Glitchy Switch: What ADHD feels like to an adult.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I finally come back to the topic I kept promising: burnout — the kind that hits neurodivergent people (ADHD, autism, AuDHD) while you’re still “technically functioning”.

I talk about what it felt like for me, why it’s so easy to misread as “just stress”, and why it took me far longer than it should have to admit what was actually happening — even to myself.

In this episode:

What does autistic burnout / ADHD burnout actually feel like from the inside?

Why can you look fine on the outside while your nervous system is quietly tapping out?

What sorts of work environments and ways of working can push AuDHD people towards burnout?

What helped me start recovering when the usual corporate support tools weren’t enough?

Why is the word “burnout” still so hard to say out loud, even now?

If you need support (UK):

Urgent mental health help (NHS): https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/mental-health-services/where-to-get-urgent-help-for-mental-health/

Samaritans (24/7): call 116 123 — https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/talk-us-phone/

Shout (24/7 text support): text SHOUT to 85258 — https://shout.crisistextline.uk/

Mind helplines and support: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/helplines/

Get in touch:

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I talk about something that’s been sneaking in behind all the relief of late diagnosis: grief.

Late diagnosis can bring relief — and then a wave of grief for the years you lived without the manual. Here’s what that grief actually is, why it shows up after things improve, and what helps me live with it without losing the joy.

In this episode:

Why feeling better now can unexpectedly trigger grief about the years before.

The anger that can come from realising how long you spent sat on rails that didn’t fit.

What I mean when I say this isn’t about wisdom.

Why art and creativity have become the sharpest reminder of what I missed.

How I’m holding the tension and moving through it.

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I share a penny-drop moment I’ve had since my autism diagnosis: the way my brain’s pattern-matching can sometimes turn uncertainty into instant self-blame — even when there’s no evidence I’ve done anything wrong. 

I talk about how the same “make it make sense” engine that’s built my career can become a trap with humans, why being seemingly socially punished can trigger a reflex guilt response, and the simple reframe that’s helped me stop turning myself inside out trying to find the fault. 

In this episode:

The difference between normal guilt and that reflex “I must fix this” guilt. 

How autistic pattern-matching and hyperfocus can become relief-seeking when things don’t make sense. 

Why working with people is harder than working with systems — and why uncertainty feels like internal static. 

The moment I noticed my brain “click into guilt mode”, and what helped me interrupt the spiral. 

The new rule I’m practising as a reframe.

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode, I stay on the “tribe” theme and talk about something I’ve come to realise is absolutely central to my neurodivergent life: safe people — the ones who make your nervous system unclench and let you be as close to yourself as possible. 

I share the common traits I’ve noticed across my own safe people, and a simple way to sanity-check whether a relationship feels like a partnership… or a performance. 

In this episode:

What I mean by “safe people”, and what it feels like when your body knows you’re safe. 

The five traits I keep seeing across my tribe. 

Why effort and reciprocity matter, and how to notice if you’re carrying it all. 

Why clarity is a gift for ADHD and autistic people, and how to spot it early. 

Why “repair” is the real test of safety — and what unsafe behaviour can look like in disguise. 

Get in touch:

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode, we explore a question that’s been on my mind a lot since late diagnosis: how do neurodivergent people find their tribe?

I talk about what “tribe” really means when you’re someone who often feels a bit other in most rooms — and how safety with the right people can feel like your nervous system finally unclenching. I also talk about the major breakthrough I made literally the day before I recorded this podcast that's completely reframed my thinking.

In this episode:

Why feeling safe around certain people can feel like a massive exhale.

The definition of “tribe” I used to have — and why it set me up for anxiety.

What changed after my autism diagnosis gave me that sense of wholeness.

The two revelations that turned my perception upside down.

How shedding that sense of “lacking” changes who you connect with — and how much you give.

Get in touch:

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode, I talk about something that comes after the diagnosis — the bit hardly anyone explains properly: asking for reasonable adjustments at work for adult ADHD and/or autism.

Even when you know you’re legally covered, and even when the company rhetoric is all inclusion and belonging, asking can feel oddly exposing — like you’re admitting you’re not up to the job. I share what it actually felt like for me, what I learnt the hard way, and why this is still a journey for both individuals and workplaces.

In this episode:

Why a formal diagnosis can create the space to ask for adjustments — and why it can still feel vulnerable.

Why “reasonable adjustments” are surprisingly poorly documented, and what I wish I’d known sooner.

The first hurdle: getting the words out loud, and why it can feel profoundly othering.

What can go wrong when requests are handled clumsily, even when people mean well.

The reality of implementation: when adjustments need other people’s buy-in, and how to make them stick.

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I talk about what it feels like to have both adult ADHD and autism — that AuDHD “push–pull” where one part of you wants novelty and motion, and another part of you wants structure, clarity, and quiet. 

I share the contradictions it creates in real life — from paperwork and routines, to small talk and social energy — and why, looking back, it makes a lot of sense that I ended up in a career built around structure and rapport. 

In this episode:

What “ADHD wants go, autism wants no” actually feels like in day-to-day life.

Why I can crave novelty, yet get anxious when things are vague or unclear.

The social contradiction: coming across confident, but finding small talk genuinely stressful.

How AuDHD shows up at work, including why structure can feel like relief.

What this push–pull looked like for me in dating, and why ambiguity was both thrilling and terrifying.

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I talk about the first big thing that hit me after my autism diagnosis: what it means for relationships. 

I share how the diagnosis is helping me reframe years of relational anxiety, why I’ve often gone the opposite of the “blunt autistic stereotype”, and how understanding my wiring is already changing the way I show up — with less shame, and a bit more self-respect. 

In this episode:

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I share what it actually felt like to be told — as an adult — that I’m autistic as well as having ADHD.

I talk through the assessment process in plain terms, what surprised me most when I was answering the questions, and why the emotional “landing” of the diagnosis wasn’t dramatic — it was quieter than that.

In this episode:

What does an adult autism assessment actually involve — and how is it similar to an ADHD diagnosis?

What was it like having Helen fill in the “someone close to you” questionnaire?

What happens when you catch yourself giving the “socially acceptable” answers — and then have to decide what’s actually true?

What did the consultation feel like in the moment — and why was it so exhausting?

What did I feel immediately afterwards — and what started clicking into place in the days that followed?

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.

In this episode of Glitchy Switch, I share the start of a new realisation I didn’t see coming: once methylphenidate eased many of my classic adult ADHD struggles, a different set of sharper-edged traits started showing up more clearly. 

If you’ve ever wondered why autism traits can become more noticeable after treating ADHD — or why you can feel “better” in one way but more sensitive in another — as usual this is my honest, lived experience.

In this episode:

How ADHD medication reduced the fog — and revealed other “louder” channels underneath. 

Why lack of structure and unclear expectations started feeling genuinely anxiety-inducing, especially at work. 

How noise, office overwhelm, and sensory stress began hitting differently — and what a quiet space changed for me. 

What “justice sensitivity” felt like when it ramped up, and why it can be so emotionally draining. 

The moment autism content started landing a little too accurately — and why I decided to pursue an assessment. 

Get in touch:

LinkedIn 👉🏻  https://bit.ly/3wK0pzz

Email 👉🏻  [email protected]

Note: This podcast is shared purely as first-hand experiences to help others and should not be considered medical advice. Listeners should seek proper guidance if they have concerns or questions of a medical nature.