Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast

• Future You is Counting On You with James Ochoa

  We love to say it: “Your future self will thank you.” It’s a mantra for hopeful planning, a reminder that the effort you put in now will pay off later. But for people with ADHD, that phrase can land like a challenge you keep failing to meet — because the gap between Now You and Future You can feel impossibly wide.This week, we welcome back our friend James Ochoa, licensed professional counselor, author of Focused Forward, and creator of the new reflective tool 11Q Your ADHD. Together, we’re digging into what makes long-term planning feel so fraught for ADHD brains — and how we can reconnect with the version of ourselves we’re trying to help.We’ll talk about the emotional weight of goal-setting, how perfectionism sabotages progress, and why redefining responsibility as self-support — not pressure — changes everything. James highlights how planning isn’t about control or productivity; it’s about compassion. When you treat “future you” like someone worth caring for, you create the emotional safety that makes real progress possible.We also explore practical scaffolding: tools, community, and systems that “have your back” when motivation dips — because ADHD management isn’t a solo project. Whether you’re learning to forgive past missteps or just trying to make tomorrow a little easier, this conversation will help you find hope and grace in the small choices that compound over time.And stay tuned — James introduces his new project, 11Q Your ADHD, a reflective experience designed to help you strengthen your internal guidance system and cultivate a kinder, more curious relationship with yourself.Future You isn’t a stranger. They’re someone you can start taking care of — today.Links & Notes11Q Your ADHD - Free Vision Exercise | James OchoaSupport the Show on PatreonDig into the podcast Shownotes Database (00:00) - Welcome to Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast (00:59) - Support the Show at Patreon.com/theadhdpodcast (01:43) - Unapologetically ADHD is OUT! (02:54) - Introducing James Ochoa (05:13) - Visualizing Your Future Self (16:06) - A Sidebar on Trust (38:19) - 11Q Your ADHD ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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• From Shame to Strategy: Alan Brown on Advocacy After Diagnosis

  In 1992, a struggling advertising executive in Manhattan walked into his Upper East Side doctor's office with what he thought might be a revelation. His boss had just been diagnosed with ADHD, and the symptoms—the scattered thinking, the time that evaporated, the constant feeling of running to catch up—sounded eerily familiar. The doctor listened, nodded, and delivered his professional opinion: "ADD is a myth created by the media. You just need to do more crossword puzzles."Alan Brown took that advice seriously. For five years, he became exceptional at the New York Times crossword puzzle—almost able to complete the notoriously difficult Saturday edition. His ADHD, however, remained completely uncured.This week on Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast, Alan Brown—now known as the ADD Crusher—returns after nine years to unpack a question that haunts nearly everyone with ADHD after diagnosis: Now what?Because here's what nobody tells you: getting diagnosed is the easy part. The hard part is learning to ask for what you need without drowning in shame. The hard part is figuring out how to advocate for yourself when the very act of asking feels like admitting defeat.Alan walks us through a discovery that transformed his career: the moment he refused a shared office space and, instead of being fired or labeled difficult, ended up with a private office overlooking lower Manhattan. It wasn't magic. It wasn't luck. It was understanding something fundamental about advocacy that most people miss entirely.The conversation reveals two deceptively simple mindset shifts that unlock the door to effective self-advocacy. The first: replacing "I suck at this" with "I'm trying." The second: swapping "I should be able to" with "I am willing to." These aren't just feel-good affirmations—they're the difference between staying stuck and making progress.But there's a deeper pattern here in the concept of "expansionist thinking"—the ADHD superpower of seeing connections and possibilities everywhere—and how it becomes weaponized against us. One small failure explodes into "I suck at everything." One unmet expectation spirals into complete self-doubt. Understanding this pattern is the first step to interrupting it.Throughout the conversation, a central question emerges: When are you at your best? Not when do you think you should be at your best. Not when does everyone else seem to be at their best. When are you actually, genuinely at your best? Answer that question honestly, and you've identified every accommodation you'll ever need.Alan shares his upcoming presentation at the ADHD conference in Kansas City—"Ten Simple Mindset Shifts for More Doing and Less Stressing"—and offers his free ebook at ADDCrusher.com: "Five Things We're Doing Every Day That Make Our ADHD Worse."Because it turns out the real question isn't whether you deserve accommodations. The real question is: what becomes possible when you finally ask for what you need?Links & NotesADDCrusher.comInternational Conference on ADHD 2025Support the Show on PatreonDig into the podcast Shownotes Database (00:00) - Welcome to Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast (01:09) - Support the show by becoming a Patron today! (02:07) - Introducing Alan Brown (02:39) - ADHD Advocacy (09:43) - The Meta Shame of Self-Advocacy (13:23) - Mindset (33:12) - How do you know what to ask for? (43:16) - Find Alan ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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• The Art (and Imperfection) of Diagnosing ADHD with Dr. Amie DeHarpporte

  Imagine this: one person spends ten minutes with their doctor, walks out with a prescription, and calls it an ADHD diagnosis. Another spends an entire day in a psychologist’s office, testing memory, attention, and executive function, only to arrive at the very same conclusion. Which one is “real”? Which one counts?In this episode, Pete Wright and Nikki Kinzer talk with psychologist Dr. Amie DeHarpporte, who has spent her career living at the intersection of these contradictions. Once a high school teacher and now a specialist in ADHD assessment, Dr. DeHarpporte has seen how elusive—and yet how desperately needed—a clear diagnosis can be. She explains why ADHD is simultaneously overdiagnosed and underdiagnosed, how TikTok has blurred the boundaries of what people think ADHD looks like, and why the process is as much art as it is science.But the story isn’t just about tests and checklists. At its heart, a diagnosis is about validation—about someone finally saying, yes, what you’ve been experiencing all these years is real. Dr. DeHarpporte takes us inside her practice, showing how thorough assessment can unravel years of shame, rewrite self-narratives, and reveal strengths hidden in plain sight.What you’ll discover is that ADHD diagnosis isn’t a binary. It’s a lens, a way of telling the story of your life with more clarity. And sometimes, that clarity is the most important prescription of all.Links & NotesDr. Amie DeHarpporte’s practice: Portage PsychologyUnapologetically ADHD paperback release October 28Support the Show on PatreonADHD Discord CommunityDig into the podcast Shownotes Database (00:00) - Welcome to Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast (01:59) - Support the Show! (04:28) - Introducing Dr. Amie DeHarpporte (06:09) - The Diagnosis Space (13:03) - What goes into a diagnosis ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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• Seeing Ourselves On Screen: ADHD Representation with Matthew Fox

  Here's a puzzle that will stop you cold: ADHD has exploded into public consciousness. More diagnoses than ever. More research. More conversations. And yet? Turn on your television. What stares back at you?The class clown. The scatterbrained sidekick. The walking punchline.Something doesn't add up.This disconnect—between lived reality and screen reality—forms the heart of this week’s conversation with Matthew Fox, whose passion for dissecting genre media runs as deep as their own neurodivergent experience. Fox hosts Superhero Ethics and other podcasts that examine the ethics woven through our most beloved stories. But today, they’re hunting bigger game.Consider this: Maria von Trapp. "How do you solve a problem like Maria?" Sound familiar? Fox argues she's ADHD incarnate. Flighty. Unpredictable. Out of focus. The nuns can't pin her down. Neither can we, apparently. Because nobody—not once—uses the words.That's the pattern. Characters burst with hyperactivity, impulsivity, attention challenges. Dennis the Menace in the '50s. Tigger bouncing through the Hundred Acre Wood. Calvin racing after imaginary adventures. All ADHD-coded. None explicitly labeled.Why does this matter? Because children search desperately for themselves in stories. Adults do too, though less consciously. When representation gets frozen in stereotype—or worse, buried in subtext—it shapes how teachers see students, how employers evaluate talent, how we see ourselves.The conversation zigzags through terrain both familiar and startling. Percy Jackson, where ADHD becomes a god-given power. Phil Dunphy, the endearing but scattered dad. Jake Peralta solving crimes through controlled chaos. Then the darker territory: Barney Stinson using ADHD as an excuse for predatory behavior.But here's where it gets interesting. Fox points out a part of the conversation that is too often forgotten: the gender patterns. Hyperactive male character? Meet his organized, grounding female partner. It's everywhere once you see it. Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Modern Family. New Girl. The narrative is always the same—love of a steady woman tames the chaotic man.And buried within all of this lies a more uncomfortable truth. In our hunger to see ourselves on screen, we claim characters who were never intended as representation. We read ADHD into Kirk and Spock, into Hiccup and his dragon, into anyone who shows even a glimmer of recognition.Is that enough? Should it be?Whether you're searching for positive examples for your children or trying to untangle how decades of media have shaped your own relationship with neurodivergence, this conversation might just shift how you watch ... everything.Links & NotesShows and MoviesModern Family - Phil Dunphy as ADHD-coded characterBrooklyn Nine-Nine - Jake Peralta as positive ADHD representationHow I Met Your Mother - Barney Stinson as problematic ADHD portrayalNew Girl - Nick and Jess relationship dynamicThe Simpsons - Bart Simpson and Ritalin episode (2000)Community - Abed Nadir as autism-coded characterParenthood (TV series) - Autism representationArrow - Felicity Smoak as ADHD-coded characterK-pop Demon Hunter - Zoe as positive ADHD representationThe Sound of Music - Maria von Trapp as ADHD-codedFinding Nemo/Finding Dory - Dory as ADHD representationHow to Train Your Dragon - Hiccup as ADHD-codedBooks and CharactersPercy Jackson series by Rick Riordan - ADHD as demigod traitCalvin and Hobbes - Calvin as ADHD-codedDennis the Menace - Classic hyperactive representationWinnie the Pooh characters as neurodivergent representationPodcasts by Matthew FoxThe Ethical PandaSuperhero EthicsStar Wars GenerationsMarvel Movie Minute (co-hosted with Pete Wright)The Once and Future Parent(Coming soon!)Links & NotesSupport the Show on PatreonDig into the podcast Shownotes Database (00:00) - Welcome to Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast (01:22) - Support the Show and Become a Patron! (01:58) - The ADHD Representation Paradox (02:48) - Introducing Matthew Fox ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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• ADHD, Emotions, and Rewriting Your Money Story with Nicole Stanley

  Money is rarely just about math—it’s about stories, habits, emotions, and, for ADHDers, often a deep sense of shame. In this episode, Pete and Nikki sit down with Nicole Stanley, financial coach and founder of Arise Financial Coaching, to unpack the hidden ways ADHD intersects with our finances—and how we can finally start to build a healthier, ADHD-friendly relationship with money.Nicole shares her own diagnosis journey and the challenges of postpartum depression, financial anxiety, and feeling “not enough” as a new mom. From there, she walks us through how our early experiences shape money beliefs (most of us make up our financial mindset by age seven!), and why traditional budgeting advice so often fails the ADHD brain.This conversation is a blueprint for anyone who’s ever felt overwhelmed, behind, or just exhausted trying to “do money right.” Nicole reframes key concepts: how to spot the real root of your financial stress, why automating your systems might be better than trying to “budget harder,” and how to emotionally connect to your goals so you’re actually excited to follow through.Plus: what financial coaches really do, how ADHDers can leverage dopamine to create a positive money loop, and the five core financial problems that every person needs to identify before they can move forward. Whether you’re in credit card debt, unsure where your money’s going, or just sick of feeling behind—this episode is your permission to drop the shame and start where you are.Links & NotesArise Financial CoachingYNAB (You Need A Budget)Become a Supporting MemberJoin the ADHD Discord CommunityDig into the podcast Shownotes DatabaseBooks Mentioned in This Episode:The Simple Path to Wealth by J.L. CollinsYour Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin & Joe DominguezI Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit SethiHappy Money by Ken HondaYou mean I’m Not Lazy, Stupid, or Crazy?! by Kate Kelly & Peggy RamundoDie with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life by Bill Perkins (00:00) - Introducing Nicole Stanley (01:55) - Nicole's ADHD Journey (04:43) - Welcome to Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast (07:30) - ADHD Money Assumptions (13:17) - The Areas of our Financial Lives (17:57) - What does it mean to "retire well?" (33:22) - The Five Potential Problems in Your Financial Life (40:37) - Coaching, Counseling, Advising, Accounting ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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