Hot Topic: ADHD Brain Stimulation — Breakthrough or Placebo?

Summary

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The Neurodivergent Experience

Hot Topic: ADHD Brain Stimulation — Breakthrough or Placebo?

Hosts: Jordan James and Simon Scott
Date: April 2, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this Hot Topic episode, Jordan and Simon dive deep into the recent buzz around brain stimulation devices as a treatment for ADHD, debating whether these are groundbreaking solutions or simply overhyped placebos. Anchoring the discussion in lived experience and skepticism about medical research culture, the hosts dissect new UK and US studies on Trigeminal Nerve Stimulation (TNS), share personal perspectives on medication, and challenge how ADHD is understood and managed both medically and culturally.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What Is Trigeminal Nerve Stimulation (TNS)?

• Explanation of TNS:
  • Non-invasive brain stimulation device that provides gentle electric pulses to brain regions involved in attention and self-control, worn on the head while sleeping ([02:55]).
  • Marketed as an alternative/adjunct to medication, appealing for its minimal side effects.

2. Lived Experience With ADHD Treatments

• Medication Realities:

  • Kelly and Host 1 (Jordan) strongly support methylphenidate for managing symptoms, noting emotional and concentration benefits but acknowledge medication doesn’t work for everyone and comes with side effects ([03:23]).
  • Quote - Kelly:

    "Methylphenidate... quietens down the very noisy brain that autistic neurodivergent in general people have... closes a lot of tabs." ([03:35])

• Alternative Treatments:

  • Hosts are open to non-pharmaceutical options but emphasize these should complement, not replace, medication ([03:23]).

3. Evaluating the Science Behind Brain Stimulation

• Early US Research (UCLA):

  • Found TNS “effective” in reducing child ADHD symptoms, but control groups received no stimulation (potential placebo effect) ([06:08]).
  • FDA approved TNS in the US; expensive private market entry in the UK; no NHS approval due to “lack of strong evidence” ([07:02]).

• Criticism of Research Methods:

  • Kelly questions NHS reluctance:

    "They don't want to pay for it...Not enough evidence. They really freaking hate us, don't they? Jesus Christ. This is children." ([07:07])

  • Host 1 notes the need for rigorous, placebo-controlled testing to truly determine efficacy, referencing Professor Katya Rubia’s Kings College London study with an active control group. This found TNS safe but not effective in reducing ADHD symptoms ([08:43]).

• Replication Crisis:

  • Host 1 highlights the broader need for studies that stand up to scientific replication, especially in psychology ([09:13]).

4. Cultural & Medical Biases

• Medicalization vs. Understanding:

  • Hosts critique the academic community’s fixation on fixing/curing neurodivergence rather than accommodating or understanding it ([19:02]).
  • Quote - Host 1 (Jordan):

    "It comes from the angle of trying to fix, trying to repair, trying to cure, rather than just trying to understand." ([19:03])

• Misconceptions and Stereotypes:

  • ADHD diagnostic criteria and naming are misleading, perpetuate stereotypes focused only on concentration and hyperactivity ([13:24]).

  • Quote - Kelly:

    “I think the problem does come from the name itself. ADHD, Attention Deficit...You can't escape the stereotype because it's in the name.” ([13:24])

  • Stigma and expertise: lived experience is often undervalued compared to academic credentials ([16:51], [22:16]).

5. Community Knowledge & Self-Advocacy

• Value of Lived Experience:

  • Both hosts note community support, peer validation, and shared insight fill gaps left by official research ([16:05], [21:49]).
  • Quote - Host 1 (Jordan):

    "These are the sorts of conversations that would have really helped us when we were figuring all this out...Why are they so far behind?" ([16:05])

• Social Media and Awareness:

  • Neurodivergence is more openly discussed online—even outside specialist circles—raising awareness and cultural literacy ([19:22]).

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• Medication & Concentration:

  "Methylphenidate... closes a lot of tabs." – Kelly ([03:35])

• Healthcare Frustration:

  "They really freaking hate us, don't they? Jesus Christ. This is children. Who, why, why do people hate children?" – Kelly ([07:07])

• On 'Fixing' vs 'Understanding' ADHD:

  "It comes from the angle of trying to fix, trying to repair, trying to cure, rather than just trying to understand." – Host 1, Jordan ([19:03])

• Critique of Research Institutions:

  "It amazes me how King's College London ... are literally playing catch up with us. But these are the people that the NHS listen to." – Host 1, Jordan ([16:05])

• On the Weight of Lived Experience:

  "Because I have the education, because I have the degree, somehow I definitely, definitely know more than you ... the parameters we exist under to understand and get into something far outweigh the limitations of doing a degree in it." – Kelly ([22:16])

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Timed Segment Breakdown

• [02:55] – What is TNS and how is it used for ADHD?
• [03:23] – Hosts discuss personal experiences with methylphenidate and its use in the ADHD and autistic community
• [06:08] – US study cited, concerns about placebo effect in original research
• [07:02 – 07:24] – Discussion on UK healthcare resistance, cost/policy angles, and children's welfare
• [08:43] – Kings College London research with placebo controls finds TNS not effective
• [09:41 – 10:17] – Personal stories of using similar devices for other purposes, skepticism about 'electrocuting children'
• [11:50] – Nuances of ADHD beyond just concentration; critique of stereotyped understandings
• [13:24] – The impact of ADHD’s name on public and medical perceptions
• [16:05] – The lived experience vs. academic knowledge gap
• [19:02 – 19:22] – Critique on research ‘fixing’ mentality; value of social media & community
• [21:49 – 23:36] – Reflection on differences between academic education and lived expertise

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Tone & Takeaways

• Tone: Candid, humorous, sometimes acerbically critical, with a strong sense of lived camaraderie and advocacy for neurodivergent voices.
• Key Takeaway: While brain stimulation devices generate hope (and hype) for non-medication ADHD treatment, robust evidence is lacking and both research and policy lag behind the nuanced needs and realities of neurodivergent people. The community itself continues to lead in self-understanding and advocacy for more compassionate, personalized approaches.

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Bottom Line

The episode concludes with the message: be critical, be curious, and value real, nuanced experiences over hype or reductive medicalization. As Kelly jokes, “don’t electrocute your children in the head unless they ask you to.” ([24:00])

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Next Up: Mindful Mondays.
Hosts encourage listener feedback on ADHD treatments and invite audience to continue the discussion.

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Transcript

[Progressive Insurance Announcer]

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[Kelly]

And I'm Kelly.

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[Kelly]

Hot topic. Hello and welcome to to the Neuro Spicy News Hot Topic and your breaking

[Podcast Host 1]

news story today, a new ADHD treatment. Is it worth the hype?

[Kelly]

Question mark?

[Podcast Host 1]

Question mark question questions, questions, answers, answers. Probably, probably, probably not.

[Kelly]

Who knows.

[Podcast Host 1]

Okay, here we go. Researchers from King's College London have published new research into the treatment for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, also known as Dun dun Dun adhd.

[Kelly]

The Jordan. The Jordan deficit.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah, he is patient zero. He is the missing link. So yeah, it's as the article states. This is from raw, which is the King's College London like student paper. So hi kids. Says here a study by researchers at the University of California. Oh no, I've skipped the article. Bloody hell. Damn. ADHD says ADHD causes difficulties with concentration, impulsivity and hyperactivity. It affects around 3 million people in the UK. Allegedly. It's generally managed through lifestyle changes, talking therapy and medications. For many children with adhd, school becomes increasingly difficult to manage. I know this isn't all breaking news. For most of us, ADHD medication can cause side effects like insomnia, headaches and appetite loss, making parents apprehensive. Thus, there is a growing need for different kinds of treatment. Here we are. Brain stimulation devices are a potential solution. Gaining increasing popularity. These are non evasive with minimal side effects. One brain stimulation device is Trigominal Nerve Stimulation or tns. The device is worn on the head while asleep. It provides gentle electric pulses to stimulate brain regions involved in attention and self control. What do you think to that?

[Kelly]

It sounds like a great Addition to the medication because we, we've been over this before. The methylphenidate for us, it helps us regulate our emotions as well as the concentration makes me very chilled. So I, I 1 I I keep saying that they, they need to bring methylphenidate is to help people who are only diagnosed as autistic because same brain, methylphenidate doesn't just help with concentration. How it helps with concentration is it stops the noise. It quietens down the very noisy brain that autistic neurodivergent in general people have. It's not just people who are diagnosed. ADHD closes a lot of tabs. Yes, it really helps and that's what helps with concentration. At the end of the day, if you really are not interested in the thing that you're trying to concentrate on, methylphenidate isn't going to be like a magic pill that will suddenly make you concentrate on that thing. That takes hard work, that takes a lot of effort, a lot of spoons, a lot of energy, coffee and in my opinion, some mindfulness to help us center ourselves so we have that energy because trying to concentrate and learn something that we don't really care about. So if it's for your job or for school and kids doing so many GCSes all at the same time is, yeah, that's insane. It's really, really, really bad. But it is what it is. And they're not going to like all the subjects, but they have to get good marks in all of them. And if this, if this also helps with brain stimulation and, and it's showing good results, then I'm all for it. I'm for anything that helps us. But, but like to take, don't take away medication, but sometimes people react badly to medication. So for those people who actually can't have the medication, it just doesn't work for them like it does for you and me. And if this is an alternative and it's anything that helps us is I'm all for as long as it's. As long as it's not nefarious.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah, no, I agree.

[Kelly]

What does the study say?

[Podcast Host 1]

So a study by researchers at the University of California, that's ucla, investigated TNS in children with adhd, finding it effective in reducing ADHD symptoms. However, the study contained a major limitation. The children in the control group received no stimulation at all. This poses a risk for the placebo effect as the children could easily tell whether or not they were receiving the treatment. The mere belief and expectation in the success of the treatment may have reduced ADHD symptoms. Even so, the US Food and Drug Administration, the fda, approved TNS as a viable treatment option, allowing it to enter the private clinic market in the UK at a significant cost, of course, to families affected by adhd. But the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in the UK has yet to approve the treatment in the nhs, citing a lack of strong evidence in favor of it.

[Kelly]

In other words, they don't want to pay for it.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah, they don't want to pay for it though. Expensive. We don't want to pay.

[Kelly]

Here's something that might help you. We don't believe in suffering. There's not enough evidence. They really freaking hate us, don't they? Jesus Christ. This is children. Who, why, why do people hate children?

[Podcast Host 1]

And these are just diagnosed ones. These aren't the highly masking.

[Kelly]

God damn the British government, honestly. Jesus Christ. Look, if it comes from America, I'm always a little bit like, I mean, their standards aren't great.

[Podcast Host 1]

As soon as they said like electro pulse to the stimulant brain, I was like, are they gonna tell me to bite down on something and yeah, put a metal thing in my head.

[Kelly]

But the fact is, is that, I mean, saying that these kids, ADHD symptoms were reduced and there was like, oh, is it because they, because they're getting it or it's because they, it's the placebo effect, they're masking it. But I, I don't think kids do that. That's not really kids. That's. Kids are just going to be kids. I, I would love, instead of, instead of the answer from the NHS being, nah, not enough strong evidence. Maybe spend some money on seeing if there's evidence for it, doing their own research, doing their own tests. But this is the same government that don't want to do right to choose anymore because it's too expensive helping children.

[Podcast Host 1]

Won't somebody please think of the children? Yeah, well, I'll continue. Researchers under Professor Katya Rubia at kcl, that's King's College London, addressed these limitations by conducting a study on 150 children with ADHD, including a group that wore devices that looked like and provided stimulation similar to a TNS device. This ensured expectations would not influence results. Findings show that although TNS was safe, it was not effective in reducing symptoms of adhd. Such research highlights the needs for multiple rigorous tests of novel treatment methods, ensuring effective solutions. This will also help counter the replication crisis wherein many findings across science, especially in psychology, tend not to replicate. Even though TNS might not be effective in reducing symptoms of adhd, it sheds light on possible avenues to investigate safe and successful treatments.

[Kelly]

So I've had one of these machines.

[Podcast Host 1]

Oh, really?

[Kelly]

Yeah. But it was for my back.

[Podcast Host 1]

Oh. Like electromagnetic shock. So.

[Kelly]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's to relax your back. And now I definitely don't. Wouldn't have liked the idea of sticking it on my head. Personally, sticking on the heads of children may maybe not the best, but at the end of the day, you know, some. Some little Jimmy has to. Has to suffer. For the rest of us, apparently, somebody's

[Podcast Host 1]

got to be the test subject, sit

[Kelly]

him in a chair, electrocute his head.

[Podcast Host 1]

This one really can't see what he does now.

[Kelly]

Yeah, we'll just experiment on the Americans so the rest of the world can have it. But honestly, no, joking aside, it doesn't sound great electrocuting kids in the head. But like that. It's not that. It really isn't. It's not that severe. And like I said, if it. If it is shown to help and people are wanting it. But my thing is when it says ADHD symptoms, it's like, you know, there's more than one. It's not just struggling to concentrate. And it does always come down to this stereotype of, like, OCD means you have to clean everything, and autism means that you can't look people in the eye, and dyslexia means that you can't spell. And, you know, ADHD means that you can't concentrate on things. Those may be true, but there's a lot more to it. And I think that's where things like this fail, because you'd. You'd have to know exactly what that kid is doing and how it relates to adhd. And this is the whole thing is they're just like, well, it's not an ADHD symptom. And it's like, well, maybe it helps them with a neurodivergent deficit. And this, again, this is the issue of them separating everything, of just like, oh, it's only this or it's only that. It's like, this is. This is one brain, people.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah, there's a lot of crossover and there's a lot of nuance. But it's interesting with the symptoms because methylphenidate is, for me personally, been a game changer, like from my emotional state, my rumination, my ability to not necessarily focus at work, but navigate work, to be able to have communication with people and to just sort of be all around better at my job. But it's also helped me in my relationship and of other things. But the appetite thing is a. And it can really sometimes mess with my head, and it doesn't turn off interoception. I still forget to drink. And when I have methylphenidate coursing through my veins, it does dehydrate you. So there are symptoms that come from, you know, being dehydrated and not eating enough and things like that. But there's a lot more to it in the. I have insomnia traits because I can't turn my brain off. Methylphenidate does not help with that. If anything, it makes it worse. You know, it makes me struggle to fall asleep. So I'm intrigued as to why whenever these people are looking at symptoms, is always focusing. There's so much more to an ADHD neurodiver, you know, this alternative neurotype that has so much overlap, and they only ever seem to be focusing on the. On the things that neurotypicals pick up on.

[Kelly]

I think. I think the problem does come from the name itself. Adhd, Attention Deficit. Because I think that does need to change. I think we need to change the name of this condition as far as the. The criteria gives it power, because it doesn't exist. You know, these things don't exist in our brain. These are just things we do and behaviors that we portray and deficits that we have that are then given a name. We've been over this. These aren't real things. It's not like, oh, there's. This is my nose. You know, it's not like that. They're just names. So I think it would. Now we know more about. Because when I was a kid, I was just hyperactive. It was called hyperactivity.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah, I was hyperactive Blue Smarties and.

[Kelly]

Yeah, yeah, all that. And then it was adhd, and it means the same. It's hyperactive deficits. Hyperactive disorder. You can consider it whatever you like. A disorder, disability, a condition. You can. That's for you to decide. But at least when it comes to autism, there's a. There's a name. Whether you like it or not, there is at least a name. So there's. There's more nuance to it. Whereas when it's adhd, it's literally in the name. Is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. You can't escape the stereotype because it's in the name.

[Podcast Host 1]

The name above the door. Yeah.

[Kelly]

So I think the way to battle this idea that it's just a concentration issue is by changing the name.

[Podcast Host 1]

Or.

[Kelly]

Or we go, okay, so ADHD is just a concentration issue. There's nothing more to it. And then all those other behaviors in the criteria, those are something different now, which by the way, they are, it's called the alternative neurotype and the reduction and the over synaptic pruning. But again, nothing about that in that article.

[Podcast Host 1]

It always amazes me how you and I, two friends that share our lived experiences on a podcast, because these are the sorts of conversations that would have really helped us when we were figuring all this out. And it amazes me how King's College London is a, it's a top unit, you know, it's not like it's, you know, like a community college, it's a top university. Not that that's a slight against community colleges, but I know this. You know this. Most of the people that I speak to in the community know this shit. Why are they so far behind? Like they're literally playing catch up with us. But these are the people that the NHS listen to

[Kelly]

because we don't have the credentials. And that's, that's what it comes down to. And, and I've said this before, is that the, the so called experts, their cognitive dissonance just gets in the way. They're like, oh no, this is what it is. And then that's it. And they, they always any. And we've been over this time and time again. Any research that happens, neurodivergent people always comes from a place of negativity. How to fix it, how to, how to help it. And there's nothing wrong with accommodating accommodate. We do need help with things. But also recognize that it's not just something that's a damage, that there is an upside to it. And I think, dude, I don't understand why every article about neurodivergent research doesn't involve talking about the synaptic pruning process. When I've literally listened to so many news articles and read so many papers and even a podcast with Stephen Fry that came out in 2022 that was talking about the brain. It was a whole series, a podcast series he did about the brain. And one of them was about, oh, I mean it's neurodiversity, but we know it's about neurodivergence. And in that episode he talks about the synaptic pathways and the difference. So that was 2022, I was talking about this in 2019. The research was there. It, I don't understand why, why it's continuously ignored when it, it's just there and it makes so much sense. Because if we understand that, then. Then maybe there's ways of improving that. So. I don't know, man.

[Podcast Host 1]

No, I agree with you. It's always so frustrating that it's a. It comes from the angle of trying to fix, trying to repair, trying to cure, rather than just trying to understand. Like, if they put as much effort into trying to understand neurodivergence compared to, you know, trying to fix it, how much further ahead do you think we could be?

[Kelly]

Well, the good thing is, is that at least as a community and the outreach of social media, which is not always great, let's be honest, but at least there's. There's more people out there that are giving their side of it. You know, it's doing what we're doing. It. It does seem a lot more common, even to the fact that when I was listening to one of the podcasts the other day about the Reddit stories, the Reddit. In fact, the Reddit story that we literally talked about yesterday, the. The. The girl who was reacting to that story immediately went, oh, I'm adhd and I get hyper fixations. This sounds exactly the same. She recognized it immediately, and she said. She actually used the word neurodivergent. She went, I'm neurodivergent. And this is a, you know, American girl on this podcast. They're not specialists. They're not. That. That's. That's not what they're there for. They're there just to talk about random Reddit stories. But she, you know, game recognizes game. And she was like, oh, that sounds exactly like me. And that really cheered me up because I was like, huh? It's just. It is out there. The issue is this. It's. It doesn't seem to be out there in scientific spaces where it should be, because they've still got this idea that they know best. It's like when you go to the doctor and you've got all the symptoms from this one thing, and you tell them everything like that, and they go, I'll decide what it is. And then I'm. No word of a lie. They turn around and they go, could be anything. And I go, well. Well, according to this, it's definitely this, because I've got. Every time I go to the doctors, I go with, like, 10 hours of research. The day before. No, it's funny, actually. I was watching the New Scrubs, and it's brilliant, by the way. The. The New Scrubs, and JD Is saying, oh, it's a lot easier being a doctor now because you just do this. And he starts talking through his phone. It's just AI and he's like asking it the questions in AI and just gives him all the answers. And he's like, oh, yeah, it's so much easier than the Doctor nowadays. Yeah, right.

[Podcast Host 1]

Well, one of the things that I will say just before we wrap up this episode, I enjoyed university. I was in university for four years. But one of the things that definitely occurred to me is that a lot of people that have been in it and have stayed in it from my own experience didn't actually have a lot of lived experience. Like, they talked from a very academic point of view. And then as soon as ever, every time I used to bring up lived experience, they used to be like, well, I don't know about that. Like, interesting.

[Kelly]

Yeah. There's definitely this attitude of because I. Because I have the education, because I have the degree, somehow I definitely, definitely know more than you. And I'm thinking, well, if you know what they told you and you studied what they told you to study, and that's how you ended up doing your dissertation or doing your exam, and that's how you have your degree, because you did what they told you to do, you followed their rules. The greatest thing about being a researcher and having that research brain that we have is we can research everything, we can look into everything. And I'm not saying that we always get it right, of course we don't. But the parameters that we exist under to understand and get into something far outweigh the limitations of doing a degree in it.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

So doing a degree means that you absolutely have a very, very high knowledge of something. But when you were doing that degree, did you then go and do loads of other research on something, or did you only learn what they told you? Well, we know the answer to that.

[Podcast Host 1]

Yeah, very interesting. Well, that's been your hot topic for this week. Would love to hear your opinions on this and one of these new treatments that's out there, even though it's already very quickly been debunked by the sounds of things. And, yeah, love to hear your thought. We will be back next Thursday. Ashley will be with you for Mindful Mondays. You guessed it, on a Monday, this has been your hot topic. Be nice to yourself, be kind, be

[Kelly]

safe, and don't electrocute your children in

[Podcast Host 1]

the head unless they ask you to. Bye, everybody. Thanks for tuning in to the neurodivergent experience. We hope today's episode sparks something for you, whether it's a new idea, a bit of validation, or just a moment of connection. Remember, new episodes are every week, so be sure to join us for the next one for more conversations and insights into the neurodivergent experience. If you've enjoyed this podcast, help us grow. You can do that by rating and reviewing this show. Your support makes a huge difference in helping us reach more people who could benefit from these conversations. You can connect with us on social media, find us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok. Just search for the neurodivergent experience. Thank you again for listening and until next time, take care of yourself. You're not alone in this journey.

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