Neurodivergent Narratives Podcast

To reconnect with ourselves (the sensations in our bodies), so we can understand what we might need at that moment, means we need to pause.  But pausing feels very scary to our bodies. This episode not only looks at why pausing feels so bad to us but how we can start to develop a practice of pausing in the times where we feel "safe- enough" so that when we actually do need to pause in our challenging moments, we can access that skill a little more than before. In the episode:1. New (even if it's a good thing) is still different and uncomfortable2. Pausing as dangerous3. Pausing in conflictResources: Tara Brach podcastConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesSupport the show

When I was batching these episodes, it occurred to me that maybe some of you were like me and a little lost when it comes to trying to understand what "discomfort " might actually feel like in your body when thinking of emotions.  So this episode is a short one and it talks about how I might describe what I'm trying to feel when I think of "discomfort in the body." It also shares some more specifics around what sensations might feel like when they are uncomfortable, my thoughts about chronic pains, sensory sensitivities and why this matters for managing neurodivergence and being in this society.  There are many questions and a few ideas that you might think about in developing your own practices too. I think there's a lot here in such a short episode. Connect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

FYI: I use the f word in the intro! It wasn't edited out this episode.Introspection is one of the things that we hear talked about a lot but it's not really talked about when it comes to what it means for being in this society. When we live in a society that works to separate the body from the mind, reconnecting with our body becomes a radical act. Because it's in our body that holds more of our answers about what we really need in order to be at our best. and often that means doing a lot differently than society expects from us. This episode gives us reasons why working on understanding what our body needs can be so tricky when we're dealing with introspection issues and some of the things I've learned to help me become a little better with it and how I've worked with others. Connect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

I'm pleased with this episode. I've shared some introductory thoughts about the mind and body connection with neurodivergent people in mind. I talk a little about how society divides us not only from the land and each other but from ourselves. Privileging the mind over the knowledge that comes from our bodies makes me think that for us ND brained people, (who seem to be drawn to being connected to our bodies but have been forced not to be), it's even more important to start rebuilding that relationship between our mind and body. We need to get comfortable with the discomfort of making choices that align with what we really need and we can't do that without reconnecting with ourselves again. Some highlights include:1. Our neurodivergent brain's job2. Society and the brain3. Neurodivergent brains, nervous systems and trauma responsiveness4. Narrative therapy ties in too5. Starting to relearn about the messages behind the discomfortConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

One thing I tend to go on about is that when the story is told by one perspective, the problems and solutions are only seen from that perspective too. In talking about neurodivergence, we tend to be sharing the experiences from a lot about white boys, girls, men and women perspectives. No one else (because unless otherwise said, the default has always been white). Culturally competent care and support are much needed in giving those of us who are the most marginalised the kind of support we need that works well for the lives we actually lead. Three thoughts:1. Attribute certain behaviours to a medical condition differ across ethnic groups2. Ethnic differences in reporting, Lack of awareness in the culture3. Beliefs around neurodivergence and mental healthResources (from the last few episodes on this topic) Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in first- and second-generation immigrant children and adolescents: A nationwide cohort study in Sweden https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022399920308928Autism Spectrum and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders in Children of Immigrants: A Brief Review of Current Evidence and Implications for Clinical Practicehttps://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.566368/full Mental health care utilisation and access among refugees and asylum seekers in Europe: A systematic reviewhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168851019300399Systematic Review and Meta-analysis: The Prevalence of Mental Illness in Child and Adolescent Refugees and Asylum Seekershttps://www.jaacap.org/article/S0890-8567(19)32175-6/fulltext Immigrant Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: The Relationship between the Perspective of the Professionals and the Parents’ Point of View https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3647629/https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.566368/full Connect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

Maybe this episode will make sense to some of you, or maybe it won't. But hear me out. I started thinking a little more deeply about boredom and how terrible it feels for people. Then I started thinking about the messages we got when we were bored growing up and how they felt. It led me to think that if something like boredom can be so connected to doing things and what it means if we're NOT doing things, then surely it must be connected to capitalism and if it is, then surely depending on who you are there's always an underlying message of what we've learned to make it mean about different people when they're bored...and what systemic barriers gets hidden in society when we do that. This episode introduces some initial thoughts about the intersection of boredom and different identities (some of which I definitely rant on about better than others I think)  and I hope leaves you thinking about how we can rethink the ways we've been taught to think and feel about boredom. Connect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

A theme that seems to come up a lot with the people I work with is around the anxiety and stress that comes up from feeling a lack of clarity for ND people.  I even wonder if it's something that feels a lot worse the further you are on the margins with your intersecting identities too because this is something I've struggled with as well.This episode looks at why we might feel so damn messed up when things don't feel clear, rather than feel like we can go with what we want to do next or solve the issue our own way and some thoughts on what you can do to support yourself. This also ties in a little more with the boredom episode, I did previously (where I blame all the things on society in that one too).Three thoughts on a lack of clarity:1. Our autonomy has been taken2. Seeing too much around us to decide what's most important3. Double masking challengesConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

Boredom often connects to productivity for me and this didn't sit right with me for some reason, so I decided I needed to learn more about it. The initial title for this episode was 'is boredom really our fault though?' and  that question was what guided my research. It made me wonder if there was more to it. I think I was right. This episode hits on a few ideas around how anticipation, autonomy, creativity and flow might connect to boredom and how boredom might be telling us a lot more than just 'there's nothing to do and I really hate that...'  This is the first of a short series on some thoughts and ideas around boredom. Three things on boredom in society:1. Boredom as anticipation of something to happen2. Boredom as a way to police free time3. Boredom as potential for (unwanted) changeResources: What does Boredom do to us and for usWhy boredom is anything but boringThe fascinating history of boredomAffect and critique: A politics of boredomSupport the show

This week's episode looks predominately at refugee (although, I do think I mention immigrant populations occasionally too) populations and my thoughts about some of the research I've been doing around lack of mental health support. I don’t hear a lot talked about this community when speaking about ADHD or neurodivergence and that's a problem especially with the kind of things I learned. Indeed, there aren't many studies on it either and when there are, they tend to focus on refugees living within certain countries. Culturally competent care is so incredibly necessary because I think this episode shows how clinician biases can really keep people from seeing beyond what they want to see and not what else could be true at the same time too. This is one of a few episodes I've recorded on this topic around immigrant, refugee and asylum-seeking communities and neurodivergence. Three thoughts on:1. Significantly higher mental health needs2. PTSD and depression are the most frequently diagnosed 3. Reasons for underutilized servicesConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Resources:Mental health care utilisation and access among refugees and asylum seekers in Europe: A systematic review Systematic Review and Meta-analysis: The Prevalence of Mental Illness in Child and Adolescent Refugees and Asylum SeekersAutism Spectrum and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders in Children of Immigrants: A Brief Review of Current Evidence and Implications for Clinical PracticeAssociation between immigrant background and ADHD: a nationwide population-based case-control studySupport the show

This here is episode 50 and I am so thrilled to welcome my first guest! The most special-est, wonderful-est person I know talks to me about creativity, school and lots more. I know they'll leave you smiling with their wisdom and insights. It's short but it feels like my best episode yet.  Thank you all for being here for the first 50! Connect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

This episode talks a little about the story of someone I work with and from an intersectional lens (being an immigrant to a "western country", second language speaker and a person of colour). The problems that he was going through in order to get a proper diagnosis and thoughts on three things have made it difficult for him to get the proper diagnosis and support that he needed. These are merely some initial thoughts as I go deeper into this in upcoming episodes specifically when looking at immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers and neurodivergence...CORRECTION: I mention PDA profile autistics and making eye contact with ease, but actually want to clarify that it LOOKS as if it's easy and natural, but it's not always the case! It can be extremely spoon-draining to mask in ways where you're forcing yourself to make eye contact as a  PDA autistic too!Three thoughts on: 1. Lack of cultural competency2. Language barriers3. Clinician bias of languageConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

In this episode, I'm musing on inflexible thinking. I don’t think that we’re naturally inflexible as much as it’s just naturally looking at what matters to us at the moment. It looks inflexible, but the thing is that you’ve not convinced us (or I've not convinced myself) that what you think is important is really that important. I'm not saying that there isn't an EF skills component to this, but perhaps inflexibility is a little more than us struggling to do what is important, but like everything, more complex. There's a whole lot of layers to get us to shift from what we think is necessary now to believe and feeling that another thing is actually important even if it's not happening at that moment yet. This episode looks at 3 things that happen when we're trying to be a little more flexible.1. Consistency in meeting immediate needs2.  Convince me (what I can't see) it matters more3. I can’t see what’s important laterConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Support the show

This episode looks at Black Excellence and exceptionalism and how this might be experienced with neurodivergence. NOTE: I do stick to centering race in this episode, but I believe that depending on the different identities you hold there will be a lot of familiar feelings here. There's a lot of complexity in these topics. Three thoughts on navigating exceptionalism while trying to excel:1. Access implications2. Imposter syndrome3. Whiteness as the reference pointConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Resources:Narrative Therapy with Coaching: an introductionWe Need to Talk about the Pressure of Black Excellence Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeSupport the show

The start of season two and the format is a bit different. A bit shorter, a bit more stories, not just the strategies but also a lot more centering intersectional neurodiversity. This neurodivergent space is full of erasure. It’s in the language and the way that it centers white people and not just white boys in its assessments and who the influencers, big named leaders etc are in the space. When we’re dealing with seeing the same type of people share the same type of stories, we get the same type of support and solutions. Three ways we gendering presentations erases the experiences of the most marginalised or historically marginalised identities:1.Female autism as a way to hide -isms in the system2. Inattentive ADHD as a way to explain some ADHD presentations depending on who it is3. The system harms white people tooDr. Devon Price: Article mentionedWentworth Miller, Mental Health Stigma, and Masked AutismPreorder their newest book:Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of NeurodiversityHis latest book:Laziness Does Not ExistConnect with me:IG: @nd.narrativesTwitter: @ndnarrativesSite: Neurodivergent NarrativesClick for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeSupport the show

I’m not just going to leave you thinking that it’s a lost cause and that there’s nothing we can do when we’re dealing with rejection. I don't think it's like that I’ve made improvements, I’ve made shifts in my thinking and I’ve made my way forward. I think there is something that is so powerful when we remember that we’ve got a choice. It's not easy to manage rejection, but I think that there are ways that we can get better at it. I think that there are ways that we can see how it is for us and find what works rather than be resigned to a life of complete unpredictability with our emotional dysregulation. Things I'm trying:1. How we read situations2. Struggles with introspection3. Emotional regulation strategies4. Movement matters 5. Managing racing thoughts6. Understanding our triggers7. Understanding our processes8. Understanding our differencesTakeaway:The real problem of being labelled rejection sensitive. Connect with me:On IG @theadhdgoodlifeOn FB @adhdgoodlifeOn Twitter @theadhdgoodlifeSite: www.wellnessandwhiteboards.com Click for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeT-shirt I'm wearing:  ND RenegadeSupport the show

This episode came up from one of my patron's question about rejection and the ability to decipher what rejection stems from ADHD (or other neurodivergent conditions) and what doesn't.  The thought being, that if there were a way to figure this out, then maybe there might be a way to manage rejection better because of its source. This episode is my thoughts on the complexity I feel around rejection and why.  Connect with me:On IG @theadhdgoodlifeOn FB @adhdgoodlifeOn Twitter @theadhdgoodlifeSite: www.wellnessandwhiteboards.com Click for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeT-shirt I'm wearing:  ND RenegadeSupport the show

Here's part two in the series on thoughts about "RSD" (rejection sensitivity dysphoria). This one is where I dive into some thoughts on rejection from an intersectional lens and wonder what kind of narrative we learn about who is rejected and how we're all forced to deal with rejection based on the identities that we hold. What kind of messages are we given about rejection? What are the expectations to manage rejection determined by? Is it all in our heads?  Connect with me:On IG @theadhdgoodlifeOn FB @adhdgoodlifeOn Twitter @theadhdgoodlifeSite: www.wellnessandwhiteboards.com Click for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeT-shirt I'm wearing:  ND RenegadeSupport the show

RSD : Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria is a cluster of emotionally painful symptoms that arise in reaction to perceived judgement or rejection from others.It’s no surprise that we’re rejection sensitive. We’re sensitive about a lot of emotions, not just rejection. Emotions feel big in these bodies. Breakups make us fall to pieces but falling in love is something so euphoric too. But RSD, I’m still struggling with it. I know that people say they struggle with it and I’m not one to downplay anyone's struggles. But I guess the thing that I’m always stuck with about the RSD narrative is, is it something that we have (pathologically speaking) or is it something that’s happened to us (this society), a combination of both (ADHD symptoms and society), or is it something that’s completely different we’re dealing with like trauma... This episode is the start of a new short series where I start questioning some of the things I've learned about RSD. Connect with me:On IG @theadhdgoodlifeOn FB @adhdgoodlifeOn Twitter @theadhdgoodlifeSite: www.wellnessandwhiteboards.com Click for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeT-shirt I'm wearing:  ND RenegadeSupport the show

This episode is one where I give some initial thoughts on shame and blame. I've been drawn to Audre Lorde's quote that "there are no single-issue problems because we don't live single-issue lives" and I really appreciate this when I think about intersectionality and neurodiversity because we are such complex beings but often grow up not seen or able to show that complexity.  We are so different, yet are pressured into being "the same" and trying to give "explanations for and fix" our differences so that we can make sure others don't feel the discomfort (or we don't feel the discomfort)  that comes with taking responsibility or facing shame. Blame is a lot easier to do and sit with, whether we're blaming ourselves or others.  Shame not so much and there's a lot of ways we're defined by the one thing that we're blamed for and then shamed (or feel shame because of it), meanwhile our differences don't make it into the part of our story and they need to be. Thoughts include:Blame as a way to deal with shameBlame, being invisible and shame tied togetherNo single issue problemsLack of representation and colour blindnessThoughts on self-blameTakeaway: Seeing differencesConnect with me:On IG @theadhdgoodlifeOn FB @adhdgoodlifeOn Twitter @theadhdgoodlifeSite: www.wellnessandwhiteboards.com Click for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeT-shirt I'm wearing:  ND RenegadeSupport the show

This episode is a little different than I've done before. It's the audio taken from an IG Live that I recorded (and it's on my IG feed) where I finally shared my feeling and response on another podcast where it was said that there were no Black ADHD coaches, and the apologies that came after this.  This is my response. There's an intro that explains the situation in more detail followed by the normal podcast intro, and then into the IG Live audio from there. Erasure is something that so many of us experience in our lives when our struggles are not seen and our pleas for help go ignored. For those of us from the most marginalised groups in society, we experience erasure on a near-daily basis. We've grown up with the messages that the things that are fundamental to who we are, are not worthy of being seen or acknowledged. Erasure ignores our struggles, our needs and our unique experiences in the world. It's harmful, violent and racist and we all need to do better in considering where our privilege allows us to erase the lived experiences of others. This podcast explores this not only in the scope of this podcast but also in my own life as well. I hope that we can learn something together. Connect with me:On IG @theadhdgoodlifeOn FB @adhdgoodlifeOn Twitter @theadhdgoodlifeSite: www.wellnessandwhiteboards.com Click for my free EBOOK on self-compassion: They Were Wrong About You!Intro & Outro music: Joseph McDadeT-shirt I'm wearing:  ND RenegadeSupport the show