Overcoming Distractions

How does ADHD manifest uniquely in women across their lifespan, and why are so many high-achieving professionals being missed or misdiagnosed?

In this episode of Overcoming Distractions, Dave talks with Dr. Jolene Brighten, naturopathic endocrinologist, nutrition scientist, and author of “ADHD and Women” to unpack the often-overlooked nuances of neurodivergence in female professionals.

Dr. Brighten shares her insights as a late-diagnosed “AuDHDer,” explaining how hormonal shifts, cultural expectations, and internalized hyperactivity create distinct challenges for women in business, health, and daily life.

Dr. Jolene and Dave Discuss:

• The Entrepreneurial Advantage: Why ADHD brains excel at creativity and problem-solving, yet often struggle within rigid corporate structures.
• The Diagnosis Gap: How up to 75% of women reach adulthood undiagnosed, often receiving their diagnosis during perimenopause when changing hormones amplify symptoms.
• Hormones & Executive Function: The impact of fluctuating estrogen and progesterone across the menstrual cycle, including the connection to premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).
• Masking & Internalized Hyperactivity: Why female ADHD presents as internal restlessness, overthinking, and burnout rather than overt physical hyperactivity.

Find Dr. Brighten on her website: https://drbrighten.com/

Why do high-performing professionals with ADHD so often feel paralyzed by simple or critical tasks, and how can you break through those hidden barriers?

In this episode of Overcoming Distractions, Dave welcomes back ADHD coach and author Brendan Mahan to discuss his book Overcoming the Wall of Awful: Why It’s Hard to Get Things Done with ADHD, Autism, and Anxiety (and How to Do Them Anyway)

Even top executives, business owners, and driven entrepreneurs struggle with the invisible emotional friction that halts execution. Brendan breaks down how past failures, uncertainty, and fear of rejection stack up like bricks between us and our goals, and provides a practical blueprint for navigating through, over, or around those mental walls.

Meet Brendan Mahan here and find your copy of the book!

www.TheWallofAwful.com

In this episode of Overcoming Distractions, Dave interviews Alex Partridge, founder of UNILAD and LAD Bible and host of the ADHD Chatter podcast, to explore how Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria (RSD) impacts adults and entrepreneurs with ADHD.

The central takeaway from their discussion is that in the absence of context and clarity, the ADHD mind catastrophizes ambiguity, filling in the blanks with the worst-case scenario and severe emotional distress.

They unpack the origins of RSD, the role of early childhood criticism, and how these factors drive people-pleasing, imposter syndrome, and professional burnout.

Key Discussion Points:

• Defining RSD in Adults: How Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria extends beyond childhood into busy professionals, driving catastrophic thinking in ambiguous situations.
• The Impact of Ambiguity: How unsaid details or minor shifts in behavior trigger a knee-jerk reaction in the ADHD nervous system to expect rejection or disaster.
• Alex’s Personal Journey: The story behind founding UNILAD, the legal battle over ownership, and how RSD and poor self-esteem led to signing a detrimental partnership agreement.
• The 20,000 Extra Rejections: How children with ADHD receive significantly more micro-rejections growing up, shaping adult struggles with burnout and people-pleasing.

• Overcoming Imposter Syndrome: The concept of “out of sight, out of mind” regarding personal achievements, and the strategy of storing tangible evidence of success to build confidence.

High performance often masks undiagnosed adult ADHD, leading to burnout in systems designed exclusively for neurotypical minds.

Dave talks with entrepreneur, author, and speaker Meghan French Dunbar about her journey with late-diagnosed ADHD. Despite founding successful ventures like Conscious Company magazine, Meghan spent years masking her struggles, overcompensating as an overachiever, and eventually burning out.

They discuss the critical turning points that led to her diagnosis, the vital shifts she made to reclaim her life, and how she now manages her ADHD sustainably.

Key Discussion Points:

• The Trap of the “Over-Performer”: Meghan debunks the stereotype of the hyperactive “problem child” by sharing how her intense hyperfocus on school and sports allowed her ADHD to go unnoticed and unmasked for decades.
• The Neurotypical System & Burnout: The business world is built for neurotypical individuals; without the proper support, neurodivergent founders easily fall into chronic stress and identity-consuming work habits.
• The “Ideal Life Statement”: Inspired by entrepreneur Sharon Rowe, Meghan highlights the power of prioritizing the quality of being over the quantity of doing by setting non-negotiable boundaries around working hours, family, and rest.
• Actionable ADHD Management: Key strategies for reclaiming mental health include establishing physical barriers, like removing work email from mobile devices, committing to daily physical movement, and building customized backend AI dashboards to organize and calm a busy mind.

True physical recovery begins only when we stop ignoring the brain’s response to chronic pressure and prioritize our own joy.

This is a must listen podcast episode for anyone with adult ADHD experiencing physical symptoms and stress!

Dave sits down with Dr. David Clarke, author of They Can’t Find Anything Wrong and president of the Association for the Treatment of Neuroplastic Symptoms.

Together, they explore the profound connection between high-achieving professionals, ADHD-ish tendencies, and “stress illness.” Real, debilitating physical symptoms generated entirely by altered nerve pathways in the brain rather than structural disease.

Dr. Clarke sheds light on the medical blind spot surrounding neuroplastic conditions and reveals how a childhood spent in high-stress “minefields” frequently shapes the overachieving, people-pleasing adult personalities susceptible to burnout.

Ultimately, this insightful conversation highlights how listening to your body’s distress signals and intentionally relearning how to pause and play can heal decades of unexplained pain.

Key Discussion Points

• Defining Stress Illness: Dr. Clarke clarifies that ailments like migraines, chronic back pain, and GI issues are 100% real, physical conditions triggered by neuroplastic brain pathways rather than localized injury or organ disease.
• The Childhood Connection: Many high-achieving adults and individuals with ADHD traits grew up in unpredictable environments where they developed hyper-vigilance and people-pleasing tendencies as survival mechanisms.
• The Medical Blind Spot: Standard Western medical training primarily addresses structural issues, leaving both primary care and mental health professionals under-equipped to diagnose brain-generated physical symptoms.
• The Necessity of “Finger Paint” Play: High-performers often lose the essential human skill of purposeless play, trapping them on a treadmill of constant achievement until the body protests.
• Shifting the Mindset: Healing requires self-respect, acknowledging early life stressors, and taking actionable steps toward recovery through specialized self-assessments and neuroplastic recovery therapies.

In this episode of Overcoming Distractions, Dave sits down with Mark Steiner, founder of the powerhouse event marketplace GigSalad.

After receiving a life-changing ADHD diagnosis at age 57, Mark looked back on his journey from a New Jersey theater actor to a highly successful CEO.

They dive deep into the unique mechanics of the ADHD brain in business, exploring how unconventional paths can breed massive professional success.

Entrepreneurship and ADHD:

• The Reality of Late Diagnosis: Mark shares his personal journey of discovering his ADHD later in life after his daughter was diagnosed, highlighting how common it is for adults to finally make sense of their lives decades into their careers.
• EQ Over IQ: Mark emphasizes that high emotional intelligence (EQ) and “street smarts” are critical for building a flourishing company culture, far outweighing traditional MBA or textbook knowledge.
• Non-Negotiable Systems for Success: To sustain a thriving, bootstrap company for over 20 years, Mark relies on hiring people who complement his weaknesses, delegating autonomy completely, and protecting his calendar for essential solitary decompression time.

• Build a Culture of Autonomy: Avoid micromanaging your team. Plant the overarching vision, give your employees a “long leash” with plenty of freedom, and act as their ultimate cheerleader while they execute.
• Acknowledge and Map Your Social Window: Recognize that even if you are an extrovert who thrives at conferences or in boardrooms, you likely have a “four-to-six-week window” before you need dedicated, solitary decompression time to reset.
• Practice Extreme Self-Mercy: Forgive yourself for the tangents, the oversharing, and the inevitable administrative blemishes. Mark attributes true professional freedom to showing up as your authentic self without “shape-shifting” or masking.

• You can find GigSalad here: https://www.gigsalad.com/

Dave connects with Jenna Free, author of A Simple Guide to ADHD Regulation, to dismantle the misconception that thriving with neurodivergence requires endless lifestyle hacks.

Instead, they dive deep into the power of nervous system regulation and why busy professionals, entrepreneurs, and CEOs frequently find themselves trapped in a frantic cycle of high performance followed by complete shutdown.

Jenna highlights how prolonged states of fight-or-flight mimic and intensify ADHD symptoms. She offers a sustainable path to step out of survival mode and provides actional advice on thriving with adult ADHD.

How adults with ADHD can embrace emotional regulation:

• The Vicious Cycle: Operating in a frantic, rushing state can feel highly productive but inevitably leads to stress, overwhelming burnout and in some cases physical shutdown.
• The Mechanics of Dysregulation: When stress tricks the nervous system into perceiving routine business challenges as life-threatening, blood physically leaves the brain for the limbs, crippling executive dysfunction and creative focus.
• The “In-the-Moment” Regulation Strategy: True regulation isn’t about avoiding stress or taking constant breaks. It involves interrupting dysregulation in real-time by slowing your physical pace and breathing without abandoning the task at hand.
• Unpacking Core Beliefs: Common narrative traps, such as feeling constantly “behind” or believing rest must be earned, keep the nervous system stuck in a permanent, defensive tug-of-war.

You can find Jenna’s book about ADHD and regulation here.

https://www.amazon.com/Simple-Guide-ADHD-Regulation-Enjoying/dp/1400254698

The most impactful way to navigate life with ADHD is to shift your identity from a “disability deficit” mindset to a neuroaffirming, strength-based perspective.

In this episode of Overcoming Distractions, Dave chats with Liz Ahmann and Micah Saviet, authors of the new book Flourishing with Adult ADHD (released April 2026).

The discussion dives deep into practical, evidence-based strategies for high-performing professionals and entrepreneurs who are tired of temporary “hacks” and ready for long-term growth.

They explore how understanding your unique brain wiring is the first step toward moving past the shame of a late diagnosis and toward true well-being.

Key Discussion Points

• Hacks vs. Habits: Why temporary ADHD “hacks” often fail and how a deeper understanding of your specific “flavor” of ADHD leads to sustainable lifestyle changes.
• The Power of the Pause: Introducing the STOP practice (Stop, Take a breath, Observe, Proceed mindfully) to move from a reactive limbic state to a thoughtful executive state.
• Neuroplasticity in Action: How mindfulness and nature walks physically clear neural pathways and lower cortisol levels.
• Identity Re-calibration: Moving away from the “square peg in a round hole” mentality by embracing neurodivergence rather than trying to fix perceived weaknesses.
• Combating Shame: A look at the research-backed need for self-compassion and how it serves as a foundation for emotional regulation and resilience.
• Practical Growth Tools: Simple shifts like gratitude journaling, “micro-wins,” and using the VIA (Values in Action) assessment to identify natural strengths.

Find Flourishing with Adult ADHD: The Evidence-based Guide to Client Well-being for Therapists and Coaches here: https://amzn.to/4uX9Bd0

And learn more about the work Liz Ahmann and Micah Saviet are doing here: https://www.adulttraumaandadhdsolutions.com/

https://www.pathways-ahead.com/

Dave is joined by Dana Hargus, founder of Restore Ada and an expert in trauma-informed wellness. Together, they explore how the body “keeps the score” of stress and trauma, the physiological signs of a dysregulated nervous system, and practical modalities like biofeedback and neurofeedback to help busy individuals with ADHD regain their sense of self.

Key Discussion Points

• The Reality of Burnout: Burnout is often more than just being “tired” It is a complex state of chronic stress that can be rooted in unresolved trauma.
• The ADHD Connection: High-performers with ADHD often operate in a state of constant mental racing, which can mask the subtle physical signs of systemic overload.
• The Body Keeps the Score: Even if a person does not have a verbal memory of a traumatic event, the body can retain the physiological impact, often manifesting as chronic pain, migraines, or digestive issues.
• Nervous System Dysregulation: Dana explains “fight, flight, or freeze” modes and how a dysregulated system perceives minor stressors as major threats.
• Practical Self-Regulation: * Morning Routine: Using the first five minutes of the day for gratitude and positive framing.
  • The “Sleep is King” Rule: Establishing strict routines, avoiding screens, and aiming for rest by 11:00 PM.
  • Grounding: The physical benefits of letting sunlight hit your face and placing bare feet on the earth to lower inflammation.
• Introduction to Biofeedback for ADHD: An overview of how neurofeedback uses electrodes to monitor brain waves and “exercise” the brain to improve focus, sleep, and stress management.

Externalizing accountability is the “beating heart” of productivity for the ADHD brain.

Dave sits down with Russ Jones, founder of  “ADHD Big Brother” to dismantle the stigma surrounding accountability. They explore why “internalized” accountability often fails those with ADHD and how shifting to external structures can turn “not now” into “done.”

Russ explains the mechanics of “felt accountability” and introduces the game-changing concept of body doubling for busy professionals with ADHD.

Dave and Russ talk about:

• Felt Accountability: Moving from internal promises which ADHD brains can struggle with, to external visibility that creates healthy pressure.
• The Power of Body Doubling: How working in the presence of others, even virtually, adds a “teaspoon of extra focus” to boring or daunting tasks.
• Nagging vs. Support: Understanding that true accountability is an opt-in partnership, whereas nagging is unsolicited and often ineffective.
• The “Car Pulls Left” Analogy: Why consistent check-ins are necessary to keep the ADHD brain from drifting off course.
• Externalizing the Day: Using “true” calendars and physical notifications to prevent tasks from becoming “part of the furniture.”
• The Task Audit: Identifying “leaks” in your process, from capturing ideas to handling the “inner tantrum” when it’s time to start.

Learn more about Russ Jones and ADHD Big Brother here: https://www.adhdbigbrother.com/leaks