ADHD brain here, so bear with me while I try to land this plane...... This may be long, but there really is a point.... I’m really curious if anyone else notices a big difference in how they feel based on what they eat (or don’t eat)? I did keto for over a year and felt AMAZING… but also, let’s be real—that’s not exactly a “forever” lifestyle for me because… carbs....... Rewind a bit—when my son was 16, things were really rough. He was dealing with pseudo-seizures, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, and his weight had gotten pretty high. I had tried everything on the mom side—therapy, support, all of it.......but nothing was really helping. So I tagged in my husband (our resident “science guy” who loves to do research..), and within TWO DAYS he comes back and said, “Pretty sure you guys have the MTHFR gene mutation.” I was like… cool cool cool… I have no idea what you just said............ We got genetic testing done, and sure enough. My husband was right, my son has it (and it comes from one of us... clearly me). Long story short, it affects how his body processes folic acid, which is in basically EVERYTHING. Fantastic for a kid that has a sensory processing disorder.... We shifted his diet (think more gluten-free style......like cauliflower-based stuff, that is not completely what this is but its the closest that I can explain), and within DAYS we saw a difference. In his mood. He lost over 100 lbs (being monitored, due to the fact that he was loosing weight to fast), in less then a year and more importantly, his mood, anxiety, and overall functioning improved. Now, if he eats foods with folic acid, we can literally see the difference in how he feels. Which brings me back to me… When I eat mostly protein + simple foods (like meat and berries), I feel like I have actual energy and a functioning brain. But the second stress hits? I go right back to eating like a raccoon in a gas station dumpster.... and then feel worse then I did before... So it comes down to is NEEED to cut folic acid out of my diet too.

You guys... I've been reading a book I needed 25 years ago: "The Simple Guide to ADHD Regulation." Here's the TL/DR version: - Our ADHD is less than half the problem. - The bigger problem is that we almost all have nervous system dysregulation. - Nervous system dysregulation makes all our symptoms far worse. - If **ALL** you do is learn to self-regulate, you will dramatically improve. - Dysregulation is caused by being in fight-or-flight (or freeze or fawn). - Can't stop doom-scrolling? That's actually "freeze." - Keep avoiding miserable tasks? That's actually "flight." - Identify what it feels like for you to be dysregulated (unhappy stomach, tense muscles, headaches, urgency, overwhelm, racing thoughts, rumination, feeling paralyzed, negative self-talk, etc.) Solution: 1. Notice when you're dysregulated (right now, it might be all the time) 2. Physically interrupt: slow down, slow your breathing, relax your shoulders 3. Mentally interrupt: Remind yourself, "I'm exactly where I should be. I'm safe. I'm just going to keep doing one thing at a time." 4. Acknowledge the circumstance you're currently facing, and notice what is in your best interests to do next 5. Do the thing while you continue to move slowly, breathe slowly, relax, and remind yourself that you are safe. It takes practice but I have noticed DRAMATIC improvement in less than a week. I had posted a couple of weeks ago about the intense misery or even "pain" of doing unaligned work, and now I realize it was just that that work is dysregulating for me. Now that I'm consciously regulating while doing the work, the misery is 80-90% gone. Absolutely delighted about this and had to share it!!!

Realizing that the struggle of doing misaligned work is so horrible that it's almost akin to experiencing chronic pain, and yet I have to do several hours of it every day at my job (and I can't just quit right now -- I've got a plan for changing careers, but it's going to take time, and I still won't be able to avoid ALL misaligned work). How do I cope with this?? It almost brings me to tears most days. I can put on music and take frequent breaks, even put on a kids' movie in the background to lighten my mood. But it's still just so awful. Any suggestions???

What's up, ADHD Harmony fam! I'm looking for 10 beta testers to try our brand new free AI-powered onboarding experience. We've built a powerful new assessments that will become the starting point for everyone doing the 5-Day Challenge going forward. What you'll be testing: 1. Your ADHD Snapshot (~25 min) 9 deep questions across three dimensions: Your ADHD Story, The Hidden Cost, and Why You're Here Now. At the end, our AI generates a personalized portrait of your ADHD experience. 2. The ADHD Awakening Assessment (~45 min) 15 questions that go even deeper across five dimensions: The Truth About Your Brain, Your Invisible Identity Cage, Rewriting Your Internal Code, The Harmony Reset, and Your Path Forward. This one maps out where you actually are right now: your patterns, your strengths, your limiting beliefs, and what your ideal life actually looks like. You'll get a full AI-generated psychological portrait that connects all the dots. This is the same assessment as the previous 5-Day Challenge, but potentially even richer since it uses the new ADHD snapshot assessment as extra context. You'll be doing this on the new Harmony AI platform, the same environment our paid program members use. You'll have access to the two worksheets only, not the other features. Who I'm looking for: - 5 people who have already done the 5-Day Challenge but want to experience the new assessment flow on the new platform - 5 people who are already in this community but haven't done the challenge yet (or missed it and have been wanting to jump in) How to apply: Drop "REDO" (if you already did the challenge) or "NEW "(if you are new and want to give this a try) in the comments below and I'll pick 10 people at random from the list. 💛 Jim

My big rocks are to (1) make *visible* strides toward changing careers and (2) improve my mental health, which both involve becoming more myself. I'm showing up for this because I'm tired of struggling and feeling awful about myself, and I want to become visible for my strengths. I don't want to stay stuck in this same misaligned job and in these same struggles for *more* decades to come; I don't want to become bitter, jaded, cynical, and hopeless; I don't want to look back and realize I never really tried, and never offered the value I could have offered others, because I never surmounted my fear of being criticized and rejected. I commit to showing up every work day for an aligned work period that will help me change careers; to actively working to improve my baseline mood and self-image; and to move beyond planning into publishing/launching things that are visible and into interactions that could result in criticism/rejection. When it gets hard, I will carry my feelings and fears with me and show them what it looks like to hit "publish," to live visibly, to help bravely, and to act as if I have something to offer... because maybe I do.