Translating ADHD

This week, Cam and Shelly begin a series of episodes to revisit the Cause and Effect metaphor that we presented in episodes ten and eleven . In this episode and in the coming weeks, we will break down this metaphor to help listeners better understand language we use regularly in the show. This week, we start by reminding listeners why we chose Mt. Rainier as the center of our metaphor. We then dis...

One of the best things about doing this show is that, as your hosts, we are also learning. We are constantly examining our models, concepts, and language as we deliver episodes to you.  This week, we examine the language we've been using for modes of operation as ADHD people. Taking our previous "Planner and/or Doer" language, we introduce and discuss a new model that we feel better describes a ra...

Building habits can be a challenge as ADHD adults. This week, Cam and Shelly introduce the concept of keystone habits. We discuss how learning what the important large and small keystone habits are for ourselves as ADHD people is so important because keystone habits are the foundational habits that we can build other habits on. We then give examples of keystone habits from our own lives and our cl...

In today's episode, Cam and Shelly continue our conversation on what is really happening for us ADHD people in the gap between awareness and action. We discuss the "pain portal" that exists in this space and give several examples of how clients have used our our understand, own, translate model to pass through the painful place and get to action. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Bec...

ADHD makes us unaware, makes us disengage, or makes us fail to engage. Much of the work that Cam and Shelly do with our adult ADHD clients is discussing how to bridge the gap between awareness and action: We know what we want to do but we don't know why we don't do it. Today, we discuss the what is really happening for us ADHD people when we fail to bridge the gap between awareness and action. Epi...

As ADHD adults, we are masters at finding ways to not do what we know we ought to do. We often think the problem is procrastination, but procrastination is not a helpful description of what is actually happening for us. In this episode, Cam and Shelly dive into one ADHD manifestation that can look like procrastination: avoidance. Using several examples we discuss how avoiding behavior can show up,...

As ADHD adults, we struggle to distinguish high value work from low value tasks. We lose sight of our priorities during the work day, or we get sidetracked and lose sight of the bigger picture when working on a project. In this episode, Cam and Shelly discuss how listeners can begin to distinguish high value work as a way to prioritize and to focus on what matters when tackling a bigger project. E...

This week, Cam and Shelly continue our conversation on ADHD and decision making by looking at decision making during the work day. We look at where missed decision points can happen during our work day. We then discuss how listeners can apply a learning action model to create change by catching more opportunities for decision, considering what the decision at hand is when a decision point is ident...

This week, Cam and Shelly turn our attention to decision making at a high level. We discuss how so much of what we struggle with as ADHD people comes down to indecision or missed decision points. We then give examples to highlight the different ways in which ADHD impacts decision making and give several scenarios to highlight ADHD related challenges that have learning to make good decisions at the...

This week, Cam and Shelly build on last week's episode by discussing steps listeners can take to start to take control of task management. We discuss the 3-Step method that Shelly uses with clients to start building good habits around task management, and how listeners can use this method as a starting place to learn what works best for them. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become...

This week, Cam and Shelly continue our conversation on creating a meaningful work day as ADHD adults by looking at task management at a high level. We break down the many ways in which ADHD can interfere with task management and discuss ways in which listeners can begin to examine how their ADHD is showing up each day and how it might be interfering with effective task management. Episode links +...

This week, Cam and Shelly continue our conversation on creating a meaningful work day as ADHD adults by looking at agreements. We discuss the implicit agreements that we make with ourselves and others, and how we can fail to uphold those agreements when they are not clear or when a bigger signal grabs our attention. We then look at why explicit agreements are much more powerful for our ADHD brains...

This week, Cam and Shelly discuss how ADHD adults often view accountability as a negative value judgment that requires us to always use our time productively. We then discuss how ADHD can reimagine accountability to create positive support and mutual accountability with our collaborators. We also share our accountability practices in producing this podcast together, and some lessons learned from o...

This week, Cam and Shelly continue the conversation on how ADHD adults can reframe what it means to have a meaningful work day. We discuss how ADHD brains often determine what we will or will not do based on what we "feel like" doing, and present alternatives to emotional organizing to prioritize and plan your work day as an ADHD person. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become a Pat...

This week, Cam and Shelly discuss how ADHD adults can reframe what it means to have a meaningful work day. We examine the limited usefulness of workplace motivational statements for ADHD adults, many of which place importance on being accountable for our time, and discuss other ways in which we can measure a meaningful work day. Use code cam for a $5 discount on Cam's book: Curious Accountability:...

This week, Cam and Shelly continue our discussing on ADHD and sleep by exploring how Shelly worked over time to change her relationships with sleep from chronically under slept to well rested. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become a Patron Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate. About Cam and Shelly For more Translating ADHD: Visit our website: TranslatingADHD.com Follow us on Tw...

Adults with ADHD are significantly more likely to have problems with sleep than the general population, and to make matters worse our ADHD gets in the way of being able to create change around sleep. This week, Cam and Shelly discuss how listeners can start to create change around sleep using our understand, own, and translate model. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become a Patron...

As ADHD adults, our own ADHD can often get in the way of good self advocacy. As coaches, Cam and Shelly often see this in clients who seek out coaching when relationships at work or at home have deteriorated to a point where recovery may not be possible. In this episode we discuss how listeners can have a different experience with self advocacy using the understand, own, and translate model. Episo...

This week Cam and Shelly discuss how our relationship with our ADHD changes and evolves over time as we learn more about ourselves and our neurodiverse brains. We also discuss how this relates to ownership, and how owning our ADHD looks different for each individual. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become a Patron Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate. About Cam and Shelly For mo...

This week Cam and Shelly zoom back out to look at ADHD brains at a more global level. We revisit the topic of individual manifestation and our belief that understanding ones own unique brain wiring is the best way for an ADHD person to create change. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become a Patron Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate. About Cam and Shelly For more Translating AD...

  This week Cam and Shelly revisit the major shifts that Shelly discussed in the "Stepping Into Who You Are" episode to discuss what happened next. With the powerful shifts that Shelly experienced, she realized that a major piece of her life wasn't allowing her to live authentically which led her to make a difficult and life-altering decision.   Episode links + resources: How To Maintain Connectio...

This week Cam and Shelly revisit the topic of "Big C" Coaching. We discuss what defines a "Big C" coach and why this style of coach approach is such a powerful tool for our ADHD brains. Episode links + resources: What is Executive Function? Russell Barkley, PH.D. Join the Community | Become a Patron Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate. About Cam and Shelly For more Translating ADHD: Visit our...

This week we are delighted to present our first special episode dedicated to exploring the lived experiences of people of color with ADHD by presenting an interview with our friend and colleague Inger Shaye Colzie. Inger is a Black woman with ADHD and a coach + therapist. Join Cam in exploring her lived experience as they discuss her current coaching + therapy career, her experience as a child wit...

  This week we try something a little different to demonstrate how ADHD brains can be an asset when we know how to manage our attention and focus on what matters. Join us as Cam coaches Shelly to help her examine and articulate the powerful shift she recently experienced that brought her life's purpose into full view and allowed her to step into a new more powerful version of herself.   Episode li...

This week we revisit the idea of knowing your role as adults with ADHD. However, this time we look at it from a different angle that Cam and Shelly often see show up with their clients; when we get so focused on one role that the others seemingly vanish. Using real world scenarios we examine the different ways that we and our clients have experienced disappearing roles, and discuss what listeners...