ADHD Awareness Month – “A Community of Support & Connection”

This ADHD Awareness Month, I’m thinking about connection, starting with the relationship we have with ourselves.

When I talk about self-connection, I mean our mind, body and emotions. What am I thinking? What am I feeling? What is happening in my body? How do those things influence each other?

We can spend so much time trying to explain ourselves that we miss what we’re experiencing. I might be working out why a conversation upset me before noticing my clenched jaw, tight chest or held breath. Those sensations deserve some attention too.

A diagnosis can give us language for experiences we’ve struggled to understand. It can bring relief and open up new possibilities. But it can also become another set of things we feel we need to manage better: our time, our reactions, our energy, the way we come across.

And sometimes, searching for our neurodivergent tribe can add another layer of masking.

We might expect belonging to feel straightforward, then find ourselves wondering whether we’re neurodivergent enough, whether our experiences count, or whether we fit the way everyone else seems to express theirs. We can end up adjusting ourselves again, even in a space where we hoped we could relax.

That’s why I’m interested in what happens within us as we seek connection. Do I want to join in? Am I enjoying this? Am I pushing past tiredness or discomfort because I want to belong? Can I disagree, ask for something different or leave when I’ve had enough?

In my coaching, I use body mapping to help people notice physical sensations and explore how they relate to thoughts and emotions. It gives us somewhere to begin beyond analysing everything in our heads.

I also think we need to respect the coping strategies we’ve developed. Some have helped us navigate difficult situations for years. Unmasking can take time, choice and a sense of safety. We get to decide what we share, with whom, and when.

For me, connection includes being able to recognise what I need and take it seriously. Sometimes that means company. Sometimes it means a conversation with one person, a small group, or time on my own.

As I explore connection this month, I keep coming back to this: how can we stay connected to our own mind, body and emotions while building relationships with others?

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Hi 👋🏼 I’m Diana, host of Even The Dog Has ADHD.

I’m building a Heathrow Airport for neurodivergent life: somewhere to arrive, find your bearings and choose where you want to go next.

Have a look around the website  listen to a guest episode or find another journal entry to take you down a rabbit hole. Come back whenever something else captures your interest.

And if you’re looking for one-to-one support on your neurodivergent journey, have a look at what we could do together in a Mapmaking session.