Every creative and interesting person has experienced the feeling that at least some of their big dreams are impossible. And when the current big dream is just surviving, that can be especially challenging.    I share about the emotional side of the ten years when my composition career had an almost 100% rejection rate. And why I'm giving this unusual advice...  It can be healthy to temporarily let go of dreams that are stressing you out!    Crisis Text Line, text HOME to 741741 to reach a...

Thomas Henley educates, normalizes, and actively pushes back against autistic stereotypes and stigma. Check out his highly rated podcast, Thoughty Auti - The Autism Podcast (on which I talked about AuDHD).  Thomas has made multiple decisions in his life to combat stereotypes, including months of backpacking, and becoming a world-class martial artist, both of which he talks about today.  We also touch on what some of the lingering stereotypes are, and what helps! More from Thomas: Thoughty...

You may have internalized the message as a child that there was something wrong or bad about you. Even if it was not explicit, you probably didn't receive some of the attention and delight that would have sent the strong message that your way of being in the world is valid. Today's message is simple: You were not a bad child. You deserved love and support in a way that made sense to you.  Thank you to the therapist who walked me through this concept! Thank you to Linda Thai for providing such...

Rest is not something to be made up for later with productivity. Whether it was forced by the body or not. We deserve to have energy to do what we love! Love Your Brain now has three elements you can choose from for more accessibility: Love Your Brain course contentGroup coaching and co-working callsDirect support from Mattia Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eric Tivers has shared 10 years of helpful content on his podcast, ADHD reWired. He's also built multiple careers helping neurodivergent folks: from therapy, to teaching high support need kids, to the current ADHD group programs. It's a never-ending journey of discovering what works for his current needs and capacity. And the relatively recent discovery of... oh... maybe there's something to this autism thing. Find Eric and his work at adhdrewired.com Resources: Like Your Brain community...

Multiple times in the past week or two, clients have felt like they're failing miserably. But it turns out they're in complex, difficult, multifaceted situations that don't have an easy answer. Plus, it's easy to feel like we're never doing enough, or the right thing. If we're solving personal problems, world events loom large. If we're addressing world events, it feels like a drop in the bucket. Capitalism tells us that there's a straightforward, purchasable solution for every problem....

Big feelings may be harder for monotropic people to handle. And if you have significant sensory sensitivity, the physical sensations can be overwhelming as well. This episode covers some of the ways I've been approaching grief and helplessness about Gaza. Links mentioned in show: Episode 15, How Feelings WorkLisa Feldman Barrett's book How Emotions Are MadeAl Jazeera article, ‘It’s not human’: What a French doctor saw in Gaza as Israel invaded RafahMacklemore song Hind's HallSign up for...

You'll rarely catch me using the term "hack." But this concept around demand avoidance is working great for me, so far... TLDR: Shortcutting the PDA brain's ability to use pattern recognition to avoid tasks early in a sequence. Here's the Instagram video by Kristy Forbes that inspired this episode. While she suggests introducing new sensory details, I'm going the route of sincerely telling myself that we don't need to do the final thing. We're just gonna do this step. Note: even if this...

Wow, over 100K listens! People talk a lot about feeling safe being visible—being seen and heard either literally or through putting your work into the world. While I've done a lot of personal work being comfortable while visible, the Guardian article was a huge bump in visibility. To be fair, the "bad day" I reference was also the kidney infection kicking into full gear (see "Don't Die" a couple episodes ago). It's also a lot easier to be "brave" being visible when you get almost entirely...

Answering a listener question about how to handle meltdowns and shutdowns at work, and around people you don't trust. This episode covers a few ways to both plan for, push away, and handle meltdowns once they're happening in a public place. Previous episodes about meltdowns: 13 Autistic Meltdowns & Shutdowns23 You Are Not a Burden (Mattia talking about a specific meltdown they had)6 Healing Relational Trauma (guest Pasha and Mattia talk about recent meltdowns around our...

I almost died two weeks ago. It's easy to miss symptoms when one has low interoception and a high pain tolerance. Episode is around the difficulties seeking care... and why it's very worth it sometimes! p.s. episodes are coming out on Saturdays now Resources: Like Your Brain community spaceTranscript DocEmail NewsletterUK study questioning the oft-quoted statistic about autistic people living 16 years less long than allistic people. TLDR: Autistic people do seem to live less long on average,...

Yes, still on about money. In this case, how we're sold the idea that it will exempt us from human suffering... but it will not! What would you do with your time if money truly were not an issue? Do you have any access to that now? Even if it looks different than you think it's supposed to? What's enjoyable, outside of the paradigm of earning or mastery? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Genevieve Joy and I have a lot in common, including excruciating childhoods that led to chronic pain. Both of us also healed that chronic pain through hypnosis and are now enthusiastic about the possibilities of working with the unconscious. Content note: There are no graphic depictions of trauma in this episode! However, the way we talk about our own healing journey could be triggering to someone who's in extreme pain at the moment. This is in part because we don't go into the nitty gritty...

Fixing can be a trauma response. You don't need to heal everything! Especially in our very fixing-oriented culture that will sell you a solution to problems you didn't even realize you had. Body-based modalities and working with the unconscious (including hypnosis) are just tools. Just because the tool exists doesn't mean you have to use it. Because someone else healed from something doesn't mean you have to. This episode touches on some issues around working with the unconscious,...

Natalie loves connection at a nervous system level. How do we have agency with that even when it's beyond our control? We talk about challenges around connection, in-person vs. online, the power of being around a regulated nervous system, and the power of community. Connect with Natalie: Her website, natalie.netHer podcast, Noticing With NatalieFormer podcast, Earth Speak Resources: Like Your Brain community spaceTranscript DocEmail Newsletter Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

Navigating the Dual Diagnosis of AuDHD. Thanks to William Curb for hosting on the Hacking Your ADHD podcast, and providing the audio to share directly. You can read the full show notes and transcript here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Success is a complicated topic for AuDHD folks. We're often not praised for what feels the most difficult. Then sometimes told we did an amazing job for something that didn't feel like a big deal. AuDHD folks often also struggle to achieve traditional success in the workplace and relationships, in large part due to stigma and being disabled by societal factors. Then, once we actually achieve some kind of success, it can feel way less good than we expected. It's totally okay to have dreams...

How does one continue to make art while depressed? Artist Kal Anderson (he/they) has created a large body of work through the ups and downs. Topics include: Questioning the value of artThe process of creating many things you don't likeAsking for helpPerspective on your work and practiceWhether depression is artistically "useful" (spoiler alert: mostly, no) Connect with Kal: kalanderson.com for fine art, leather, creative coachingInstagram @kalandersonart Resources: Like Your Brain community...

Energy doesn't always feel good. Sometimes it leads directly into overwhelm! 4m mini episode Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Autism "Levels" (1, 2, or 3 in current diagnostic terminology) are not necessarily an accurate reflection of our lived experience. Reflecting on last week's guest and what "subclinical" autism even means. How monotropism may, yet again, explain what's going on. What actually works for us and what supports we need. Mentioned in episode: Monotropism.org ExplanationsMonotropism QuestionnaireFergus Murray's 6 Starting Points for Understanding Autism Resources: Like Your Brain community...

A question I hear a lot: Should I just push through? It's not all or nothing. Feeling unable to do something right now doesn't mean that all is lost and the day is a complete wash. It's safe to switch to something else. It's safe to change your mind. It's safe to need rest and recovery time. There is nothing wrong with us. But damn do we need more rest. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

William Curb hosts the Hacking Your ADHD podcast. We dive into what it means to have a "subclinical" autism diagnosis, and what that implies in the context of having a completely different brain. Other topics include: The medical model vs. lived experienceHandling children's vs. parents' sensory needsNeurodivergent children/household Formal diagnosis process How we view ourselves through this lens Which ND is driving the bus right now?Complicated diagnosis with multiple potential options...

Today we delve into ethical considerations around marketing coaching, including MLM-like tactics, pricing, and the pressure to charge high fees to recoup investments in programs teaching coaches how to market. One particular thing I learned recently about this history of the coaching world is changing how I think about my own business. Even if you're not a coach, this will be an interesting episode! Topics include: Following up about last week's conversation with Samantha Pollack about ethics...

Marketing ends up relevant to many AuDHD people at some point, in part because many of us end up freelancing at some point out of desire or necessity. Many of us end up resisting it because of our strong ethics. I'd already blogged Samantha's amazing Substack article, "Conventional Marketing Ain't Workin' Anymore." And was ecstatic when she said yes to a deep dive on why making friends with marketing is important for any small business owner or service provider. We talk about: How making...