In this episode, Duena sits down with Nick Dean — autistic/ADHD executive coach, speaker and creator of “The Kindness Revolution” — to explore what radical acceptance really looks like for neurodivergent adults.

Nick shares his journey through late discovery, autistic burnout, emotional overload, rejection sensitivity, internalised shame and the long road toward self-kindness. Together they discuss why ND people struggle with boundaries, why masking corrodes identity, how RSD narrows a life down to survival, and what happens when neurodivergent adults finally stop performing and start living as themselves.

This is a gentle, compassionate and deeply grounding conversation about identity, safety, trauma recovery, kindness as a survival strategy, and the emotional cost of trying to adapt to systems that do not understand ND brains.

A vital episode for ND adults navigating burnout, masking, shame, boundaries, self-forgiveness and rediscovering who they are.

Topics Covered

• Radical acceptance for ND adults
 • RSD and emotional pain cycles
 • Autistic & ADHD burnout
 • Masking fatigue & identity collapse
 • Internalised shame & ND trauma
 • Self-kindness & recovery pathways
 • Belonging vs performance
 • ND emotional regulation
 • Workplace mismatch & Human Debt
 • Boundaries, honesty & nervous-system safety

Resources and Links

🎧 Full series: https://neurospicyatwork.com

🧠 Take the ND Self-Assessment: https://amineurospicy.com

🌐 More about Duena: https://www.duenablomstrom.com

🔍 Find Nick: search “Nick Dean Neurodiversity Coach” on LinkedIn

⭐ CHAPTERS 

00:00 — Intro & who is Nick Dean
02:15 — Late discovery & internalised shame
05:42 — Autistic/ADHD burnout & collapse
09:20 — RSD & emotional pain cycles
12:55 — Masking, identity loss & self-erasure
17:10 — Radical acceptance: what it really means
21:35 — Kindness as a survival tool
25:48 — Boundaries, truth & nervous-system safety
29:55 — ND strengths, work & belonging
34:22 — Final reflections

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NeuroSpicy @ Work — Episode with Nick Dean, autistic/ADHD executive coach and advocate focused on radical acceptance and kindness-based recovery. Themes: late diagnosis, autistic and ADHD burnout, masking, identity collapse, internalised shame, RSD, emotional pain cycles, ND trauma, nervous-system safety, boundaries, belonging vs performance, Human Debt, workplace mismatch, lived ND identity, recovery frameworks and compassionate self-acceptance.

Guest: Nick Dean — autistic/ADHD coach, speaker and creator of The Kindness Revolution.
Host: Duena Blomstrom — autistic/ADHD author, Human Debt theorist, psychological safety researcher.
Audience: ND adults, H/DEI leaders, educators, therapists, workplace culture designers, late-diagnosed autistic/ADHD individuals.
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