A Diagnosis At 32 Gave Language To A Lifetime Of Overthinking

A Diagnosis At 32 Gave Language To A Lifetime Of Overthinking

A fast mind can be a beautiful place—until the world demands it walk in a straight line. We sit down with Rebecca Jackson, a higher education administrator who found clarity at 32 with an ADHD diagnosis after years of masking, burnout, and misreads of mood. Her story is honest and practical, weaving personal turning points with the small, repeatable tactics that make daily life calmer and work more sustainable. Rebecca opens up about the years when anxiety felt random and school life taught her to hide. That history shifts once ADHD becomes the lens: the nonlinear thinking, the memory drop-outs right after unlocking the phone, and the heavy cost of performing “office normal” in an open plan. She walks us through the hard start and real benefits of lisdexamfetamine—initial side effects, dose titration, and what improved when the morning fog finally lifted. We get into workplace adjustments that actually help: noise-cancelling headphones, a quieter desk, flexible hours, and the underrated power of a short dance break when working from home. Beyond personal care, Rebecca is pushing for culture change. As a staff disability network co-chair, she champions training, community, and a more thoughtful approach to disclosure. She dismantles the “it’s a trend” trope with lived reality, and calls out hiring practices that privilege performance over proof. Her case for portfolios and practical assessments is compelling—hire the work, not the nerves. Along the way, we examine alcohol as a trigger, the sensory math of crowded family gatherings, and the comfort of familiar TV as a nervous system reset. The takeaway is both simple and strong: clear language, humane systems, and everyday boundaries can turn survival into growth. If this conversation helps you feel seen, pass it on. Subscribe for more candid stories, share this episode with someone who needs it, and leave a review to help others find the show. What hiring change would make the biggest difference for neurodivergent candidates? Tell us.

Colour, Perception, And Finding Your Own Way

Curiosity can carry you across disciplines—and back to yourself. We sit down with a researcher who began in biomedical sciences and pivoted into psychology and colour philosophy, guided by a mind that fixates deeply, senses keenly, and asks relentless questions about how we see the world. What starts as a story about colour perception becomes a study in boundaries, mentorship, and the quiet ergonomics of a neurodivergent life. You’ll hear how sensory overload makes conferences feel like battlefields, why email-first networking can be a lifeline, and how routines—down to the comfort of the same pasta or a newfound love of Jazz apples—create space for real thinking. We talk masking and unmasking, the mentor who helped swap performance for presence, and the practical calculus behind diagnosis: when labels clarify patterns, and when supportive environments make them optional.

Misha (Masters student) talks about ADHD

In this episode we had to start and stop as Misha had to change locations (which has a certain symmetry as they talk about their experience in moving countries too!).  In the name of autheticity we carried on and as alweays I leave it unedited for you

Christina (Lecturer) - Neurodiversity, Labels And Lived Reality

Ever felt like you’re gliding on the surface while paddling like mad underneath? Christina shares what a late ADHD diagnosis revealed about masking, invisible effort, and why looking calm on the surface often means below the waterline. Tired of the “neurodiversity as superpower” cliché? We dig into real role models, disclosure, and accommodations that work in education and beyond, not just on paper. From gothic literature to lab life, Christina unpacks how early “quirky” interests, pattern-seeking, and hyperfocus later aligned with a research career built on variety, problem-solving, and intellectual intensity. We talk about food routines, late diagnosis, and the quiet cost of fitting in. Hear an honest account of neurodiversity at work. What if the label you avoided for years became the key to designing a life that finally fits? That’s the pivot Christina shares as we trace her path from literary goth kid to scientist, from a winter move to Norway to a late ADHD diagnosis that reframed effort, energy, and why trying harder did not always fix the problem. It’s not a story about becoming someone new. It’s a story about getting the language and leverage to ask for what works. We talk about the hidden cost of masking and why appearing calm and competent often conceals heavy, invisible cognitive labour. Christina opens up about food and consistency: forgetting to eat during the day, relying on predictable textures just to get calories in, and how that pulled her toward ultra-processed snacks. She shares how she rebuilt routines using low-decision, higher-nutrition swaps that supported focus without turning every choice into a willpower test. We unpack the link between physical health and attention, and how small guardrails around sleep, movement, and structured meals can stabilise the mind. We also talk about the “D-word”, disclosure, a loaded word that can be the bridge to reasonable adjustments. Seeing a colleague speak openly about neurodivergence gave Christina permission to do the same, and we explore how that honesty challenges networking culture, performative professionalism, and the pressure to conform. We push past the “neurodiversity as superpower” cliché to reflect on the importance of authentic role models who talk honestly about both strengths and friction. In education, we discuss neurodivergent students and staff as “the canary in the coal mine”. If instructions are unambiguous, deadlines consistent, expectations explicit, and novelty designed in rather than accidental, everyone benefits. We share practical ways to reduce cognitive load, make feedback more actionable, and engineer learning environments where attention is supported rather than assumed. If you’re navigating a late ADHD diagnosis, supporting a neurodivergent colleague or student, or quietly rethinking your own routines, this conversation offers candid insights and small, workable changes you can test this week.

Rosie (undergraduate) Breaking The OCD Cycle: Intrusive Thoughts, Therapy, And Everyday Life

A tidy desk isn’t the story. Rosie, a third-year biochemistry student, opens up about the reality of OCD: intrusive thoughts that hit like alarms, compulsions that promise relief and steal time, and the slow, deliberate work of exposure therapy that teaches the brain to stop demanding rituals. We pull apart the myths and look at what day-to-day life actually feels like when your mind whispers “what if” at the worst possible times. You’ll hear how driving became a minefield of doubt, how health anxiety fed a late-night Google loop, and why reassurance—whether from friends, managers, or search results—can quietly make OCD stronger. Rosie shares practical tools from therapy: naming the intrusive voice to reduce its authority, exposure and response prevention for contamination fears, and the discipline of not checking even when anxiety peaks. We also dig into system barriers that delay formal diagnosis, the cost of being misunderstood at work or uni, and the importance of language-why “I have OCD” matters, and why “I’m so OCD” jokes lands so badly.  There’s no sugar-coating, and there’s no hopelessness either. Instead, we talk strategy: how to manage flare-ups, design a career that respects mental health limits, and reclaim study hours from rumination. If you care about mental health, neurodiversity, or supporting someone who lives with OCD, this conversation offers clear takeaways, humane insight, and resources like OCD Action to keep learning. If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs it, and leave a review with one thing you learned—your notes help others find these stories.