ADHD affects many areas of the brain, but in this house there is one particular occurrence that we see time and time again. As part of mine and kiddo's ADHD, we have to control impulsive behaviour. Engaging in our impulses to run, shop, eat or in kiddo's case do anything he knows he shouldn't, gives [...]
I was driving to Kiddo's school this morning when a little voice from the back seat said, "McDonald's?" in a not so innocent but hopeful voice. "Not today darling" I said. I thought to myself how much stricter my parents were with that sort of thing than I am. I have no doubt that if [...]
The other day I sat feeling like the world's biggest fraud. We get carers allowance, DLA and respite and here was my child sat coloring in his Disney Pixar colouring book like an angel. He had slept the night before and I felt refreshed and calm. You would think I would savour this moment, breath [...]
I've been having this discussion with people a lot recently, why are we all struggling so much at the moment? Then last week I had a huge realisation. As neurodiverse people with autism and/or adhd, we are far more sensitive to changes in energy, weather, activities and routine. We adapt a sensory diet to fit [...]
It's a common trait for autistic children to build expectations and rules on where certain people belong and certain activities take place. For example, a teacher belongs at school and maths belongs at school too. Many neurodiverse people have these feelings when adults as well, I certainly do. If I see someone like a doctor [...]
If I find parenthood far more exhausting than my friends do, does that make me a bad mum? This question has gone round and round in my head for years. I see my friends with neurotypical children and think, "yep, they're exhausted". Yet they can still manage to stay up until 10pm, hold down a [...]
When you're on the verge of physical burnout, people tell you to rest your body. To listen to it, to help it relax. Autistic burnout is different in that I find I must listen to my brain as much as my body, maybe even more so. Autistic burnout is when your brain becomes so exhausted, [...]
Some of you may have seen in my stories recently that I watched a webinar on the ADDitude website about how to conquer clutter in the home when you have ADHD. It was by the fantastic Linda Roggli and was the first time I had come across her and quite frankly, she blew my mind!Being [...]
Today I announced on social media that I will be taking on my own diagnosis journey this year (and likely next year and maybe the year after depending on waiting lists). Last month I had the stark realisation that I have ADHD. I felt my brain explode as all the pieces of my life fell [...]
The word "ableism" is used an awful lot these days, but do you know what it actually means? An "ableist" is someone who holds discriminatory views about people with both physical or learning disabilities, often of the opinion that they need to be "fixed". But where did ableism come from? Where did it start? I'm [...]
The Autism & ADHD Diaries 