What if ADHD isn’t something you “outgrow,” fix, or hide, but something you learn to work with?

In this episode of the Attention Different Podcast, we sit down with Diann Wingert—former psychotherapist, entrepreneur coach, and host of the ADHD-ish podcast—for a deeply human conversation about adult ADHD, late diagnosis, masking, and radical self-acceptance. Drawing from decades of clinical work, research, and lived experience, Diann reflects on why ADHD doesn’t disappear with age and why some adults struggle while others thrive.

Together, we explore what happens when women are diagnosed later in life, how hormones and perimenopause can intensify ADHD traits, and why so many adults are misdiagnosed with anxiety or depression instead of being properly identified with ADHD. Diann also shares powerful insights on masking: what it protects us from, what it costs us, and how unmasking (safely) can lead to deeper connection and belonging.

This conversation is about understanding your brain, questioning outdated labels, and learning how to build a life that works with the mind you have, not the one you were told you should have.

✨ Highlights ✨

✔️ Why ADHD is not outgrown, and what actually differentiates adults who struggle from those who thrive

✔️ The hidden link between perimenopause, hormones, and worsening ADHD symptoms

✔️ Masking vs. safety: when hiding helps, when it harms, and how to begin unmasking responsibly

✔️ Why late diagnosis often brings relief first… and grief second

✔️ How ADHD is frequently mistaken for anxiety or depression, especially in women

✔️ Why “disorder” and “deficit” language can quietly lower expectations and reinforce shame

✔️ What radical self-acceptance really looks like for ADHD adults in real life

🎙️ This episode is for anyone who’s ever wondered:
– “Why do I still struggle as an adult?”
– “What if I was diagnosed later than everyone else?”
– “Who am I without the mask?”

📺 Watch the Full Episode
👉 YouTube: @attentiondifferent

Send us a text

We are Attention DIFFERENT not DEFICIT An advocacy and edutainment podcast centered on radical acceptance and neurodiveristy. Attention Different aims to de-stigmatize and build community by exploring the intricacies of living life and "adulting" with ADHD in the modern world. We periodically feature experts, special guests and influencers in the ADHD community.

If you enjoy the podcast please like, share, and subscribe!

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Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV0lWgdvEhaI4p5MyxM5w3A?sub_confirmation=1

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Follow all of these if you want to be inspired in your ADHD journey
• Website - https://www.attentiondifferent.com
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/attention_different
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/attndifferent
• X - https://www.x.com/attndifferent

💡 What happens when you keep moving forward… but never stop to notice how far you’ve come?

In this episode of the Attention Different Podcast, we sit down with Rachel Ambrose for a deeply grounding conversation about progress, self-trust, and why so many ADHD adults struggle to recognize their own wins.

Rachel shares how ADHD brains are often wired to chase the next goal, raise the bar, and dismiss effort the moment it happens. Even real growth can feel invisible when you’re constantly measuring yourself against unrealistic expectations, productivity myths, or an imagined version of who you “should” be by now.

We unpack how burnout, perfectionism, and internalized pressure can keep us stuck in a loop of trying harder without ever feeling successful—and why learning to pause, reflect, and acknowledge progress is not self-indulgent, but necessary.

✨ 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀

✔️ Why progress often goes unrecognized by ADHDers, even by ourselves
✔️ How constantly “raising the bar” disconnects us from growth
✔️ Why effort matters just as much as outcomes
✔️ How burnout changes our ability to perceive success
✔️ Learning to build self-trust instead of self-pressure
✔️ What it looks like to slow down without giving up

📺 Watch the Full Episode
👉 YouTube: @attentiondifferent

Find out more about Rachel and Porch Light Coaching:

• WelcometothePorchLight.com
• @Porch.Light.Coaching (Instagram)

Send us a text

We are Attention DIFFERENT not DEFICIT An advocacy and edutainment podcast centered on radical acceptance and neurodiveristy. Attention Different aims to de-stigmatize and build community by exploring the intricacies of living life and "adulting" with ADHD in the modern world. We periodically feature experts, special guests and influencers in the ADHD community.

If you enjoy the podcast please like, share, and subscribe!

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV0lWgdvEhaI4p5MyxM5w3A?sub_confirmation=1

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow all of these if you want to be inspired in your ADHD journey
• Website - https://www.attentiondifferent.com
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/attention_different
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/attndifferent
• X - https://www.x.com/attndifferent

Why do New Year’s resolutions fall apart so fast for ADHD brains?

What if the problem isn’t motivation, but how we define success?

In this Attention Different roundtable, Stephen Tonti, Aaron Smith, and Devin Pitts-Rogers get honest about goals, follow-through, and why “trying harder” rarely works for neurodivergent adults.

This wide-ranging, candid conversation digs underneath surface-level habits and into what actually drives consistency: values, identity-based goals, energy management, and focusing on process over outcomes. From abandoned language apps and inconsistent gym routines to bass lessons, injuries, and unrealistic expectations, the group explores why intrinsic motivation isn’t reliable and what does help.

✨ Highlights:

✔️ Why process goals work better than outcome goals

✔️ How values and identity shape sustainable habits

✔️ Energy management vs. time management

✔️ Why perfectionism quietly kills momentum

✔️ Practical tools like habit stacking, accountability, and flexible structure

✔️ Why failure isn’t the opposite of progress—it’s part of it

This episode is for anyone who’s ever thought:
“I know what I want to do… so why can’t I follow through?”

🎧 Listen now and rethink goals, growth, and success on your terms.

Send us a text

We are Attention DIFFERENT not DEFICIT An advocacy and edutainment podcast centered on radical acceptance and neurodiveristy. Attention Different aims to de-stigmatize and build community by exploring the intricacies of living life and "adulting" with ADHD in the modern world. We periodically feature experts, special guests and influencers in the ADHD community.

If you enjoy the podcast please like, share, and subscribe!

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV0lWgdvEhaI4p5MyxM5w3A?sub_confirmation=1

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow all of these if you want to be inspired in your ADHD journey
• Website - https://www.attentiondifferent.com
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/attention_different
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/attndifferent
• X - https://www.x.com/attndifferent