Episode #443: When They Don’t Believe Your ADHD Diagnosis
Have you ever told someone you have ADHD…only for them to question whether you really do?
In this episode, I’m talking about what happens when our diagnoses, experiences, emotions, and even our own understanding of ourselves are repeatedly invalidated.
I recently learned about traumatic invalidation—when your environment repeatedly communicates that your emotions, experiences, or characteristics are unreasonable, unacceptable, or wrong. And WOW did this hit home.
For so many of us with ADHD, being questioned about our diagnosis isn’t an isolated experience. It lands on top of years of being told we’re too sensitive, lazy, dramatic, not trying hard enough, or just need to “apply ourselves.”
We’re talking about validation, self-trust, why you may constantly feel like you have to defend yourself, and how to decide who is safe enough to receive your vulnerability.
Most importantly: your diagnosis and lived experience are not up for a vote.
Want help with your ADHD? Join FOCUSED!
Have questions for Kristen? Call 1.833.281.2343
Episode #442: Hey ADHDer, You’re Not Bad at Boundaries. You’re Ignoring Your Limits.
What if the problem isn’t that you need better boundaries…but that you keep pretending you don’t have limits?
In this coaching conversation, I’m talking with Claire, a children’s book illustrator who has spent years saying yes to too much, working nights and weekends, relying on hyperfocus to get everything done, and eventually burning herself out.
We unpack why ADHD hyperfocus isn’t always the “superpower” people make it out to be—and how constantly overriding your own capacity can cost you your health, relationships, creativity, and trust in yourself.
We also talk about the beliefs we inherit from our families about work, success, money, and rest—and what it looks like to consciously break the agreements that no longer serve us.
If you’re constantly overcommitting now and assuming Future You will somehow figure it out, this conversation is for you.
Want help with your ADHD? Join FOCUSED!
Have questions for Kristen? Call 1.833.281.2343
Episode #440: 5 Reasons to Cancel Me Before the Book Comes Out
With You’re Not in Trouble getting ready to make its way into the world, I am feeling the vulnerability that comes with putting so much of myself into a book. So instead of waiting for people to “find her out,” I’m putting it all on the table.
I share five things you may not know about me—from unconventional choices I’ve made to support my ADHD, to my Christian faith and complicated feelings about homeschooling, to the questions I have about the connection between ADHD and trauma.
And then there’s the one I’ve never shared publicly before: I wrote a book about healthy relationships…and haven’t spoken to my parents in more than three years.
This is a vulnerable conversation about ADHD, trauma, faith, family, estrangement, relationships, and what it means to stop hiding the parts of yourself you’re afraid others might judge.
Want help with your ADHD? Join FOCUSED!
Have questions for Kristen? Call 1.833.281.2343
Episode #438: ADHD Q&A: Your Questions Answered LIVE
What happens when you stop trying to force your ADHD brain to function like everyone else’s?
In this live Q&A episode, Kristen answers listener questions about some of the messiest parts of life with ADHD: perfectionism, working memory, parenting, emotional regulation, self-forgiveness, relationships, burnout, and the pressure to “do it all.”
Kristen explains why perfectionism can actually be a form of self-protection, why you need to stop expecting your brain to remember everything, and how making things easier for yourself isn’t cheating—it’s smart ADHD accommodation.
She also dives into the importance of self-compassion when you don’t follow through, why supporting your own ADHD is essential when parenting an ADHD child, and why she firmly rejects the idea that ADHD is a “superpower.”
ADHD can be deeply impairing. Naming that reality doesn’t diminish your strengths—it gives you an explanation for your struggles and a roadmap for getting the support you deserve.
Want help with your ADHD? Join FOCUSED!
Have questions for Kristen? Call 1.833.281.2343
Episode #436: ADHD, AI, Money & the Things We Avoid
What happens when two ADHDers sit down with almost no agenda and start talking? You get a little bit of everything—and somehow, it all comes back to ADHD.
Kristen is joined by longtime FOCUSED member Matt Ciciarelli for a candid conversation about the very real (and sometimes hilarious) ways ADHD shows up in everyday life.
They get into using AI as an ADHD support tool, the difference between asking for help and outsourcing your thinking, finding a career that actually works with your ADHD brain, and why hyperfocus seems readily available for the things we WANT to do…but disappears when something feels heavy, boring, or shame-filled.
Matt also shares what he’s learned about work, finances, gluten-free living, and finally finding a job that fits his brain.
Plus, Kristen and Matt react to the controversial documentary The Great ADHD Myth.
It’s honest, funny, a little chaotic—and very ADHD.
Want help with your ADHD? Join FOCUSED!
Have questions for Kristen? Call 1.833.281.2343
Episode #434: Why You Keep Breaking Your Own Rules
What if the reason you keep breaking your own boundaries isn’t a lack of discipline?
Kristen explores how to shift from self-control to self-collaboration. You’ll learn why “should” boundaries rarely work, how perfectionism destroys self-trust, and what to do when you inevitably break a boundary.
Instead of spiraling into guilt and shame, Kristen teaches you how to repair with yourself, get curious about what support was missing, and begin again.
Episode #432: Why You Keep Breaking Promises to Yourself
What if the reason you keep breaking promises to yourself isn’t because you’re lazy or undisciplined—but because some part of you still hears boundaries as control?
If you’ve ever thought, Why can’t I just do what I told myself I was going to do?—press play.
Episode #430: This One Is for the Nerds: ADHD, Academia & the Research That Blew Our Minds
We talk about what it was like to navigate such a demanding profession with undiagnosed ADHD—and how her diagnosis changed the way she understood herself and her work.
If you’re a late-diagnosed ADHDer, an academic, or someone who has spent years wondering why everything seems to require so much effort, you’ll want to hear this conversation.
Episode #428: ADHD in the Amish: A Conversation You Didn’t Expect
In this episode, I’m joined by award-winning journalist, author, and storyteller Kevin Williams. Kevin has built an incredible career reporting for outlets including CNBC, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, where his work earned a Pulitzer Prize nomination. He’s also the founder of Amish365.com, one of the internet’s most widely read resources on Amish life and culture.
Episode #426: Your Dream Isn’t Too Big. You’re Just Avoiding This One Feeling.
We’ll explore the difference between waiting because you’re afraid and waiting because you genuinely don’t have the capacity yet, why immediate gratification gets in the way of long-term goals, and how self-compassion, not self-criticism, is what helps us follow through.
If you’ve been carrying a dream that feels impossible, this episode will help you identify what’s really standing in your way and encourage you to take one small step toward becoming the person who can accomplish it.