EP. 383: It’s Not Your ADHD. It’s Your Nervous System with Liz Tenuto, The Workout Witch

Summary

Podcast Summary

Podcast: ADHD for Smart Ass Women with Tracy Otsuka
Episode: EP. 383: It’s Not Your ADHD. It’s Your Nervous System with Liz Tenuto, The Workout Witch
Release Date: May 6, 2026
Host: Tracy Otsuka
Guest: Liz Tenuto ("The Workout Witch")

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the connection between ADHD and the nervous system with somatic healing specialist Liz Tenuto, known as "The Workout Witch." Liz and Tracy challenge the conventional focus on mindset and productivity for ADHDers and spotlight how body-based approaches—specifically somatic exercises—can address chronic stress, overwhelm, and dysregulation. Liz shares her personal diagnostic journey with ADHD, CPTSD, and autism, and discusses how movement, especially micro somatic exercises, became transformative for her well-being. The conversation centers on empowering women with ADHD to embrace their differences, leverage their strengths, and rethink what it takes to truly thrive.

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Guest Introduction & Diagnostic Journey

[04:00 - 07:46]

• Liz’s Diagnostic Odyssey:
  • Initially diagnosed with CPTSD after leaving an abusive marriage during early COVID.
  • Tried ADHD medication; over time, her therapist refocused on CPTSD as the main issue.
  • After years of therapy (talk therapy, EMDR, somatic exercises), her CPTSD symptoms improved, but neurodivergent traits persisted—leading to reassessment and diagnoses of both ADHD and autism.
  • This new understanding helped recontextualize lifelong experiences, especially sensory issues and heightened pattern recognition.
  • Early childhood marked by masking and accommodating behaviors; "good girl" persona allowed her to fly under the radar.

Memorable Quote:

“My CPTSD symptoms started to go away… but I was still displaying neurodivergent traits. That was very liberating for me to understand, because it just recontextualized my whole life.”
— Liz (05:13)

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The Impact of Movement and Somatics

[08:07 - 16:55]

• Childhood & Coping:

  • Physical activity, especially dance, was a key outlet for Liz—helped manage energy, big emotions, and provided emotional healing.
  • Interactive subjects (Spanish, cooking, movement-based classes) stood out as easier and more rewarding.
  • Both Tracy and Liz shared how structured movement (ballet, bodybuilding) transformed their ability to cope with ADHD.

• Somatic Healing Discovery:

  • As a professional dancer teaching dance, Liz’s own dissociation and chronic pain led her to try somatic classes (initially with skepticism).
  • Immediate relief: “After four lessons, my sleep issues were almost gone… it was a huge relief.”
  • Realization: Chronic pain and symptoms often had emotional or trauma origins rather than physical.

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What is Somatic Movement?

[16:55 - 23:55]

• Somatic Exercises Explained:
  • Rooted in micro-movements that can be done from bed or the floor; the aim is to release habitual tension, stress, and trauma, thereby regulating the nervous system.
  • Demonstrated a cranial nerve activation practice (forehead swiping) to quickly trigger relaxation and combat fight-or-flight responses.

Notable Segment [17:45 - 19:25]:
Liz verbally guides listeners through a micro-movement exercise, emphasizing awareness and relaxation (jaw, belly, pelvic floor).

On Meditation vs. Micro-Movement:

“For me, meditation feels like a little torture. When you’re moving, you’re bringing yourself into this… Goldilocks place where you’re feeling relaxed and at ease and spontaneous and playful.”
— Liz (22:03)

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The Nervous System & ADHD

[23:55 - 30:42]

• Toolkit for Regulation:

  • Liz’s goal: clients build their own toolkit of simple exercises to use as needed, fostering self-sufficiency and personal power.
  • Stresses that ADHD nervous systems often run at a higher level of activation—heightened attunement can lead to chronic stress in neurotypical environments.

• Accumulated Stress Model:

  • Uses a water bottle analogy: imagine stress filling the bottle during the day (overstimulation, emails, conversations), eventually overflowing unless consciously released through physical movement.
  • Physical movement finalizes the stress response in the body, honoring evolutionary biology.

Notable Quote:

“Physical movement is super effective because our nervous systems haven’t caught up to the fact that stress now comes in an email or a conversation.”
— Liz (26:24)

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Liz’s Book Journey: "When the Body Speaks"

[27:19 - 30:18]

• How the Book Began:
  • Publisher (Harper Collins) reached out after a team member benefited from Liz’s courses.
  • Book-writing was unexpectedly challenging but cathartic—helped Liz process and share deep personal stories outside the constraints of social media.

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ADHD Women: The "Knowing-Doing" Gap & Functional Freeze

[30:42 - 33:31]

• Why is Motivation So Hard?
  • Many ADHD women live in “functional freeze”—capable of managing daily tasks while in low-grade fight-or-flight, then crashing into a freeze state at home.
  • High baseline stress leaves little energy for additional motivation.
  • The body’s survival responses keep people stuck and depleted until they find ways to regulate.

Notable Explanation:

“From a nervous system perspective, that’s called functional freeze, where you’re swinging between fight-flight during the day and a low-grade freeze at night.”
— Liz (31:00)

• Breaking the Cycle:
  • Regulation comes from getting into the body, not just intellectualizing or forcing mindset changes.
  • Short, accessible somatic exercises offer immediate relief “without a pressure to perform or do it perfectly.”

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The Problem with "Mindset-Only" Approaches

[34:38 - 36:32]

• Body Before Mind:
  • ADHD messaging focusing on mindset or productivity ignores the body’s central role.
  • Somatic tools allow for guilt-free, “lazy,” unambitious movement—helping break perfectionism and self-criticism cycles common in ADHD.

“I really encourage people to be lazy and unambitious, because I think folks with ADHD are naturally ambitious… but even just giving people permission as they move to do certain movements in the laziest, most unambitious way… that gives them this permission: ‘Oh, I can come down a little bit and really connect with myself.’”
— Liz (35:04)

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Trauma, ADHD, and Sensory Sensitivities

[36:32 - 42:53]

• Differentiating ADHD, Autism, and CPTSD:

  • Overlapping symptoms, but sensory sensitivities from earliest childhood are usually neurodivergent (ADHD/autism).
  • Example: inability to wear certain socks, strong aversion to messy environments or loud noises from an early age.

• Liz and Tracy Reflect:

  • Both value minimal stimulation, order, and predictability in their environment—traits often linked to autism but present for many with ADHD.
  • Liz notes that recently, research is exploring these overlaps further.

• Personality & Social Differences:

  • Liz: Smaller social circles, deep connections, direct communication (often perceived as blunt).
  • Tracy: Observes that both ADHD and autism can involve deep awareness of social rules, but differ in motivation to follow them.

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The Body Speaks: Physical Symptoms as Messages

[42:53 - 45:01]

• Listening to the Body:
  • Physical symptoms of overwhelm or being stuck are “hazard lights”—signs your nervous system needs attention.
  • Developing awareness of body sensations (jaw clenching, stomach aches, muscle tension) offers pathways to intervene and self-regulate.

Quote:

“Once you start to understand the physiological sensations, you can start to be like, ‘Huh, what if I unclenched my jaw? Would that make me feel less anxious?’ And you start to get some agency back.”
— Liz (44:07)

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Neurodivergence Strengths and Success

[45:01 - 49:16]

• ADHD & Autism: Superpowers at Work

  • Pattern recognition and the ability to see things differently have fueled Liz’s rapid social media growth and entrepreneurial success.
  • Willingness to break rules (e.g., creating 10-minute micro-practices for somatics instead of standard 1.5-hour classes).

• On Consistency:

  • Autism helps Liz with repetition tolerance, allowing her to consistently create content daily.
  • “I still do post two to three times a day… I’m pretty sure it’s the autism.”
    — Liz (48:36)

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Resources & Connect with Liz Tenuto

[49:16 - 49:58]

• Where to Find Liz:

  • Instagram: @theworkoutwitch_
  • Website: theworkoutwitch.com
  • Book: theworkoutwitch.com/book (Amazon and international links available)

• Bonus:

  • DM “release” on Instagram for a free one-minute exercise.

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Our bodies can only take so much stress; at some point, the water bottle overflows, and the only way to get back is to release it through the body.” (Liz, 25:07)
• “I really think my ADHD/autism is a big part of my success. Pattern recognition, seeing things differently, being a little rule-breaker…” (Liz, 45:45)
• “ADHDers are naturally motivated when we’re interested. We can go deeper in less time than neurotypical people.” (Liz, 34:08)
• “So many people with ADHD and autism are disconnected from their bodies just based on the way our brains work. Somatics is a way of reconnecting.” (Liz, 43:28)
• “The body is the missing link in the whole ADHD puzzle, and when we can figure that out, the sky’s the limit.” (Tracy, 50:12)

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Key Takeaways

• ADHD Motivation and Nervous System: Many struggles commonly labeled as ADHD problems are actually rooted in chronic nervous system dysregulation.
• Somatic exercises—small, accessible movements—can rapidly help regulate the body and ease overwhelm, especially for those who struggle with meditation.
• Pattern recognition, rule-breaking, and “repetition tolerance” are underappreciated strengths among neurodivergent women.
• Reconnecting with the body unlocks a missing piece for managing ADHD, burnout, and the so-called “motivation gap.”
• Permission to be “lazy” (deep rest and non-perfectionistic movement) is a healing antidote to chronic striving and shame.

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For further information, micro-practice demos, or to order Liz’s book, visit theworkoutwitch.com

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This summary covers the rich discussion and practical insights from Tracy and Liz, designed for ADHD women seeking new tools and self-compassion. Ads, intros, and outros have been excluded for clarity.

Transcript

[A]

Before we start, a quick note. If you've been listening to this podcast and thinking, I need more than insight, I need support, this is for you. Your ADHD brain is not broken. It just never came with a map. That is why I created you'd ADHD Brain is a okay academy. It's my patented step by step framework to help you build a life. And that finally fits how your brain works. Ready to get started? Click the link in the show notes to sign up or book a free discovery call with me now. On with the show. Richard Branson, Michael Phelps, Justin Timberlake, James Carville. Wait a minute. Where are the women? Greta Gerwig, Lisa Ling, Audra McDonald, Simone Biles. That sounds like a list of highly successful titans in a variety of industries. They all have adhd, but you don't hear much about that now, do you? You know what else you don't hear about are the 43% of people with ADHD who are in excellent mental health. Why aren't we talking about them and what they are doing? I'm your host, Tracy Adsuka, and that's exactly what we do here. I'm a lawyer, not a doctor, a lifelong student, and now the author of my new book, ADHD for Smartass Women. I'm also a certified ADHD coach. And the creator of youf ADHD Brain is aok, a patented system that helps ADHD women just like you get unstuck and fall in love with their brilliant brains. Here we embrace our too muchness and we focus on our strengths. My guests and I credit our ADHD for some of our greatest gifts. And to those who still think they're too much, too impulsive, too scattered, too disorganized, I say no one ever made a difference by being too little. Thank you so much for joining me here for another episode of ADHD for Smartass Women. You know that my purpose is all always to show you who you are and then inspire you to be it. In the thousands of ADHD women that I've had the privilege of meeting, I've never met one, not one that wasn't truly brilliant at something. So, of course, I am just delighted to introduce you to Liz Tenuto. Liz Tenuto is better known as the workout witch. But she's not teaching workouts. She's teaching people how to regulate a nervous system that's been running the show their entire lives. With over 4.8 million followers and billions of views, Liz has built a massive audience around a simple but disruptive idea. A lot of what we call motivation issues Anxiety or even ADHD struggles. They are not mindset problems. They're body based patterns rooted in survival responses. I totally agree with Liz, by the way. Liz has been featured in USA Today, BBC News, Harper Collins, Harper's Bazaar, France, msn, New York Weekly, and LA Weekly. Her debut book, when the body speaks how somatic healing sets you free. HarperCollins, April 2026. We share the same publisher dives into how chronic dysregulation shows up as procrastination, shutdown, overthinking and burnout. And especially in people navigating adhd, autism, and complex ptsd. Welcome, Liz. Did I get all of that right?

[B]

That was fantastic.

[A]

Wonderful. So can we start or I should say, we always start with our guest ADHD diagnosis story first so our listeners can connect. Would you mind sharing yours?

[B]

Yeah. So I was originally diagnosed with cptsd, which I absolutely had. I was coming out of a abusive marriage during COVID Early, early Covid. And I got tested for adhd. I tried ADHD meds, and after working with my therapist for a while, she was like, you know, I actually think you more align with CPTSD instead. And so I was like, okay. And we started treating cptsd. After several years of healing through talk therapy, EMDR, and somatic exercises, my CPTSD symptoms started to go away because it's more of an acquired neurodivergence from trauma rather than innate neurodivergence like ADHD or autism. And I was still displaying neurodivergent traits. And that's when she was kind of like, you know, I think we should reassess you for both ADHD and autism, which I have both. And that was very liberating for me to understand because it just recontextualized my whole life. I've had sensory issues my whole life. They're some of my earliest memories. And even though my sensory issues got exponentially worse after experiencing the trauma that I went through in my marriage, they're still there today and they've been with me my whole life. And I also have really amazing pattern recognition, which is wonderful. But now I really understand having the diagnosis. I really understand how to harness it and how to use it.

[A]

Are you telling us that all of this has happened for you since 2020, which is such an ADHD thing? Right. And it's the pattern recognition that I think caused it, where you started to notice that. Oh, well, wait a minute. This is all now making sense. And now I need to share my message because I was able to heal myself.

[B]

Yes, yes. I mean, I was able to. I'm not saying school was easy for me as a child, but I was able to get through it. My mom really taught me how to, like, be polite and, like, kind of mask when I was much younger. And I wasn't, you know, what would be considered, like, disruptive enough to raise any flags as a young person. And I was able to get through it, although I was very exhausted and school was very difficult for me. And looking back, I think if I had had more accommodations, I would have had a much easier time getting through. But. But, you know, I was diagnosed much later in life.

[A]

Would you say that little Liz, was she a good girl?

[B]

Definitely a good girl. A very good girl. Very polite, very generous, very accommodating. I was literally told to not make waves and to be. Be nice, say please and thank you. I was taught to look at people in the eye. I think looking back, my mom may have noticed some of these traits in me, but she may have not had the language or understanding to really know what was going on. And I'm also from a family system where being different probably wouldn't have been very supported.

[A]

So you learned how to keep yourself safe by being a good girl and flying under the radar and probably doing a lot of masking.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Well, and it's happened really quickly. It sounds.

[B]

Yeah, very quickly, very recently and relatively publicly.

[A]

We do that, don't we, Liz? So I am curious. You said that school was a bit of a struggle. Was it all subjects or. Or were there certain subjects that you really loved and you excelled at?

[B]

I loved all of the more interactive classes that I was taking. So I was a very physical child. I had a lot of energy, physical energy. And, you know, as a child, I used to, like, hang upside down on the monkey bars and swing on swings really big. I needed, like, a lot of stimulation, and I would really get that out during recess. But I also was a dancer, and so I spent after school time dancing, and I excelled at dancing in a way that was abnormal compared to my peers. And dancing is kind of how I segued into Pilates and then into somatics and learning somatics. But I also excelled at Spanish because it was very interactive. We were, like, cooking. We were listening to Shakira. We were talking with our neighbor, and I got to talk in class. And the subjects that were harder for me were where I had to sit really still, be really quiet.

[A]

I feel like dancing literally changed my brain. And without mine was ballet. But without ballet, I really think my ADHD Symptoms would have been so much worse during childhood and beyond. But I think it changed my brain. Do you feel the same way? Let's pause here. Have you spent your whole life being told your way is the wrong way? If you try to use systems designed for a neurotypical brain, of course you'll feel like you're failing. But here's the truth. You were never the problem. You just have a different brain, which means you need different systems. That is exactly why I created the A OK Academy. It's my six step patented framework designed to help you reconnect with your intuition and build systems based on your unique strengths. Let me help you reconnect with your intuition, trust yourself again and build a life that actually works for you. You've had the answers all along. I'll help you see them. Look, it's time to stop second guessing and start trusting yourself again. Find the link in the show notes to sign up or book a free discovery call. Now let's get back to it.

[B]

I do feel the same way. I think for me, I did experience a lot of big emotions as a child and I didn't really understand why and now I do, but. But it really helped me release those emotions through movement, which is a very natural way of releasing emotion. Ancient cultures knew this and we've kind of disconnected from that. And just the, the physical act of dancing was not just emotionally healing but very like physically, I guess it really replenished me a lot and it got out a lot of my extra energy that I was holding in. What was your experience with dance again?

[A]

I think it's what you just said. It's a way to dissipate the energy and I really believe it changed my brain and it allowed me to, you know, when I had to sit in school, to be able to sit in school because there was an outlet. Yes, I also feel like with ballet, but there was something about learning the patterns and the steps that I think helped me. And they say that, right. That especially for an ADHD brain, there's certain sports, athletics for example, martial arts, where you have to use your brain while you're moving because you have to remember, you know, the different patterns and whatever it is in martial arts that

[B]

they call it, it's interesting, the brain, body connection. I think a lot of ADHD people need more stimulation than other people. Definitely on a spectrum. But because with dance or martial arts you're really connecting brain and body that allows us to focus in this way. That's very helpful for us.

[A]

Did school get any easier in Terms of, I know you ended up in college, so it wasn't like you hated school and were like, I'm never going to college.

[B]

Yeah, I studied psychology in undergrad. I was like, what is going on? I always had a little hunch, but I still, you know, I still didn't realize that I might have ADHD or autism, because I think the way that it was spoken about and understood back in that day, and I'm going to date myself, but I graduated in 2007 from college, and so it wasn't really commonly understood how it presents in women yet. And the presentation in women is so different than the presentation in men, typically. And so I didn't identify with how it presents in men, and I didn't really understand that that could be my situation. So I studied psychology. I graduated. I got good grades, but I really had to work really, really hard to do that. And then when I was thinking about, do I want to go to graduate school and, you know, become a physical therapist or maybe a psychologist, I was like, oh, I'd rather get a Pilates certification and kind of see where that takes me.

[A]

You know, Again, it's that movement that is just such a comm with those of us with adhd. Now, I was the same way, but for me, it was bodybuilding, which really wasn't a woman's sport when I was doing it. But I loved that. I loved that it was different, Right. And it was something that women didn't normally participate in, But I did the same thing. You know, I wanted to work at a gym. I wanted to own my own gym. I started, you know, it was basically an aerobics company, which was a big deal when, you know, when I was growing up. So it's all kind of the same thing. We want to. We need to connect that brain to our body. You got through college. It sounds like you did very well. Did you always feel different than others?

[B]

Always, always, always. Even people would tell me, you know, you're so unconventional, or I got called quirky all the time, and now I really understand why. And I love it. I love it about me, and I do think it's part of the reason why I'm so successful.

[A]

You get out into the workforce, and what happens then?

[B]

I started. I was a professional dancer in my very early 20s, and I started teaching dance. And my ballet teacher at that time actually noticed that I was quite dissociated when I was dance. When I wasn't dancing, she was like, you're very present when you're dancing, but you're very dissociated when you're not. What's going on? I knew I had PTSD at that time because I had been through a sexual assault when I was young, several sexual assaults when I was younger. So I knew I had ptsd, and I kind of attributed it to that. But she nudged me. She was like, why don't you come to my Somatics class? I think it might help you with your dissociation. And I was also in chronic pain at that time. I had some sleep issues. So she knew that as well. And she was like, I think this might help with that. I had seen her class because it happened right before our ballet class, and it was a bunch of people just rolling around on the floor in their pajamas. And I was so skeptical at that time, especially coming from, like a classical ballet background and a contemporary dance background. I was like, I don't get how this is going to help me. But I was also desperate. I had really bad sleep issues for almost a decade at that point. And I had chronic pain, which I attributed to dance. But then I stopped dancing and it wasn't. I realized it wasn't actually from dance. It was more emotional and trauma based for me. And when I started and I tried that first Somatics class, I cried in the bathroom after the first lesson because it felt so good on my body. And I'd never experienced movement like that. I'd always been kind of hard on my body. And after four lessons, four classes with her, my sleep issues were almost gone. And I had previously tried so many different things. Doctors, specialists, acupuncture, yoga, meditation, magnesium, like, all the things that you go through. So it was a huge relief.

[A]

So can you educate us on what somatic movement even is? Because as I said in your intro, you're not teaching workout classes, right?

[B]

Exactly. Soma is the Greek word for body. So somatic healing literally translates to body healing. Somatic exercises, what I teach are these tiny micro movements that you can do in bed or on the floor that release tension, habitual tension, out of your body. They release stress and trauma out of your body, and they regulate your nervous system.

[A]

Can you give us an example of. I mean, obviously you're not going to sit here and do it, but what that would look like, like one exercise that is just really good for. And tell us what it's good for.

[B]

Absolutely. We could do one just sitting here if you'd like. And I can describe it verbally for everyone who's listening. So wherever you're sitting, we're Just going to sit so our back is off the back rest and our ankles are hip distance apart. And then we'll take our first finger and place it between our eyebrows. And you're just going to take medium to firm pressure and you're going to swipe up on your forehead to your hairline. And when you get there, you'll pick your finger back up and then come back to the starting place at your eyebrows. And we'll repeat that for about a minute or so. If at any point you get tired and your arm, your arm feels fatigued, you can put it down, rest, and then pick it back up. And as we do this, you just want to see how relaxed can your job be, how relaxed can your belly be? Can your hand that's on your legs soften? Great. Can you unclench in the sphincter as well? And we'll do a couple more. Then whenever you're ready, you can just bring it to a pause. We'll just take a moment to let that settle. That activates a cranial nerve that goes right down into your brain stem, which is the part of your body that one of the parts of your body largely responsible for your fight or flight response. That's a quick exercise that you can do anytime you feel that fight or flight response to immediately relax.

[A]

2 responses from me. The first thing I thought was, oh well, this reminds me a little bit of tapping.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Which is probably one of my most favorite somatic, you know, I guess you somatic therapies, basically.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

And then the second thing I notice is I always know when something's working because I get this exhale.

[B]

It's your parasympathetic nervous system activating. So your parasympathetic nervous system is the part of your nervous system that's responsible for rest and digest. So when you're feeling relaxed, when you're feeling at ease, that part of your nervous system will activate. On the other side of the spectrum, we have the sympathetic nervous system, which is commonly referred to as fight or flight. And that's when you feel really stressed, really overwhelmed, agitated. It can happen suddenly or it can be from kind of like low grade stress over time.

[A]

Where did the name the workout witch come from? It's so fabulous.

[B]

Thank you so much. It came from a client of mine. I was coaching one on one lessons and I rented like this tiny. I used to live in Oakland. I have a lot of roots in the Bay Area as well. I know you mentioned before we hopped on the call San Francisco. So it was in Uptown Oakland. And it was in this big space where a lot of physical therapists, chiropractors, fitness trainers, Pilates instructors and somatics teachers and massage therapists would rent space. And my studio was like in the far back corner. And she was like, oh, I've been to so many people. And like, nothing really worked. Nothing really helped me feel better. Nothing helped my frozen shoulder. Before finding you, I had specialized in injury recovery when I was teaching one on one lessons. And she was like, nothing really worked for me until I found you. And she was like, it's like you're a witch. Like you're this workout witch with these tiny movements. And I had to like go through the depths of this like healing forest and come to this back corner room to find you. And I started laughing and, you know, said that that was a fantastic name.

[A]

It's so great. And I think that what is so unique about your strategy is exactly what you just said. Little tiny somatic movements. Talk about that versus, you know, always thinking we have to do this big thing or, you know, the ADHD brain. We can't meditate to save our life. At least most of us can't.

[B]

Yes, Yes. I feel like for me, meditation feels like a little torture. I would make myself feel bad too. I'd feel like guilty that I couldn't meditate. But I think when you're moving, you're bringing yourself into this ventral vagal state, which is the other part of the nervous system that's this middle Goldilocks place where you're feeling relaxed and at ease and harmonious and open and spontaneous and playful. A lot of the times when we think about movement, we think about hard movement or exercise. We think about like hard movement like HIIT classes or CrossFit or like lifting heavy weights. And I'm not saying that that isn't beneficial and it can be for certain people, but in terms of regulating your nervous system, these tiny movements are just like this really simple, easy, effective way to get there so you don't have to exert so much and you can easily fold it into your daily life without needing equipment.

[A]

So when someone works with you, do they walk away with like a little toolkit? So when they're fig feeling anxious, when they're feeling dysregulated, they'll. They'll have a strategy.

[B]

Yes. My whole goal with people, and I'm really lucky in that I had a fantastic mentor, is that essentially I want to work with people for a year or so max, and then hopefully they have all of the tools that they need to understand, like, okay, this is how I'm feeling in this moment. I can do. If I'm feeling angry, I can do these pillow chops to release some anger, to bring my nervous system back into a more regulated state. And, you know, then they aren't dependent on me long term. And I'll always be there for them if they want more teaching. But ultimately my goal is that they can teach themselves and that they have the tools.

[A]

That's what gives you power, too, where you feel like, okay, I'm not scared anymore and I'm not anxious about it because I know when it happens, which it always will. I know. I know how to regulate my own nervous system.

[B]

Exactly, exactly. And ADHD nervous systems tend to run at a higher level of activation. Just our baseline is higher. And it's not that anything is wrong with us. It's that we tend to be more attuned to our environment. We're more aware. And then also coupled with the fact that the world isn't really set up for neurodivergent people. So we're constantly in these situations that are stressful for us, and that tends to make our nervous system more dysregulated. So for me personally, I do these exercises almost every day.

[A]

So for someone who's listening, who's been told everything's fine, they've gone to what you went through, all the different doctors and chiropractors and therapists, and all of it, you're fine, but you still don't feel fine. What is actually happening in their body that traditional approaches might not be addressing?

[B]

It's often just a lot of stress that you've accumulated. I'll use my water bottle as an example and I'll describe it verbally for everyone on the podcast too. Essentially, our body only has so much capacity for stress. A little bit of stress is actually good for you in short term amounts. It helps build resiliency. This is why we work. When we work out, we increase the intensity a little bit all the time because it's good for you, it makes you stronger. Right. But if you experience stress all the time. So let's say you feel, I'm going to. I'm demonstrating with a water bottle and I'm holding my hand at the bottom. So we're starting at the bottom. And let's say there's like some overstimulation happening in your day that fills the water bottle up a little bit. And then let's say you get a stressful email from your boss. The water bottle Up a little bit more, and then, you know, you have some financial concern that fills the water bottle up a little bit more. Your kid or your partner has an issue that fills the water bottle up a little bit more. And at a certain point, the water is overflowing from the water bottle. And what we really need to do is start to, like, release some of that stress out of our body. And evolutionarily, physical activity, running away from a bear or fighting a bear is how we would finalize our biological stress response. That's why movement works so well for people still, because our nervous systems haven't caught up to the fact that stress now comes in an email or a conversation. Physical movement is super effective because then when you let some of the water out, you can experience more stress without experiencing all of the symptoms or maybe, like, doing something that you regret, like snapping at someone or, you know, having so much brain fog that you can't think or having these symptoms of stress or these symptoms of dysregulation overtake.

[A]

That was a really, really good explanation. Thanks for sharing that.

[B]

Let's talk about your book, when the Body Speaks.

[A]

What made you decide to write this book?

[B]

So I was not planning on writing a book. I was really happy in my corner of TikTok and Instagram, and I actually was approached by several different publishers to write a book. I had several meetings, and I knew the book writing process was very challenging, and so I was very intimidated. And, you know, they told me I'd need a lit agent, a book proposal, and all of this stuff. Oh, I don't think this is for me. And then Harper Collins reached out to me, and it felt a little different. The person that reached out to me was actually a student of mine who had taken my course. They shared their personal story about how somatic exercises had helped them so much and that they'd love to book a call with me. And I was like, hey, I just want to let you know I don't have time to do a book proposal, and I can't get my own lit agent. If that's okay with you, I would love to meet. And I was like, they're never gonna talk. They're never gonna respond.

[A]

I didn't even know they're allowed to talk to you without an agent.

[B]

Yeah. So they found me on social media, and so they were like, yeah, we would love to talk with you. I was like, okay, great. And then we started talking, and the whole team just fell into place. They helped me get a lit agent. They connected me with her, and she's actually the one who did the proposal and submit it to.

[A]

So lucky.

[B]

Yeah, so lucky. So lucky. So, so lucky. But the book, the book writing process was a three year process, you know, from contract signing to pub.

[A]

They gave you a lot of time.

[B]

Yeah, they did give me a lot of time.

[A]

Has it been everything that you expected it to be? Do you feel like it was harder or easier than you thought it would be to write a book?

[B]

It was so much harder.

[A]

You'll be so much more confident about your writing after you write a book. I'm like, really?

[B]

Well, that didn't happen. It was so much harder than I thought it would be. It was very therapeutic though. And even after publishing the book, it did feel like, okay, I've had this story that is way too long to go into on social media and needs a little bit more sensitivity in terms of the setup of it to just post on a post. And so my personal story is in the book and that just feels really nice to be able to share with the world and it does feel like this weight off of my shoulders.

[A]

I suspect though it was probably really hard though to write.

[B]

It was very hard to write. Very, very hard. Yeah. And just nerve wracking at stuff about my childhood that I've never talked about.

[A]

Yeah. Well, congratulations. Congratulations. So let's talk about ADHD women a little bit before I let you go. A lot of ADHD women feel like they know what to do, but they still can't do it. So from a nervous system perspective, what's actually happening in that gap between knowing and doing?

[B]

So I think one thing that could be happening is a lot of people with ADHD will exist in this space. A lot of women with ADHD specifically will exist in this space called functional freeze, which is where they are able to do their tasks that they need to do during the day so they can go to their job, they can take care of their family, but they're in kind of a low grade fight or flight state during the day and that essentially burns out all of their energy to the point where when they finish all their tasks, they kind of crash out at home. And maybe they are sitting on the couch all night for four hours just like too tired to even think about what to order for food. Or perhaps you pull into the driveway after work and you're just sitting in your car for 10 minutes before you go inside because you need that moment and you're just exhausted from the day. So from a nervous system perspective, that's called functional freeze, where you're kind of swinging between fight flight during the day and then like a low grade freeze state at night. And then the freeze is really just trying to protect you and conserve your energy so that you have energy to do the same thing the next day. But I think for a lot of ADHD women, that's why motivation feels so hard, is because we're already at the edge of our energy. We are already like, we don't have enough water, we don't have enough space in our cup. Like our capacity is already almost full. So the thought of like getting motivated to do something new or to do something that you want just feels like this another thing you have to do.

[A]

And then we tend to be, as you said, we just seek higher stimulation and we are overstimulated most of the time. Right. And then we're in our head making it worse. When it sounds to me like what you would say is, no, no, no. In order to break that, you need to get into your body.

[B]

Yes, exactly. And that's often the missing link for people. And the thought of getting into your body can even feel overwhelming because you're like, oh my God, do you have to like drive to a place and then like go to the gym and do all these like intense movements or. And that's really what I wanted to create for people was this really accessible way of doing somatic exercises from home where you just turn on a video, you get guided through the short class, two to ten minutes and then you feel much more regulated, much more at ease.

[A]

Your argument, I hope that we can't do anything if we're in negative emotion. We just shut down. So really the goal is to get yourself to feel better first and then anything that you really want to accomplish will be so much easier. And that's probably for everyone, but especially those of us with adhd. Do you think that's true?

[B]

Absolutely I do. I think ADHD people, we're so naturally motivated when we're interested in something. And probably because we've had to mask for a lot of our lives, the thought of doing something that you're not interested in is just like, why do it if you don't have to? You're just like, no, I will opt out of that thing. But I have noticed when folks with ADHD are naturally interested in something, they excel beyond what other people can do and they are able to spend more time with it and go deeper in less time than how a neurotypical person may function.

[A]

I think too there's so much messaging in the ADHD Space about mindset and productivity. And doesn't that miss the mark because we are ignoring the body entirely?

[B]

A thousand percent. And I feel like that makes people feel really bad about themselves or guilty or ashamed. For me, I really encourage people to be lazy and unambitious because I think folks with ADHD are naturally ambitious and naturally interested in what they're interested in. But even just giving people permission as they move to do certain movements in the laziest, most unambitious way. Or I'll be like, could you drool as you do this movement that gives them this permission? Like, oh, I can come down a little bit and I can, like, really connect with myself and with my inner landscape and feel my body, feel how I'm feeling. A lot of folks with ADHD have a hard time with, like, feeling their body signals. Like, when am I hungry, when am I thirsty, Do I have to go to the bathroom? Or am I just anxious? And somatics is this great way of understanding how you're feeling in a very. Without any pressure to perform, without any pressure to do the movement exactly correctly. We say, like, your version is the correct version. So there's this, like, anti perfectionistic, anti hustle aspect of somatic exercises. For me, that was so healing. I think that's part of the reason why I cried in the bathroom after the first session. Because coming out of a childhood of being like, a good girl, people pleaser, masking, ballerina perfectionist, like, the permission to just be lazy and, like, drool. Right.

[A]

But drooling is extra.

[B]

I love it. My teacher would say, like, if you're falling asleep in class, we consider that a huge success.

[A]

Many women with ADHD also relate to trauma or chronic stress. How can someone tell the difference between, okay, this is my ADHD and this is my nervous system trying to protect me?

[B]

Yeah. There's such a big overlap in symptoms, and it can be really, really difficult to discern. For me personally, mine was that I had to heal from trauma from first and then realized that a lot of my symptoms were actually from ADHD or from autism. But I think one way of understanding that is if you have had these symptoms for, like, your whole life, Right. And maybe you just weren't aware of it when you were younger. For example, for me, I couldn't wear socks with seams in them when I was a child because it was too overstimulating for me. Or with my hair, if there were, like, bumps all over the place in my hair, I felt like I just, like, couldn't handle it visually. I needed it to be, like, clean. And so I had all of these kind of overstimulation symptoms as a very, very young child. Or even, like, the sound of the microwave beeping used to make me feel, like, so upset when I was very little. And that's been consistent for me my whole life. And so that can be a really great way for people to. You know, if you had these symptoms before a trauma occurred, it's probably neurodivergent.

[A]

Okay. So I can really relate to what you're saying. And I've often kind of thought, well, maybe I'm somewhere on the spectrum as well. And so I'm curious with you. I just. I am the kind of, you know, everybody thinks that, oh, if you have adhd, your whole life's a mess in terms of your car's a mess, your house is a mess. I can't handle that amount of stimulation. If everything around me is a mess, my brain is an even bigger mess. You're like that as well. Everything needs to be in its place, or you cannot do the next thing.

[B]

Yes, Yes. I love. I love it to be all organized and clean and clear. I like my house to look like no one lives in it, and when

[A]

they do, we can be a problem.

[B]

Yes, yes. I'm like, I can't. You know, even if we heat something up in the microwave and my partner, like, leaves the little. Like, she'll pull it out of the microwave, and then the numbers will be left on there while we're eating. I'll have to get up and clear the numbers off. But I think there is some new research that's coming out, and this is. You know, those traits are very connected to autism. But there is some new research coming out that is showing how overstimulation can be really connected to ADHD as well.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, we're just so. We notice everything. Right. And often all at the same time. I wanted to ask you about autism. So you've talked a lot about sensory sensitivities. I'm curious, does your autism show up in other ways?

[B]

I think in terms of relationships, it definitely shows up there for me. I've always had a smaller circle, and I've always been able to really deeply connect with certain people, and then off often just feel, like, completely disinterested from other folks. And I thought that my personality was, like, a little bit blunt as a child, but now I just realized that I don't have much of a filter for. For what I say, and I have learned how to work with that. More especially after the diagnosis. But, you know, as a child, people would be like, wow, you really just like, speak your mind or you're just really brash, or what you said hit me too hard. And that was something that repeated for me for decades until I got my diagnosis and then was like, oh.

[A]

So I always say that the difference between autism and adhd. And so I'm curious where you fall down on this. When you are autistic, we hear a lot about, oh, well, you don't understand the social rules versus I've always joked about, well, with adhd. I understand the social rules quite well, in fact, a lot better than most. I just don't give a damn.

[B]

Yes, I think it's the same for autistic people. I think we just. I think that there is an aspect of autistic people studying TV and other people's socializations so that we can fit in and so that we can be more functional. But I think if we were given a choice, we would absolutely not do that. And since I've gotten my diagnosis, I have hung out with other autistic people. And I do notice that the dynamic is just. The social dynamic is very different when it's just autistic people hanging out together and it's really fun and free and we're not holding ourselves back in the way that I do when I'm around in a neurotypical room.

[A]

There is no one I love more than women with ADHD and autism because they're just so honest.

[B]

None of the bs. Yeah, I love it too. It's like, you can't not be, you know, and there's something that's so real about that. It's easy. You know exactly what that person is thinking. I used to joke that I have no poker face. You can always tell exactly, exactly how I'm feeling. And I have a team of 10 people now, and, you know, I joke with them. They're like, oh, like, how can I tell if you're upset? And I'm like, you will see it on my face. You will know. And if you can't tell, I'm completely fine, and I'm just neurodivergent.

[A]

So in your book, when the body speaks how somatic healing sets you free, you talk about the body speaking. What do you think the body is trying to say to someone who feels constantly stuck, overwhelmed, or behind in life? Other than buy my book?

[B]

Yeah, I think a lot of those things are almost like. Like the hazard lights coming on in your car. So your body is always trying to protect you. Your nervous system is always trying to protect you. And when you start to get these physical symptoms of feeling stuck, lethargic, heavy, feeling overwhelmed, feeling constantly anxious, those aren't just emotions. You have physiological reactions to those emotions as well. You know, with anxiety, you sweat, your heart is racing, you may be clenching your jaw right now. And, and those are interesting to notice because once you start to understand the physiological sensations, you can start to be like, huh, well, what if I unclenched my jaw? Would that make me feel less anxious? And you start to get some agency back once you know what your body is saying to you. But so many people, and especially people with a, with ADHD and autism, are very disconnected from their bodies just naturally based on the way our brains work and so learning, okay, if I have unexplained stomach aches like three times a week, and I've been to the doctor and it's not an allergy, it's nothing with my gut health, like, could it be anxiety related? You know? And then once you learn, like, okay, well, what if I unclench my. I'm gonna say sphincter again. What if I unclench my sphincter? What if I unclench my jaw? That can help a lot of people with their unexplained stomach aches. And it's just this little quick kind of cue that you can give yourself. But so many people don't understand what these body signals mean for them.

[A]

I always ask a question at the end, and it's one of four that are always consistent. So I think I'd like to ask you before we wrap up. I want to know what are the ADHD traits that you feel are responsible for your success? And you can, you know, you can include autism in there if you want, because I think there's something about women, again, because that's who I work with. With autism and ADHD that can be wildly successful. That combination, you know, we kind of keep it in balance.

[B]

For me, pattern recognition has been a huge part of my success. When I started posting on social media, I was able to kind of assess how I wasn't really posting to become this huge, successful somatics teacher. I was actually early on in going through my divorce and I could barely get out of bed. So I was posting to hold me accountable to doing one exercise a day from bed. It was almost like a visual journal. And I was posting from TikTok and I had zero followers. And it just like blew up to 10,000 followers in like a couple weeks. And then it just kept Growing. And as it kept growing, I was like, wow, this is exciting for me. And my ability to recognize patterns really helped me serve my audience better and understand what they were asking for. So initially I was talking a lot about hips and trauma and opening your hips to kind of release stress and trauma because of the psoas muscle and how that's involved in your fight or flight response. And people just kept being very fascinated by that. So I kept making more content about that. After a year of doing that, then I launched a course about that. And that has been the bedrock of my business this entire time. And I've also really reshaped, I think my ability to see things differently has also been a huge part of my success because. And being like a little rule breaker with the adhd, because Somatics historically has always been taught in this long format, like an hour and a half long class, you know, in person. And I was just like, for me, even as I was studying early on, I was like, I could barely focus for that hour and a half. I was like, after like 15 minutes, I was like, okay, I did it. Like, I feel good. Like, let's be done. And so I started when I taught in person for 14 years before I went online, and I really started experimenting with like, how much, how much do they need to feel regulated? How long do we need to do this for? And so when I launched my courses, I really started the like 10 minute practice micro practices to regulate your nervous system. And those are like all over the Internet now. So I really think pattern recognition, my ability to see things differently and then my willingness to like, break some rules are a key.

[A]

You gotta talk about consistency because that is something we're not supposed to be good at. Clearly there are instances when we are. So what was the key there for you?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I think the autism gives people like a lot of repetition, tolerance. Like we can do the same. We like love to do the same thing over and over and over again. So in terms of growing my social media following, which is largely responsible for my business's success, like, I was able to. And I still do post two to three times a day, and I'm the writer on the account and I make the, I build the videos and it's very repetitive. And my partner, she jokes with me, she's like, I don't know how you do it every day. And I'm pretty sure it's the autism. I'm pretty sure that that is something I do vary it enough with music or with topics to keep it interesting for me, but I really think that that's a reason why I've been really successful is the repetition tolerance as well.

[A]

Well, it has been such a delight speaking to you, Liz. Where can people find you? If they want to know more about you, they want to buy you your book. All of it.

[B]

It's been such a delight speaking with you, Tracy. I'm on Instagram heworkoutwitch. There's an underscore at the end. If you want, you can DM me release and I'll send you a quick one minute exercise that you can try in bed. My website is theworkoutwitch.com and if you want to grab my book, it's theworkatwitch.com book. You can get it at Amazon at Waterstones if you're international. There are international links as well on that.

[A]

This is all going to be in the show Notes. First of all, I just want to thank you so much for spending time with us here today. I am a huge believer in what you are doing. I think the body is the missing link in the whole ADHD puzzle and when we can figure that out, the sky's the limit.

[B]

I do too. Thank you so much, Traci. It was great meeting you.

[A]

That's what I have for you for this week. If you like this episode with Liz, please let us know by leaving a review. Our goal is to change the conversation around adhd, helping as many women as we possibly can learn how their ADHD brains work so that they too may discover their amazing strengths. Thank you so much for listening and I'll see you here next week. You've been listening to the ADHD for Smartass Women podcast. I'm your host, Tracy Otsuka. Join us at adhd for smartwomen.com where you can find more information on my new book, ADHD for Smartass Women. And my patented you ADHD Brain is AOK system to help you get unstuck and fall in love with your brilliant brain. Let's pause here. Have you spent your whole life being told your way is the wrong way? If you try to use systems designed for a neurotypical brain, of course you'll feel like you're failing. But here's the truth. You were never the problem. You just have a different brain, which means you need different systems. That is exactly why I created the A OK Academy. It's my six step patented framework designed to help you reconnect with your intuition and build systems based on your unique strengths. Let me help you reconnect with your intuition. Trust yourself again and build a life that actually works for you. You've had the answers all along. I'll help you see them. Look, it's time to stop second guessing and start trusting yourself again. Find the link in the show notes to sign up or book a free discovery call. Now let's get back to it.