Living Beyond ADHD

Still awake at 1 a.m. scrolling, even though you promised yourself you'd be asleep hours ago? "Revenge bedtime procrastination" is enormously common in ADHD adults, and it's not about willpower.

DrB explains why ADHD brains struggle with sleep — delayed circadian rhythms, racing thoughts once the day's stimulation stops, and the pull of reclaiming autonomy at night — and shares six skills for building rest that actually holds.

Key Points Covered

• Why delayed sleep phase is common alongside ADHD, and why it's biology, not laziness
• Why racing thoughts often surface right at bedtime, once daytime stimulation stops competing for attention
• "Revenge bedtime procrastination" — why night becomes the only time that feels like yours
• Why screens are especially hard to put down for an ADHD brain at night
• Six skills: protecting daytime autonomy, adding friction to screens, external wind-down cues, and anchoring your wake time

Links Mentioned

• drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources
• It Was Never You:   Why Capable, Successful Adults Keep Hitting the Same Wall
  Nothing in November; next masterclass is December 15, 2026; page will be updated soon.  Currently has Oct. information and that is over; don't register yet.    https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  
• Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram 
• Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 
• The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 
• Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 
• Follow me on DrB Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more
• Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources
• Join me in the FREE group on Skool (instead of the Facebook group).  Here's the link to request to join:  https://www.skool.com/giftedadultslivingbeyondadhd/about

To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

A drawer full of abandoned planners isn't proof you can't be organized — it's proof you were handed systems built for a different kind of brain.

DrB breaks down what actually makes a system ADHD-compatible (externalized memory, tolerance for missed days, low maintenance, high visibility), why the fanciest systems tend to fail fastest, and six practical skills for building one that actually holds up.

Key Points Covered

• The four traits an ADHD-compatible system needs: externalized memory, tolerance for inconsistency, low friction, and visibility
• Why elaborate, complex systems usually fail fastest for ADHD brains
• Common failure patterns: "shiny new planner" syndrome, all-or-nothing collapse, and app-scattering
• Why copying someone else's system often backfires
• Six skills: one capture point, a restart ritual, visibility, simplifying instead of adding, and pairing systems with accountability

Links Mentioned

1. drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources
2. It Was Never You:   Why Capable, Successful Adults Keep Hitting the Same Wall
   December 15, 2026 is next masterclass;  page will be updated soon with that information.  Currently page has Oct. information and that is over.  Please don't register yet.    https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  
3. Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
   https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram 
4. Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
   https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 
5. The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
   https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 
6. Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
   https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 
7. Follow me on DrB Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more
8. Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources
9. Join me in the FREE group on Skool (instead of the Facebook group).  Here's the link to request to join:  https://www.skool.com/giftedadultslivingbeyondadhd/about
   
   
   

To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

Your mind is a supermarket, and the shelves are packed with thoughts, feelings, behaviors, values, and beliefs — both the motivating and the deflating. In this episode, DrB asks the question: what's in your basket?

She shares three learnable skills — notice what's in the basket, read the labels, and swap rather than purge — so you can stop shopping on autopilot. Not a flaw. A skill you can practice.

Key Points Covered

• The supermarket metaphor: thoughts, feelings, behaviors, mindsets, values, and beliefs all sit on the shelves, and we choose what goes in the basket
• Why most of what is in our basket was handed to us or grabbed out of habit — and why "just think positive" is not help for an ADHD brain
• Skill 1 — Notice what is in the basket with a one-minute daily inventory, without judgment
• Skill 2 — Read the label: where did this thought come from, is it true, and is it useful?
• Skill 3 — Swap, do not purge: replace one item or add one nourishing thought instead of overhauling your whole mind
• Why what you feed yourself most of the time matters more than any single bad day, and how sleep, food, and rest keep you from shopping hungry
  
  

Links Mentioned

• drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources
• It Was Never You:   Why Capable, Successful Adults Keep Hitting the Same Wall
  November date to be determined as of yet.  Page will be updated soon.  Currently has Oct. information and that is over.  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  
• Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram 
• Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 
• The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 
• Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 
• Follow me on DrB Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more
• Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources
• Join me in the FREE group on Skool (instead of the Facebook group).  Here's the link to request to join:  https://www.skool.com/giftedadultslivingbeyondadhd/about
  
  

To Help The Show:
Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

That long list of struggles isn't one flaw. It's thirteen skills, and every one of them can be developed.

In this episode, DrB separates ADHD symptoms from executive function skills, walks through all thirteen in plain language, and explains why the order they're built in matters. You'll also get a simple prediction exercise to start practicing metacognition today. There's nothing broken here. Some skills just haven't been taught yet.

Key Points Covered

• The difference between the three ADHD symptoms and the executive function skills, in DrB's experience, and why attention alone doesn't build the rest.
• Why planners and to-do advice fall off: they tell you what to do without teaching the skill.
• A plain-language tour of all 13 skills, from metacognition and inhibiting to working memory and maintaining achievements.
• Why metacognition comes first: you can see without acting, and every skill gives you choice.
• Emotional control as thinking control: we are the meaning makers.
• Why the order matters, and a metacognition exercise: predict a movie, then predict your day.
  
  

Links Mentioned

• drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources
  
  
• It Was Never You:   Why Capable, Successful Adults Keep Hitting the Same Wall
  October 20, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time + VIP hour:  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  
  
  
• Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram 
  
  
• Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 
  
  
• The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 
  
  
• Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 
  
  
• Follow me on DrB Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more
  
  
• Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources
  
  

Join me on the free group on Skool (instead of the Facebook group).  Here's the link to request to join:  https://www.skool.com/giftedadultslivingbeyondadhd/about


To Help The Show:
Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

Ever followed the directions perfectly and still not gotten the result? In this episode, DrB explains pre-skills: the skills you need before you can build the skills you want.

She walks through the three that matter most: managing yourself in time, banishing procrastination, and making decisions with a values-based strategy. If it hasn't worked, it was never you. It was a missing skill, and skills can be learned.

Key Points Covered

• What a pre-skill is, with the two-wheeler and balance example, and why so many how-to books skip them.
• Pre-skill 1: manage yourself in time, not time itself. Build settling time into your schedule and put tasks on a calendar, not a to-do list.
• Covey's jar: put your rocks (your 4 to 6 most important things) in first, or they will never fit.
• Pre-skill 2: procrastination is a symptom, not a flaw. It shows up where you run out of knowing how to begin, continue, or finish. Includes the three saboteurs: negative thinking, fear of failure, and fear of success.
• Pre-skill 3: decision-making. Understand decision fatigue, decide in bulk, and filter options through your values and criteria.
• Why beliefs and identity come first, pre-skills second, and executive function skills third.

Links Mentioned

• drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources
  
  
• It Was Never You:   Why Capable, Successful Adults Keep Hitting the Same Wall
  October 20, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time + VIP hour  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/   (free masterclass)
  
  
•  Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram
  
  
• Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance
  
  
• The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram
  
  
• Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function
  
  
• Follow me on DrB Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more
  
  
• Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources
  
  

To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

You know what to do, so why can't you do it? In this extended episode, DrB explains why limiting beliefs and outdated identities get in the way of every skill you try to build, and why they come before pre-skills and executive function skills.

You'll learn how to put a limiting belief on the witness stand, how to separate "I am" from "I do," and a three-part life work exercise to start this week. Plus an invitation to the free live It Was Never You Masterclass on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, co-hosted with Dr. Tuby Akinlosotu.

Key Points Covered

• The big picture: outdated identities and limiting beliefs first, then pre-skills, then executive function skills
• Three misconceptions: we know what we need, knowledge is power, and we can skip the process
• A limiting belief is a belief held as if it were fact; every limiting belief has an exception (Roger Bannister and the four-minute mile)
• Common limiting beliefs about yourself, relationships, habits and time, organization, and your own brain, and why "I hate my ADHD brain" backfires
• Identity versus behavior: why "I am lazy" is an identity and "I struggle to start tasks" is a skill gap
• The three-part life work exercise, plus details for the free live masterclass on October 20, 2026 (10 am to 2 pm Pacific)

Links Mentioned

drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources

It Was Never You:   Why Capable, Successful Adults Keep Hitting the Same Wall
October 20, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time + VIP hour:  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  

Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram

Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance
 
The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram
 
Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function

Follow me on DrB Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more

Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources

To Help The Show:
Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!
Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

Slept eight hours and still feel like you're running on empty? ADHD burnout is different from ordinary burnout — it's the cumulative cost of constantly compensating for a brain the world wasn't built around, and "just rest more" doesn't fix it.

DrB explains why ADHD burnout hits differently, how it shows up before you even realize you're in it, and the structural skills that actually prevent it.

Key Points Covered

• Why ADHD burnout is different from general workplace burnout — the "ADHD tax" of constant compensation
• Why high performers are often the most vulnerable to a sudden, dramatic crash
• Why rest alone doesn't fix ADHD burnout
• Real-life signs: losing skills temporarily, getting sick after big projects, a vacation that doesn't help
• Five skills for prevention: proactive recovery time, personal early-warning signs, unmasked spaces, protected downtime, and requesting accommodations early

Links Mentioned

drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources

It Was Never You Masterclass – More Than ADHD Coaching, October 20, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time + VIP hour:  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  (registration link will be active by Sept. 30th; currently set to previous old date)

Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram

Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 

The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 

Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 

Follow me on Dr B Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more

Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources

To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

Can't start the task, or can't stop redoing it? Both get called laziness, but they're driven by opposite fears — and treating them the same way is why so many fixes don't stick.

DrB breaks down the real difference between ADHD procrastination and ADHD perfectionism, how the two feed each other into one paralyzing loop, and the specific skills that interrupt each one.

Key Points Covered

• Why ADHD procrastination is a task-initiation and emotional avoidance issue, not a time management issue
• Why perfectionism in ADHD is often compensatory armor, not high ambition
• The key distinction: procrastination fears starting, perfectionism fears finishing
• How the two patterns feed each other into a self-reinforcing loop
• Four practical skills — shrinking the first step, defining "done" in advance, externalizing the start, and separating drafts from identity

Links Mentioned

drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources

It Was Never You Masterclass – More Than ADHD Coaching (FREE), September 22, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time + VIP hour:  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/ 

Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram

Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 

The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 

Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 

Follow me on Dr B Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more

Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources

 To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

Impulse buys at midnight. Bills that quietly turn into late fees. A banking app you haven't opened in weeks. If ADHD has ever made money feel like a moral test you keep failing, this episode is for you. DrB breaks down why ADHD brains struggle with money — dopamine, time blindness, working memory — and shares five practical skills for building a system that works with your brain instead of against it.

Key Points Covered

• Why ADHD brains are especially prone to impulsive spending and financial avoidance
• How time blindness and working memory challenges turn into late fees and forgotten bills
• "Money paralysis" — why avoiding your bank app can feel safer than checking it
• Why all-or-nothing budgets fail, and what to build instead
• Five practical skills: automation, the purchase pause, making the invisible visible, separating worth from numbers, and sustainable support
  
  

Links Mentioned

drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources

It Was Never You Masterclass – More Than ADHD Coaching, September 22, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time (FREE) + VIP hour:  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/ 

Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram

Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 

The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 

Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 

Follow me on Dr B Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more

Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources


To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this! 

Ever replayed a text message for three days over a single missing exclamation point? That's not "being too sensitive" — it might be Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, an intense emotional response to real or perceived rejection that's common in ADHD brains.

In this episode, DrB names the wound nobody talks about, explains why it happens, and shares practical skills for putting a pause between the feeling and the reaction. This one's personal, and it's for anyone who's ever shrunk their life to avoid being turned down.

Key Points Covered

• What Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) is and why "dysphoria" is the operative word
• Why RSD can be triggered by real or imagined rejection, and why that makes it so disorienting
• How RSD quietly shapes decisions — people-pleasing, avoiding risk, staying small
• The "five-second pause" as a first-line skill for interrupting the RSD spiral
• How to separate the feeling from the facts of what actually happened
• Building a kinder internal voice, and why sustainable support (like the GSD 9-Month Program) makes these skills stick

Links Mentioned

drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources

It Was Never You Masterclass – More Than ADHD Coaching, September 22, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time + VIP hour:  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/  (Registration is now open)

Get Sh*t Done (GSD) Program Information – 9-month program
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram

Grant assistance page for help with funding for GSD program:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/financial-assistance 

The Transformation Club (TTC) – if time or money commitments have been holding you back - the affordable membership program for Executive Function skills development:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram 

Free PDF - 13 Signs Weak Executive Functioning Is Holding You Back:
https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/Executive-Function 

Follow me on Dr B Facebook Page and enjoy live videos and more

Follow me on Instagram and enjoy relevant resources 

To Help The Show:

Subscribe at your favorite listening spot, and my podcast player has social media links (icons) in the episode player so you can share episodes you love with others!

Please rate the show and leave a thoughtful review on iTunes so I know you're benefiting from the episodes. The greater the number of reviews, the higher the ranking, and the easier it will be for others to find the show; people who also need this information. 

Let's put an end to the worldwide needless suffering together! We can do this!