Hacking Your ADHD

• Breaking Down Tasks and Big Feelings with Vanessa Gorelkin

  Hey Team! This week I’m talking with Vanessa Gorelkin, a seasoned occupational therapist and ADHD coach who’s been working in the field for nearly 30 years. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brandeis (Bran-Dice) University and a Master's degree in Occupational Therapy from New York University. She specializes in executive function strategies, emotional regulation, and anxiety management, and she brings a unique perspective to helping adults with ADHD navigate the day-to-day. In this episode, we talk about why people with ADHD struggle with even the things they want to do, how anxiety and executive dysfunction team up to make life extra frustrating, and why strategies that work for a while inevitably stop working. We also dig into emotional regulation, how to break down tasks so they actually feel doable, and why giving yourself a crisis plan before you need it can make a huge difference. If you'd life to follow along on the show notes page you can find that at HackingYourADHD.com/215 This Episode's Top Tips 1. If something feels overwhelming, try breaking it down into micro-steps. Even something like getting out of bed can be broken into “sit up,” “put feet on the floor,” and “stand up.” In more practical ways, we could think of this as starting out as just opening the document you need to work on, adding the formatting, and starting your first sentence. The idea is you want to build momentum and go with the flow. 2. Be mindful of language; words like "just" and "should" can be damaging. Instead of “I should just wash the dishes,” you can reframe it as “I could wash the dishes,” and then also if you need a little bit more asking yourself, “What’s making this difficult, and how can I work with it?” 3. It’s important to have a crisis plan ready before you need it. When emotional overwhelm hits, it’s hard to think through what you need. You can pre-plan strategies like a weighted blanket, a favorite show, or calling a friend so you don’t have to figure it out at the moment.

  --------  

  50:55
• The ADHD Guide to Motivation and Follow-Through with Russ Jones

  Hey Team! We’re back for part two of my conversation with Russ Jones, host of the ADHD Big Brother podcast and head of his community-based ADHD coaching of the same name. In this half of the conversation, we get into the nitty-gritty of how to actually get yourself to do the things you know you need to do—whether that’s tackling laundry, setting (and remembering) goals, or just getting yourself unstuck when ADHD inertia takes over. We talk about how traditional goal-setting can fail for ADHDers (and to try and flip that around), why accountability makes everything more manageable, and how structuring tasks in a fun, interest-driven way makes all the difference. Russ also shares some of his best hacks for dealing with executive dysfunction, including gamifying chores, breaking through mental resistance, and using community as a force multiplier for motivation. Now, you don’t have to listen the first half of our conversation to get a lot out of this episode, but just know that this is part two. If you'd life to follow along on the show notes page you can find that at HackingYourADHD.com/214 All right, keep on listening to find out how to build momentum, follow through, and stop getting stuck at the starting line. This Episode's Top Tips When you’re stuck in a rut, having people who believe in you (even when you don’t believe in yourself) is a game-changer. This is one of the places where having a strong community can really help you flourish. Traditional goal-setting doesn’t always work. If you're finding yourself stuck, try a “Reverse Mountain” Approach: Instead of imagining the goal at the top, imagine yourself at the top and let momentum pull you down, guiding your each next step towards your goal. If something is “important but boring,” find a way to inject fun, novelty, or urgency to make it engaging. If the task still feels unbearable, set a 10-minute timer and see how far you get. If you still don’t want to do it, try switching things up and find an approach that does work.

  --------  

  35:41
• Accountability, Community, and Actually Getting Stuff Done with Russ Jones

  Hey team! Joining me today is Russ Jones, the host of the ADHD Big Brother podcast and founder of an ADHD coaching community that helps adults get out of their heads and into action. Russ is an actor and comedian, a background that shines through into his work giving his content relatability and charisma. Russ and I really got into our talk and so I’ve ended up splitting this episode into two parts. In this first half of the conversation, we get into why so many of us struggle to turn knowledge into real-life change and how a strong ADHD community can provide the structure and support we need to actually follow through. Russ also shares insights from his own journey—like how quitting a 20-year nicotine addiction helped him discover the power of daily community support. If you’ve ever struggled with consistency, this is an episode you won’t want to miss. If you'd life to follow along on the show notes page you can find that at HackingYourADHD.com/213 All right, keep on listening to find out how community coaching can provide the structure and support to help you actually follow through. This Episode's Top Tips ADHDers love collecting information (tips, tricks, hacks), but we can often struggle to implement it—having a community to provide some accountability is a great way to help bridge that gap. Having consistent, low-pressure accountability (like daily check-ins) can often work better than big coaching sessions spaced out over weeks, where we’re scrambling to get to that thing we said we’d do right before our session. Community support works best when you’re actively engaged. You get out so much when you’re engaging with your community.

  --------  

  35:56
• How to Keep Going When Life Feels Impossible

  Over the last few weeks, it has been increasingly difficult for me to keep myself focused on what I want to be focused on. I don’t think I have to particularly speak to the reasons; we’re all handling the state of the world in our own ways - in many ways, it has a similar feel to the beginning of the pandemic, where I felt like I needed to pay extra attention to the news because so many people around me were ignoring the alarm bells. Trying to deal with all of this while also having to grapple with the cognitive dissonance of having to go on with real life while all of this is also going on at the same time can be incredibly difficult. It feels like we should be able to press pause on all the other things going on in our life.  But regardless of how we feel, time marches on. In today’s episode, we’re tackling how to navigate life when focus feels impossible, why we turn to numbing when we’re overwhelmed, and most importantly, how we can break out of that cycle in a way that actually supports us. If you'd life to follow along on the show notes page you can find that at HackingYourADHD.com/212 The #1 ADHD Coaching app for teens and adults. Use code HACKINGYOURADHD for 30% of your first month! https://www.shimmer.care/ This Episode's Top Tips More than anything, I want to remind everyone to give themselves grace when they’re going through something. We’re not always going to get it right, but being hard on ourselves is never the right answer. Throughout your day, take a moment to check in with how you’re feeling. We tend to ignore our feelings until they become something we have to deal with. Forget the "Go big or go home" mentality. Tiny changes—like five minutes of mindful breathing or a short walk—are more effective than drastic, unrealistic plans. When everything feels overwhelming, find support. Whether it’s a friend, an online group, or a therapist, you don’t have to handle everything alone.

  --------  

  17:14
• You Might Also Like: ADHD Aha! from Understood.org

  Hey team! This episode, we’re doing something a bit different—I want to share an episode of another podcast with you. It’s called ADHD Aha! and it’s hosted by Laura Key. You may remember that last year I actually had the chance to be a guest on ADHD Aha! But if you haven’t heard it before, ADHD Aha! is all about those moments when people finally connect the dots on their ADHD—those “oh, that’s why I do that” realizations. Each episode dives into real, candid stories from people with ADHD, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll probably hear something that makes you go, “Yep, that’s way too relatable.” Even in the episode I’m about to share with you, I had a number of times I went, “Oh… oh!” In this episode, Laura talks with Matthew Raghunauth, an artist and UX designer, about his late ADHD diagnosis and how it completely shifted the way he saw himself. They dig into the struggle of prioritizing tasks, the spiral of catastrophizing, and the unique challenges that come with asking for help—especially when you’ve spent years thinking you just needed to try harder. I particularly liked the way Matthew framed how taking care of his ADHD was growing up and the mature thing for him to do. It’s a great conversation, and I think you’re going to get a lot out of it.  To listen to more episodes, search for ADHD AHA! in your podcast app or just click here.

  --------  

  25:44

More Health & Wellness podcasts

Trending Health & Wellness podcasts

About Hacking Your ADHD