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Hello, my friend. Welcome back to Navigating Adult adhd. And if this is your first time listening, I just wanted to say welcome to Team adhd. Hi, welcome. I am so happy that you are here. In today's episode, we are going to be covering five things to know and do when you get your ADHD diagnosis. So if you have recently got your diagnosis, maybe you're feeling relieved, maybe you're feeling confused or just unsure where to start. I've got you. Okay, so this episode today, these five things that I am going to share are from a recent checklist that I put together, which is 10 things to know and do after an ADHD diagnosis. If you want to get the full checklist, it's completely free and I consider it like the start here guide of what I wish I had when I was starting out, you can visit navigating adultadhd.com checklist and that will recap the five things that I'm going to share with you here. Also pop them together in a checklist and then it'll give you another five that I think are really important when starting out.
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All right?
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So before we dive in, I just wanted to let you know that your diagnosis, getting diagnosed is just the beginning, right? Everything starts to make sense. It's so good. But ADHD is not something we need to fix. It's something that we need to work with, right? We simply have a different brain. So if you were to imagine that you have been playing a video game, a video game called Life, right, for 35 years, except you didn't know that there was an instruction manual, right? Now that you know you've got adhd, like there's an instruction manual for that. We can learn to work with the ADHD brain instead of, you know, trying to do everything the neurotypical way or fighting against ourselves. So. So learning how to work with it takes time, but it's so worth it. And what I'm trying to do here is help you shortcut that, right? Make it more fun, give you the shortcut, right? Some of the cheat codes, that sort of thing to make it easier, right? So let's get into it. Five things to know and do when you get your diagnosis. Number one, being ADHD means that we have an interest based attention system. And this is good news, okay? Your ADHD brain is wired for interest, right? If something is interesting to you, right? You're all over it. So what that means is we prioritize things based on interest, right? We prioritize things that are interesting over things that are Important. This is a difference. Often our non ADHD friends, they prioritize based on importance, whereas we do not. We prioritize based on interest. Okay, so if you've ever noticed that you can like lose track of time when you're doing something you're really passionate about, hello. That's called hyper focus, right? I once lost hours of time googling how deep the ocean is, what lives down there, all sorts of things. So again, coming back to this interest based attention system, we can actually use that to our advantage. We can help our brain get on board with tasks that we might struggle with or, you know, not want to do by adding an element of interest, right? So there's a tool called the NICU tool. NICU stands for novelty, interest, challenge and urgency. So we can help our brain get on board if we can make a task novel or interesting. Challenging, an element of challenge we like, or add a deadline, some urgency. Okay, so one of the ways in which I do this, because I'm not a big fan of writing, right? And my job requires a lot of writing. I put together workbooks, I send out emails, right? I do a lot of writing and my project later in the year is to write a book. However, because I'm not a huge fan of that, I don't like to sit down and write. I make it interesting, right? And I'll do this by going for a walk and dictating into my phone. So whether I just go for a walk in my neighborhood, we've got some beautiful walks, I live close to the beach, and I'll just dictate things into my phone and my phone will type it up. Then in order to get it formatted, to get it finished or, you know, put the email together and scheduled, what I'll do is I'll create a deadline in a novel environment. So what I do is I charge up my laptop and I leave the charger at home and then I go to a cafe. I've got a favorite cafe, like literally just down the road. And I will go there and I will do the formatting. I will finish getting it all put together. And I don't have my charger, so my laptop's gonna go dead, thus creating a deadline. And of course, being in a cafe is so fun. There's something about being in a cafe that creates this. I have to work because everybody's like watching me work environment thing for me. Weird, but it works, right? Win, win. Okay, so again, number one, you have an interest based attention system, right? Your attention goes to things that you are interested in or might be more interested than the thing that you're doing at this present time. Okay? Number two, having ADHD means that our dopamine systems work differently and effectively. It's like saying we have less dopamine, all right, and we can actually boost it naturally, which is great. Dopamine is a chemical in our brain, a little brain chemical floating around. And it plays a very big role in motivation, motivating us to act, to do things. It also plays a role in focus, our ability to focus and our satisfaction, how satisfied we feel with our life, as well as doing some other important brain things. Now, dopamine is often referred to as the feel good neurotransmitter in the brain because when it's released into our body, when we get some dopamine, it feels very good. Okay? For example, like the moment you click book on the trip to Hawaii, big surge of dopamine. So our ADHD brains, because we've got less of this dopamine, we are always seeking it, right? And things that are interesting produce dopamine. Hence, number one, right? We are interest based. So our brains are always seeking dopamine. But one important thing to note is that not all dopamine is created equal. Okay? So for example, you can get dopamine from scrolling on your phone, from drinking alcohol, from fast food, from gaming, right? Playing games. And you can get dopamine from things like exercise, cold water therapy, being in nature, working on your hobbies or your interests, your goals. Okay? Now, one type of dopamine, right? The quick dopamine that fast dopamine that creates a drop in dopamine when we finish. I'm probably not explaining it too well, but I explained it so many times that I just go really f. So let me come back to this. Quick dopamine and slow dopamine, okay? So quick dopamine would be like getting a lemon, right? If you chopped a lemon in half and you got one half of the lemon and you squeezed all of the juice out, right? That is quick dopamine. So you scroll on your phone for 20 minutes. As soon as you finish, you've got no juice left in the lemon, right? Slow dopamine would be like going for a walk in nature with a friend for 20 minutes. That would be like getting the other half of your lemon and slowly squeezing it, drip, drip, drip, drip. Even when you finish the walk with your friend, right? You've still got juice in your lemon. You've still got dopamine being released into your system. Okay? So quick Dopamine gives you a real quick high, right? Like a spike in dopamine. And then as soon as you stop the activity, right, you stop drinking alcohol, whatever, you stop eating the fast food, it starts to drop, and it drops below the level that you were at initially. Whereas your slow dopamine slowly increases, right? And depending on the activity, it can stay high for a while and then it slowly decreases and it generally doesn't drop below that line or far below your initial line. We call the baseline level, like the amount of gas you've got in your tank, the amount of dopamine you have. Okay? So what that means is that there are certain activities, slow dopamine activities, that if you do them regularly, you can increase the amount that you've got in the tank. So what that does is it helps with your ability to be motivated, right? Your ability to take action and do things, your ability to be more focused and enjoy your life more. So often what I see is those of us with adhd, we're very out of balance and we go to a lot of quick dopamine sources and we have these big spikes and crashes, spikes and crashes. Whereas if we can lean more towards, and I'm saying, like, just tip the scale so it's more 50, 50, if not like 60, 40, even towards the slow dopamine, it can make a massive improvement on our ADHD symptoms, our ability to focus, to get things done, all of that. So one of the pro tips I give is eat high protein, right? So, you know, that's for me, like, I eat a lot of meat. If you can get a really good quality protein powder. Eggs. I always have eggs for breakfast. Like, like there's lots of different things that give you protein. Obviously, that's just where I'm at right now. But high protein, right, because that helps with the production of dopamine. That is one tip straight away.
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All right?
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But again, there are a lot of things we can do to increase that slow dopamine in our system. Number three, my friends, medication alone is not enough. Think of medication as like one of the tools on your ADHD tool belt, okay? Don't get me wrong, medication can be incredibly helpful, right? But as I said, just consider it one of the tools on the belt, right? And the more tools you've got, the better your life's going to be ultimately, right? So if you're using medication or you're starting out on that journey, here's what you need to know. Finding the right medication and the right dosage can and will take time So I recommend you allow a year to get that dialed in.
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Right.
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Some people I've seen take longer than that myself. I was a year, and many people that I know have been around about a year. The people I've coached, supported, etc, and in that time, as you're, you know, trying medication, you're starting it and, you know, often initially, like, oh, my God, this feels amazing. Keep watching, because things change, okay? So pay attention to your symptoms, and I actually encourage you to track them. Look at your anxiety, look at your mood, look at your focus. You know, the things that you have been previously struggling with, like, keep a track of those and pay attention to them over time, are they improving? Are they getting worse, or are they staying the same? Okay, so for example, the very first medication I took, I felt great to start with, but over time, I noticed that my anxiety was increasing to the point I didn't really want to leave the house and be social, and my mood was decreasing.
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Right.
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Like, not good. Okay, so what you need to know about meds is you got to advocate for yourself.
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Right?
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If you aren't sure, ask questions. If it doesn't feel right, tell your medical profession and explore other options with those professionals. Okay. And continue to add to your ADHD tool belt.
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Right.
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So I highly recommend coaching. Obviously, I'm an ADHD coach, and it's changed my life, but therapy is another incredible option. Highly recommend that. I've also got an episode. It's episode number 20 of this podcast. And number 20 is why ADHD meds aren't enough. And 13 other tools you can use. All right, so definitely check out that episode so you can put some more tools on your belt, my friend. All right, number four. This one's so fascinating. We have trouble with something called interoception, and I just refer to it as our sixth sense. So interoception is how we feel and perceive what's going on inside of our body. All right, so it's like our body's internal alarm, for example, like knowing that you need a pee. Like the urge to pee or the feeling of fullness during or after a meal.
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Right.
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It's also that that sixth sense is what identifies emotions before they become extreme.
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So it would say to you, hey, you're starting to feel a bit of stress. It would be good to do something about it now instead of it getting to, like, overwhelm, like throwing your toys out the cot. Really, really bad sort of a state. Okay? It's what says, hey, let's take action now before this gets Worse, right? However, when the alarm is on silent, we don't always get that memo, right? So this is why you might feel like you go from 0 to 100 real quick, right? It's why you might forget to drink water, why you might forget to eat or overeat, right? And it, again, has a lot to do with our emotional dysregulation and our, you know, inability to act before our emot emotions get huge and big and overwhelming. So this system, this interoception, helps our body get what it needs when it needs it, right? To keep it happy.
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Right?
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So when we struggle with interoception, which ADHDs do, the true source of our discomfort can't always be pinpointed, which can result in us not taking action to rectify it until it becomes extreme. So, for example, sometimes I will miss the warning signs that I need to pee until I'm, like, jumping out of my seat, running to the toilet, like, squeezing my legs together, like, oh, my God, this is terrible. Why didn't I do something about this sooner?
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Right?
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But again, it has a lot to do with our emotions, too. And the good news, my friend, is that we can increase our interoceptive awareness.
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All right?
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Again, there's a whole podcast here on that. And I've just putting the final finishing touches on the emotional regulation course, which I will be launching soon. It will also be available to our members inside Navigating adult ADHD membership. But I talk a lot about interoception in there because it's such a crucial part of being able to regulate our emotions, calm ourselves down, et cetera. Number five. So number five is ADHD symptoms can change day to day, right? Especially with hormones.
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All right?
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So anyone who has a hormonal cycle out there, I'm talking to you. Okay? Hormones can have a significant impact on our ADHD symptoms. In fact, it's why most women are diagnosed from ADHD, sorry, from age 35 onwards, okay? Myself included. And that's when our estrogen levels begin to change. And that means that symptoms become harder to mask or manage with our previous coping strategies. Okay, so when estrogen drops, which is typically the week before our period arrives, right? When estrogen drops, so does dopamine.
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Right?
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And dopamine is so important. So what that means is not only do we experience our regular PMS sort of symptoms, but less dopamine means increased ADHD symptoms, Meaning it could be harder to focus, harder to pay attention, harder to regulate your emotions. What I noticed last week, because that was me last week. I noticed that my memory was so much worse than normal. So I would be on a call with somebody and I would have, like, something I was saying to connect to something and I'd forget what I was connecting it to and I'd be like, hang on a minute, I just need a second, I've lost it. And I just had to pause and it would eventually come back to me, but it was so much worse than it normally is. And I was like, oh, that's fascinating. And of course, it's because I'm in that part of my cycle when my ADHD symptoms are sort of fired up. So cycle tracking is so useful. A very simple way to do that. Of course you can get apps with all the bings and dings and all of that, but a simple way to do it is literally get a calendar and stick it next to your toilet. I kid you not, I saw this in another Facebook group and I was like, fucking genius. So I've got a calendar next to the toilet and that way, keep a pen in there. You just write. When you've got your cycle, you write what you notice, write your symptoms right? Everybody sits down in there sometimes, write some notes. That way you can easily keep track.
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All right.
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Because that info really does help us to understand why and when things are going to be different each month. Okay. Allowing ourselves to. To support ourselves accordingly, but also when we need it for our medical professionals and the team of people that are helping us. If we're working with a naturopath, if we're working with, you know, it could be your doctor or your psychiatrist, what have you, that information. Being able to sort of track your symptoms, knowing what's happening with your cycle, very, very useful. All right, so again, symptoms can change day to day. One thing I do want to put in there is our symptoms can change hugely depending on how much sleep we get. All right, and that's. I've got a whole section on sleep in the checklist, the 10 things to know and do.
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Right.
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The full breakdown. I'm just sharing five today, but I talk about sleep in there and how to work on improving your sleep, which is something many ADHDers can have difficulty with. And there's reasons for that. I've got a whole episode on that. But if. If we have a shit sleep, right, what happens? We're more tired, everything is harder. All of our ADHD symptoms fire up, right? So things like sleep make a huge difference on the day to day symptoms that we will experience. Also, I know for me, I'm way more irritable. And frustrated as soon as my meds wear off on a day when I hadn't slept well the night before. Like, I'm not a joy to be around sometimes. Like I just need to take myself off to bed. It's true. And when we do talk about symptoms changing day to day, what that means is our expectation of ourselves and what we can achieve needs to change day to day too, my friend. So I've got a pro tip for you. If you have 30% today and you give 30% today, then you gave 100%. Okay? So don't expect the same level of productivity from yourself every single day.
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All right?
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That is a not a fair ask, my friend. All right, so again, to get that full list of the 10 things to know and do when you get your ADHD diagnosis along with like, I've got links to like podcast episodes, I've mentioned additional resources, recommendations, et cetera. To get that, head over to navigatingadultadhd.com and of course I will drop the link in the episode show notes too. And if you're still here, I just wanted to remind you, in a couple of days I'm going to be hosting that free masterclass online. So I would highly encourage you to come along to that where you will learn the four steps to a happier and easier life after an ADHD diagnosis. And it's super simple, easy to apply ADHD friendly stuff. A one hour class where I actually give you tools, strategies, I give you a workbook to apply what you're learning, right? You've got a recording. If you can't make it live, you can watch it anytime within seven days. You just need to come and save your spot. Okay, so that's happening on Thursday 20th February, 12 o', clock lunchtime. And again, it's on Zoom, right? You can be in your pajamas. It's totally okay. And you won't even be on screen. Just me.
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All right?
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Probably won't be in my pajamas. I'll drop a link for you to register for that as well. I definitely recommend that you grab your seat.
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All right.
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Huge love, my friend. Have a beautiful week. I'll speak to you soon.