Ep 4 - ADHD - How it’s Connected to EVERYTHING
What is ADHD?
Well ADHD in laymans terms is that our brain doesn’t produce the “normal” amount of dopamine
in other words, our brains have problems with the genes that lay down the framework for manufacturing new neurotransmitters - or the communication between braincells
The neural pathways don't connect and mature at the same rate, making it harder to pay attention and focus. This can impair executive function, which handles organization and routine tasks. ADHD impacts brain chemistry, too. (webmd.com)
ADHD affects communication between different parts of the brain, the thinking and the doing, and the transfer of neurotransmitters between the two sides are the function of making things happen. So with a brain with ADHD it is found that their is not strong enough transmitters which are “a chemical substance that is released at the end of a nerve fiber by the arrival of a nerve impulse” so it just doesn’t reach the destination
the sending neuron may not release enough neurotransmitters
the receiving neuron may have trouble “catching” the neurotransmitters
the sending neuron may suck the neurotransmitter back up too quickly before the receiving neuron can catch them
which is interesting when we think of trying to find the word, its there but it’s not. having an idea and not doing it and then ultimately forgetting the idea and moving on to the next
it is hyper active - moving from one thing to another and taking in way too much information for the brain to actually conceptualize the original idea or what was “just at the tip of your toungue” leading to what feels like ,and im uncertain if thhis is actually linked, memory loss.
What does ADHD look like?
part way done projects
procrastination
ADHD paralysis, also known as executive dysfunction or task paralysis, refers to the inability to initiate, complete, or sustain tasks due to overwhelming feelings of anxiety, stress, or mental fatigue. (mypsychiatrist.com)
feeling behind
cant sit still
hard time concentrating on the things we find uninteresting
acting w/o thinking or impulsivity
low self esteem
anxiety
depression
interrupting
losing things
avoiding certain tasks that feel uncomfortable
hyperfocus - mental overload
social anxiety
forgetfulness
dysregulated nervous system
outbursts
digestive issues
fatigue
low/high cortisol
people pleasing due to wearing a mask of hiding true reactions
brain feels constantly restless
50% of cases feel like you have consistent anxiety throughout your life
low self worth
feeling misunderstood/disapproved
overwhelming thoughts
feels like you’re in waiting mode if you have any appointment planned for the day
oversharing
high caffeine consumption
worrying about the smallest things and spiraling into a fantasy of the worst case scenario
fantasizing about anything - positive or negative
taking things personally
reading but thinking about something else
being told you need to grow up or mature
burn out
trouble holding a job (especially one that does not interest you)
trails of relationships
hyper awareness of surroundings
overspending - retail therapy
feels like you’re wearing a mask and that mask can be something you’ve been wearing since childhood
… what else can you find in your life that show these signs?
and the list goes on….
it has been such a blessing for me in my life in being aware of these patterns and feelings that I struggle with everyday
it can feel like no one really understands, the amount of effort it can actually be just to do the most simplest tasks that come to others so naturally, and the pressure inside to just do the thing.
and the thing is is that this all stems from our brain, the thing that runs the show, when you can’t slow down or quiet the boss it gets overwhelming and it gets to a point where it feels helpless, it’s us against ourselves.. and I want to help others like myself crawl out of that cycle - holistically
So what does dopamine do to the brain and how does the lack of it effect us so intensely?
well dopamine is the reward chemical, it is what allows us to do the “hard” things to be rewarded in the end.
Dopamine is a type of neurotransmitter and hormone. It plays a role in many important body functions, including movement, memory and pleasurable reward and motivation. High or low levels of dopamine are associated with several mental health and neurological diseases. (clevelandclinic.org)
which makes a lot of sense, especially in my case, of paralysis.. just not having the motivation to do anything or having so many ideas but not being able to pick just one where i just lead myself to doing nothing
Are there any other chemicals that are related to ADHD?
Cortisol being one, and from my research i see that there is a spectrum with this - where some have high cortisol levels at certain times of the day (mine being right early in the morning) or low cortisol related to unarousal and can lead to the impulsivity
now my question is… i forget it lol actually i just had it LOL
Picture this - you ask yourself okay, what do you feel like doing today?
in the morning you wake up and feel like okay let’s take on the day, you make a list and start on getting the first few done, is it a question of realizing that you have completed tasks? not sure but this is telltale when that dopamine hit just hasn’t kicked in..
we sit on the couch to take a break and get lost in social media (which can be toxic or productive) this case lets go with toxic.. we scroll social media and then start feeling really down - comparing, feeling like we don’t have everything we want in life, why can’t i get this business off the ground, what’s wrong with me, I’m never getting anywhere in life… and the spiral starts
been there? i have
Now being in the spiritual realm as deeply as i am it has been a journey in and of itself to actually pinpoint this in my own self. It can look however it can and from my own belief i think that ADHD is actually an umbrella to a lot of the mental health issues people are experiencing and social media along with the shortening attention span everyone is experiencing (which is now 8 seconds….8 seconds until we are like okay now time for something else)
like we are not apart of a society that values human health and wellness, well that was a broad statement, more or less i mean we are indoctrinated with information every second of the day, it really is not our faults but it is our responsibility to be aware
advertising, short videos, information and a fast paced should’ve been done yesterday mentality - does not solicit any time for self - especially when safety and survival are involved, such as inflation, high rent costs and grocery bills hitting an all time high
we have bigger fish to fry such as how the fuck am i supposed to do all this?
Now i won’t leave you hanging because i myself am tired of this controlling my life into paralysis.
Thriving w/ ADHD in today’s world.
Today’s world not only solicits high functioning productivity it actually thrives on lack of information and a disoraginzed approach to mental health.. and don’t get me started on western medicine because i will rant.. for hours about how shitty it is and how people are making billions of dollars off the suffering of those unaware
I guess let me dig a little, it just feels right and some stats that might make you change your mind..
western medicine, big pharma, pharmaceuticals and the drugs they sell are bandaids.
depression and anxiety is at an all time high and what a pharmaceutical does for either of those ailments is numb.. now coming from someone who believes fully in healing the self naturally through energy healing, spiritual practices etc, this is not helping anyone
all this does is numb, bandaid and pull you fartehr away from soul, with these we are not going to the root cause of depression and anxiety we are simply disconnecting the dissatisfaction of the life we live w/o change or healing
DISCLAIMER - i am not a doctor, i am not giving medical advice - but what i do want to say is that our brain is a powerful tool and when we work with ourselves (body, mind, soul) we can eliviate sadness, and anxiety from our lives by living more in alignment with our souls purpose, what we want to do what we are meant to do , what we came here to be
extreme cases aside, if we feel dis-ease there are changes we can make to our lives to benefit, our bodies are a living breathing organism we can cure most diseases through the power of our brains and placebos are an example of that.
anyways… i dont fucking like pharmaceuticals and these big people feeding our brains with external shit that we apparently need to live a happy and healthy life when the life that we are unhappy with is actually being fueled by the same people wanting us to stay in this cycle so they can stay in the higher ups… like come on it’s fucking disgusting and probably one of the huge and underlying factors of me wanting to speak out about this - all inhibitions to the wind, imposter syndrome looking at me in the face but wanting to make this change reality
where people can live happy, healthy and with self alignment - whatever that looks like for them
ADHD and Drug Addiction
taboo topic for some, but reality honestly
drug addiction and mental health are both at an all time high
fuck ive been saying all time high a lot lol
anyways, it is - and ya wanna know what cocaine gives your brain???????
DOPAMINE
it fucking floods your brain with dopamine and gives you that exact thing that your brain is trying to make
i wonder if our ancestors used cocaine ritually, actually i know they did and with that i wonder if it was used to lighten spirits in times of trials. lol my mind runs on possibilities
anyways once again, this is the real epidemic, the fucking DRUG and mental health crisis our communities are facing
what if we are all just a bunch of lost ADHDrs who just wanna feel good and motivated?
to take the stigma of drugs out of this conversation and talk objectively - this was a huge realization i had
they are two sides of the same coin
and the people running this fucking planet are fully aware, and seeing the demise and okay… lets get back on topic
it brings innocence back to a situation that has felt so dirty and gross for decades
and yet where is the support? where is the support for those who are suffering with mental issues?
wanna go back in time?
its 1814…. the first mental institution is created
People were either submerged in a bath for hours at a time, mummified in a wrapped “pack,” or sprayed with a deluge of shockingly cold water in showers. Asylums also relied heavily on mechanical restraints, using straight jackets, manacles, waistcoats, and leather wristlets, sometimes for hours or days at a time.
1967 was the last lobotomy performed.
this shits in our bodies, this trauma
to go into a more spiritual approach, our body is as old as earth, it was created from earth and we carry these and are still being affected by them
its crazy to think, like generationally how do we know what our ancestors went through?
its a mind fuck and one i like to travel down regularly
now today, there is something called assisted suicide, and it can be used in mental health cases………
like wtf, the support is there but it aint in western medicine
this blindfold is just being removed and to see it in the light and to see ourselves in the same light i think a big drink of compassion needs to be taken in realizing what we are truly “up against”
we are consistently thinking of new names and labels to put on ourselves as to why we can’t function “normally”
and i use this term VERY LIGHTLY, my context is that a normal human can function and be happy and healthy in society however they want to live
but the prison of mental illness and how things are handled in todays world is just criminal, the fear is being mongered
the brain is not being treated correctly and there’s a lot of “somethings wrong with me” being thrown around by people who are in a position to help their communities
doctors should not be put down, because that is all they learn in school, if you want a holistic approach there is another avenue for that - sparation once again
its crazy and i rant, i digress
there are ways to successfully help yourself, with yourself
dang,
on a lighter note lets talk about reparenting
reparenting is switching the voices inside your head to those that actually help you grow, as our parents should’ve done with no shame to them i mean look at what we just talked about here
the dialogue, it can be pretty dark and we will never help ourselves out of any situation with that, it is only loving and understanding dialogue that will truly motivate you into true health
so i was on the hunt for some new parents lol
and now with my experiences in life i had to choose parents that would be accepting of me, those that I deemed to be like myself and so i went with the obvious option
Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne
lol without diving into all the personal shit and getting all into the shit that can come with picking apart certain people until we wonder wtf where did that come from, it just felt right for me lol
now ozzy and sharon osbourne are good examples of the scene and society that have created not only our generation but those before us
how do you feel when you see someone living their lives and doing whatever the fuck they want?
im guessing the little dopamine molecule running on the treadmill in our brains fizzles and leaves us feeling like shit
atleast it does for me lol
but one thing i have found that really helps me with that is it makes myslef relatable to something i felt very far from, accepted and not alone
which is the whole point, not to mention it has brought me closer to my parents because i am slowly healing the bond that had a tough go on the start line
so to bring this all back together with a little twist is that we have been fed what luxurious and wild lifestyles can entail as well as mass drug abuse being idolized in those cases very readily since as early as i’d say 1960
this gets carried generationally as well, the lack of luster in some lives and then compounded is really like a huge zit on the forehead of wtf’s going on here
it’s right here lol look at it!!
i mean what if ADHD is just this super human brain power that allows you to explore the deepest depths of the universe and it’s actually working against the agenda of keeping us small all the while expanding the corners of the universe everytime we spiral….
probably right, i mean who am i to trust, i dont have a degree or even a high school diploma - i mean if i were to choose my parents id pick the osbournes
but alas this is me
so this is kind of a taste to what this podcast is going to be.
rough around the edges, well thought out and a little ranting every now and then - trying to keep it all in order lol
oh right!
i forgot to mention supplements and other ways i’ve found that can help with ADHD
Now What?
Well if you’re still here, thank you and thank you so much for supporting this new endeavor and with that being said if you have ANY outlandish crazy questions or topics you’d like to hear from me, let me know because I have ideas, it’s just putting them into action lol and if i know you want to learn about something to - that relieves my indecisiveness and wondering lol
living with ADHD is crazy and it can make you feel crazy and some of the things i found to really help in not only times of need but also in times of motivation are:
grounding: ground that mind into the reality you are in right now, pick 5 things you can see, 4 things you can hear, 3 things you can touch, 2 things you can smell and 1 thing you can taste and just breathe ( a lot of what we experience in a tizzy is because we are so in our heads, ever notice that if you are talking about something you care about or are waiting at the end of someone talking and its almost like holding our breath so we dont lose the thought? breathe and let it go, breathe deep and feel the sensations in your feet bring your consciousness through your body and slow the mind. Now i know as someone who is also struggling with this, our brain will say “we dont have time” “this needs to happen” urgency and so it can almost feel like we can’t do that.. trust me we can and it will make us feel a lot more centered and grounded when doing so
sit in silence like meditation and see if you can think about what your brain will think next, and you cant nail it down. if you were able to know what you were going to think next then that would mean we are our brains… and were not, we are the consciousness experiencing what our brains are conceptualizing. it takes you out of this spiral of identifying with our brains and the acts it is acting at the moment and brings us down to reality in realizing we can control this shit. truly powerful.
stretching, i find stretching to be a good practice because we will focus on what we are feeling rather than what we are thinking. when we bring ourselves into our bodies we will feel this sense of unknown because the brain likes to be in control so when it is “out of control” even though it already is lol it will start to freak out so i find that stretching is a good way to bring ourselves back to center and feel - as well as it feels good
when we are angry, screaming into a pillow and punching my bed has been THE BEST practice. my dogs hate it but i close the door and i wail on that fucking matress like it owes me money and once the rage and anger subsides, we are left with crying (women maybe men im not sure…. id imagine, they just dont talk about it as openly lol) when we are in the state of surrender - tears - we can then release whatever is bottled up inside and can have a clearer vision on what was even going on in the first place, because when we are in an over active mindset and can’t even figure out what is pissing us off, we arent gunna get anywhere with it, atleast on a positive note
going for a drive, my truck is literally my stage i get a good song going and i start singing and dancing i come back to myself because i’m having such a good fucking time and it feels good that dopamine is fucking pumping lol
lists are nice, but not for everyone, i mean to remember all the shit that goes through our brains without writing it down is im gunna say impossible and we will beat ourselves up for not remembering or what have you and so it just ultimately comes down to making a list. a to-do list, a remember list, a good idea list, all the lists just have it written down so you can come back to it, regardless of if you remmeber wtf you were talking about when you made it lol and another side note, dont beat yourself up for not checking all the boxes on the list, your patriarichal programming is showing lol
Supplements
obviously take these with your own research and knowledge, these are just some that i have found (not have been all tested by me) but have researched and feel confident in sharing, but like i said use at your own risk and do your own digging on what will work for you and your symptoms
Although there is limited evidence to support treating ADHD with mineral/vitamin supplements, research does exist showing that patients with ADHD may have reduced levels of vitamin D, zinc, ferritin, and magnesium. (WOW) lol
DL Phenylalanine - increases motivation and I’ve tried to upload the picture and cannot get it figured so i will link the website i found it on, but this chemical is the first step in producing dopamine so by giving our brains what it needs to do the job we want it to do https://sanescohealth.com/blog/what-is-dopamine-and-what-is-it-responsible-for/
L Tyrosine - if you looked at the picture you will see this is the second step in forming dopamine in the brain
B vitamin complex - B vitamins are important for making sure the body's cells are functioning properly. They help the body convert food into energy (metabolism), create new blood cells, and maintain healthy skin cells, brain cells, and other body tissues.
Pancreatic enzymes - supports healthy gut function and can help with digestive issues that happen with ADHD
MAGNESIUM - Magnesium is important for many processes in the body, including regulating muscle and nerve function, blood sugar levels, and blood pressure and making protein, bone, and DNA.
Now that we can kinda see where these missing pieces are we have are truly integral to the health and functions of our brain, we can understand how important it is to really empathize with ourselves in knowing that we don’t know this shit and the funniest thing about ALL this is the first statement that says
“ALTHOUGH THERE IS LIMITED EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT TREATING ADHD WITH SUPPLEMENTS” like are you fucking kidding me lol
All this is so interesting to me, i’m sure there will be more ideas that pop up and are asking to be talked about but for right now i think im gunna leave this here..
But wait.. ther’es more, this topic has opened me up into this huge rabbit hole of ADHD and how it’s connected.
interesting to thinnk that we are actually creating it in our society this very fast paced and intensely moving life where it feels like everywhere we look there’s another dopamine hit
it’s almost like we are all just desensitized and looking for our next hit
reading on how childhood trauma - in any form can cause and contribute to ADHD as well
