ADHD Aha!

Laura Mears-Reynolds had reached a breaking point with anxiety and depression—until she realized something deeper was going on. She didn’t feel safe in her own hands, and she knew she needed help. What she didn’t know? ADHD was at the root of it all.

The UK-based host of the ADHD AF podcast joins ADHD Aha! to share how understanding her brain finally helped her shed shame, find self-acceptance, and build a thriving community. Her me...

Nikki Daye, a school psychologist and ADHD advocate, grew up in the foster care system. She was diagnosed with ADHD as a child, but her medical records were eventually lost. As she got older, her ADHD diagnosis wasn’t considered. Instead, her symptoms were misdiagnosed as anxiety, PTSD, and bipolar disorder. 

While her ADHD diagnosis was “lost in translation,” Nikki spent a lot of time feeling misunderstood and unsupported. It wasn’...

Shane Thrapp always felt different. As an adult, he found out he has both ADHD and autism — two parts of his brain that sometimes work against each other. 

In this episode, Shane shares the weight of masking his symptoms, and how society’s ideas about “real men” can make it even harder to speak up. Today, Shane is helping other men with ADHD as the Operations Director of the Men’s ADHD Support Group. He’s on a mission to show that b...

Danielle Elliot was considering breaking up with her partner...and then he broke up with her first. Danielle had a “big, out of character” reaction: By 4am that night she was packed and ready to leave. The whole experience left her feeling unsettled. Why had she reacted that way? That sparked a deep dive into rejection sensitivity and ADHD.

Danielle is a health and science journalist who’s now asking a bigger question: Why are so ma...

In this bonus episode, we’re sharing the first episode of a new Understood.org podcast, Climbing the Walls. 

Climbing the Walls is an investigative limited-series podcast that explores why women were historically underdiagnosed with ADHD — and how the recent surge in diagnoses is reshaping our understanding of ADHD.

In this episode, host Danielle Elliot finds herself among the many women diagnosed with ADHD during the pandemic, and s...

Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls now.

Emilia McGuckin was surprised when a teacher suggested her son might have ADHD. As a teacher herself, she thought she would have spotted the signs. But after diving into the research, an even bigger surprise hit her: Could she have ADHD too?

Emilia, a high school and college teacher,...

Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls now.

On this 100th episode of ADHD Aha!, host Laura Key looks back on the powerful conversations she’s had with guests from all walks of life about their unique ADHD experiences. She also opens up about a deeply personal new chapter: her 9-year-old daughter’s recent ADHD diagnosis. Laura...

Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls now.

Steve Wesley makes videos about ADHD to create a legacy for his family. As a single dad with ADHD, he worries he’s not doing enough to support his two sons, who also have ADHD. He hopes the videos will serve as proof one day that he really was trying.

Steve’s late wife was “the calen...

Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls now.

Romance author Sela Carsen saw herself in her daughter’s ADHD evaluation 20 years ago. But she didn’t request an evaluation for herself until just 4 years ago. She was afraid that having ADHD would have a negative effect on her husband’s military career — that she’d be the “crazy wi...

Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls now.

Margaux Joffe’s “aha” moment came during a shopping trip to IKEA with her mom. She had an intense sensory overload experience, which her mom later suggested could be ADHD-related. Margaux, who’d been diagnosed with anxiety and depression as a teenager, had never considered ADHD.

She ...

We’re running a survey to see how podcasts help women with ADHD learn about mental health and health-related topics. Make your voice heard today.

Dan McCoy understood better his mood swings, fear of rejection, and hyperfocus when he was diagnosed with ADHD last year. He got an ADHD evaluation after reading an article his brother wrote about being on the autism spectrum. 

Dan is a comedy writer who’s won two Emmy awards for his work o...

We’re running a survey to see how podcasts help women with ADHD learn about mental health and health-related topics. Make your voice heard today.

ADHD affects our whole life — even our sex life. Our friend Cate Osborn, who has a background in sex education, is back to chat with host Laura Key about executive function challenges that may pop up in the bedroom. Cate and Laura dive into topics like ADHD and consent, working memory, and...

At 14, Zoe Plotnick told her mom, “My brain’s broken.” Zoe wanted an ADHD evaluation, but her mom discouraged it, pointing to Zoe’s good grades. Zoe was eventually diagnosed with ADHD as an adult. She also learned that her mom was hiding her own ADHD all along.  

Now Zoe, who’s a teacher, is unpacking the ADHD stigma that her family has carried for generations. And she’s advocating for her daughter who, in a twist of fate, was diagn...

For years, Julianna Broadwater’s therapist suggested looking into ADHD. But Julianna resisted. She had a past diagnosis of OCD, so she attributed her challenges to that. Plus she was the primary breadwinner in the family, so how could she have ADHD? 

Then Julianna tried ADHD medication, and her thinking completely changed. The impulsive, intrusive thoughts that would pop into her head started to lessen. It was easy to swat them away...

Growing up, Jared Robson got so sick of failing that he decided, “trying isn’t for me.” Jared got into trouble all the time and bounced around different high schools. He eventually graduated high school but admits that that might not have happened if his family weren’t so well-off.  

Now, Jared’s a stay-at-home dad and thriving as a college student taking courses online (He has a 4.0 GPA!). Jared and Laura talk about the “hyperactiv...

After Samantha Hiew had her second child at age 40, hormonal changes shed light on her ADHD symptoms. She was diagnosed with ADHD and, later, autism. Sam talks about her experience with AuDHD, including regulating emotions and sensory meltdowns. Sam also talks about her multicultural experience and the importance of community when you have ADHD. 

Sam is a social entrepreneur, scientist, and advocate. She’s also the founder and direc...

In school, a teacher made Rakia Reynolds push her desk all the way to the principal’s office for getting in trouble. Rakia had undiagnosed ADHD. She was energetic, creative, and the class clown. Rakia is now a businesswoman and creative leader with diagnosed ADHD — a diagnosis that she never shared publicly… until now. 

Hear from Rakia, the founder and executive director of Skai Blue Media, on why she shied away from talking about h...

Em Schulz thought they were just lazy growing up. Years later, after discovering that not everyone’s TikTok was full of ADHD tips that “weirdly work,” they realized they might have ADHD.

Em is a paranormal investigator (aka ghost hunter) and co-host of the And That’s Why We Drink podcast. Em and Laura chat about ghosts and ghosting, as in ghosting relationships — a not uncommon ADHD behavior. And Em shares their take on whether peop...

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Growing up as a Black girl with undiagnosed ADHD, Kayla Sanders learned very early that getting into trouble was not an option. Kayla was imaginative, playful, and extremely bright. She was also hyperactive, which was occasionally mistaken for ...