Something Shiny: ADHD!

Episode 70: Can you stop the to-do's and hit the pause button?

Isabelle and David catch up and grapple with those moments when you have a ton of energy or anxiety or excitement, and you tackle way more and up the difficulty on your video game of life, instead of going for an easy win. The way we tend to think more is better when it comes to interventions or accommodations when actually it’s the little stuff. The power of the little yuck, and also the way we buy 4 cases of fruit leather and only later consider where we will store them.

Episode 68: Neurodivergent Generations LIVE! - Q & A

In a panel recorded live in front of an audience at the 2023 Eye to Eye National Friends and Allies conference, David and Isabelle sit down with Eye to Eye co-founders David Flink and Marcus Soutra, Eye to Eye student leader Kayla and an Eye to Eye student leader’s parent Claudia to discuss what it is like to be neurodivergent—or a parent to a neurodivergent kid—across different generations. Part three of three. To learn more about Eye to Eye, visit www.eyetoeyenational.org In this part, we cover the everyone’s favorite accommodations, how to confront stigma, and what everyone would say to their littler selves.

Episode 66: Neurodivergent Generations LIVE! - From Living at the Margins to a Culture of Our Own

In a panel recorded live in front of an audience at the 2023 Eye to Eye National Friends and Allies conference, David and Isabelle sit down with Eye to Eye co-founders David Flink and Marcus Soutra, Eye to Eye student leader Kayla and an Eye to Eye student leader’s parent Claudia to discuss what it is like to be neurodivergent—or a parent to a neurodivergent kid—across different generations. Part one of a series. To learn more about Eye to Eye, visit www.eyetoeyenational.org. In this part we cover how we have moved from the margins to a neurodivergent culture of our own.

Episode 64: Something Shiny LIVE! Fireside Chat with David and Eye to Eye's Alyssa

David sits down with Eye to Eye's Alyssa Tundidor for a fireside chat. Covering everything from David’s origin story, to where Something Shiny came from, to co-creating spaces safe enough for folx who are neurodivergent. To learn more about Eye to Eye, visit www.eyetoeyenational.org.

Episode 62: Never Been Broken - Conversation with Eye to Eye Co-Founders David Flink & Marcus Soutra - Part II

The second part of an illuminating conversation with David Flink and Marcus Soutra, co-founders of Eye to Eye, friends and pioneers in education equity for neurodivergent folx. The group explores how a story of neurodivergent shame and trauma can shift to feeling like the story of surviving, how the pain stays with us but the reaction of a listener can layer over it, and how we can to begin to heal old wounds. Furthermore, what does it actually mean to be cool or to be a role model people want to look up to? To learn more about Eye to Eye, visit www.eyetoeyenational.org 

Episode 60: What about the grief that comes when you find your tribe?

Isabelle and David continue to reflect upon what it was like to experience the Eye to Eye Young Leader's Organizing Institute Conference—Isabelle describes how strange and surreal it felt to not be judged for things she’s used to having to manage and mask about; what it means to recognize that there is a part of you that goes unseen so much of the time and when you connect with it, the grief that comes. The power of recognizing you are among your particular tribe and the jarring feeling of realizing how rare it is. And also, ADHD podcaster dance offs.  

Episode 58: How do we find our worth in a world that doesn’t value us?

David and Isabelle navigated the treacherous landscape of surviving and being the lucky ones; are we trash? Are we seahorses? From defeating the enemy that is loose glitter, to brain regions resembling animals, to why it hurts when we beat up on ourselves, tackling the pain and looking at ourselves with intention.

Episode 56: Did I break it?

Isabelle and David reflect on going on 3 years of working on this podcast (note: this is now are 4th year working on it! WHAT?! WE LOVE YOU!) and how much the common way of interacting with inanimate objects is “did I break it?” And when we don’t, the realization of: “it’s more better!” Thinking about all the shiny neurodivergent folks gleaming around the planet, the power of your suggestions and ideas for shaping this podcast, and things we’ve learned as adults that changed the game (see: logos, gas station hacks, successfully getting everything for a recipe at the grocery store).

Episode 54: Am I using too many qualifiers?

Isabelle and David explore more strengths of neurodivergence, such as adaptability and responding in crisis/pressure situations (like a Ferrari on a racetrack, versus the parking lot of practice), and explore the question: why do we use so many qualifiers? Saying things like “I know I’m talking too fast,” to “nerd alert!” to “I know you hate me and want to kill me, but…” thinking about how we try to make ourselves appear aware, or harmless, or signal our vulnerability or fear of being put into a box, and how curiosity can work in our favor to make this a conscious choice rather than an automatic habit.  

Episode 52: Who am I and can I just take the win?

David and Isabelle name that a big part of any behavior change is a change in how you identify; to go from “I’m a damaged person full of failure” to “I’m a person who’s needs have not been met by the world and I’m doing my best and what can I do?” Furthermore, it is vulnerable and anxiety-producing to be neurodivergent and to live with failure on the regular. How to take the wins while honoring the hurt and healing the hits to our sense of self.

Episode 50: REPLAY: How do you travel (with ADHD)?

In honor of summer travel plans and it's own type of holiday magic, we revisit this classic (Episode 038): How do you survive traveling with ADHD? What about traveling with children, particularly small children? And what happens when you find yourself rushing, leaving things until the last minute, and forgetting your charger once again? David and Isabelle swap stories and share specific tips to traveling and also discuss WHY ARE THERE SOCK NUBBINS AND TAGS. Seriously.

Episode 48: Women & ADHD Round Table - Part IV - Our Bodies

David and Isabelle are joined by two fellow therapists who have ADHD, Caily & Sarah. They talk about how much shame we carry around our bodies and how that impacts so much of our wellness, the way women's pain and experiences are minimized and questioned, the need to stop protecting men from discomfort, and what advice they would give their younger neurodivergent selves. (Part IV of a series)

Episode 46: Women & ADHD Round Table - Part II - What's up with all this anxiety?

David and Isabelle are joined by two fellow therapists who have ADHD, Caily & Sarah. They talk about how ADHD and anxiety can go hand in hand in women with ADHD, how anxiety and discouraged anger relate, how gender norms for women set up neurodivergent women to mask, and the value of just TAKING AWAY THE CHAIR. All this in twenty-some minutes? Believe it. (Part II of a series)

Episode 44: Conversation with LeDerick Horne - Part IV - “Until Every Barrier Falls"

David and Isabelle continue their conversation with poet, speaker, and activist for people with disabilities, LeDerick Horne—and get to hear him recite some of his incredible spoken word poems. They talk about how songs taught them to spell, the power of oral traditions, and an incredible school in Kenya that expanding education and access for those with disabilities. Seriously, his poetry will give you life. (Part IV of IV)

Episode 42: Conversation with LeDerick Horne - Part II - "Being Seen By Somebody Like You"

David and Isabelle continue their conversation with David’s dear and incredible friend, LeDerick Horne—a poet, speaker, and activist for people with disabilities. From vision boarding your IEP, to the importance of near-peer mentors and role models who have walked a little further down the LD/ADHD road, to accommodations and frustrations in LeDerick’s multiple roles (as businessperson, activist, poet, writer, tree farmer, etc.). Go deeper into recognizing an inclusive view of success, and what success can look like for each of us individually. (Part II of IV)

Episode 40: REPLAY: Why are decisions and transitions so easy/hard?

Here's a REPLAY of good ol' episode 11 to help ease your transition into 2023-with new episodes coming soon! -- Why do some of us minimize and reduce the number of choices while others seek excitement and novelty? Why do some of us need everything listed out while others need to just try something blindly? The secret? Different types of ADHD and different ways our ADHD shows up in different environments! David and Isabelle are joined by Bobby and Noah, who also have ADHD, and talk about things like trying to leave the house, deciding what to eat, and why their accommodations all look so different.

Episode 38: How do you travel (with ADHD)? - Holiday Series - Part II

How do you survive traveling with ADHD? What about traveling with children, particularly small children? And what happens when you find yourself rushing, leaving things until the last minute, and forgetting your charger once again? David and Isabelle swap stories and share specific tips to traveling and also discuss WHY ARE THERE SOCK NUBBINS AND TAGS. Seriously.

Episode 36: Can you turn anxiety into excitement?

Why are some of us anxious and some of us excited (or a combo platter of both)? And is it possible to turn anxiety, or anger, or shame spirals, into something else? David and Isabelle swap stories, talk transgenerational trauma, and get curious about how we are socialized to mask and behave...and that perhaps the solution for being overly apologetic lies in the midwestern gem: "ope.”

Episode 34: Is my substance use helping or hurting?

Are we soothing our pain or avoiding it? What if the substances those of us with ADHD often use, like alcohol, cannibis, and cocaine—what if they were based on the wrong operating instructions? David and Isabelle collect truth bombs and they go even deeper about metacognition, self-soothing, and the complexity of feeling more intense feelings in neurotypically-geared world.

Episode 32: When can hyperfocus be your friend?

Ever get sucked into a tv show, movie, or song that you play on repeat and just can’t quit? What if your hyperfocus on a thing, especially when you’re feeling helpless, was there as a clever act of preservation? And just how do you do big feels or big goals, when black and white thinking (I either have it…or I don’t!) can make it all messier than you think? Lots of intriguing connections around some of the not-as-highlighted aspects of ADHD abound in this episode. Bobby, Isabelle’s husband, who also has ADHD, is a guest.

Episode 30: All About ADHD - Part X

Everything you ever wanted to know about ADHD...continues! WOOHOO! Go back and check out Parts I-IX or start here to learn more about how to think why we procrastinate, how medications work (and don’t work), and why it’s important to think about how you have that cup of coffee. The things that are easy, hard, and all the myths and misperceptions that exist about what is really not a deficit, but rather an abundance and variety of, attention. The tenth and final part of this lecture series from David, who has lectured as an expert and advocate on this subject nationally, and assisted by Isabelle, who is eagerly sponging up the information. A neurodivergent and neurotypical blend of friends Christina, AJ, Gabe, and Isabelle's husband, Bobby, sit in to ask questions. (Part X of David’s Lecture Series)

Episode 28: Frustrated with your frustration tolerance?

Folx with ADHD get used to frustration and also have to deal with more frustration than most on a daily basis. Would it help to have an easy button for it? Or are there some things we must endure? Aren't there only two times: now and not now? And what actually helps when the people walking in front of you are walking super super slow and you can’t go past them? This and more ADHD relating and accommodation myth-busting in this episode.

Episode 26: Live Q & A - Part 2 - Overexplaining, Taking Breaks, and How to Recharge

Neurodivergent and neurotypical folx alike join David and Isabelle for a real-time question and answer session. Questions covered include, why do folx with ADHD overexplain? Why do we spend so much time creating structures for ourselves that work for a bit, but then stop? Is it a good idea to take breaks? What about noticing our battery is running low? How do we actually recharge? This and more ADHD myth-busting in the second of this two part series.

Episode 24: All About ADHD - Part VIII

Everything you ever wanted to know about ADHD...continues! WOOHOO! Go back and check out Parts I-VII or start here to learn more about how to think about embracing your strengths, self-stimulating with anger and anxiety, managing transitions, giving instructions, and talking to your kids. The things that are easy, hard, and all the myths and misperceptions that exist about what is really not a deficit, but rather an abundance and variety of, attention. The eighth part of an ongoing series from David, who has lectured as an expert and advocate on this subject nationally, and assisted by Isabelle, who is eagerly sponging up the information. A neurodivergent and neurotypical blend of friends Christina, AJ, Gabe, and Isabelle's husband, Bobby, sit in to ask questions. (Part VIII of David’s Lecture Series)

Episode 22: I’m Not Tired, You’re Tired

Are folx with ADHD made to be night owls? Or early birds? Or does your early bird/night owl setting, which feels so engrained in your personality, actually have more to do with giving yourself distraction-less time? David and Isabelle explore myths, misperceptions, and truth bombs about the nature of sleep and ADHD, including tips on setting up your morning or evening (or all day) routines, dropping the shame, and embracing what you may be doing right in staying up late (or waking up early).

Episode 20: A Conversation About ADHD Medications - Part II

Is there a way to talk about ADHD meds without thinking they’re the absolute best or worst things? For the second part of this conversation, David and Isabelle talk women and ADHD meds (and pregnancy, breastfeeding, and PMDD), other nonmedical treatments for ADHD, medicating kids, and the different types of stimulants, all from therapists’ (and not prescriber or doctor’s) perspective on types of ADHD medications and if and when ADHD meds might be a useful tool to add to your toolkit.

Episode 18: All About ADHD - Part VI

Everything you ever wanted to know about ADHD...continues! WOOHOO! Go back and check out Parts I, II, III, IV, or V, or start here to learn more about how to think about ADHD as a strength, not just a struggle, and brainstorm accommodations for yourself. The things that are easy, hard, and all the myths and misperceptions that exist about what is really not a deficit, but rather an abundance and variety of, attention. The sixth part of an ongoing series from David, who has lectured as an expert and advocate on this subject nationally, and assisted by Isabelle, who is eagerly sponging up the information. A neurodivergent and neurotypical blend of friends Christina, AJ, Gabe, and Isabelle's husband, Bobby, sit in to ask questions. (Part VI of David’s Lecture Series)

Episode 16: ADHD Origin Story - Do I need medication?

Ever drink a five hour energy and feel calmer? Scared to try ADHD meds because it connects to shame, stigma, or a fear of becoming addicted? Isabelle and David welcome Isabelle’s husband, Bobby, who recounts how he realized he had ADHD and how medication played a role in shifting his understanding of himself and what he needs to help his brain. The first in a series of episodes devoted to how people learn they have ADHD.

Episode 14: What happens when you don’t get to play?

What happens when you’re not able to play enough, or at all? What makes up play anyway? Does it really matter once we are adults, or adults with ADHD? The answer is a resounding YES. Play really, (really, really) matters. In a (sadly) still relevant flashback to the first month of lockdown in 2020, Isabelle and David are joined by fellow folx with ADHD—Isabelle’s husband, Bobby, and David’s friend and fellow clinician, Noah—to try to find ways to play and talk about the importance of play together.

Episode 12: All About ADHD - Part IV

Everything you ever wanted to know about ADHD...continues! WOOHOO! Go back and check out Parts I, II & III, or start here to learn more about the emotions we use habitually to self-stimulate and hope to cope with them, what it feels like to not fit in in a neurotypical world, why transitions are so hard (leaving the house, or big life changes) and why it can take years (into adulthood) to realize you have ADHD. The things that are easy, hard, and all the myths and misperceptions that exist about what is really not a deficit, but rather an abundance and variety of, attention. The fourth part of a series from David, who has lectured as an expert and advocate on this subject nationally, and assisted by Isabelle, who is eagerly sponging up the information. A neurodivergent and neurotypical blend of friends Christina, AJ, Gabe, and Isabelle's husband, Bobby, sit in to ask questions. (Part IV of David’s Lecture Series)

Episode 10: ADHD & Relationships - Round Table

Ever wonder if it’d be easier to be partnered with someone who also has ADHD (or, someone who is neurotypical)? How can you coexist no matter what the combo platter of neurodivergence? Robin, David’s neurotypical partner, and Bobby, Isabelle’s neurodivergent partner, join a relationship round table filled with practical tips on how neurotypical and neurodivergent partners can better support, communicate, and respond in key moments with one another.

Episode 8: Are we designed to procrastinate?

What if you knew you were going to procrastinate no matter what, and instead of judging it, you found ways to make it easier on yourself? This Procrastination in folx with adhd relates to how we self-medicate with intense emotions (like anger, anxiety, and excitement) to hit our sweet spot of dopamine and be able to attend or focus on a task we're trying to get done. Isabelle, David, and Isabelle's husband, Bobby, explore what it means to make space for how you get things done as a unique neurodivergent individual, rather than trying to change how you do things to appear to be more neurotypical.

Episode 6: All About ADHD - Part II

Everything you ever wanted to know about ADHD...continues! WOOHOO! Go back and check out Part I, or start here to learn more about what's happening in the brain, how to use environments to cue ourselves, how debate and manufactured fights can be ways to help you focus, and more! The things that are easy, hard, and all the myths and misperceptions that exist about what is really not a deficit, but rather an abundance and variety of, attention.

Episode 4: All About ADHD - Part I

Everything you ever wanted to know about ADHD. Seriously. From what's happening in the brain, to how it's experienced day to day--the things that are easy, hard, and all the myths and misperceptions that exist about what is really not a deficit, but rather an abundance and variety of, attention. The first part in a series from David, who has lectured as an expert and advocate on this subject nationally, and assisted by Isabelle, who is eagerly sponging up the information. A neurodivergent and neurotypical blend of friends Christina, AJ, Gabe, and Isabelle's husband, Bobby, sit in to ask questions. (Part I of David’s Lecture Series)

Episode 2: Were you a kid with ADHD in the 90’s?

Ever find reading (uninteresting stuff) hard? Does music help you focus or distract you or every version in between? More neurodivergent friends (Ashley) and family (Bobby) join Isabelle and David in discussing being diagnosed with ADHD in the 90's, what it's like to read (and what accommodations help), and what hyperfocus looks like. Also, stuff about Richard Dreyfuss.