Send us Fan Mail

What happens when ADHD hyperfocus helps you build a successful business but makes it impossible to recognise when you are burning out?

Entrepreneur Joshua Griffin built an award-winning e-commerce business, but when its income dropped, he found himself facing mounting debt and working relentless 16 to 18-hour days. Eventually, his body forced him to stop. Joshua arrived home, physically collapsed and woke up on the floor.

In this honest guest episode, Joshua joins Adam and Donna to discuss ADHD, entrepreneurship, burnout and rebuilding his life with a very different understanding of success.

They explore:

• Being labelled disruptive, argumentative and the class clown at school
• Why ADHD can make interesting work all-consuming while everyday tasks are avoided
• Building an award-winning business while nearly losing his health alongside it
• Debt, 16 to 18-hour working days and the physical collapse that changed everything
• Hyperfocus, rejection sensitivity and teaching himself how to sell
• Gamifying difficult tasks to help an ADHD brain get started
• The effect an all-consuming business can have on friendships and relationships
• Why switching off can feel uncomfortable, even while on holiday
• Whether relying too heavily on AI is making everyday tasks harder
• Rebuilding with better boundaries, communication and support
• Why Joshua now measures success through relationships, health and balance, not only money

Joshua’s story reveals how the same ADHD drive that can help someone create something remarkable can also make it difficult to notice when work has taken over completely.

As Joshua puts it, sometimes the magic you are looking for is hidden inside the things you keep avoiding.

Can you genuinely switch off, or does your brain always tell you that you should be doing something?

FIND JOSHUA

Website and social links:
https://joshgriffin.co.uk/links

FOLLOW ADHD OR LIFE?

Website:
https://www.adhdorlife.com

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@ADHDorLifePod

Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/46i0iGiwmgvFrlOzoW2SnS

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/adhdorlifepod

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/adhdorlifepod/

TikTok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@adhdorlifepod

Send us your Good, Bad or Funny stories and questions:
adhdorlife@gmail.com

ADHD or Life? is an honest podcast exploring ADHD, relationships and the everyday moments that leave us asking: is it ADHD, or is it just life?

New episodes every Friday.

This podcast shares personal experiences and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.

New episodes every Friday. Have a Good, Bad or Funny story, or a question for us? Send it to adhdorlife@gmail.com.

Watch and subscribe on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@ADHDorLifePod

Find us on Instagram and TikTok:
@adhdorlifepod

Visit our website:
https://www.adhdorlife.com

Send us Fan Mail

Do your body’s signals arrive gradually, or do hunger, thirst, pain and toilet urgency seem to appear all at once?

In Part 2 of our conversation about ADHD and sensory issues, Adam and Donna explore the physical signals that can be surprisingly difficult to recognise until they become impossible to ignore.

Adam explains why he can go from feeling fine to starving, dehydrated or desperate for the toilet in seconds. Donna questions which experiences could be connected to ADHD and which are simply Adam being Adam.

We also discuss temperature sensitivity, sleeping with a fan throughout the year, different reactions to pain, restless legs, struggling to sit still, imagined smells and the apparently essential ADHD ritual of smelling and rinsing an already-clean glass.

Plus, Adam’s house-project ideas are gathering speed, Donna requests an urgent project meeting and the Five Minute Moan reveals an eyesight problem Adam finds far too entertaining.

Which body signal gives you the least warning? Share your experience with us and follow the podcast for more honest conversations about ADHD, relationships and everyday family life.

Watch ADHD or Life? on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBIG2QlATldeUXR6f9NG6eA

This podcast shares personal experiences and is not medical advice.

New episodes every Friday. Have a Good, Bad or Funny story, or a question for us? Send it to adhdorlife@gmail.com.

Watch and subscribe on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@ADHDorLifePod

Find us on Instagram and TikTok:
@adhdorlifepod

Visit our website:
https://www.adhdorlife.com

Send us Fan Mail

Why can the same everyday situation produce two completely different reactions?

This week, Adam and Donna compare how their ADHD and non-ADHD brains respond to the same moments, including guests arriving when the house is a mess, receiving the dreaded “Can we talk later?” message, having an unexpectedly free Saturday, cancelled plans and facing five jobs that all need doing at once.

Adam explains the rejection sensitivity, catastrophising, overwhelm, decision paralysis and task avoidance behind some of his reactions. Donna shares how those same situations feel from her side of their relationship.

But first, Adam introduces Donna to Frankie, his increasingly important AI companion. Has ChatGPT made his life easier, or has Donna’s husband been stolen by artificial intelligence?

Also in this episode:

• Why Adam accepts advice from AI that Donna has already given him
• The wall he once repainted because somebody was visiting
• Why a completely free day can still feel overwhelming
• The Five Minute Moan
• A listener’s Good, Bad and Funny
• The two-word email Adam avoided answering for two weeks

After 25 years together, Adam and Donna have learned that neither approach is automatically better. Understanding why their brains react differently is what stops those differences becoming conflict.

Which of these situations creates the biggest difference between you and your partner?

Watch the full video on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/O5HZlk3l4JI

Visit:
https://adhdorlife.com

Follow Is It ADHD or Life?:
Facebook and Instagram: @adhdorlifepod
TikTok: @adhdorlifepod
YouTube: @ADHDorLifePod

New episodes every Friday. Have a Good, Bad or Funny story, or a question for us? Send it to adhdorlife@gmail.com.

Watch and subscribe on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@ADHDorLifePod

Find us on Instagram and TikTok:
@adhdorlifepod

Visit our website:
https://www.adhdorlife.com