348 | October 2020 Q & A with Brendan Mahan and Will Curb and Moira Maybin

"Anything you can move to the night before, move to the night before and make it part of your wind-down ritual." Listen as Eric Tivers with his guests, Brendan Mahan, Will Curb, and Moira Maybin, answer questions from the listeners in our monthly Q & A session of ADHD reWired. We are taking questions from you, the listener, about situations you want to talk through. It doesn't matter if it's personal or professional; we are here to give you our perspective and see if we can help you find some answers. 

John starts the questions about how to know if he is in the right career for him, and Susan wants suggestions for adjusting her mental model of herself since being diagnosed with ADHD and taking meds. Katherine wants to know what Moira's new podcast is about, so Moira shares her background, her ideas for the podcast, and why she created it.

Christina wants suggestions on dealing with significant stress and keeping her emotions out of it. Ella needs ideas on keeping her on track with her daily routines and how to keep from getting sidetracked. Another listener has a 10-year-old with ADHD and oppositional defiance. She needs some guidance on what to do since she hasn't been able to get anyone to see her child because of the pandemic.

The last question today is from Rock. He wants guidance on how an ADHD parent can emotionally navigate the very pronounced ADHD symptoms presenting itself in his youngest child? Do any of these questions resonate with you? Were they helpful? We do this every month, so join us here next month for another episode of ADHD reWired Q & A.

Please note that when we discuss medications, we can only address personal experience. Anytime you have been prescribed a drug, you should reach out to your provider regarding your symptoms and experiences. Not all medications are useful for all people. There are various options, and you'll need individual help to determine which medicines are right for you.

We covered a wide range of topics, and we provide some creative takeaways no matter what stage you're in with your diagnosis. Listen in as we discuss your questions and the struggle we still have dealing with our ADHD.

Your Resources:

• ADHD Essentials Podcast with Brendan Mahan
• Hacking Your ADHD with William Curb

You'll learn:

• [01:36] Welcome to our monthly Q & A with Will Curb, Brendan Mahan, and Moira Maybin.
• [02:22] John starts by asking a question about not fitting in and wondering if he is in the right career for him.
• [03:54] Eric wants to know what challenges he has faced so far in his work experiences.
• [05:47] John shares that he could play all day in the google playground if he didn't have any restrictions.
• [09:11] Brendan gives his insights into John's questions.
• [11:31] Moira asks John if changing teams is a bad thing in the software engineering industry.
• [13:28] Eric suggests that there are a lot of assumptions in John's perspective.
• [15:03] Susan wants to get suggestions for adjusting the mental model of herself since taking medicine for her ADHD.
• [15:41] Eric believes the first step is acceptance.
• [16:23] Will adds that it takes a long time for your brain to accept a new reality.
• [17:20] Moira shares a couple of things she noticed when she started taking meds.
• [19:45] Eric encourages her to leave breadcrumbs to lead her back to the project she is working on.
• [20:37] Brendan believes that stopping when doing a project is a skill you have to train yourself in.
• [23:08] Eric says that one strategy is to drink water, which is the brain's oil.
• [25:12] Kathrine asks Moira what her podcast is about.
• [25:48] It will be about trying differently instead of harder in creating an ADHD lifestyle.
• [26:32] Moira shares her background and what she does now.
• [27:55] Christina asks how to deal with a significant amount of stress while keeping her emotions intact.
• [28:30] Eric has some questions about the dosage of medicine she is on.
• [29:44] Eric believes that if he doesn't exercise every morning, he feels stress and can't keep his emotions checked.
• [30:06] Brendan discusses asthma and how that can make him anxious.
• [31:00] Moira agrees with Brendan and adds that coffee can add to anxiety too.
• [32:08] Will says to stop doom scrolling because it raises your anxiety.
• [40:11] Ella knows what she needs to do, but it never seems to happen.
• [41:00] ADHD is the disorder of good intentions, and it's not odd to have trouble starting something that needs to be done.
• [42:06] Eric wants to know what other stuff is going on in her mind when she doesn't do what she needs to do.
• [42:48] Moira addresses her puttering and losing focus.
• [45:11] Eric asks her what the first thing she sees when she gets out of bed each morning.
• [47:11] Will shares his insight into cleaning up the night before.
• [50:03] Brendan shares how dopamine is part of the problem.
• [51:26] Eric talks about doing a dopamenu.
• [52:49] Brendan shares where to get a 10-year-old treated for ADHD and oppositional defiance.
• [55:13] Eric says to focus on the relationship with your child.
• [57:59] Moira believes it's important to take care of the parent who also has ADHD.
• [59:23] Rock wants to know how to guide an ADHD parent to emotionally navigate the very pronounced ADHD symptoms presenting itself in his youngest child?
• [1:00:07] Brendan says to hang out with your kids more; some of the issues is your kid needing connection.
• [1:03:12] Thank you for listening!
• [1:03:59] If you are a regular listener, consider becoming a patron by clicking on our Patreon tab at www.ADHDreWired.com

Links and Resources

• cnn.com/specials/us/the-good-stuff
• How To ADHD with Jessica McCabe

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http://www.audibletrial.com/ADHDreWired

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