ADHD Beyond The Label

“You kind of live in an oxymoron when you’ve got ADHD.”

In this powerful and deeply honest episode of ADHD: Beyond The Label, Dr Phil Anderton and John Reynolds sit down with Emily, hospitality leader and founder of the sober-curious community Sober & Social to explore the addictive patterns that can quietly shape an ADHD life.

From drinking at 12 to thriving in nightlife culture, Emily shares how alcohol and drugs became a way to quiet a noisy brain. What started as curiosity evolved into self-medication, a common but rarely unpacked ADHD trajectory.

But this isn’t just a story about addiction. It’s about awareness. It’s about hyperfocus turning into burnout. It’s about swapping substances for work obsession. It’s about dopamine, community, caffeine, kettle chips… and mushroom coffee. It’s about learning that the ADHD brain doesn’t stop being “addictive”, it just learns where to place its energy.

In a candid conversation, the trio explore:

- Why ADHD and addictive behaviours are so closely linked

- The progression from alcohol to drugs — and the rarely discussed reversal

- Hyperfocus, burnout and “productive addiction”

- The power of community in recovery

- Choosing healthier dopamine sources

- And why taking a conscious pause might be the bravest move of all

Emily’s journey isn’t about erasing her addictive side, it’s about understanding it, befriending it, and directing it with intention.

This episode is honest, hopeful and incredibly relatable for anyone who’s ever swung between extremes. Because sometimes growth isn’t about doing more. Sometimes it’s about pressing pause.

Marisa Poster is a Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur, GBEA Young Entrepreneur of the Year, and co-founder of PerfectTed.

Diagnosed with ADHD as a teenager, she turned to matcha as a replacement for coffee.

When she moved to the UK and couldn't find it anywhere, she built the solution herself. Today, PerfectTed is Europe's largest matcha brand and the second biggest importer of matcha globally after Starbucks.

In this episode, she joins ADHD 360 CEO Dr Phil Anderton and co-host John Reynolds to talk about what ADHD really looks like in the workplace. From masking to momentum, systems to self-awareness, Marisa shares how her diagnosis became the framework for how she leads.

This is not a story about overcoming a challenge. It is a reframing of what ADHD can offer when it is understood, supported and allowed to thrive.

This episode of ADHD Beyond the Label features Alex Partridge, founder of UniLad and LADBible, and host of ADHD Chatter, where he speaks with experts, psychiatrists and public figures about the many sides of ADHD.

Alex was diagnosed with ADHD at 34. By that point, he had built two of the UK's biggest media brands, but still didn't feel settled in himself.

In this conversation, he speaks with ADHD 360 CEO, Dr Phil Anderton and John Reynolds about the version of success people saw, and the quieter struggles they didn't. About years spent shape-shifting to fit in, chasing validation, and questioning why none of it ever felt quite right.

It's not a story of overcoming. It's a story of understanding. And how the right diagnosis can completely reframe the way we see ourselves, both past and present.

‘Neurodivergence isn't a brake on progress - it might actually be the engine behind it.’

In this episode of ADHD Beyond the Label, Dr Phil Anderton & John Reynolds talk with Dex Hunter-Torricke.

Dex has worked directly with some of the biggest names in tech, Eric Schmidt at Google, Elon Musk at SpaceX, Mark Zuckerberg at Facebook.

He's seen up close how innovation accelerates when neurodivergent thinkers are not only welcomed, but empowered.

Dex believes that all but one of his big-tech bosses were likely neurodivergent - and in Silicon Valley, that's not something people hide. It's often a headline strength.

Neurodivergence is credited as a driver of creation, disruption, and problem-solving. (Of course, hyper-focus and intense work cultures can also lead to burnout - a conversation for another day).

But outside that ecosystem, especially in the UK, neurodivergence is still too often masked, misunderstood, or surrounded by stigma & shame.

And that has consequences:

• ideas unspoken

• innovation lost

• potential untapped

There's so much we could learn from the way Silicon Valley elevates difference rather than burying it under rigid protocols and one-size-fits-all HR performance reviews.

Today, alongside recently joining the HM Treasury board, Dec is using his platform, experience and extensive networks to take n some of humanities most urgent challenges.

This week on Beyond the Label we're joined by Darcus Beese OBE - trailblazing music executive, former President of Island Records, and the force behind artists including Amy Winehouse, Jessie J, and The Killers.

From growing up in 1970s West London to shaping global music culture, Darcus shares his late ADHD diagnosis, the pivotal role it played in his life, and the lessons he's carrying forward. Together we explore:

• Why ADHD in the arts is more common than you might think

• How fight-or-flight instincts shaped his resilience and creativity

• The highs and hardships of working with world-famous artists

• Why understanding mental health in the music industry is long overdue

In this week's episode of ADHD Beyond the Label, Darcus joins Phil Anderton and John Reynolds for an inspiring, unfiltered conversation about creativity, survival, and redefining success.

In this episode of ADHD Beyond the Label, Dr Phil Anderton and John Reynolds discuss ADHD and inflammation with leading Professor Dan Nicolau Jr.

Dan is a mathematician, engineer and physician. He completed his DPhi in mathematics at Oxford and his medical degree at Green-Templeton College, Oxford. He was a Miller Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Berkeley in the laboratory of MAR Koehl.

Dan's research focusses on using mathematics and computer science methods to better understand complex biological systems, particularly as they relate to disease states, inflammation and ageing. A unifying theme of this work is viewing immune networks as devices of computation and control, with disease states disturbing the native topology.

This week on Beyond the Label, we were joined by none other than Heston Blumenthal OBE - the world-renowned chef, innovator, and pioneer of multi-sensory gastronomy. Known for pushing the boundaries of food at his three Michelin-starred restaurant The Fat Duck, Heston has redefined how we experience flavour, memory, and emotion through food.

But behind the culinary genius is also a story of neurodivergence. Diagnosed with ADHD in 2017, Heston opened up to us about how his busy mind, boundless creativity, and ability to "fall down rabbit holes" shaped his career and inspired some of his most daring dishes - from crab ice cream to The Sound of the Sea.

We spoke about:

• The link between ADHD and creativity in the kitchen
• His childhood school reports that simply read "can do better”
• How he translated French cookbooks as a teenager and discovered food science through curiosity
• Why the way we perceive food can change the way it tastes
• His openness about ADHD and bipolar diagnoses - and the importance of raising awareness to remove shame

As Heston put it, the brain is "a very busy thing" - and learning about ADHD helped him understand not just his challenges, but also the unique strengths that fuelled his career.

In this week's episode of ADHD Beyond the Label, Heston joins Phil Anderton and John Reynolds to share his journey, from misplaced dustpans in fridges to pioneering dishes that changed the way the world thinks about food.

This week, Ore Oduba, TV/radio presenter, actor and Strictly Come Dancing winner, joins Dr Phil Anderton and John Reynolds to share his powerful story of life before and after being diagnosed with ADHD.

"I spent years trying to fit in, shapeshifting like a chameleon into whatever I thought people wanted me to be. But that is exhausting."

Known for his work on the BBC, This Morning and in numerous stage productions, Ore opens up about the pressure of performing live, the hidden anxiety behind the spotlight, and the intense hyperfocus that helped him succeed but often left him burnt out.

Getting diagnosed with ADHD, he says, has given him the language and understanding he had been searching for his entire life.

In Episode 3 of ADHD: Beyond The Label, adventure Jordan Wylie MBE and ADHD specialist Rebecca Whelan share their personal journeys from hidden struggles to life-changing clarity after diagnosis.

In this insightful series, Dr. Phil Anderton and John Reynolds challenge common misconceptions, speaking with high achievers from business and media about their real-life experiences with ADHD.

Together, they uncover the truth behind the diagnosis - dispelling stigma and revealing how ADHD does not have to be a limitation but rather an asset.

In episode 19 of ADHD Beyond the Label, Sarah Ann Macklin joins Dr Phil Anderton and John Reynolds for a conversation about self-awareness, masking, and what it means to finally have language for something you've felt your whole life.

Sarah shares how ADHD shaped her success in ways she didn't recognise at the time - how perfectionism, burnout, and constant overthinking became normal.

She speaks honestly about the years she spent pushing herself hard, while quietly assuming she just needed to try harder or be better.