ADHD Aha! | Anxiety, imposter syndrome, and ADHD (Mallory’s story)

Mallory Band was diagnosed with ADHD and anxiety when she was 8 years old. She has two brothers with ADHD, but their ADHD looked different. They were hyperactive on the outside. But Mallory felt hyperactive on the inside. She struggled with perfectionism, people pleasing, and big emotions. As with many women who have ADHD, imposter syndrome set in as she got older.
Mallory’s “aha” moment came well after her ADHD diagnosis - when she was in graduate school learning about executive function. It was the first time she had stopped to think about how her own brain worked, and how burnt out she was from pushing herself against it. Now she’s an executive function coach who helps people with ADHD lean into the power of saying “no.”
To find a transcript for this episode and more resources, visit the episode page at Understood. www.understood.org/podcasts/a...
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[@graysonofthewood3747]

This episode is so profound for me. I’ve suspected I had ADHD for the past 2 years, and finally got diagnosed at the beginning of this year. I’ve always felt like a people pleaser, struggled with perfectionism, and am horrible at putting up boundaries. But even still I’ve doubted my diagnosis. Like it was just a convenient excuse that I want to use because I’m just not trying hard enough. I’m currently in treatment for alcoholism (3 months sober!), because I’ve been pushing myself so hard for so long, it was the only thing that brought me relief. So many of the things Mallory described are EXACTLY what I’ve experienced. Hyperactivity in my head, feeling like I don’t deserve to tell people no, feeling intense pressure to never disappoint anyone, etc. I’m so glad to know that ADHD imposter syndrome is a thing, because it is definitely something I have been struggling with, despite having a valid diagnosis and tons of evidence for it. The premise of my discontent with adult life has been “I’m so fortunate and life is great, so why am I so tired and unhappy all the time?” Similar to what Mallory said, I think my brain is wired differently, but because of my anxiety I’ve been forcing it to work “normally” to meet the status quo since I was a child. Of course I’m exhausted and unhappy! Thanks again, this was fantastic for me to hear.

[@Appleloucious]

One Love! Always forward, never ever backward!! ☀️☀️☀️ 💚💛❤️ 🙏🏿🙏🙏🏼

[@drawnbysam]

Thank you for all of these episodes. Was late diagnosed at 26, started self -identifying in my early 20s, and grew up in a family that definitely has some undiagnosed neurodevergencies, I was the first. Thank you for sharing your story Mallory. I really related to that feeling of needing to do everything all of the time at once. Thank you. Understood for continuously adding so many resources to your page. They have been some of the most enlightening in my research over the last few years. And more so than just explaining it, there are actual action points and things that I can try, so thank you.

[@UnderstoodOrg]

Thank you so much for reaching out and sharing your own story with us. We're so glad to hear we've been able to help you in your journey!💙🤗