This episode sits right in the space where mental load, motherhood, and neurodivergence collide.

It’s about the exhaustion that doesn’t come from doing one hard thing — but from having to remember everything, explain everything, repeat everything, and stay emotionally available while your own capacity is already gone.

For many ADHD mums, the hardest part of advocacy isn’t the paperwork. It’s being the living filing cabinet. The one who holds every report, every strategy, every update, every change — and is expected to access it on demand, usually at the worst possible time.

This conversation with Letitia from Understanding Zoe explores what happens when that load becomes unsustainable, why school pickup can feel like a threat to your nervous system, and how repetition and emotional labour quietly push mums toward burnout.

WHAT WE COVER

– Why repeated conversations and ‘quick questions’ drain capacity faster than admin

– The invisible emotional cost of being the default advocate

– School pickup as a nervous system stressor, not a social moment

– Why mums freeze when asked for information they technically ‘know’

– How mental load is reinforced by systems, not personality

– The guilt and self-blame that comes with forgetting details

– How AI can act as a second brain instead of another demand

– Using technology to reduce repetition without losing control or privacy

THIS EPISODE IS FOR YOU IF…

– school pickup makes your shoulders rise before you even get there

– you dread being asked for strategies when your window of tolerance is closed

– you’ve handed advocacy to a partner and it somehow comes back bigger

– you feel like you’re supposed to know everything about your child, always

– you freeze when asked questions because your brain has already hit capacity

– you’re tired of being ‘so capable’ while quietly burning out

When this load isn’t named, ADHD mums internalise it.

They assume they should cope better.

They blame themselves for forgetting.

They keep tabs open because closing them feels risky.

Over time, the nervous system never gets a break. Not because mums don’t rest — but because responsibility never fully leaves their body.

This episode reframes that experience. Not as failure. Not as disorganisation. But as what happens when one person becomes the emotional interface between systems that don’t talk to each other.

RESOURCES & REFERENCES

Understanding Zoe platform - check it out here

Why ADHD Mums Can’t Relax — Even When It’s Quiet

https://adhdmums.com.au/podcast_episode/why-adhd-mums-cant-relax/

Why Am I Bracing for Impact When Nothing Is Wrong? (Quick Reset)

https://adhdmums.com.au/podcast_episode/episode-10-quick-reset-why-am-i-bracing-for-impact-when-nothing-is-wrong/

ADHD Mums Energy Accounting Guide (Free)

https://adhdmums.com.au/product/adhd-mums-energy-accounting-guide/

LISTENER QUESTIONS & COMMUNITY

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