WTF is AuDHD?

Ellie loves an infodump and today she's gone on a deep dive about the history of ADHD. Ever wondered when it was first mentioned in literature? Or why it became a 'disorder' in modern day society? Did ADHD always exist, or has it just become a 'thing' in the last 100 years?

ADHD might feel like a modern diagnosis, but the traits we associate with it have been described for centuries - from early descriptions of attention and hyp...

Why is it that we can be incredibly capable, creative and motivated, but somehow struggle to organise our own lives? We've spent our whole lives trying to create routines, stick to planners, build systems and pretty much everytime, we abandon them, forget about them, or decide we've failed the moment we miss a day. This has led to years of shame, low self esteem, burnout - you name it!

In this episode, we talk about our experie...

Stress affects everyone, but sometimes we don't always become aware of it until it's too late.

In this episode, Ellie and Paige talk about their experiences with stress and how they've learnt to look for physical signs early. The body and mind are super connected, but Westernised medicine generally doesn't approach this holistic ideology, leading to a disconnect between your thoughts and feelings, and what your body is trying t...

This week, we've swapped places and now Paige has been sick! So in the spirit of accommodating ourselves, but still providing you with some fun, we're continuing to answer your questions.

We chat about light-hearted subjects like our star signs, to giving our opinions on disclosing your diagnosis to healthcare professionals and potential employers. We discuss how we balance our lives to avoid burnout (spoiler alert: we're still...

Full disclosure - Ellie is super sick this week and because we self-produce this, we needed an accessible, low-effort topic, that would still be interesting to you - so we opened up your questions!

Did we used to fight as kids? What are we watching at the moment? Our go-to meals? What is our fave part of being AuDHD? And more!

Join our Reddit to participate in future conversations with us.

We have both struggled with clothing for our entire life - it's a double-prong of sensory icks and societal expectations that really drive us up the wall. For many neurodivergent people, clothes can be a daily sensory battle, so in this episode, we chat about our favourite "safe clothes", why certain fabrics make us want to crawl out of our skin, the emotional side of getting dressed, the societal expectations of gender-based dress...

CONTENT DISCLAIMER: This episode contains discussions about sex, intimacy, masking, consent, and unwanted sexual experiences. Please listen with caution. It also contains some EXPLICIT language, so be mindful of younger ears.

This week we're discussing a topic that many people experience but rarely talk about: masking during sex and intimacy.

After receiving a vulnerable email from a listener who described feeling like they w...

Before we were diagnosed, Paige and Ellie dismissed the possibility that we could be autistic because we didn't match the stereotypes we'd been exposed to. Even though Paige suspected she was autistic at 15, the environmental voices were so loud she gave up.

In this episode, we're unpacking some of the reasons we didn't think we could be autistic and the experiences we later realised were showing up differently than we expected....

Before we jump into this week's episode - we have a new Reddit! The other one will be going to the graveyard, so join our new one here: https://www.reddit.com/r/wtfisaudhd

In this episode we chat about the hobbies, journals, activities we swore we'd stick to... only to abandon then a few weeks later.

From the feelings of "this is it!" "this is my new thing" to the shame and embarrassment that comes after you've forgotten it e...

Modern life can sometimes feel like actual torture for an ADHD brain - and it really can be!

In this episode, we chat about dopamine, procrastination, novelty-seeking, and why so many apps, algorithms, and endless notifications are designed to hijack everyone's brains. Then when you add in the ADHD, we become the perfect target.

We look at the ways modern life may be making life harder for ADHDers, and we share some personal...

Why do so many autistic, ADHD and AuDHD people experience a constant feeling that something is “wrong” or about to go wrong?

In this episode of WTF is AuDHD?, we explore our experiences with the feeling of impending doom. We theorise why it might be experienced more in our community - from anxiety and sensory overload to nervous system activation, interoception, uncertainty intolerance and emotional dysregulation.

In this episode, Ellie and Paige reflect on Ellie's recent overseas trip and why Amsterdam in particular was kind to her neurodivergent mind. We go on a few side quests along the way, chatting about Ellie's recent engagement, Paige tells a story about having Tourette's in public and we accidentally end up analysing marriage. In the second half of the episode, we chat all about movies and why we both find it hard to commit to them. ...

Why does being seen feel so uncomfortable… even when nothing’s actually wrong?

In this episode, we unpack the fear of being perceived - something that shows up in many people from the neurodivergent community. From overthinking how we’re coming across, to feeling exposed just existing in public (and private!), to avoiding being watched altogether (lockdown was an interesting time) - we share what this experien...

What completely dysregulates you that might seem a bit unusual to someone else? This episode is basically a collection of “why does THIS send me over the edge?” moments.

We’re sharing the things that dysregulate us as AuDHDers - from noises, to sounds, to textures, to general demands - we share our own experiences plus read out the ones you sent us on Instagram.

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Content note: This episode discusses cannabis use and self-medication. We’re sharing personal experiences, not medical advice. If medicinal cannabis is legal in your country/state, please see a healthcare professional to discuss your prescription options.

In this episode, we explore why cannabis use seems to be relatively common among ADHD and autistic people - and what we’ve personally noticed. Even though we're sis...

In this episode, we’re talking about Hyperventilation Syndrome and how easy it is to get stuck in an anxiety-breathing feedback loop without even realising.

If you often feel dizzy, tight-chested, or like you can't catch a literal breath - you might relate to our personal experiences with chronic hyperventilation throughout our lives.

We also touch on Ellie's lived experience with “W sitting” (if you know,...

Trigger warning: this episode discusses Ellie and Paige's experiences with manipulation, sexual harm and harrassment. Listen with care.

In this episode, we’re talking about some of the harder experiences we’ve had - including manipulation, bullying, and situations where consent and safety weren’t always clear at the time. Our aim with this chat is to help you recognise harm and vaildate similar experiences you ...

Trigger warning: this episode contains light conversations surrounding eating and disordered eating.

In this episode, we’re joined by Erin - an ADHDer and dietician (Balance and Bite) - to unpack what neuroaffirming nutrition actually looks like and why traditional advice around food so often doesn’t work for neurodivergent people.

Erin talks to us about the real reasons the neurodivergent population struggle wit...

Join the waitlist for our journals! https://wtfjournals.com/signup

In this episode, we share our personal journeys of improving our gut health - and why it’s become something we’re paying a lot more attention to.

This isn’t a dieting episode, we just feel passionate about sharing our personal experiences when it comes to gut health. We explore the gut-brain connection, why gut health plays such a big role in...