In this episode of ADHD Late to Know, Holly is joined by Ria from Ri-Align Coaching, an ADHD-specialist coach supporting ambitious, high-achieving adults who feel overwhelmed, burnt out, or stuck despite their capability.

Ria shares her powerful late-diagnosis journey — from years of feeling like life was on “hard mode” to finding clarity through ADHD understanding and building a career aligned with her strengths. Together, Holly and Ria explore what late-identified ADHD and AuDHD can really look like in adulthood, including burnout, emotional dysregulation, masking, people-pleasing, rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD), and self-doubt.

This conversation gently reframes ADHD away from constant self-fixing and towards self-trust, nervous system awareness, and working with your brain instead of against it. Ria also explains how ADHD-informed coaching helps clients rediscover their strengths, rebuild confidence, and move forward in a more sustainable way — especially when traditional routes haven’t worked.

The episode also covers:

• Why so many ADHD adults feel “capable but exhausted”
• The impact of lifelong micro-criticisms and masking
• How strengths can become saboteurs without boundaries
• The role of coaching in late diagnosis and identity rebuilding
• ADHD support at work, reasonable adjustments, and Access to Work
• Why chemistry and safety matter so much in coaching relationships
• The “penny-drop” moments that change everything for Ria’s clients

If you’re late to understanding your ADHD, questioning your neurodivergence, or learning how to build a life you feel proud of, this episode will help you feel seen, validated, and less alone.

🔗 Find Ria:

Website: ri-align.co.uk

Instagram: @rialigncoaching