Some of the new neurodiversity terms like neurodiverse and neurodivergent can be quite confusing.
Neurodivergence can be defined as "the state of being neurodivergent." (source) Basically, any brain that diverges from the norm falls under the umbrella of neurodivergence. So everything except the neurotypical brain is included here.And it can also be hard to know what's all included under the neurodiversity umbrella. Most people already know that it includes autism, ADHD, and dyspraxia, for instance, but it can also include so many other conditions and brain differences.
A diagnosis can lead to a greaterunderstanding. Fully diving into and understanding what a diagnosis is, can be empowering and educational. Unexplained behaviors can now clearly be explained as a symptom of a diagnosis. This can be a huge relief to an individual and a family as well as a huge eliminator of stress.
Placing troubling behavior on a diagnosis can provide a boost in understanding your self image and self esteem. Instead of “Why is Sally always the bad kid and act out at school?” A DSM diagnosis label can shift the conversation to “Sally’s ODD has been really challenging lately, let’s see what else we can do to help.” Sally’s behavior is attributed to her diagnosis and she is no longer living the label as a “bad kid” which could have a big impact of her self esteem and self image.
If you are receiving treatment for a concern, a mental health diagnosis can actually help your professionals provide you with better treatment. Once a diagnosis is made, your treatment can be built off of the framework of your diagnosis. For example, a treatment approach for one diagnosis may have scientifically proven more effective so your psychologist may want to start with this treatment instead of trying new things. Ultimately your diagnosis can provide your provider with a guide for the most effective way to try to help
Your primary doctor, therapist, nutritionist, etc.. can all communicate clearly and effectively with a DSM diagnosis at a backbone to building treatment. Insurance uses a diagnosis to determine what benifits that you can recieve from your insurance plan. A multi modal treatment plan from your key providers means less of you trying to explain to each provider your challenges and more understanding around the goals of treatment.
Attention deficit disorder—also known as ADHD or ADD, can be challenging, but with a proper diagnosis, education, treatment, and support, it doesn’t have to derail your life. “ADHD is a neurobiological disorder that represents problems at the nerve center where neurotransmitters like dopamine help messages transfer from one nerve to another. It’s important to realize this in order to keep in mind that it is a medical diagnosis for a good reason!” (1)
Finding a provider with the experience you need is not always easy! Practice patience or bring in someone to help and/or keep you going. You may be on the internet or the phone for awhile. You’re looking for someone with experience and a willingness to work with you. Please, don’t make an appointment blindly. ADHD is a serious and chronic condition often extending into adulthood. Comprehensive treatment depends on your chosen provider’s level of experience with ADHD. Working together, you can make a lasting difference in your child’s, your own, or other loved one’s future.
A personal referral can be the best way to find a provider with experience with ADHD. Maybe your family physician knows someone. Or you could ask the child psychologist or social worker from your child’s school. If you can, attend a support group and ask group members if they could recommend someone to diagnose and/ or provide treatment. (Some groups even keep a list of local providers.) If you’re like most of us, insurance coverage is important. Contact your insurance call-line for their recommendations of preferred providers that diagnose ADHD.
Casting a Wider Net: Section 504 Revisions – Intensive review – What will qualify a student for a 504 plan and what abilities should not disqualify them under the law – by Lisa M. LaVardera, Esq
This is How you Treat ADHD based on Science – Russell Barkley, Ph.D. Creating external scaffolding to support Executive Functions – Behavior modification techniques. Specific strategies for time and organization management that work. (13-minute video)
Mere Existence? When everything that can go wrong, does — you might as well laugh. Have a little fun with Lev Yaniv’s videos.
I’m so tired of beating myself up. I also know that I not alone in feeling this shame and self-loathing. Loving yourself is a basic need of the human spirit, but we’re talking about living with ADHD. It gets complicated.
Choosing goals of inherent value to you. Using your strengths to inspire action and create routines that support your ability to find success. We also reaffirm the importance of unconditional acceptance.
The ADHD brain wants stimulation, challenge, novelty, deadlines, and works best when very interested in a project. Changing my working hours to playtime made all the difference. Online advocacy efforts. Two articles this month: a letter for teachers and an analogy for ADHD.
Stigma, misinformation, and fears about ADHD continually flood us with negative messages. There is hope with ADHD. Educate yourself. Understand that your child WOULD do better if they COULD. Article and video “ADHD Awareness – What next? – The ADHD Manifesto.
Self-care is the key to better self-control in children, adults, and parents affected by ADHD. Identifying and using your strengths is the basis for thriving with ADHD.
Poor memory and organizational skills are hallmarks of ADHD. Minimize your frustration with these core strategies. Featuring “9 Ways to Get Organized with Minimal Effort” and “20 Tools to Enhance your Memory.”
Left untreated ADHD can have devastating effects over the course of ones’ lifetime. ADHD impacts all of us differently and the strengths we use to cope are uniquely our own.
Reflect on your own ADHD story through questions outlined by the author of “My ADHD Journey: Living with ADHD in Pakistan.” What steps you have taken to meet your challenges, define your strengths and purpose for your life?
Developing systems is the key to organization, housekeeping and good time management. A comprehensive article with a few of my favorite resources to help you find the right tools to adapt to your life. Features strategies from 9 House and Home Systems for ADHD. Includes three videos – Make your bed, a commencement speech, Fly Lady routines, and ideas on shopping and getting a meal together from How to ADHD.
If you’re struggling to manage your ADHD, “How to Make ADHD Work for you – Pills don’t teach skills:Manage Your ADHD with Behavior Strategies” offers a number of great ideas from basic health needs (like Eating, Sleeping, and Moving) to ADHD hacks that should help.
Why DO we put off until tomorrow what we SHOULD have done yesterday? We are fearful, worried, ashamed, and procrastinate on projects both large and small. I mean CONSTANTLY. Learning to control your immediate response is helped by the non-judgmental and positive practice of Self-Regulation. Oversensitive emotions also affect parent and child relationships. We’ve included a video and slides that further expand on the topic.
Change is inevitable. The difference comes from a place of acceptance and love, or a place of self-dislike and dissatisfaction. Treatment starts with self-care. With productivity comes self-esteem and in time, acceptance of your authentic self. Note: New research shows that ADHD has serious repercussions throughout the lifespan.
Coming to terms with ADHD in the family. First by overcoming grief for what has been lost and claiming your place among others fighting the same battle. Second, by understanding ADHD, self-acceptance of yourself, learning effective strategies for moving forward with grace and keeping your priorities straight. Video: How to Explain ADHD
Online and in-person events to participate in ADHD Awareness. Notes on the latest understanding of how the ADHD brain operates. The importance of coming to accept your ADHD, find community and live in tune with yourself, ADHD and all. Video: The Art of ADHD.
It’s neuroscience. Create the correct dopamine and norepinephrine environment and the brain does the rest. Principles of productivity that work effectively even when motivation flags. 2 videos on being aware of ADHD and the importance of treating the disorder both at school and within the wider community.
How ADHD presents in adults. Be aware of environments where ADHD symptoms flourish and learn to restrict the most impairing aspects of ADHD. Strength-based strategies are so important to controlling ADHD.
Understand the ADHD mind in children and adults, develop self-compassion, and learn effective strategies to improve functioning. Modeling positive parenting techniques based on empathy, patience and delayed executive functions that affect functioning.
Negative thoughts and repeated failures exact a powerful emotional toll on people with ADHD. Learn to cope with Its impact on our ability to handle the challenges of everyday tasks and getting things done.
Design a life that lifts your spirits without draining all your energy. Explore our site and laugh a little at a short video about how our brains react when we ask them to get to work.
Be aware of how ADHD affects you. Know that you are worthy to seek help. ADHD is NO ONE’S fault, but once you know about it, it is your RESPONSIBILITY. Why? Because you are WORTH it
It is as important to identify your talents and strengths as to know your challenges. Advocating for your child and learning self-advocacy is a vital part of treatment for ADHD. Develop personalized strategies that work WITH your ADHD brain.
Understanding the complexity of ADHD and developing strategies for your home and personal life are important steps to coming to accept and deal with challenges. ADHD impacts everyone in the family. You need to work together to keep peace in the family and to maintain a comfortable home.
Learning to cope with ADHD is an ongoing process. Remember, small changes can make a big difference. Building habits and routines, planning, and developing household organization strategies are a great start. Everyone is affected differently by ADHD and needs a personalized treatment plan.
Enjoying a less stressful holiday season is a challenge. Simple organizing advice will help you get your house in order, but the practice of gratitude and the value of forgiveness can really help you enjoy your time together with friends and family. Two fun videos and a report of recent research of the ADHD brain add to our understanding of ADHD.
Finding your way along the winding path of the ADHD Journey isn’t easy, but we have resources for finding treatment and support. Productivity, planning, and organization tips are everywhere, but the key is creating strategies in line with how the ADHD brain works and that fit your unique needs.
October is ADHD Awareness month. With new understanding, you can choose to change your own or a loved one’s life for the better. The choice is yours. The focus is on parents this month, but there’s a little something for everyone.
Change your perspective and learn to thrive with ADHD. Never stop learning and adapting. Lots of help for parents in both written and video formats. The role of Choice in accepting responsibility for your own treatment.
Tools for self-discovery to better manage ADHD. Advocate for yourself by using your strengths to meet your challenges. – Compiled by Joan Jager
Diagnosis and Treatment
ADHD is increasingly recognized as a developmental disorder where self-regulation, or Executive Function – the ability to govern one’s thoughts and actions – is delayed and underdeveloped even in maturity. Actually, Attention Dysregulation describes ADHD better than the term Attention Deficit. The Executive Functions coordinate the many complicated actions within the brain. These actions, or functions, involve working memory,planning, motivation, initiation, complex problem-solving, self-monitoring, and other abilities. They all involve controlling one’s behavior and emotions as well as directing future actions. When these functions don’t work well together, behaving appropriately or getting things done is a hit and miss proposition. Executive Functions (EFs) work together as if they are the conductor of an orchestra. A conductor’s job is to get all the various instruments to work together to produce beautiful music. (1)(2)
Could it be ADHD?
Screening Tests– A collection of printed and online ADHD tests for children and adults.
When you first suspect ADHD is the problem, suddenly, an odd collection of personal quirks and failures; poor organization, problems remembering, failing to get tasks started, or following through, even changeable emotions, has a name. Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder is a well-researched condition that improves vastly with treatment. Because the hallmark of ADHD is variability, symptoms of ADHD are often judged as a willful lack of concern, a failure to grow up and take responsibility for one’s actions. But these frustrating behaviors may signal a different operating system in the brain, where actions are driven not by importance but by being interested, challenged, or finding the task novel or imminently urgent. (3)
ADHD is a chronic and impairing, but treatable disorder. Once you understand the ADHD brain, change is possible. Parents, children, adults, and their relationships all benefit from knowing as much as possible and acting on that knowledge. Medication, using external reminders, creating structure and routine, practicing basic self-care, and seeking support are all viable treatment options to improve daily functioning. Letting go of learned shame and working to accept and control the impact of ADHD on your life can bring tremendous relief and healing. Help for ADHD is more available than ever before if only you can find it. We’ve compiled a selection of resources to guide you.
What can you do?
It’s frustrating not to know where to go for the education, support, and treatment providers you may need. Effective treatment may require services and ideas from different sources both medical and practical. It would be ideal if you could contact a local person or agency with all your questions, but that is not the reality that most of us experience. Find Treatment and Supportfor an introduction to ADHD and sources to find the help you need.
Learning about ADHD, realizing how it impacts each individual, and finding what you need for yourself or your family is invaluable. Because ADHD is often accompanied by learning disabilities, behavior disorders or mental illnesses, (AKA as comorbidities) it is important to get professional help. You can make the difference. By understanding the disorder, you can accept what you cannot change while taking the necessary steps to get effective treatment. Make the effort. You have nothing to lose but ignorance and everything to gain. Here’s to a better life for you and your loved ones.
Bring understanding of ADHD into the light.Living with ADHD – Articles and Resource collections –Topics include: What is ADHD? Children with ADHD – Help for the home or at school. Adults with ADHD – Time management, productivity and other help for your personal and home life or at work. You’ll also find some favorite videos and our Newsletters.
ADHD in Audio and Video–You don’t have to like to read to educate yourself about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
Additional Resources
Today, information abounds on the internet, but myths mingle with fact and deciding which is true is an everyday challenge.
For the novice, Help Guide has ADHD Sections for both children and adults with good basic information. (Link works)
The National Resource Center on ADHDoffers extensive basic information and you can even contact one of their librarians for help. Click on Understanding ADHD in the menu. (A project of CHADD.)
ADDitude Magazine (Link works) – ADDitude is arguably the best site for overall coverage of family and personal concerns, although articles are short and you may want to see other recommended articles for more information. (Or subscribe to their magazine!)
Join an ADHD support group if you can. Realizing that you’re not alone and that others are facing common challenges is a tremendous step towards building knowledge and coping skills. Change may come slowly, but sharing the journey with others who have been through the ropes can help lift your burden and point the way towards new options.
Many groups also have a list of providers that have been recommended by members over the years. Those attending meetings may share the names of providers they are currently working with. If you cannot find a group nearby, try an online forum or Blog. See the bottom of the page for a few of these.
Ned Hallowell M.D. offers these tips for being a welcome member of a group in ADDitude Magazine’s article, “Your ADD Life.” (Link works)
“Save chatter for the right time. Some ADHD support groups schedule casual social periods along with group sharing, while others provide opportunities to mingle only before and after the official meeting.
Balance personal disclosures. Observe one or two meetings before jumping in. Sharing too much may make other members uncomfortable – sharing too little can make you seem standoffish.
Be supportive. Aim for a three-to-one ratio – three responses to others’ comments for every personal comment you make.”
Find a local Support Group
A search at Google Try Support, your city, and ADHD (Because groups are often held in nearby suburbs, you might try your whole state instead of a specific city to find nearby groups, for example: your state, adhd & support (maybe include parent or adult)
Try Meetup – Find or start a Meetup group near you
ADDMeetup.com “Find Attention Deficit Disorder Groups Near You. Meet other local people dealing with ADD and ADHD. Gather to share your experiences, progress, and thoughts with one another.” Search by country then city. They have groups all over the world. 223 ADD meetup groups worldwide. Thanks to ADHD coach Pete Quily.
ADD Care Meetup Group Meet other local Parents and Caregivers of children with ADD/ADHD. Offer support and share advice with others.
Find Nationwide support groups
CHADD Directory – CHADD is the national leader in support groups. Current listings of their many groups. Most are for parents, a few are for adults but adults with ADD are welcome at all meetings. Please note: CHADD now offers an Accessibility and Language option that includes text to audio in any language as well as oher features. Look for it on the top right-hand corner. Pressing the link brings up Recite me, an amazing tool!
Meetup – Find or Start a Meetup group near you – Explore the many tips they offer for facilitators.
Support Group Tips from ADDA – Corrected link to their Support Group Manual by Ari Tuckman
Virtual Support
ADDA Virtual Peer Support – Would you like to meet with other adults with ADHD without leaving the comfort and privacy of your home? ADDA members* have the opportunity to connect with peers for support in a safe non-judgmental environment 2 evenings a week. 90-minute phone calls every Tuesday and Thursday at 9 pm Eastern time. 5 pm Pacific. (*Membership in ADDA is $50, $20 for students.)
Reach Further –(Sorry, I need to update this listing. I no longer know the cost of this group.) A truly affordable ADHD coaching group offered by Jennie Friedman. Facebook community for accountability, online meetings, and shadow coaching available a few times a week.
The ADHD Enclave on Mighty Networks with Liz Lewis – Facebook pages too much? Try the Enclave. Basic membership is $150 a month, $200 for the year. Community membership with live bi-weekly small-group sessions includes daily body double sessions. The Park for Moms with ADHD is $80 a month.
Online support groups
If there’s no group meeting nearby, try an online forum or Blog. Here are a few possibilities:
Facebook has a number of sites dedicated to ADHD. Try a search to find the best ones for you. For a woman’s group, I like:
Some of these groups are open, but many support groups are closed to members only. No one but you will see posts from those sites on their personal Facebook page.
ADHD and Chill – “A group where people with ADHD can share memes and hang out without being dickheads. No discourse, no shitposting, very little politics and all the chill”
ADHD Shitposting – “There are hardly any rules in this group. Please try and keep jokes focused around ADHD.”
The Untapped Brilliance Club (a free Facebook community for positive and motivated adults with ADHD) New group as of September 2019 offered by coach Jacqueline Sinfield
How to ADHD is a video channel with an active Facebook page. Well researched with easy to understand explanations and strategies. Jessica McCabe appeals to kids, teens, and adults.
For parents facing very difficult behavior, Surviving the Storm is somewhere you can feel comfortable and get understanding support and advice. Do a search for the three Oppositional Defiant Disorder Facebook support groups and find your favorite.
ADD freeSources has a mix of posts about both children and adults, but is open and not a traditional support group.
16 Steps to Better Self-Esteem with ADHD by Kari Taylor-Hogan of ADDing to the Mayhem: MOMX3 with ADHD – “We put the fun in dysfunctional.” Helping get the word out about self-esteem.
There are lots of ways we can self-regulate our ADHD brain to help with anxiety and emotional regulation. These are good go-to ideas when faced with a challenging situation. When done regularly by including them into our daily routine, having a calmer brain is possible. It just takes commitment and practice.
Although I wrote this post for those with ADHD, the following strategies may be of use to anyone who may worry excessively, overthink situations, or find it difficult to relax. They are also good for anyone feeling anxious about what is currently going on in the world today.
RELEASE ANXIETY THROUGH MOVEMENT
Our body was designed to move, and for those with ADHD, we often want to move a lot more than the average Homosapien. If our hyperactivity isn’t expressed outwardly, it can often result in internal restlessness giving a feeling of internal angst and a general feeling of being unsettled. I find the best way to combat this is to go and do any form of movement I can. It’s not unusual for me to be dancing around my apartment to music or jumping on my scooter, just to feel the movement and release any built-up energy.
Movement also helps with the release of emotions that may be suppressed. There seems to be a massive disconnect between our body and mind. By this I mean, we often seek something external outside of us to try to fix the emotional state inside of us. We try to suppress our emotions rather than letting them come up, deal with them, and then move on.
We can relate the release of anxiety and fear to animals in the wild, like taking a deer escaping being prey for instance. If a deer gets chased by another animal but gets away safely, the deer will shake off its fear quite literally. It does this shakey movement to let its fear move through it, then it returns to its fellow deer folk. It does make sense when you think about it. They shake that shit off and get on with life.
As humanoids, we tend to want to get rid of or suppress any unwanted, awkward feelings, rather than dealing with them head-on. In other words, we tend to suppress it rather than shaking it off. We kinda just hope they will go away but usually, they’ll rear their ugly head somewhere else in our lives. Shake it off but always remember to do what works for you and seek help when you need it.
Movement through Yoga- Calming the Inner Being
Movement can come in many forms. I also try to practice yoga 6 times per week and find this to be one of the most beneficial activities I’ve ever done in terms of managing my ADHD symptoms. Not only does it help my body by relieving tension, it also helps with following instructions and keeping my monkey brain in the present moment. Yoga is also beneficial for gaining an understanding of where in the body, tension is gathering. It allows for the ability to ‘let go’ of tension in each muscle group. It helps us calm the inner being within us.
To find out more about how yoga affects the nervous system, check out this short clip below.
Additional Ways of relieving tension ands Stress in the body
If yoga isn’t your thing, check out these other strategies that can help relieve tension in the body and help us regulate our emotions.
Make use of some apps on your phone
We all have phones these days so why not use them to our advantage. While everyone has a phone these days, not many of us are in control of it. But control is possible if we use it to our advantage especially when trying to reduce our anxiety.
There are plenty of apps available that can help us find calm in the moment, help us with sleep, or provide a playlist on it that we can call on if we are in an anxious period. I use my phone for meditation, with Insight Timer my go-to app. If purchasing a yearly subscription, the listening offline function becomes available making it easier on the data consumption, plus fewer radio waves flying around at night. I mainly use it at night for meditation and during the day for a body scan meditation.
If I’m using an app for music, for example, Spotify, I have a playlist set up for different purposes. If I need to find calm, I will reach one of my very calming playlists to help me to calm down. Set these up in advance to make them more accessible when needed. This is also a beneficial strategy to teach children and young people if they have a suitable device.
Save Yourself from Relentless Mind Dribble -Write stuff down in a smart phone, calendar or organizer
I never used to be into journaling but now I find it very calming plus it allows all the crap to flow freely from my brain as I ‘let that shi* go’. It’s a therapeutic mind dribble event sometimes but hey, it’s better out on paper than swirling around the brain on repeat. We all are different so it may not work for you but I recommend giving it a try at least.
Getting stuff out of our heads is probably one of the best things we can do because there’s usually a lot of stuff going on up there. And I mean A LOT. I find that having a journal helps me express how I’m feeling and getting it down on paper seems to do the trick. I don’t use it all the time, but it’s there if I need it.
Journaling also helps me to be grateful for what I’ve got. I do use my journal as a sort of gratitude journal that I can look back on if I’m feeling hard done by in any kind of way. Again this is a personal preference but if you’re not into journaling, something to do with your hands like colouring or drawing, may be more suited to your needs. Just try things until you find something that works.
Finding a quiet spot can be a challenge these days but we just have to put on our thinking brain and find somewhere that works for us. At present, my quiet spot is going to a very secluded beach near where I live. While that may not be accessible for all people, try a park or a garden. Being near trees seems to have a calming effect – the above photo was taken at a park on the Gold Coast in Australia.
Being close to nature helps us to reset and refocus more easily especially when we can reduce the external noise and stimulation around us. Find the still point within. It’s there. Practising makes this easier.
If you’re inside a house or apartment, slap up a ‘do not disturb’ sign on your door so you can have some time to yourself. Being able to switch off from our immediate surroundings helps us find the still point within ourselves which ultimately leads to better feelings of calm. This strategy helps reduce my anxiety but again we are all different so try things that work for you. This is not something that I’ve developed overnight. It takes practice and commitment.
Nature is a great way to reduce tension from ADHD and anxiety
For me, being out in nature is a massive one. I find that being inside makes me feel more anxious particularly if there is clutter or a lot of things around me. Being in wide-open spaces like beaches or parks has a massive calming effect on me. If I’m anxious, I go to the beach at least once a day.
If you haven’t heard of a thing called ‘grounding‘ or ‘earthing‘, where you put your bare feet on the earth, then you’re in for a treat. Connecting with the earth can have a calming effect on the body and has also been known to reduce inflammation in the body and treat autoimmune diseases. Now doesn’t that sound like the easiest kind of treatment out there.
!?! And guess what, it’s free!!!
Earthing or grounding might sound quite wacky or far out there, but it actually works by reconnecting our body to the earth’s electrons. But don’t take my word for it. Read some scientific research on it by checking out this article: published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health:
Whether we’re grounding or earthing ourselves at the beach or just out in the garden, there’s something about connecting our bare feet with the ground that helps us release energy. It’s also known to help with sleep, something all of us ADHD is would probably like more of! Take your shoes off. Put your feet on the earth. Feel the difference.
If you want to find out more about earthing/grounding, I recommend watching the clip below and then checking out the full documentary.
Calming music often reduces anxiety
Music for ADHD and anxiety for me is a no brainer. I couldn’t live without music. There’s some research out there to suggest that calming music of around 80 bpm can have a calming effect on our mental state. Music can also help us with the processing of time along with different genres of music that can help coach our body into a calmer state.
“We showed that music listening led to a decrease in negative mood (sadness and hopelessness) in the ADHD group as well as in healthy controls.”
So on the flip side, listening to music, in particular classical music, helped adults with ADHD regulate their mood.
Again, set up your playlist so that you have this music here when you need it. I sort my playlists out in terms of emotional states or situations. Creating titles like things such as- uplifting walk, creating, calming beach walk, etc. Make it easier on yourself and set things up properly from the start.
Being creative reduces anxiety and overthinking
I believe that everybody has the ability to be creative but most of us haven’t found the time to find the creative genius inside. Drawing, writing, painting, or anything involving the hands, seem to be a really good way to either express ourselves or to release built-up emotions.
I know that if I am ever going through an anxious period, I throw myself into making my video infographics because it not only helps other people, it helps me at the same time. It’s like a type of therapy. Again we are all different, so it’s just about finding something that works for you and your unique environment.
If you’re not keen on writing on paper, use an iPad and a stylus. They’re also plenty of apps out there that have colouring or design programs if you want to colour but don’t actually want to do the work
Use Visualization to get yourself out of a funk
Visualisation is something I do a lot. I do it in yoga and before sleep. When I’m talking about visualisation, I actually call it manifesting. I use manifesting (visualising) as a strategy of how I want something to be or how I want something to turn out.
There are two types of visualisation that I do. One form is visualising the steps I would take for something to happen. I rehearse the steps in my mind down to the detail of how the situation would feel. The other form of visualisation is following along to a guided visualisation at night to get to sleep. Either type can be beneficial for reducing anxiety because it gives us a chance to focus on a positive outcome for something rather than going over something that hasn’t worked out the way we wanted it to. This type of thinking just leads to more anxiety. Again it comes down to personal choice and preference. So far I found that the manifestation/visualisation works best for me, to get me out of a mental funk.
Bottom Line
While these strategies work for me, they may not work for you. DO what works for YOU and always seek help when needed.
The trifecta of Borderline Personality Disorder, ADHD, and Autism paints an incredibly complex picture! It is complicated by two major factors:
1) These conditions co-occur at high rates
2) They share many overlapping traits and symptoms, which can lead to misdiagnoses
A person can have one of these conditions, two of these conditions, or all three! When one or two of these conditions are present, it is difficult to distinguish the difference.
Co-Occurring Borderline Personality Disorder, ADHD, and Autism
Borderline Personality Disorder co-occurs with ADHD and Autism at higher rates (than seen in the non-ADHD & Autistic population). In fact, the prevalence rate of nearly all Personality Disorders is higher among people with ADHD and Autism. Our neurotype makes us more vulnerable to developing PTSD after acute trauma. It also makes us more vulnerable to developing Personality Disorders, including BPD, in the aftermath of traumatic childhoods.
The high prevalence of personality disorders makes sense for several reasons.
We have more vulnerable nervous systems, sensory systems & amygdala, so our bodies respond more intensely to trauma.
We experience more victimization, discrimination, & ableism.
People with ADHD and autism live with many vulnerabilities that predispose them to things like PTSD & Personality Disorders.
Misdiagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder
Outside of co-occurrence, BPD is also a common misdiagnosis for Autistic & ADHD people (particularly women & genderqueer people). Several ADHD traits (impulsivity, hyperactivity, difficulty regulating emotions) can look like BPD. To the untrained eye, common experiences for the high-masking Autistic can look like BPD (a diffuse sense of self from masking, sensory overload can look like angry outbursts, & difficulty with emotions & relationships).
Before reviewing the overlap, let’s do a refresher on each of these conditions.
Borderline Personality Disorder Defined
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a personality disorder characterized by a pervasive pattern of instability. More specifically, Borderline Personality Disorder is characterized by instability in relationships, self-image, emotions, and behavior (impulsivity). It is caused by the combination of a vulnerable temperament/neurotype and a dismissing, invalidating environment. Borderline Personality Disorder has a prevalence rate of 5.9% and is diagnosed in females at higher rates.
Borderline Personality Disorder is characterized by:
Intense difficulties in interpersonal relationships
An unstable self-concept
Impulsivity, disinhibition, and risk-taking behaviors
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Defined
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is classified as a neurodevelopment condition, meaning it is present in childhood and has a strong genetic component. There are three subtypes of ADHD that can be diagnosed. These include: ADHD-Inattentive type (ADHD-I), ADHD-Hyperactive/impulsive (ADHD-H), and ADHD-Combined type (ADHD-C).
ADHD-I is characterized by difficulties regulating attention
ADHD-H is characterized by impulsive and hyperactive behavior
ADHD-C is characterized by both inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity
Autism, like ADHD, is classified as a neurodevelopmental condition. Autism is characterized by a distinct social-communication style that is often misunderstood by allistic people. Autistic people self-soothe through strict adherence to routine, structure, repetition, and categorization. We often orient our identity through our special interests and values. For a deep dive into the DSM-5 criteria for autism you can see my DSM in pictures post here.
Borderline Personality Disorder and ADHD
Prevalence of Borderline Personality Disorder among ADHDers
In a population sample, 33.7% of ADHDers had BPD (compared to a 5.2% in the general population) (Bernardi et al., 2012).
In a large-scale population study done in Sweden, ADHDers had 19.4 times higher odds of BPD than individuals not diagnosed with ADHD (Kuja-Halkola et al., 2018).
Jacob et al., 2007 found at least 14% of individuals diagnosed with ADHD in childhood later receive a diagnosis of BPD.
Prevalence of ADHD among People with Borderline Personality Disorder
In a meta-analysis Ditrich et al., 2021 found the prevalence of ADHD in BPD individuals to be 30%-60%
Fossati et al., 2002 found that 60% of patients with BPD had elevated WURS-25 scores suggestive of childhood ADHD.
Similarities Between Borderline Personality Disorder and ADHD
Borderlineline personality disorder and ADHD are hard to distinguish. They share many personality temperaments, traits, and struggles.
The key clinical symptomoverlap includes impulsivity and emotional dysregulation. Beyond that, both conditions are also associated with interpersonal struggles and temperamental similarities (Weiner et al., 2019).
Impulsivity
For both groups, impulsivity can result in: financial strain, addiction, gambling, unsafe sex practices, eating disorders, and risky behavior (Littman, 2021).
Emotional Regulation
People with BPD and ADHD both struggle with regulating emotions. This can result in people feeling isolated, unsupported, ashamed, depressed, panicked, and overwhelmed with a sense of despair (Littman, 2021).
ADHD and BPD share several personality traits, particularly novelty seeking and harm avoidance (Weiner et al., 2019).
Novelty Seeking
Novelty seeking (a strong interest in having new experiences) is high among both groups. van Dijk et al., 2012. The highest novelty-seeking scores were found among the ADHD+BPD group.
Harm Avoidance
Both groups also have a large level of harm avoidance (Weiner et al., 2019). Harm avoidance is characterized by excessive worrying, pessimism, shyness, fearfulness, doubt, and being easily fatigued. It is also associated with reduced serotonin (Chen et al., 2015).
Differences Between Borderline Personality Disorder and ADHD
To spot the difference between BPD and ADHD, it is important to get at the person's internal experience. For example, both conditions experience executive functioning difficulties, emotional regulation difficulties, and impulsivity.
For ADHD, these experiences are part of the person’s baseline and will be present in multiple contexts. For BPD, these experiences are often triggered by attachment injuries and relationship stress.
Diagnostic criteria for these two conditions define and look at impulsivity differently. Impulsivity, in BPD, typically refers to impulsive self-harm. Whereas impulsivity in ADHD is typically in reference to interrupting others, having difficulty waiting for one's turn, talking over people, and interrupting what other people are doing. (Ditrich et al., 2021). Note impulsive self-harm can occur in the context of ADHD as well; however, it is not included as part of the diagnostic criteria and is not always present.
Studies looking at impulsivity using neuropsychological assessments found some interesting differences (research findings summarized in Ditrich et al., 2021):
Impulsivity in people with BPD was more stress-dependent (meaning impulsivity becomes worse when under stress). Alternatively, ADHDers had more motor impulsivity (difficulty stopping an action that was already in motion).
Two studies found impaired inhibition to be a core feature of adult ADHD but not in adults with BPD. In the context of BPD, inhibition impairment has mainly been observed during stress. This suggests different pathways to inhibition and impulsivity difficulties. While ADHD is associated with difficulties with top-down executive functioning processes, BPD impulsivity has more to do with emotional dysregulation (Weiner et al., 2019).
ADHD and Autism
ADHD and Autism are both forms of innate neurodivergence (neurodevelopmental conditionals), meaning they are genetic and present in childhood. They overlap at high rates and share many similarities. The overlap between ADHD and Autism is poorly understood, partly because until the DSM-5 was released in 2013, a clinician couldn’t diagnose both ADHD and autism (Taurines et al., 2012).
Co-Occurrence of ADHD and Autism
Recent studies have shown a significant genetic and neurobiological overlap between ADHD and Autism Sokolova et al., 2017.
It is estimated that between 22-83% of Autistic children meet the criteria for ADHD (Sokolova et al., 2017).
Approximately 30-65% of ADHD children have significant Autistic traits Sokolova et al., 2017.
Twin studies and family studies consistently show substantial genetic overlap between the two conditions. There is approximately a 50-72 % overlap of contributing genetic factors Sokolova et al., 2017.
While co-occurrence is common, it is also common to see elevated ADHD traits within Autistics or elevated Autistic traits for the ADHDer. A person may not meet the criteria of both and yet still have significant trait overlap.
There are various hypotheses regarding this common co-occurrence. Leitner et al., 2014 hypothesize that they share a common genetic etiology.
This hypothesis is supported by twin studies that suggest a substantial genetic overlap (approximately a 50-72% overlap). This theory suggests genetics explain why ADHD/Autism commonly co-occurs within individuals and families at such high rates (Leitner et al., 2014; Rommelse et al., 2010).
Furthermore, evidence points to a strong neurobiological overlap. Sokolova et al., 2017 suggest biological pathways involved in attentional control (inattention and task-switching difficulty) may be a key factor in understanding the genetic overlap between these conditions.
Similarities Between ADHD and Autism
ADHD and Autism, classified as Neurodevelopmental conditions, impact how the brain processes sensory input and cognitive processes. Both impact executive functioning, attention processes, and sensory processing. Following are some of the trait overlaps.
Executive Functioning Difficulties
Executive functioning challenges are core features of both ADHD and Autism. Challenges may include difficulty organizing tasks, object permeance, memory, focus, decision-making, and regulating attention. (Note: People with BPD also experience executive functioning challenges when emotionally overwhelmed, often triggered by attachment injuries).
Social Difficulties
Both groups often struggle with picking up social cues but often for different reasons. For the ADHDer, this may be related to inattention and impulsivity. For the Autistic, it is more often related to difficulties with intuitively picking up on social cues/body language/understanding pretense and difficulty with task switching (social communication involves considering multiple tasks at one time). (Note: people with borderline personality disorder also experience relationship differences often due to intense interpersonal relationships characterized by idealization and devaluation).
Interoception Issues
Interoception, the “8th sensory system,” refers to the ability to sense internal signals. For example, signals associated with elimination, hunger, thirst, and emotions are all examples of interoception. Interoception is integral to the ability to regulate emotions.
A person with poor interoception will have more difficulty registering and responding flexibly to their internal states and emotions. While results among ADHDers are more mixed*, there is research to suggest that both ADHDers and Autistics struggle with interoception at higher rates than the general public. For the ADHDer it is unclear if the signals are poor or if perhaps difficulty with attention regulation makes it difficult to focus and attend to interoception signals.
Time Perception
Partly associated with interoception, ADHD and Autistics often have an altered perception of time, sometimes referred to as “time-blindness” (Carmelo et al., 2020).
Sensory Sensitivities
Sensory sensitivities are common with both ADHD and Autism and are related to how the brain processes sensory input. (Note: Sensory processing disorder is also more common among people with borderline personality disorder).
Hyperactivity/Repetitive Movement (Stimming)
Stimming (repetitive movement) to regulate is common among both Autistic people and ADHDers. Further, ADHD fidgeting can look like stimming in the context of Autism.
Hyper-Fixation/Special Interests
Hyper-fixation and hyper-focus (particularly as they center around our passions and special interests,i.e., interest-based nervous system) are common among both ADHDers and Autistic people. Hyperfocus, as seen in the context of ADHD, can look a lot like hyper-fixation. ADHD passions can look a lot like Autistic special interests.
Emotional Regulation
Due to various factors such as brain circuitry (more sensitive amygdalas), interoception issues, more rigid nervous systems, and sensory processing, ADHDers and Autistics can struggle to regulate and soothing intense emotions. Difficulty regulating emotions can also be associated with sensory meltdowns and sensory overload.
Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria
Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria is common among both ADHDers and Autists. Note this can look similar to BPD's fear of abandonment.
Differences Between Borderline Personality Disorder and ADHD
Differences Between ADHD and Autism
The following are a few of the places where I narrow in to tease out the differences between autism and ADHD.
Social Differences
While both groups experience social difficulties, they differ in nature. Here are some things to be considering:
What are the underlying mechanisms behind social difficulties? Sokolova et al., 2017 found that difficulty socializing was more connected to impulsivity and inattention in the context of ADHD. While for Autistics, the social challenges are connected to difficulty interpreting social cues. ADHDers will be able to read social cues when they can focus. Autists have more inherent difficulty with doing this intuitively.
Other social differences may include: ADHDers are more likely to talk excessively, interrupt others and not listen to what is being said, while Autistics are more likely to struggle with back-and-forth conversation and use language repetitively or robotically (Sokolova et al., 2017).
Disruptions to Routine
Many of the items in Criteria B for Autism can look like ADHD (sensory sensitivities, special interests can look like hyper-fixation, and repetitive movement can look like hyperactivity. One of the things that distinguish Autism from ADHD is how the person adapts to change (criteria B item 2).
However, to understand the Autistic experience, it’s important to consider the experience of self-initiated change (the person decided to change their routine) vs. change that comes from an external source (a forced or unexpected change).
For the autistic, unexpected change that comes from outside of us can cause intense irritability, anxiety, and stress. The ADHD brain often seeks dopamine, excitement, and change. The Autistic brain craves similarity, routine, and repetition. Understanding this aspect of a person’s experience will be key.
To learn more about the similarities and differences between autism and ADHD you can read my post on it here, or check out the ebook.
ADHD and Autism predispose people to personality disorders, including borderline personality disorder. Borderline personality disorder is also a common misdiagnosis for Autistic and ADHD people. I suspect that it is a particularly common misdiagnosis for Au-ADHDers (Autistic-ADHDers). All three conditions share genetic, temperamental, and trait overlap. They also share many psycho-social risks, such as victimization, substance abuse, disordered eating, mood disorders, PTSD, self-harm, and more. Even among seasoned clinicians who know these conditions well, it can be incredibly difficult to differentiate and spot the differences.
Whether we want to improve our general well-being or reduce cravings, following a low-carb diet can help us regain some control over our eating, and how we feel in general.
As a woman with both ADHD and anxiety, learning to self-regulate my emotions has always been challenging, but the more I’ve practised certain strategies, the easier it’s become.
When I was first diagnosed with Coeliac Disease, I had no idea really what vitamins, minerals and nutrients were essential for my health so I started creating infographics. Read on to see what I learned.
Managing my ADHD symptoms without medication came out of necessity for me after being diagnosed with Coeliac Disease. It wasn’t an easy transition but I learned how to manage my symptoms by changing my environment.
Eggs have many health benefits and their versatility means they are a super easy food to add to our diet to improve our overall nutrition and immune support.
ADHD and motivation often don’t go that well together so using strengths-based learning to tackle my motivational issues was a no-brainer for me. Read on to find out more.
Learning how to empower ourselves and those around us is a crucial element of life and something we need to dig deep for at this point in our civilization.
Why should good morning habits even matter when we have so much going on these days? It all comes down to how we FEEL and what we CHOOSE. A habit is just a pattern of behaviour that we repeat over and over again until it becomes second nature.
Meditation can help with developing an awareness of the storm within so we can better understand the ‘self-talk’ running in the background. By going into the storm, it can help us feel more ‘at ease’ with being alone with ourselves, and start to notice the ‘self-talk’ program our mind plays.
There are ways to live a simpler life with ADHD. Being honest with ourselves about how we live, the choices we make, and how we spend our time, is a good place to start.
There are lots of ways we can self-regulate our ADHD brain to help with anxiety and emotional regulation. These are good go-to ideas when faced with a challenging situation. When done regularly by including them into our daily routine, having a calmer brain is possible. It just takes commitment and practice.
Learning how to speak up for adults with ADHD is a complex issue. It can due to expressive language issues, but also be due to the fear of being judged by others. We have so many great ideas and solutions to problems, it’s now more important than ever, that we voice our opinions in whatever shape or form we can.
Learning how to self-regulate our emotions is an essential life skill especially for children with ADHD. Children with ADHD often have a hard time self-regulating where emotions can range in frequency and change rapidly which can largely be due to frustration. But there are ways we can help children with ADHD develop skills to help them self-regulate that they can then use for life.
Every day we are presented with choices, so many choices, and it’s ultimately down to US, what we do and how we respond. We ultimately create the reality we want to live in, so it makes sense to acknowledge the fact that we are in CHARGE.
Getting out of our comfort zone helps us to grow and there are plenty of ways we can put ourselves out there! By doing things we would normally not do, we begin to change old habits and start creating the life we really want to live.
Emotional regulation can be difficult for those of us with ADHD so developing a range of strategies, can help us to find calm in the moment. It’s a process and something we can teach younger individuals to do so they can learn skills for life.
Coeliac (Celiac) Disease and ADHD are both serious health conditions, but when combined, life gets a whole lot more complex and complicated. But with a bit of learning, things do get easier.
Pinterest and a Pandemic are not the kind of words that get thrown together in a sentence, but when these two things collided, they helped me make the transformation I needed in my life.
Children with ADHD, often get frustrated when things are sprung on them unexpectedly, but using a timer, can be the best way to increase compliance, and reduce everyone’s stress.
Music and ADHD go together like peanut butter and jelly! So, why not get stuff done, to some banging tunes. If you’re not a fan of self-care, cooking, exercising, cleaning, boring stuff, or concentrating, then using music as a motivator, might be the solution for YOU. Life is just better when we DO IT to music.
There are lots of different strategies that individuals with ADHD can use that are calming. When the brain is calmer, it can be freed up to focus on challenges, ideas, and is better at solving problems. Being calmer also helps out our immune system and overall health and well-being.
Why should good morning habits even matter when we have so much going on these days? It all comes down to how we FEEL and what we CHOOSE. A habit is just a pattern of behaviour that we repeat over and over again until it becomes second nature.
Meditation can help with developing an awareness of the storm within so we can better understand the ‘self-talk’ running in the background. By going into the storm, it can help us feel more ‘at ease’ with being alone with ourselves, and start to notice the ‘self-talk’ program our mind plays.
There are ways to live a simpler life with ADHD. Being honest with ourselves about how we live, the choices we make, and how we spend our time, is a good place to start.
Focusing on anything these days seems to be a struggle for not just adults with ADHD, but for a large part of the population due to problems in society and globally. The good news is, there are strategies we can use to help us focus, whether we are at home, or at work.
Learning to deal with feelings of being overwhelmed can be overwhelming in itself. But there are certain things we can do, to help ourselves when external (or internal) life events feel like they are getting on top of us.
Gluten in ADHD medication poses a risk to anyone diagnosed with both ADHD and Coeliac Disease. But how do you find out if your medication contains gluten?
Is ADHD and Coeliac Disease related? Strangely enough, they share some of the same symptoms. But how could a disorder of the brain, be connected to a disease of the gut? And if they are connected, what could this mean for the climbing rates of both conditions?
Meditation and adult ADHD are like opposites on a stormy continuum. But, being armed with a bit of motivation and a few strategies, calming the storm within, is possible.
While it’s completely natural to have a fear of failure from time to time, adults with ADHD, seem to be more affected by this debilitating, yet common trait. It can result in low self-esteem and prevent individuals from following their passion and just being themselves.
Sleep strategies for adult ADHD is definitely a hot topic at the moment. Sleep, and quality sleep, seems to be what everyone is chasing because of its effect on health and well-being.
Can ‘Dysbiosis’ of the gut contribute to ADHD symptoms? Can imbalance in the gut lead to neurological problems and if so, what can we do to prevent it?
If I make this oversimplified, you won’t have to read any farther!! Mitochondria is your ATP, your energy. There you have it, easy-smeezie. So, where is it located and how do we get to it, repair it and build it so we feel the energy in our everyday lives???
While you are sleeping, your subconscious is detoxing and preparing you for the next day. Sleep is cleaning up your mind, brain and body. This mechanism is built in to clean up the imbalances that threatens your wellness. Toxic thoughts or events need to be processed. Our subconscious can work on the things that our conscious mind cannot handle yet. Nightmares and terrors can activate what needs to be detoxed. The subconscious mind will “sweep” the most toxic thoughts first, while asleep. Then the conscious mind, while awake, can process the info and get the toxic thoughts out of your body. Instead of “interpreting dreams,” try “detoxing through the subconscious.”
We are all in such a rush to create change in everything, especially our health. Makes sense. We all want to feel better and have a more vibrant life now. It takes time and patience. I know, not popular words but the people who allow for true transformation give it the time it needs. Want to see some wellness results fast, do some basics and you will catapult yourself into the motivation to give yourself time for a lasting transformation.
Lions tigers and bears, oh my. No wonder people get chronically ill. There are a lot of toxic things living life here on planet earth. It’s okay, we can clean them up, move them out, think better, make better choices, and certainly have better healthier lives.
Looking to enhance your health and home with natural remedies? Millions of people are regaining control of their health with essential oils. Join me and learn if essential oils could be the missing ingredient for you and your family!
Who’s rolling through fear and who is getting stuck in it? CoronaVirus and COVID-19 are here and some are rockin-n-rolling through it and others are getting stuck in it. I am having moments of both, mainly rolling but there have been a couple of speed bumps.
Our modern culture is usually filled with activity and noise. Do we know how to sit in quiet? I mean no noise except what naturally occurs around us. Can we do it? What could possibly be the benefit of quiet when the world culture has become so loud?
It is extremely common to have anxiety and depression during chronic illness and pain. Sometimes the anxiety and depression can be more debilitating than the illness itself. The situation of illness including anxiety and depression can become a loop that is hard to get out of. The illness causes physical issues that can cause anxiety and depression which isolates us causing more depression which makes us physically sicker which creates more anxiety and-on-and on it goes. Very difficult loop to get out of but it can be done.
I need a blue-mind moment. Need this cute adorable little girl and bubbles to make me think happy thoughts. I need my healthy bath with its calming and healing attributes. Yep, I am a bit needy today. This little girl in her bubble bath is bringing a smile to my face and calming my spirit as well as my body.
Supposedly the bumblebee’s body size, shape, and weight make it impossible to fly. Being ignorant of those aeronautical facts, the bumblebee flies anyway. There is bumblebee wisdom in tuning out the rumble of the impossibility of flight. Let’s apply that wisdom to the chronically ill. The fortitude of flying above the circumstances, that appear impossible, allows us to focus on the possibilities. Let’s fly, no matter what…
When you are in the joy of victory, take a moment to write yourself a love note. When we have moments of victory during chronic illness, we can use that for days to come when it is not so glorious. Chronic illness is not one big victory, it tons of smaller ones. The victories are hard to remember when we are in the really bad days (or weeks, even months or years) of illness. Love notes to ourselves is a beautiful way to remember, to feel the hope of past victories to help us keep walking through some of the darker days.
There is no right diet for everyone, not even for those who are chronically ill. No doubt though that tweaking our diet one way or another can increase our health. Intermittent fasting is just one of many diet tools that might or might not fit your specific needs. Although I use it, love it, it simply is not right for everyone and I will tell you why.
Easy to say but not so easy to feel when nose deep in the yuck-and-muck of chronic illness. Ongoing health issues are not only frustrating, they can be isolating. They can land us sicker than we ever imagined and more alone than we can tolerate. So, what happens if we find ourselves alone of such a health journey…
Chronic illness has kicked our bums, wiped us out, destroyed our lives, relationships and finances. It is easy to ask “WHY the heck did it happen” and more importantly “WHY did it happen to me.” Very logical and reasonable questions. What about the WHY NOT? Why can I NOT find my way through chronic illness? Why can I NOT see hope? Why can I NOT breakthrough these health barriers? Is this really NOT possible? I actually have the WHY NOT answer and have applied it with victories galore. You too can do this…
Do you feel like you are in a desert, with no rain and all alone in chronic illness? What would it take to celebrate? Rain!!! Okay, so this picture is just a mirage but I really did find some serious dancing kangaroos. As in real kangaroos and real rain. They were clearly celebrating (look below for the real picture). In light of the recent fires in Australia, there is even more significance to the photo. It won awards! You will be able to feel the rain as you view it.
We all face grief at some point in our lives and the 7 stages of grief explained by Kubler-Ross (which was updated from the 5 stages of grief), help explain some of the stages we move through in the grieving process.
Change is hard, and it can often hurt, physically, mentally and emotionally. But often what hurts more, and is a much longer process, is doing nothing and accepting it. We tend to believe that changing is too hard when in fact, a swift and more brutal approach, is more likely to be less painful in the long run.
We can support those around us in different ways. Support comes in different forms. We have to do what we can in our own unique situation because we are all different and just trying to do the best we can. Start with your family, your community, and then beyond.
The reality is, life can suck sometimes and when a giant spanner is thrown in the mix, it can be challenging to bounce back into the game of life. When this happens, we can either end up being a spectator on the sideline, or a player in the game.
Focusing on anything these days seems to be a struggle for not just adults with ADHD, but for a large part of the population due to problems in society and globally. The good news is, there are strategies we can use to help us focus, whether we are at home, or at work.
Learning to deal with feelings of being overwhelmed can be overwhelming in itself. But there are certain things we can do, to help ourselves when external (or internal) life events feel like they are getting on top of us.
Changing limiting beliefs is possible. We often underestimate the power of our beliefs, causing us to ‘give up’ on changing the way we live. But it’s high time we start challenging that way of thinking and start living a life that is true to who we are and how we really want things to be.
There are things we can do to help children feel calm and learn these skills for life. We don’t have to do everything at once, but we can build them into our daily routine over time, until they become a habit.
Coping with feelings of stress and anxiety in challenging times will help us be better equipped to deal with challenges in the future. There are strategies we can start to develop to help us in crazy times.
Getting out of our comfort zone helps us to grow and there are plenty of ways we can put ourselves out there! By doing things we would normally not do, we begin to change old habits and start creating the life we really want to live.
There are many benefits of gratitude that extend far beyond a simple ‘thank you’. These benefits reach into areas such as economics, health benefits both physical and emotional, and even has positive political ramifications which is good to know.
Looking after ourselves first may seem like a selfish act when in fact, ‘self-care’, is the most important thing we can do. If we can take care of ourselves before doing anything else, we free up space to then help those around us.
Meditation can help with developing an awareness of the storm within so we can better understand the ‘self-talk’ running in the background. By going into the storm, it can help us feel more ‘at ease’ with being alone with ourselves, and start to notice the ‘self-talk’ program our mind plays.
When we’re under stress, it’s easy to forget to help out our gut and immune system so they can function to the best of their ability under pressure. By looking after these two important parts of the body, the brain will also function better. This helps us to then make better decisions, and navigate stressful situations better.
There’s a lot to be said about why virtual training rocks, and it’s not just about getting fit! Training online in today’s crazy world, provides many mental and physical health benefits that help us connect with others, stick to a routine, and stay as healthy as poss both inside and out.
Sometimes we get stuck in negative thought patterns but there are things we can do to encourage positive thinking. Taking responsibility for ourselves is the first step because then we can work on the steps we can take to feel even better.
Why should good morning habits even matter when we have so much going on these days? It all comes down to how we FEEL and what we CHOOSE. A habit is just a pattern of behaviour that we repeat over and over again until it becomes second nature.
There are many good yoga poses we can do in the morning to relieve tension. If you’re like me and wake up feeling stiff with tense muscles, doing some gentle stretching in the morning can work wonders. Doing stretching in the morning not only helps our body, it’s also a great way to start the day.
What is resilience and why is it so important? When there’s a lot of crap going on in the world and it feels like the world has gone stark raving mad, being able to overcome challenges is a must. But how do we navigate through what seems to be a cesspit of shite, get through daily challenges, while maintaining good physical and mental health?
There’s never been a more important time in our history to start learning to follow (and trust) our intuition. As humans, we like to follow others because it feels safe. But what if we just ‘feel’ that something is wrong? Can we learn to trust our instincts and then use this information to then make informed decisions?
Every day we are presented with choices, so many choices, and it’s ultimately down to US, what we do and how we respond. We ultimately create the reality we want to live in, so it makes sense to acknowledge the fact that we are in CHARGE.
ADHD and motivation often don’t go that well together so using strengths-based learning to tackle my motivational issues was a no-brainer for me. Read on to find out more.
Learning how to empower ourselves and those around us is a crucial element of life and something we need to dig deep for at this point in our civilization.
Children’s affirmation cards can help children build self-esteem and resilience, self-confidence, and have a more positive outlook on life through positive self-talk.
Creating your own self-care toolbox is a must in today’s world. With all the crazy stuff going on, self-care needs to be top of the list. This is especially relevant for those of us living on the fringes of society.
Ditching Social Media wasn’t a hard decision for me as the ‘toxic’ nature of this form of media, made it easy to hit that delete button. And I hit it hard!
Anxiety has become the defining mental health issue of our decade — with or without a diagnosis — women are affected at twice the rate of men, and more children and young adults are now stressed and anxious more than before. Join us to learn solutions…
Are you one of the 17.3 million American adults who are depressed? Or one of the 350 million believed affected worldwide with depression? Chances are if you have a chronic illness, you are one of them. May sound too good to be true but magnesium deficiency is so common and it is so inexpensive it can be used for depression.
The products in Phase 1 deliver key nutrients for optimizing mitochondrial health and establishing healthy drainage pathways — both of which are essential before promoting periods of detoxification.* This also helps minimize unwanted reactions and encourages sustained energy as your patient moves through the protocol.
Phase 1 consists of BC-ATP, BioToxin Binder, CT-Minerals, and KL Support.* BC-ATP assists the body with ATP production, while CT-Minerals enhances mental clarity, nourishes tissues, promotes immunity, and supports cellular repair and detoxification.* KL Support helps maintain kidney and liver function.* BioToxin Binder lends increased support to the gut microbiome, which in turn supports healthy digestion and immune health.*
Formulated with Carbon Technology Carbon Technology is a proprietary blend of fulvic acids and polysaccharides that support cellular repair and the body’s natural ability to detoxify.* With a low pH, Carbon Technology also helps protect ingredients from being digested by stomach acid, so that they remain intact as they enter the desired location in the body.
All of our supplements are formulated with Carbon Technology, with the exception of Para 1, Para 3, and the IS-line.
**We ensure that while the information shown is correct, the label you receive may look different than the one shown in the image.
BC-ATP is our most powerful supplement for supporting and optimizing mitochondrial function.*
When the body has the nutrients it needs to support mitochondria and ATP output, patients can experience improved cognitive function, mental clarity and focus, and sustained physical energy.*
The carbon-based polyelectrolytes in BC-ATP help recharge depleted mineral concentrations, which supports the ATP cycle in being at peak efficiency.* These carbons also assist in the body’s natural detoxification processes, contribute to a balanced gut microbiome, promote cellular renewal, and support immune health.*
In clinical practice, BC-ATP is generally well-tolerated by sensitive patients and can help improve protocol tolerance.
Formulated with Carbon Technology Carbon Technology is a proprietary blend of fulvic acids, humic acids, and polysaccharides that support cellular repair and the body’s natural ability to detoxify.* With a low pH, Carbon Technology also helps protect ingredients from being digested by stomach acid, so that they remain intact as they enter the desired location in the body.
Have you ever chased a sunset? Anywhere on Earth, you can chase sunsets. It is a really fun way to get your circadian rhythm in sync. You can do it from a car while you are ill and go as slow or as fast as the road will allow. Make your healing tools fun so you do them more often. Let’s go chase a sunset.
Our bodies during chronic illness take a beating. They can become unrecognizable. We can lose control of everything. Our frustrations seem to increase with our illnesses. Then we remember, slow down, take a breath, get back in touch with what our bodies are truly capable of. Our bodies are designed to heal, not self-destruct.
Our modern culture is usually filled with activity and noise. Do we know how to sit in quiet? I mean no noise except what naturally occurs around us. Can we do it? What could possibly be the benefit of quiet when the world culture has become so loud?
Thinking about all of you and your pain level this week. As I have a bunch of pain in my wrists, I think more about others who are suffering from chronic pain. Pain cannot only be distracting but also overwhelming at times. It can be endless wracking pain or it can be a week of an oddball pain that shows up like mine this week. Time to troubleshoot some pain ideas and see where it takes us. Continue reading
Yep, it got to me today, I officially had a bad attitude from the moment I woke up. I was grumpy toward myself and needed an isolation buster. Human contact was the answer but it was SO stinking hard to move through the barriers. Continue reading
As we support thyroid health, we contribute toward our levels of energy, brain health, balancing hormones, metabolism, and detoxification processes. Thyroid health has become a world issue, so much so that it has raised awareness of the importance of iodine.
The holidays create some push through. While we are chronically ill, everything takes more effort, creating more pushing to do the basic things, like holidays. Time to take a deep breath and rest. Do we even know how to rest? Our current culture has taught us how to push through everything. What are our resting skills? Continue reading
We are all in such a rush to create change in everything, especially our health. Makes sense. We all want to feel better and have a more vibrant life now. It takes time and patience. I know, not popular words but the people who allow for true transformation give it the time it needs. Want to see some wellness results fast, do some basics and you will catapult yourself into the motivation to give yourself time for a lasting transformation.
Do you feel like you are in a desert, with no rain and all alone in chronic illness? What would it take to celebrate? Rain!!! Okay, so this picture is just a mirage but I really did find some serious dancing kangaroos. As in real kangaroos and real rain. They were clearly celebrating (look below for the real picture). In light of the recent fires in Australia, there is even more significance to the photo. It won awards! You will be able to feel the rain as you view it.
Do you ever need to call a time-out, making things still just for a moment to calm the stress? I needed to de-stress ME, so I picked the thought of blowing dandelions to create my moment of bliss. It totally turned around 2 very stress-filled weeks.
Moving our vision to the awe of life nourishes us. Easier said than done during illness. When we are chronically ill, we simply have to focus on ME to be able to move through the issues. Then, at some point, we have a sense that it is time to look up, outside of that intense focus. It is time to look at the awe in life. The more we see it, the more we move from ME to WE. We have more compassion for others because our vision has increased through awe. Tricky stuff when we are ill.
You already know what you think your favorite color is. Does your favorite change, or not? Do you find yourself feeling different in different color rooms? Or when you wear different colors? Do you gravitate to different colors, the wild colors you would never paint your living room in??? Oh, how color can be fun during chronic illness. Let’s see how we can use it to get rolling through illness…
What is one man’s weed, is another’s nourishment. Dandelions are good for you all the way from their brilliant yellow tips through their deep green leaves and down to the tips of their roots. And us silly humans treat this nutrient-dense wonder as a weed…
Cherries are in season and fresh cherries are on my brain. I think I have eaten so many that I have gone fruitloopy. Now I am thinking that life is like a bowl of cherries; sometimes it is the pits, sometimes it sweet, sometimes fresh and in season and sometimes frozen from the freezer. It is just life after all. It comes with the variety and adventure of not only eating in the season but living in season.
Once in a while healing foods come in the shape of the organ they are meant to nourish and heal. If you cut a carrot, you will see a shape of the pupil and the rings around it. We have heard for decades to eat carrots for eyesight. Pomegranates are the shape of ovaries and they carry healing properties for such. What about our brains? Walnuts look just like the human brain and have nourishment for healing it.
During intense chronic illness, one does not have the energy to do the things that provide more energy. We all know that getting outside in the sunlight, taking a walk, eating healthy, being around other supportive people are all terrific things to do to help ourselves. What does one do when they are so ill that they don’t have the energy to even do those things? We find tools to help us!!
Oh my golly gee wiz… the nutty black holes that we get sucked into during chronic illness is awful. It is BLACK. It is scary and there never seems to be a way out. Black holes in space, supposedly, don’t have a way out. But we do. Nothing easy about it but we can do this. Really, we can escape out of the black holes of chronic illness.
Somehow the masses have this one backward. “Alternative” medicine came along when people decided to replace natural medicine with chemical alternatives. Think about that. “Alternative” is actually the prescription and over-the-counter fake “medicines.” We can trace the original “medicines” from the beginning of mankind. Therefore, HOW in tarnation did natural medicine end up being called the “alternative???” Society has gotten this one turned upside-down.
Our minds keep us moving, in one direction or the other. We can use our CYCOLOGY to move in a good direction. What we think matters, it creates our beliefs and actions. Take the twists and turns of psychology, look at basic human nature, and see what we get. By keeping it simple, we can use CYCOLOGY to help us keep moving through chronic illness.
If nowhere is good enough for Winnie-The-Pooh, it is good enough for the chronically ill. Have you ever let your mind wander and rest in never-never-land? Interesting things can happen while in nowhere land. Christopher Robin and Pooh can help us find great comfort while we are on our unique wellness path.
Avocado face masks are known for nourishing and revitalizing the skin, of all skin types. These natural green wonders are super easy to make from ingredients you already have.
We can support and cleanse our kidneys with appropriate real foods. Food for health is a ball, and tasty. Let’s explore the possibilities to support and boost our kidneys with food.
This one is beyond wild. If you are ill and feeling left out from the fun alcohol drinks, try this wild twist. I accidentally discovered this one while trying to trick myself with a fun delight. It worked, this drink is a wow!! And it comes from this beautiful plant, Cistus incanus (or “Pink Rockrose”). Continue reading
Humans are the most fascinating anything I have ever observed, at times reminding me of flowers and trees. Flowers are small and fragile but trees are mighty and strong. Flowers come and go, yet trees take decades to fully develop into a tower of beautiful strength. Flowers can get trampled although they provide temporary beauty, fragrance and sometimes food or medicine. Trees repeatedly adorn nature with scents, food and medicines. Both provide an array of incredible attributes too long to list. As humans, how do we grow? Continue reading
Chronic illness and pain create so much stress that at some point we need to find a way to relax and chill. Many of you love cruises and can relax that way. I am not a cruise loving fan so I find other ways to dream about relaxing. A cabin in the mountains on a lake is my idea of a grand chill. Continue reading
If you are a control freak I have some great tips how to feed your freak using daily walks. This morning my “freak” came out as you can see in my nutty picture. I usually try hard not to be controlling but this time I think it can be beneficial. Realizing that I was manipulating my environment and choices this morning, I thought about how many ways we can control our daily walks.
Abundance is a powerful resource to notice. Sometimes it is hard to see but when we look hard enough it is there. This morning I felt covered in abundance as the rising sun was shining through my bedroom window and I could hear the birds chirping. What a way to wake up every morning. No matter where our bodies are located on this planet, once a day, every day, the sun rises. I am fortunate to live in a rural town with lots of trees that the birds love so they fill my ears with their songs every morning. I have enjoyed early mornings in this atmosphere. It reminds me that regardless of what is going on in life, there is an abundance to be seen and heard if I just dare to notice.
Kill, destroy and remove become a war that cannot be won without proper drainage. We get ahead of ourselves and it takes more time, effort and expense than if we would slow down and do the simple steps of drainage.
Opening drainage pathways in the body before detoxing is a necessity. If one starts “detoxing” and stirring up pathogens but they are not being drained out of the body, we can cause ourselves more problems. After opening up the colon, we move on to the opening up the drainage pathways of the liver, bile ducts, and kidneys.
MMM this is an amazing DIY recipe. Mud Mineral Mask! Have you ever paid for a professional mud mask? This is even better. Well, except for the clean-up and I have even solved that for you.
Lemonade and sunshine, what a refreshing thought. Have you ever tried daily lemon water to see how it feels for your body? Most of us have read the basic benefits of lemon water. So why don’t most of us drink it daily? Are you willing to take the 14-Day Lemon Water Challenge? Download free challenge…
Food for health is a ball, and tasty. We can support and cleanse/flush our kidneys with appropriate pure foods. I especially like foods that support the kidneys, calming the adrenals at the same time. Continue reading
Detoxification should be part of the body’s normal daily process. When we ate cleaner foods and lived in a cleaner environment, the body was probably able to keep up with the daily toxic burden. But for many of us, the toxic burden makes it difficult for our body to keep up.
To prevent blocks to the detoxification process, it requires proper nutrients, energy, and optimal organ function. While we are chronically ill, that is a lot to ask out of our bodies. Using essential oils on our vagus nerve can help our bodies more efficiently detox, moving us into a healing journey.
Most of us have had tea and enjoy our favorites. It is fun to explore and see where our taste buds take us. Tea comes in so many flavors and so many health benefits that there are unending possibilities. Continue readingSo Many Teas, Flavors, Benefits
Now that we are exposed to toxins through our food/air/water, detoxification is a modern-day necessity. It is amazing what water and lemon can do to detox our bodies very gently but effectively. “When life gives you a lemon, slice it in half, squeeze the juice into a glass of water and drink it first thing in the morning.” I don’t know who said it but I love it!!! Continue reading
More than just a parasite cleanse, this is a get’m all!! Get the heavy metals, get the viruses, get the bacteria, mold, toxins, radiation, retroviruses, pathogens, etc.
Lifestyle can be defined as ‘the way in which a person lives’ and it’s rapidly changing- sometimes for the better, sometimes not. More often than not, we try to make positive changes only to fall flat on our faces. Why? I want to know why so many people seem unhappy and sick these days. The great thing is, it’s possible to change our lives with a bit of help and some resources to get us on the right track.
Vitamin D can improve gut health and may regulate gastrointestinal inflammation. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to various autoimmune diseases and dysbiosis of the gut microbiome. There are many foods that can be added to the diet to prevent Vitamin D deficiency.
There are things we can do to help children feel calm and learn these skills for life. We don’t have to do everything at once, but we can build them into our daily routine over time, until they become a habit.
Coping with feelings of stress and anxiety in challenging times will help us be better equipped to deal with challenges in the future. There are strategies we can start to develop to help us in crazy times.
Meditation and adult ADHD are like opposites on a stormy continuum. But, being armed with a bit of motivation and a few strategies, calming the storm within, is possible.
By changing our perception of disease, we could prevent and reduce chronic disease rates in our society. But in order for us to do this, we need to understand our mindset and what motivates us to change.
Improving our immune system can be achieved by changing certain aspects of our lifestyle and the environment in which we live and work. There are strategies we can put in place to increase our physical, mental, and emotional health, that will help us to achieve better health.
Change is hard, and it can often hurt, physically, mentally and emotionally. But often what hurts more, and is a much longer process, is doing nothing and accepting it. We tend to believe that changing is too hard when in fact, a swift and more brutal approach, is more likely to be less painful in the long run.
We can support those around us in different ways. Support comes in different forms. We have to do what we can in our own unique situation because we are all different and just trying to do the best we can. Start with your family, your community, and then beyond.
The reality is, life can suck sometimes and when a giant spanner is thrown in the mix, it can be challenging to bounce back into the game of life. When this happens, we can either end up being a spectator on the sideline, or a player in the game.
Changing limiting beliefs is possible. We often underestimate the power of our beliefs, causing us to ‘give up’ on changing the way we live. But it’s high time we start challenging that way of thinking and start living a life that is true to who we are and how we really want things to be.
Getting creative with different movement ideas, can help both us adults and children. Movement can help us to relax, improve our focus and concentration, and is great way to bring us all together.
There are many different ways we can get children helping in the kitchen. The earlier they start, the more interested they become in food, where it comes from, and how to make stuff themselves.
When we’re under stress, it’s easy to forget to help out our gut and immune system so they can function to the best of their ability under pressure. By looking after these two important parts of the body, the brain will also function better. This helps us to then make better decisions, and navigate stressful situations better.
Pinterest and a Pandemic are not the kind of words that get thrown together in a sentence, but when these two things collided, they helped me make the transformation I needed in my life.
Finding ways to start living a sustainable life does take effort, and although it’s not always possible with every single purchase we make, we have to start somewhere.
Why should good morning habits even matter when we have so much going on these days? It all comes down to how we FEEL and what we CHOOSE. A habit is just a pattern of behaviour that we repeat over and over again until it becomes second nature.
There are many benefits of gratitude that extend far beyond a simple ‘thank you’. These benefits reach into areas such as economics, health benefits both physical and emotional, and even has positive political ramifications which is good to know.
Looking after ourselves first may seem like a selfish act when in fact, ‘self-care’, is the most important thing we can do. If we can take care of ourselves before doing anything else, we free up space to then help those around us.
Meditation can help with developing an awareness of the storm within so we can better understand the ‘self-talk’ running in the background. By going into the storm, it can help us feel more ‘at ease’ with being alone with ourselves, and start to notice the ‘self-talk’ program our mind plays.
Getting out of our comfort zone helps us to grow and there are plenty of ways we can put ourselves out there! By doing things we would normally not do, we begin to change old habits and start creating the life we really want to live.
There’s a lot to be said about why virtual training rocks, and it’s not just about getting fit! Training online in today’s crazy world, provides many mental and physical health benefits that help us connect with others, stick to a routine, and stay as healthy as poss both inside and out.
Sometimes we get stuck in negative thought patterns but there are things we can do to encourage positive thinking. Taking responsibility for ourselves is the first step because then we can work on the steps we can take to feel even better.
Ditching Social Media wasn’t a hard decision for me as the ‘toxic’ nature of this form of media, made it easy to hit that delete button. And I hit it hard!
There are many good yoga poses we can do in the morning to relieve tension. If you’re like me and wake up feeling stiff with tense muscles, doing some gentle stretching in the morning can work wonders. Doing stretching in the morning not only helps our body, it’s also a great way to start the day.
What is resilience and why is it so important? When there’s a lot of crap going on in the world and it feels like the world has gone stark raving mad, being able to overcome challenges is a must. But how do we navigate through what seems to be a cesspit of shite, get through daily challenges, while maintaining good physical and mental health?
There’s never been a more important time in our history to start learning to follow (and trust) our intuition. As humans, we like to follow others because it feels safe. But what if we just ‘feel’ that something is wrong? Can we learn to trust our instincts and then use this information to then make informed decisions?
Learning how to empower ourselves and those around us is a crucial element of life and something we need to dig deep for at this point in our civilization.
Creating your own self-care toolbox is a must in today’s world. With all the crazy stuff going on, self-care needs to be top of the list. This is especially relevant for those of us living on the fringes of society.
