Episode 4

full
Published on:

24th Jan 2024

Is it ADHD or your personality? Self-Acceptance, self-compassion & dealing with people who don't believe in ADHD

ADHD Coach Katherine Sanders

This episode of 'Powerful Possibilities' explores the power of self-acceptance and effective self-advocacy for adults with ADHD.

Discover

  • how self-awareness can be a game-changer in your professional and personal life.
  • Learn practical strategies for navigating misunderstandings and skepticism about ADHD,
  • and explore different way to think about your personality traits and ADHD characteristics.

Whether you're living with ADHD or are someone eager to understand and support them, this episode offers a different way to think about yourself, your brain and your relationships.

Tune in to empower yourself with knowledge, compassion, and the tools to thrive with ADHD.

https://adhdcoachkatherine.com/

#ADHDEmpowerment #SelfAcceptance #ProfessionalGrowth #ADHDAdvocacy #PowerfulPossibilities #ADHD

Connect with Katherine here:


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Threads 


ADHD Presentations - self-assessment quiz & mailing list https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/381779/109299458418672681/share

ADHD Burnout: simple guide: https://subscribepage.io/1bSuG6

VIA character Strengths quiz - https://www.viacharacter.org/surveys/takesurvey

Self-Compassion by Dr. Kristin Neff: A comprehensive resource for understanding and practicing self-compassion.

https://self-compassion.org/fierce-self-compassion/ - Fierce Self Compassion by Dr Kristin Neff

CHADD - The National Resource on ADHD: A leading resource on ADHD, offering education, advocacy, and support.

Sakabe, R., Gushikawa, M., & Konosu, T. (2017). A Study on the Influence of Personality Traits on Global Human Resources on Global Communication Ability. 2017 6th IIAI International Congress on Advanced Applied Informatics (IIAI-AAI). Link

Gates, T. G., Ross, D., Bennett, B., & Jonathan, K. (2021). Teaching Mental Health and Well-Being Online in a Crisis: Fostering Love and Self-compassion in Clinical Social Work Education. Clinical Social Work Journal, 49, 484–494. PDF

Egan, H., O'hara, M., Cook, A., & Mantzios, M. (2021). Mindfulness, self-compassion, resiliency and wellbeing in higher education: a recipe to increase academic performance. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 45(5), 712-724. PDF

Kotera, Y., Tsuda-McCaie, F., Edwards, A., Bhandari, D., Williams, D., & Neary, S. (2022). Mental Health Shame, Caregiver Identity, and Self-Compassion in UK Education Students. Healthcare, 10(3), 584. PDF

Shayuk, O., Pidgurska, M., & Shayuk, Y. (2023). Unconditional personal self-acceptance as a humanistic trait of a psychologist. Psychological Interventions and Sociohumanitarian Practices. PDF

Transcript
Speaker:

RODE NT-USB & Susan's iphone (work) Camera:

What's up my friend.

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It is ADHD, powerful possibilities,

ADHD, coach Katherine here again, and

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if you've ever wondered.

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Is it me or is it ADHD?

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What's my personality.

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And what's ADHD.

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If you've ever wanted to know how

to set a boundary with somebody

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who doesn't really believe in ADHD.

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This podcast episode, we are

going to start to look at those

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things and I've got some news about

what's coming up in spring time.

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this is a kind of summing up episode

for our first four episodes this year,

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where we've looked at, what ADHD is,

the different presentations of ADHD.

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We had a little side journey into the

start of team bulb, where I talked

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a little bit about how, what we

think the start of the year should

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look like might not be what other

people are sharing on social media.

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And today I want to finish up with

something really important that.

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will make the rest of

your year so much easier.

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And it's.

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Simple, but not easy.

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But it is really powerful and we're

all about powerful possibilities here.

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So , grab a cup of tea,

sit down for the next.

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Half hour or put me into your

headphones and let's walk through.

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Something that is going to change

how you go through life and how you

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feel about your ADHD, forevermore.

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I just want to say, thank you.

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I've had so many emails

this week and they are.

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All amazing.

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Lots of them are extremely kind it's

made for you because I want to help you.

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I want you to get to a position

where you can help yourself and coach

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yourself, so the podcast is a way for

me to offer things that are helpful

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and that are useful things that are

going to help you manage ADHD and life.

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Wherever you are.

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In a way that is accessible

to as many people as possible.

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So I'm really grateful for

all your emails and questions.

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Some of them are so good.

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I'm going to do a

separate episode on them.

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But today, I want to have a look at a

few things, have come up from a couple

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of them and I felt there's a theme here.

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Let's follow the theme..

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And remember last week we were

talking about ADHD presentations.

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The inattentive combined and hyperactive.

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And knowing which one you may have

more of can help you when you're

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looking for tactics and strategies,

when you're understanding why things

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happen the way they do for you.

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And.

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What you can explain to other people.

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So if you haven't listened to that

episode, Make sure you do later on.

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I will.

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Double-check the link to

the ADHD presentation self-

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quiz and some useful tips.

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That's a free download

that you can grab but.

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Understanding ourselves is key.

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And anybody that you talk to,

whether they're a psychologist,

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psychiatrist, counselor, or a coach.

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should tell you that.

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Education.

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For ourselves about ADHD is crucial.

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To moving forward.

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And it's one of the reasons why.

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There's a lot of ADHD content around.

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Some of it is excellent.

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Some of it is variable.

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But it's one of the reasons why we tend

to hyper focus on it, to begin with.

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Because I think we instinctively know

that the more we understand ourselves.

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The best her life can be.

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I would add.

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The more you understand yourself.

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And accept yourself.

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The better your life will be.

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And I'm going to.

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colour the word acceptance in a

little bit further on in the show.

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So we're going to look

at self acceptance, self.

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Compassion.

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Understanding your ADHD.

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And also how to deal with

people who don't believe you.

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Who maybe don't accept the ADHD exists.

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And crucially, we're

going to have a quick.

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look at How to distinguish between

your personality and your ADHD,

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because especially if you are

late diagnosed, I see this a lot

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online and people say, is it me?

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Or is it my ADHD?

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It was a video that I made last year.

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It's done.

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Incredible numbers.

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So clearly it's a question.

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Many of us have.

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And it can feel a little bit like

all the personality elements, all

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the quirks for want of a better word.

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That you thought where you are

actually ADHD, and if that's the

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case, Where do we begin and end.

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And I want to come back to that.

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Because it's a really important topic.

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for.

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People who are late diagnosed.

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And for their families as well.

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If you are.

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A parent of a person with ADHD.

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Where do you draw the line?

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Is it them?

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There is.

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In quotes, acting up.

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And not following through

or forgetting things.

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Or is it the ADHD?

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This is a really important

question and we will look at

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that at the end of the podcast.

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I think one thing I want to remind

people of is this idea of the bulb,

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the spring bulb, if you're a member of

Team Bulb which is my unofficial gang.

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Team bulb means that we are quite happy.

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To take our time.

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And.

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Blossom at the appropriate stage.

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So I see a lot of people.

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Talking about new year new you.

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That's fantastic, but actually

there's nothing wrong with the old you

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ju.

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Maybe some of the things you do.

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need a bit of tweaking so that

you can have the most fantastic

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life possible for yourself.

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But there's nothing wrong with you.

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New you.

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New vision or goal..

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New vision new year.

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new approach.

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new idea.

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But there's nothing wrong with you.

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So let's get rid of new year new you.

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And if you're a 'bulb' like me and

you're quite happy to spend January

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snug underground waiting until the

terrible storms and the cold has passed.

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Then make sure that you are on my mailing

list and you'll hear more about team bulb

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and how we're going to grow together.

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Over the course of the year, because

I'm going to tell you something.

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Now I have planned out a whole year.

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Of podcasts so that if you listen to

all of them by the end of the year.

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You will have a.

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Really comprehensive insight into ADHD.

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To how it affects people is.

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Hormones hormonal cycles.

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how it affects.

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Your work, your study, your relationships,

how that affects your business.

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All of these things and I'm going

to bring in a few guests here and

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there, but it's all planned out.

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And Team Bulb, I think, is.

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That little idea of growing

together over the course of a year.

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I'd love you to join that.

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Pop in to my mailing list

and make sure you're on there.

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So you don't miss any of it.

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But today I want to

focus on self-acceptance.

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And I'm going to refer to

Kristin Neff's book fierce.

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Self-compassion.

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Self-compassion is a practice

that changed my life.

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During the initial pandemic

I was working in NHS.

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I got incredibly burned out.

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And there was all kinds of things

going on for all kinds of people.

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But I could no.

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Cope.

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And I'd cooked with an awful

lot up until that point, but it.

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Was just too much.

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And self-compassion is the practice

that changed how I feel about myself.

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Other humans and it led

me to where I am today.

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I really recommend that you get Fierce

self-compassion is a fairly long

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book, so grab the audio book as well.

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And I like to read and

listen at the same time.

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But one of the things.

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Is that people mistake about acceptance

and self acceptance in particular

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is that if I accept my ADHD, I'm

not going to make any changes.

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And I'm giving in.

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I'm giving up.

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Actually the opposite is true.

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And it's the.

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Fighting against.

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Yourself and who you have been.

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And all those parts of you when,

until you can accept that and embrace

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it as what got you to this moment.

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You're going to find change in

future much harder and more painful.

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And also it's going to affect how you

deal with other people, how you deal

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with situations that come up in life.

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So thinking always about,

self-acceptance not as a.

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This is just how it is.

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I can't change.

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And understanding that.

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That idea of acceptance is too passive.

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Dr.

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Neff talks about yin and yang.

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A simple way to understand.

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What is traditionally seen as the

feminine versus the male that yin is

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tender, nurturing, caring, passive.

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The male is very active,

outgoing, almost aggressive.

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Proactive makes change.

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And those kind of roles are.

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Fairly universal.

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At least in the kind of ideas

that we have about acceptance.

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It's very rare to meet somebody.

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Who.

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Is fully accepting of themselves,

but also making forward progress.

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And I think that's because

we haven't clarified.

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That we can both accept ourself.

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And make positive changes.

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When we begin to understand more

about ADHD, it's very common to

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feel that you are losing skills.

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This is something I've

heard a few times now.

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I actually, what it may be is

your awareness of how draining.

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Practicing a skill has become.

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And it may be that actually you're.

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Awareness of how much

energy and time and effort.

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That is taking up.

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has knocked you back a little

bit, or maybe it's opening

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up a space for you to change.

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Whatever happens when you are aware

of your ADHD, acceptance doesn't mean.

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Judgment.

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Watch out for the impact of the negative.

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Judgment of other people.

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And yourself.

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The other thing that happens quite often

when we have an ADHD diagnosis or we

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are on on the way to an ADHD diagnosis.

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Because let's face it.

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It can take many years for adults.

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You may find that you are constantly.

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Re-embracing self-awareness

and self-acceptance.

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There are constant discoveries.

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A client described it today

as you go round in a circle and

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you move forward a little bit.

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Round in a circle and

forward a little bit.

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And it's almost like we, we need to.

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Constantly rediscover ourselves.

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And our acceptance of ourselves

is going to be something that we

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practice rather than a one time thing.

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And that's why educating yourself with

facts with genuine information about ADHD.

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And that means going to reliable

clinicians, textbooks and articles

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that are based in the science

and also in the psychology.

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And obviously I would see the

coaching, but the kind of.

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Practical facts around

ADHD, rather than the

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shall we say popular schema.

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And is really important because

when you have that understanding.

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The acceptance becomes much easier.

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and also when you are struggling a little

bit with ADHD or in daily life, generally,

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The practice of self-compassion.

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Is.

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Absolutely vital.

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And self-compassion again, like

acceptance, isn't a passive thing.

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So we practice self-acceptance.

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We practice self-compassion

and the moments when things are

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difficult, because we're all human.

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And the.

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Idea that somehow.

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An ADHD diagnosis separates

you from humanity.

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And the suffering of humanity is

something that we need to step away from.

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I think.

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With compassion.

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We approach the things that are

difficult for us in that moment.

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with awareness.

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We understand that everybody

is going to have these moments

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of difficulty and challenge.

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And we are somewhere along the

spectrum of that difficulty.

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And that is why.

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Compassion and self-compassion.

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Are crucial.

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For a healthy balanced, emotional life.

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And as we've spoken about before.

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When our emotions are

dysregulated, when we are upset.

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I angry, scared, frightened.

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All of these.

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Negative emotional states.

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Our executive functions.

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Become more challenged.

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Think about it this way:.

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You make a simple mistake.

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You attributed to your ADHD.

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Which is more than possible.

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I have had quite the week and I

could say, oh, that's my ADHD.

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I'm not managing it as well as I used to.

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Instead of saying that's cause you're not

doing this or that, or the other thing.

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And making it about me as a person,

I say, oh, okay That is quite

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challenging for those people.

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You've not had a lot of asleep this week.

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Things have been

challenging with the storms.

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With sleep.

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So how about we ask

someone to help with that?

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And then I am able to move on.

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If you are wondering why I talk

about self-compassion so much is

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because without self-compassion.

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You're going to find it harder to

advocate for yourself at home and at work.

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You're going to find it harder to manage

your relationships with other people.

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And that in itself is going to

cause emotional dysregulation.

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That will make the.

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Classic ADHD traits of, difficulty with

planning, prioritizing, organizing,

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remembering, working memory.

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Those are affected when

you're emotionally upset.

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So that is why the power of

self-compassion is something.

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That I talk about regularly.

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And Dr.

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Kristin Neff is the person I would go to.

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She has resources online,

which are completely free

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to download and to practice.

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And if you want to know more

about self-compassion there are

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different practices that you can do.

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Mindfulness-based self-compassion is

the one that I'm most familiar with.

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And it is really easy

to practice anywhere.

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It doesn't need any equipment.

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You literally need five

to 10 minutes a day.

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And if you can bring into loving

kindness element, which Dr.

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Neff uses is that's even better.

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Because it has an impact on your

physical body as well as your emotions.

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The other powerful thing about

self-compassion is it connects

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us to the rest of humanity.

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We're not some remote

tribe out in the Tundra.

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Completely isolated and speaking

a totally different language

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to the rest of the world.

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we are part of humanity?

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And as part of humanity,

We are going to struggle.

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And suffer and the same

way as everybody else does.

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But because of the ADHD.

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We may be more emotionally.

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Reactive to that.

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Our emotional sensitivity is a key part.

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Of dysregulation.

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Because it is part of

your executive functions.

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Although a lot of people talk

about RSD rejection, sensitivity.

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The emotional dysregulation.

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That is the fundamental underlying

cause of that rejection sensitivity.

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As part of your ADHD,

executive function problems.

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Because your prefrontal cortex

has different connections that.

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They're no different in that.

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Nobody else has them.

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It's the number, the formation the

Folium, the speed, even all of the

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connections that transport yourselves,

that noodle transmitters, et cetera.

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That's what makes it different and

that's why our emotional reactions.

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are A) generally much bigger.

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B.

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So in quotes, disabling.

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Because when our brain is attending to

emotions, it ignores all the other stuff.

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And other people experienced that too.

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But as someone explained to me today

Everybody goes to the bathroom, but if

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you're going to the bathroom, 50, 70

times a day, You need to go see a doctor

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and that's what happens with ADHD.

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Everyone has experienced this.

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We experience it in an order of magnitude.

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Differently.

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And when that happens.

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Self-compassion is going to allow

you to connect with yourself.

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Treat yourself with loving kindness.

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Acceptance.

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And give you the emotional

space to move forward while also

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recognizing the other people.

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Have experienced this too.

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We get stuck in this narrative

that we're broken failing.

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We can't change.

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You're a human being and you can change.

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But you're going to change in a way

that might not be the one you expected.

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And it might not be in the way

that other people have offered

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that model of change for you.

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Apologies about the noise.

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That's my.

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Washing machine.

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This is brought to you from a normal home.

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So you will occasionally hear things

like washing machines and dogs.

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That's fine because I don't

need to be perfect in order

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to show up and support you.

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Anyway.

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One of the questions.

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Somebody emailed in today was how

to talk to people or deal with

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people who don't believe you,

or don't really understand ADHD.

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And I think there's two

parts to that question.

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The first is the role of

education of other people.

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And that is something

that we all tend to do.

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Knowingly or not.

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And that's why it's important

to have reliable information

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that you can share with others.

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That is simple.

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So the a metaphor about going

to the bathroom, for example,

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everyone goes to the bathroom.

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If you go 50 times a day,

you need to see a doctor.

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That is something that

people can understand.

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Whereas, if you start to talk about.

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Dopamine transport er

cells and DAT-1 genes.

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Most people are going to zone out

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so education is a crucial part of it.

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But it's not always your job to educate

people who do not want to learn.

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And you're the only

person who can discern.

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From your relationship, with that person

from their responses, from your context?

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Is that person actually going to learn.

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Does he want to learn?

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Or is it an excuse to treat you badly?

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That's the second part of the question.

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. People don't accept ADHD.

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And they don't accept me.

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And ADHD is part of me.

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And it's something that we hear a

lot stop using ADHD as an excuse.

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Boundaries as a big one.

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And I think when somebody says to you.

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Something negative.

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And it's something that is caused by

the ADHD difference that you live with.

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Which is a disability that is

recognized by governments worldwide.

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You have to say to yourself.

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How am I going to assert this boundary?

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And do I want them to speak

to me like this in future?

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So I'm going to offer

three ways to communicate.

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But the thing that is crucial to all

of them is that you accept yourself.

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First.

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And that you are very clear about

what you want them to do instead.

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So think about that

before you say anything.

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And it's usually in three parts.

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Depending on your relationship,

you may want to begin with.

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When you statement.

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Then you move on to, I feel.

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And then you would say, I would

like, or I want, or I need, and

406

:

this is something that you can

adapt and because there's no one.

407

:

way to say it.

408

:

That's going to suit everyone.

409

:

So it could be.

410

:

When you say I'm using ADHD as an

excuse for not finishing the house work.

411

:

I feel.

412

:

That you don't believe

ADHD is a real thing.

413

:

And you're saying I'm actually lazy.

414

:

I want you to understand.

415

:

That I am trying my best.

416

:

And ADHD.

417

:

Affects my working memory.

418

:

As an example.

419

:

I'll try to put something together

that you can download so you can.

420

:

Write out a few examples.

421

:

But the important thing is that.

422

:

You need to know what you will accept.

423

:

And if they're behaving

in a way that constantly.

424

:

Invalidates you and invalidates

your diagnosis of ADHD.

425

:

You can offer.

426

:

Some education.

427

:

And if they refuse to accept the education

and continue to speak negatively to you.

428

:

Then you have the power to remove

yourself from that conversation.

429

:

I know it's difficult when

it's somebody in your home.

430

:

And this is a circumstance.

431

:

Many of us find ourselves in.

432

:

But you always have the power to

remove yourself from the room.

433

:

So you can go back to

the, I feel statement.

434

:

When you and add-on what you would

prefer or what you need to happen instead

435

:

for example, I feel frustrated.

436

:

When my ADHD traits.

437

:

Are dismissed as laziness

or not caring about you.

438

:

Because it ignores the reality of ADHD

439

:

as a brain based neurological difference.

440

:

I need you to understand what ADHD is

and how it affects my day-to-day life.

441

:

You've got to conserve your

energy and your time and

442

:

boundaries are a way to do that.

443

:

So you can educate people, but

you're not wasting time and energy

444

:

on people that aren't interested.

445

:

So you might want to offer

them a really simple example.

446

:

I really simple model of what ADHD is.

447

:

And then you would.

448

:

how it specifically affects you.

449

:

Or people in general, but

particularly you in the context.

450

:

And then you might offer them

further reading or an internet

451

:

link or something like that.

452

:

But you don't have to spend ages

giving a long, detailed explanation.

453

:

Or making excuses.

454

:

And don't begin.

455

:

Your explanation with I'm sorry.

456

:

Because that immediately.

457

:

Puts you into a very passive

position and we're thinking clear,

458

:

calm, assertive communication.

459

:

For example, the self-advocacy

model that's used in DBT

460

:

dialectical behavioral therapy.

461

:

. In brackets here.

462

:

I am not a therapist.

463

:

I'm offering this as an example.

464

:

Close brackets.

465

:

The dear man model is a really good

way to explain to yourself how you're

466

:

going to advocate for your own needs.

467

:

So the DEAR, man, each

letter starts an action.

468

:

So you're going to describe the situation.

469

:

When you see I'm lazy.

470

:

You're going to express

feelings and opinions.

471

:

I feel.

472

:

Ashamed.

473

:

I feel upset.

474

:

I feel scared.

475

:

Then you can assert your needs.

476

:

I need you to understand.

477

:

This is part of ADHD.

478

:

And then you can reinforce the positive

effect of having that need met.

479

:

When you understand it's ADHD.

480

:

I will feel.

481

:

Able to complete the task because

I'm not going to be worrying

482

:

about your judgment of me.

483

:

And you might want to explain how negative

emotions actually stop us doing things.

484

:

And that M E N part.

485

:

Includes mindful.

486

:

Appear confident.

487

:

And if necessary, negotiate.

488

:

So mindful appear confident, negotiate.

489

:

That's a.

490

:

An easy way to think about

how you're going to explain

491

:

the situation to somebody.

492

:

And finally.

493

:

Is it me, or is it ADHD how to distinguish

your personality from your ADHD traits?

494

:

So what is a personality trait?

495

:

It's something that is enduring

and it's about how we think.

496

:

Have we feel.

497

:

And how we behave.

498

:

And these are all different

from other people on the planet.

499

:

There's no two people exactly alike.

500

:

We all have differentiating features.

501

:

Don't have time to go into a great,

big, deep explanation of them.

502

:

But when you compare them to ADHD

traits, It's easy to see how some

503

:

people get confused between the two.

504

:

For example, if you are quite an

impulsive person, That is an ADHD trait.

505

:

Isn't it.

506

:

Is it me or is it ADHD?

507

:

It could be both.

508

:

You might find it even with medication or

with adequate exercise, sleep, mindfulness

509

:

connection, all the rest of it.

510

:

You're still impulsive.

511

:

That's okay.

512

:

Because there are people

without ADHD who are impulsive.

513

:

And it is the process of slowly.

514

:

Untangling which parts of your

behavior are affected by ADHD

515

:

on which parts of you are not.

516

:

And there's a different way to come at

this, which I'm going to share just now.

517

:

So you might want to spend some time

thinking about your personal values.

518

:

Personal values.

519

:

Are things that are unlikely

to be affected by ADHD traits.

520

:

And they're much more informative.

521

:

Than thinking about personality

as a big, a morphous blob.

522

:

So your personal values.

523

:

are the guiding principles

that shape how we behave.

524

:

To ourselves and to other people.

525

:

And help us to decide what's

most important in life.

526

:

So you may have a high, personal value

of family, of honesty, of integrity.

527

:

You may have a high personal value of.

528

:

Creativity of spirituality.

529

:

None of these are part of ADHD traits.

530

:

And there are . Different ways to

understand your personal values.

531

:

But you might also want to

include your character strengths

532

:

and the via character strengths.

533

:

Traits is something that I love

and I recommend to everyone, but

534

:

especially people with ADHD because

it allows you to see yourself.

535

:

In a different lens and you can

learn to lean into those strengths.

536

:

And it's definitely something I'm going to

spend a lot longer on in a future episode.

537

:

So think about, is it me or is it ADHD?

538

:

Actually?

539

:

What are my values?

540

:

What do I value in life?

541

:

And what are my character strengths?

542

:

And use the via character

strengths test to determine which

543

:

parts of you want to focus on.

544

:

You can still do that and address

ADHD traits like planning,

545

:

organizing, prioritizing.

546

:

Procrastination dreaminess impulsivity.

547

:

All of these things.

548

:

But when we put them into the context

of a whole human being who has

549

:

personal values, character strengths.

550

:

Who has a vision that they want to work

towards, that they're aiming for an life.

551

:

Suddenly the ADHD element doesn't feel

like it's the only thing going on for you.

552

:

And that's why it's really important.

553

:

To spend time looking at things

like your character strengths

554

:

and your personal values.

555

:

And I have got workshops that

I'm preparing for February.

556

:

Which is going to look at things like

your processing modalities we're going

557

:

to understand how to use them a bit more.

558

:

And if you want to sign up for that.

559

:

I have got a link.

560

:

And my profile on social media.

561

:

I'll make sure there's one

in the show notes as well.

562

:

But this is all part of

the work that you can do.

563

:

It's fantastic.

564

:

If you have a coach who

can help you with it.

565

:

But if you don't.

566

:

These are things that you can

start to gently look at yourself.

567

:

And.

568

:

Understand.

569

:

You as a whole human being.

570

:

with all the incredible potential.

571

:

And the possibilities that

are open to you instead of.

572

:

Feeling like ADHD is this

bucket we've been put into?

573

:

Willingly or not.

574

:

There are some fantastic

things that can come with ADHD.

575

:

Divergent thinking, for example.

576

:

But we don't have to stay there.

577

:

We can go forward and use that along with

our creativity, with our passion, for

578

:

fairness, with our value of community.

579

:

And we can.

580

:

Change things around us when we

bring all of those things together.

581

:

So make sure you're on the list for the

future workshops and things like that.

582

:

And I will look forward to hearing more

of your amazing questions next week.

583

:

It makes a real difference.

584

:

If you can leave a review.

585

:

On any of the podcast platforms.

586

:

And if you would to share it, It's

even better, I would be so grateful.

587

:

If you could share it with your friends,

with your family, with anyone else

588

:

who would find this to be useful.

589

:

Please share this with people

who, want to understand more

590

:

about ADHD and how it affects you.

591

:

And let's make team Bulb.

592

:

THE movement to be in for

people with ADHD this spring.

593

:

Thank you for joining us today on

Powerful Possibilities, Navigating

594

:

ADHD from New Diagnosis and Beyond.

595

:

Remember, your journey with ADHD is

ongoing but you're not alone anymore.

596

:

Until next time, this is Catherine,

reminding you that with the

597

:

right guidance, the possibilities

really are powerful and endless.

598

:

Take care.

Show artwork for ADHD Powerful Possibilities: New and Late Diagnosis & Beyond

About the Podcast

ADHD Powerful Possibilities: New and Late Diagnosis & Beyond
Embracing the Reality Revolution: ADHD strategies, support and research in friendly, easy to understand PG rated episodes
Welcome to ADHD Powerful Possibilities - Here we embrace the reality of ADHD and open the door WIDE to authentic growth and success. This isn't (oh no) another ADHD podcast – it's a revolution in how we approach neurodivergence, social rules and how you can live a meaning-full life for yourself.

🌟 The ADHD Reality Revolution 🌟

Forget empty promises and quick fixes. Here, we go DEEP into the real, sometimes messy, always fascinating world of ADHD. Whether you're newly diagnosed, late-diagnosed, or supporting someone with ADHD, this podcast is your guide to navigating life's challenges with honesty, realism, and self-compassion.

💡 What Sets Us Apart? 💡

1. No Sugar-Coating: We tackle ADHD challenges head-on, acknowledging the struggles while uncovering the hidden strengths you've been ignoring.
2. Evidence-Based Insights: Blending neuroscience, positive psychology, and real-life experience to give you practical, actionable strategies.
3. Anti-Toxic Productivity: We reject hustle culture and embrace sustainable, ADHD-friendly approaches to success, knowing that we are all in need of more support, more rest and more FUN.
4. Inclusive Focus: From teens to adults, women in perimenopause to entrepreneurs – we cover the full spectrum of ADHD experiences.

🎙️ Your Host: Katherine 🎙️

I'm Katherine, your certified ADHD coach and fellow traveller on this neurodivergent journey. Diagnosed with ADHD and Autism in my 40s, I bring over 400 hours of professional training and 20 years of entrepreneurial experience to our conversations. Clients call me the "ADHD nerd version of their favorite aunty" (or mum) – a title I wear with pride!

📚 What to Expect 📚

- Weekly episodes unpacking crucial ADHD topics: from executive function to emotional regulation, time management to shame and resilience.
- Occasional experts, offering diverse perspectives on thriving with ADHD.
- Practical tips and strategies tailored for the ADHD brain.
- Short, fluff-free, and PG-rated content – perfect for listening anytime, anywhere.

🌈 The ADHD Powerful Possibilities Promise 🌈

We won't promise overnight transformations or one-size-fits-all solutions. You know that they don't work, because you've already spent enough money on them and still feel stuck.

Instead, we offer:
- A judgment-free space to explore your unique ADHD journey.
- Tools to cultivate self-awareness, autonomy, and agency.
- Strategies to reframe "accountability" and embrace possibility thinking.
- A supportive community where your experiences are validated and celebrated.

🌐 Join the Revolution 🌐

Let's turn ADHD challenges into powerful possibilities together. Subscribe now and be part of a community that's rewriting the ADHD narrative – one authentic, empowering episode at a time.

Connect with us:
- Website: https://lightbulbadhd.com/
- Instagram: @adhd_coach_katherine
- TikTok: @adhd_coach_katherine
- YouTube: @adhd_coach_katherine

Remember, your ADHD journey is unique. Here, we go beyond saying that - we celebrate it. Welcome to your ADHD Reality Revolution!

About your host

Profile picture for Katherine Sanders

Katherine Sanders