ADHD BCE

George chats with Dr Andy Shuttleworth about their experiences at university and how neurodivergent students can struggle with academic snobbery, imposter syndrome and other learning differences.

Following on from positive experiences through school, Andy followed an all too common path through academia; anxiety, stress and depression. Now outside the academic world, Andy has come to terms with his experiences and offers heartfelt advice to others still in or considering an academic career.

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/s2-bonus

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this reflective Season 2 finale, George steps back from individual episodes to take the long view—exploring what deep time can reveal about human variation, ancient nervous systems, migration, farming, adaptation, and the ever-changing ways societies define what is considered “normal.”

From the evolutionary origins of our survival-focused nervous systems to the profound social rewiring brought about by farming, this episode asks whether some of the struggles of modern life might make more sense when viewed against the vast backdrop of human history.

Along the way, George reflects on brilliant conversations this season with Professor Duncan Garrow, Matilda “Tilly” Siebrecht, and Dr Andy Shuttleworth, bringing together themes of uncertainty, material culture, migration, cognition, and the extraordinary diversity of human experience.

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/206

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Farming didn’t just change what we ate—it changed how we lived, thought, and experienced the world.

In this episode, we explore the origins of agriculture from the Fertile Crescent and the Natufian transition, through early settlements in Anatolia like Boncuklu Höyük and Çatalhöyük, and the spread of farming into Europe with the Linearbandkeramik culture.

Along the way, George ask a deeper question: what did this shift mean for the human nervous system—and for neurodivergent minds?

From mobile hunter-gatherer life to structured farming societies, this episode explores how one of the biggest transitions in human history may still shape how we think and feel today.

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/205

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, George is joined by Dr Andy Shuttleworth to explore human migration—or more accurately, dispersal.

Humans move. We always have.

Archaeology can often show us the push factors—climate change, pressure, survival—but the pull is harder to see. And yet, it’s hard to ignore the possibility of something deeper: an innate drive to explore.

Together, George and Andy discuss:

Sometimes we find evidence of people arriving somewhere new…

And that leaves us with one of archaeology’s most powerful truths:

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/204

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, George is joined by archaeologist and podcaster Matilda (Tilly) Siebrecht to explore what artefacts can really tell us about the human mind.

These aren’t just ancient objects — they’re decisions, habits, and lived experiences.

From tool use to decorative beads, George and Tilly discuss how material culture reveals:

Drawing on Tilly’s work in material culture and experimental archaeology, this episode brings the past to life through the objects people left behind.

Because archaeology isn’t just about what survived…

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/203

Your Story by MusicbyAden | https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, George is joined by archaeologist Professor Duncan Garrow to explore how archaeologists turn fragments of evidence into meaningful stories about the past.

From soil layers to artefacts and landscapes, they discuss how we piece together human lives from what remains—and the creativity, curiosity, and pattern recognition that make this possible.

The conversation also touches on how different ways of thinking, including neurodivergent traits, can be a real strength in archaeology.

And at the heart of it all is uncertainty.

Even with careful methods and decades of research, some questions remain unanswered—like how the first Neolithic farmers managed to get cows across the sea to Britain.

It’s a light moment, but it captures something essential:

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/202

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Welcome to Season 2 – Episode 1!

In the first episode of Season 2, we explore one of the most fundamental questions in archaeology and human history:

What is a human?

Every person who has ever lived has experienced the world through a nervous system — a biological inheritance that long predates modern humans themselves. In this episode, we look at how the human nervous system evolved over millions of years, from early mammals through to Homo sapiens, and how the development of the brain — particularly the prefrontal cortex — helped shape the way humans think, feel, and interact with the world.

We also consider an intriguing idea: if human nervous systems have always existed on a spectrum, then variation in perception, attention, and sensitivity may have been part of our species for as long as humans have existed.

This episode sets the stage for a season exploring how archaeologists interpret the traces of the past, and what those traces can tell us about the experiences of the people who lived before us.

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/201

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this short episode George introduces the return of ADHD BCE for season 2!

This season explores how archaeologists infer behaviour, cognition, and difference from the archaeological record, and what that evidence can tell us about the evolution of the human nervous system.

Across the season we’ll look at:

Rather than diagnosing the past, ADHD BCE starts from the assumption that human variation has always existed — and that many archaeological patterns only make sense when we allow for different ways of sensing, processing, and interacting with the world.

Season 2 is about learning how to read the past more carefully — and using archaeology to better understand ourselves today.

Welcome back!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Thanks everyone! ADHD BCE will be back in 2026 for season 2!

Season 1 has been an absolute blast and I can’t thank enough the wonderful listeners who support the show, the amazing guests who have given this podcast real world data and invaluable insights, and of course thank you to Ash and the team at the Archaeology Podcast Network.

It’s been a real privilege to host ADHD BCE and I can’t wait to get back in your ears in 2026. Until then, keep it real!

Your Story by MusicbyAden | https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

• APN Website: https://www.archpodnet.com
• APN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnet
• APN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnet
• APN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnet
• APN Shop

• Motion

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode George takes us inside our own nervous system. For hundreds of millions of years our ancestors have survived unimaginable challenges and these countless events shaped our evolution. To cope with the volatile climates we faced, our body’s evolved through survival and today we are carrying around the same software…and it’s all still trying to keep us alive.

By learning to communicate within our own bodies (via nervous system regulation) we can make end the internal conflict and feel safe, all the time.

Hopefully nervous system regulation becomes the new norm and we can finally step into that space age.

For rough transcripts head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/adhdbce/xx

• Instagram (@adhd_bce_podcast)
• Instagram (@sasaharper)

Your Story by MusicbyAden | https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

• APN Website: https://www.archpodnet.com
• APN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnet
• APN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnet
• APN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnet
• APN Shop

• Motion

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.