, or even everyday activities like waki...

This week we're diving into the Paradox of Failure. It's something game designer Jesper Juul came up with, and it's all about how gamers are weirdly drawn to the very thing we're trying to avoid: failure. Even when a game is exasperating, we just keep going back for more. It's all part of this cycle Juul talks about, where we set a goal, totally flub it, and then scramble to find a solution. It's...

We’re continuing our series on gaming and ADHD this week. So far, we’ve explored how gaming ignites creativity and can expand perspectives and horizons. But what if we told you there was a game that is designed and build expressly to aid in treatment of attention disorders?  That’s EndeavorOTC, the latest release from Akili Interactive. This is a company that cut its teeth on the FDA-Authorized pe...

Colleen Macklin is a game designer and a Professor in the School of Art, Media and Technology at Parsons School of Design and author of Iterate: Ten Lessons in Design and Failure. She’s interested in how games model and reveal ideologies through systems. And, incidentally, she reports she was recently diagnosed with ADHD, which makes her doubly cool in our crowd. She joins us today to talk about g...

Chris Legge joins The ADHD Podcast to discuss his tabletop roleplaying game, Soft Focuses. Chris developed Soft Focuses as a journaling game aimed at simulating the experiences of living with ADHD. Players take on the role of someone with ADHD and journal their experiences, cooperating with themselves as both player and gamemaster.  The first edition of Soft Focuses was released after extensive re...

Living with ADHD often feels like a losing battle. Our brains desperately need dopamine to stay focused, but no matter how hard we try, there's never enough. Chores pile up, tasks go unfinished, and frustration mounts. But what if we could find joy in the mundane? Harness the power of play?  Games have been with us since the dawn of humanity, releasing dopamine and making complex systems comprehen...

We want to thank all of you who took the time to participate in our 2023 ADHD Job Survey. The 63 responses provided a wealth of insight into your experiences in the workplace. Overall, the results show that while work can pose many challenges for adults with ADHD, many of you have found fulfilling jobs and developed solutions that allow you to thrive no matter what you're dealing with on the job i...

"Without time, you don't have attention; without attention, you don't have time.” This week on the show, we're exploring the artifice of bureaucracy and administrative structures of traditional work, and how it can be difficult to navigate with an ADHD brain, and we have the perfect guest to help us do it. Dr. Kourosh Dini is a board-certified psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, author, and musician, and...

Shell Mendelson has built her 35-year career in education and career counseling. There are a lot of career counselors, though. What makes Shell indispensable for us today is that she has ADHD herself and has spent that career helping others make career choices that reflect joy and passion for their unique ADHD brains. This week on the show, Shell brings us new insights into jobs and the ADHD brain...

This week, we’re continuing our job series and talking about deal breakers — those things that you see or experience in your job or on the job hunt that you simply can’t or won’t tolerate. We asked our listeners to weigh in on the topic again this week, and it turns out they had a lot to say.  The conversation spans hard conversations on salary and overall compensation, through dealing with manage...

This week's episode we're talking all about red flags and warning signs in a work environment. We dig just a bit into our own stories of past jobs we've had that didn't work out so well, and looking for any red flags in the job postings and interviews. Missing deadlines? Making mistakes? Task overwhelm? We've been there.  We then asked our community members to share any red flags they have experie...

This week, we explore the age-old question, "What do you do?" and the anxiety that it can cause. What started with Nikki doing her civic duty as a potential member on a jury leads us to discuss how this question can lead to us feeling boxed in, forced to express our identity through a job title.  How do you answer this question differently, by sharing hobbies or passions that we enjoy, or aspects...

Our friend James Ochoa is back! This week we're talking about the lessons you can learn from inflection points in your ADHD journey. What did you learn? What did you gain? What can come from it? We start with an event. Take some time in a grounded space, and think of an event from your past that we either positive or problematic in relation to your experience with ADHD. For Pete, it was an experie...

This week, we're exploring the transformative power of the "yes, and..." principle, a cornerstone of improv performance. This simple yet effective phrase encourages performers to not only accept but also expand upon their partners' spontaneous ideas. How can this mindset apply to daily life for those of us with ADHD? Today, we’re navigating how to use comedy to handle unexpected situations with ea...

We've had a terrific run looking deeply at self-compassion and ADHD over the last month. This week, we're taking a look back and reflecting on lessons learned, changes made, and opportunities ahead. Along the way, we welcome Bryan Brunelle to the team as the first of our Mod Squad members. If you're a member of our ADHD Discord Community make sure to reach out to Bryan ... or, just wait... sooner...

You have a plan. You have a vision of yourself and your performance. But what happens when plans change, or the world doesn't share your perspective on your own experience? When RSD sets in, your ability to manifest compassion for yourself is most important. We kick off with a review of RSD, Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria. Need to dive in a little deeper? Look no further and Dr. William Dodson's ar...