ADHD Running in Heels

Ep014 - ADHD, Brain Fog and Estrogen

What if the problem isn’t burnout, age, or motivation - but estrogen? In this episode of Running in Heels, we unpack the cognitive chaos that hits high-functioning ADHD women during perimenopause and menopause. The conversation moves beyond hot flashes and mood swings into the neurochemical fault line where estrogen and dopamine collide. You’ll hear what the data actually shows - 94% of ADHD women report worsening symptoms, 70% call the brain fog life-altering, and nearly half don’t discover their diagnosis until their forties. You’ll meet Elaine, a senior executive whose sharpness starts to slip as her chemistry rewrites itself, and you’ll learn why this isn’t personal failure - it’s biology misread by systems built for hormonal stability. This episode explains how fluctuating estrogen disrupts executive function, why medication suddenly feels unpredictable, and how workplaces mislabel neurological volatility as burnout. You’ll also learn what scaffolds actually work - cycle mapping, medication synchronization, load redesign, and language that turns shame into data. This episode isn’t about fixing women’s brains. It’s about redesigning systems that still expect linear performance from cyclical bodies. Key Topics: * The dopamine–estrogen link and its role in executive function * How perimenopause unmasks long-compensated ADHD patterns * The difference between burnout and biochemical fluctuation * Scaffolds that stabilize function during hormonal transition * Why leadership and medicine must evolve beyond the male baseline READY TO GET MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR PARTICULAR FLAVOUR OF ADHD? Check out the Executive Function Inventory. - Where are you right now on each of the 12 executive functions. An inventory that identifies which EFs are challenges (that need to be bolstered), adaptive (you've built accommodations for yourself), and strengths (to leverage to support your challenges. If you know, you can be intentional. https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi [https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi] The website: https://www.mineelachand.com/ Want to get in touch with me, contribute to the conversation, or ask a question you would like some answers for? Here's the form you can fill out - I read all of them: https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3 [https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3] Sign up for the newsletter which drops every Monday. https://www.mineelachand.com/about [https://www.mineelachand.com/about]

Executive Function Deep Dive: Organization

Disorganization isn’t about mess - it’s about inability to find what you need to accomplish a task. This episode breaks down the executive function of organization through a practical, neurological lens: what it is, how it works, and the ten principles that make order sustainable across every domain of life.  We’ll strip the concept of organization down to its real function - a system for finding what you need when you need it. You’ll learn why ADHD brains struggle to maintain structure even when motivation is high, how dopamine and working memory affect system reliability, and why most “get organized” advice collapses under real conditions.  From physical environments to digital files to thought processes, this episode offers specific strategies you can apply immediately: visibility that keeps your brain anchored, proximity that reduces friction, labeling that mirrors your cognitive patterns, and maintenance rhythms that keep systems alive without demanding perfection.  Because organization isn’t about being tidy.  It’s about designing your world to remember for you.  By the end, you’ll know exactly what the organizational executive function does, why it fails under pressure, and how to rebuild trust between your brain and your environment one findable thing at a time.  READY TO GET MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR PARTICULAR FLAVOUR OF ADHD? Check out the Executive Function Inventory. - Where are you right now on each of the 12 executive functions. An inventory that identifies which EFs are challenges (that need to be bolstered), adaptive (you've built accommodations for yourself), and strengths (to leverage to support your challenges. If you know, you can be intentional. https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi [https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi] The website: https://www.mineelachand.com/ Want to get in touch with me, contribute to the conversation, or ask a question you would like some answers for? Here's the form you can fill out - I read all of them: https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3 [https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3] Sign up for the newsletter which drops every Monday. https://www.mineelachand.com/about [https://www.mineelachand.com/about]

ADHD and the Trap of Imposter Syndrome

Why do so many high-performing women with ADHD feel like frauds—even when they’re crushing it? In this episode, we unpack the deep connection between ADHD and imposter syndrome, and why this experience is so often missed or misunderstood in women.  We explore how a lifetime of masking, over-functioning, and internalized self-correction can create a disconnect between external success and internal self-trust. If you’ve ever felt like you’re faking it—like your competence is a performance, like you’re one mistake away from being exposed—this conversation is for you.  This episode isn’t about “overcoming” imposter syndrome. It’s about understanding it. And more importantly, reclaiming your identity, authority, and leadership as a neurodivergent woman.  Key Points Covered  * The silent burden of masking ADHD symptoms and how it fuels imposter syndrome  * Why women with ADHD often feel like their success isn’t “real” or sustainable  * The difference between performing competence and embodying self-trust  * How rejection sensitivity, perfectionism, and emotional dysregulation reinforce internalized fraudulence  * The cultural and systemic forces that invalidate neurodivergent strengths  * The role of feedback loops, working memory, and trauma in shaping imposter narratives  * What it means to strategically unmask in high-responsibility spaces  * Why your adaptability isn’t fraudulence—it’s fluency  * How to begin rewriting the internal story from “I’m faking it” to “I’m navigating it”  * The power of self-recognition and identity reclamation in dissolving imposter syndrome   READY TO GET MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR PARTICULAR FLAVOUR OF ADHD? Check out the Executive Function Inventory. - Where are you right now on each of the 12 executive functions. An inventory that identifies which EFs are challenges (that need to be bolstered), adaptive (you've built accommodations for yourself), and strengths (to leverage to support your challenges. If you know, you can be intentional. https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi [https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi] The website: https://www.mineelachand.com/ Want to get in touch with me, contribute to the conversation, or ask a question you would like some answers for? Here's the form you can fill out - I read all of them: https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3 [https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3] Sign up for the newsletter which drops every Monday. https://www.mineelachand.com/about [https://www.mineelachand.com/about]

Executive Function Deep Dive: Metacognition

What if the real problem isn’t your attention - but your awareness? In this episode, we unpack the often-overlooked executive function called metacognition: the ability to notice your own thinking while it’s happening. For ADHD brains, this function doesn’t always show up on time. And when it lags, everything else goes sideways. We’ll explore why delayed self-awareness creates patterns of impulsivity, emotional reactivity, and decision fatigue, and how that lag affects not just productivity, but confidence, leadership, and relationships. You’ll learn: * What metacognition actually is (and what it isn’t) * Why ADHD disrupts this skill in real time, but sharpens it in reflection * How late insight warps self-trust and creates reputation gaps * Practical ways to build real-time awareness without constant self-monitoring or shame * Why “trying harder” doesn’t work and what to design instead This is about catching yourself before you’re in clean-up mode. And it starts with seeing your mind clearly, while it’s still moving. READY TO GET MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR PARTICULAR FLAVOUR OF ADHD? Check out the Executive Function Inventory. - Where are you right now on each of the 12 executive functions. An inventory that identifies which EFs are challenges (that need to be bolstered), adaptive (you've built accommodations for yourself), and strengths (to leverage to support your challenges. If you know, you can be intentional. https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi [https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi] The website: https://www.mineelachand.com/ Want to get in touch with me, contribute to the conversation, or ask a question you would like some answers for? Here's the form you can fill out - I read all of them: https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3 [https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3] Sign up for the newsletter which drops every Monday. https://www.mineelachand.com/about [https://www.mineelachand.com/about]

What Happens When the Assessment Says "Normal"?

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE ASSESSMENT SAYS "NORMAL"? You got tested. You wanted answers. You expected clarity - maybe even a name for what’s been quietly draining your capacity. Instead, you were told your executive function was “within range.” No ADHD diagnosis for you. No plan. No support.  And now you're left trying to reconcile test results that say you're fine with a life that feels anything but manageable.  This episode examines what happens when the assessment misses the reality - especially for high-functioning, high-responsibility adults who are navigating subclinical ADHD symptoms and executive dysfunction that doesn’t show up on paper.  Inside:  * Why traditional ADHD evaluations miss so many competent adults  * How coping strategies can hide executive breakdown until it’s too late  * The emotional toll of being told you’re fine while still unraveling  * What research says about subclinical symptoms and real-world impact  * Why access to care, meds, and accommodations still hinges on thresholds that don’t reflect reality  If you’ve ever walked out of a diagnostic process more confused than when you walked in, you’re not imagining the disconnect. And you’re not alone.  READY TO GET MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR PARTICULAR FLAVOUR OF ADHD? Check out the Executive Function Inventory. - Where are you right now on each of the 12 executive functions. An inventory that identifies which EFs are challenges (that need to be bolstered), adaptive (you've built accommodations for yourself), and strengths (to leverage to support your challenges. If you know, you can be intentional. https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi [https://www.mineelachand.com/adhd-adults-efi] The website: https://www.mineelachand.com/ Want to get in touch with me, contribute to the conversation, or ask a question you would like some answers for? Here's the form you can fill out - I read all of them: https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3 [https://forms.office.com/r/NFvguHn7s3] Sign up for the newsletter which drops every Monday. https://www.mineelachand.com/about [https://www.mineelachand.com/about]