Episodi

  • 20. Built to Hold Opposites
    Jan 22 2026

    You make the perfect plan. Color-coded. Time-blocked. Beautiful. Then three days in, your whole system rebels.

    Or the opposite. You wake up with energy, ready to follow the spark, and suddenly you're overwhelmed because there's no structure and you don't know where to start.

    What if we're not flawed for needing routine AND spontaneity? What if the constant tug-of-war between structure and flow isn't a problem to solve—it's our actual design?

    In this episode:

    • Why the boom-bust cycle keeps happening (and what it's actually telling you)
    • The way our way-back grandmothers worked with this duality
    • How to shift when you’re feeling scattered or trapped
    • When the scientist shows up, when the witch does—and why both are your medicine
    • Building rituals that breathe instead of suffocate


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    32 min
  • 19. That ‘Interrupting’ Thing We Do
    Jan 15 2026

    You're tracking what they're saying while also monitoring yourself. Did you interrupt again? Was that tangent too much? By the end, you're exhausted—not from the conversation, but from how you had to have it.

    What if your communication style—the weaving, the jumping in, the directness, the pauses—isn't flawed? What if it's how your brain was designed to connect?

    In this episode:

    • How to navigate the unique communication paradox being both Autistic AND ADHD creates
    • The double layer of shame: ableism plus gendered conditioning about "good girls don't interrupt"
    • What changes when you find spaces that actually welcome how you talk


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    28 min
  • 18. You Inherited This Brain (It's Not Wrong)
    Jan 8 2026

    You finally understand why everything felt so hard. You have language for it now. But you're still overloaded, still apologizing for needing things differently, still in boom/bust cycles.

    What if knowing you're AuDHD wasn't the end of the journey—but the beginning of remembering something much older?

    Your sensitivity, your pattern-seeing, your inability to "just be normal"—these aren't mistakes. They're ancestral. They run through a lineage of people who lived at the edges and held medicine the village needed.

    This episode reframes everything you've been taught about your brain. Not as broken. Not as something to fix. But as an inheritance with a role.

    In this episode:

    • Why your AuDHD traits mirror the exact patterns our way-back grandmothers carried
    • What happens when you stop living a borrowed life and build one that fits your actual brain
    • How ancient roles translate to modern paths (and a sneak peek into what Season 2 will explore)
    • The real reason being resourced isn't selfish—and it's not about productivity

    Welcome to Season 2.


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    16 min
  • 17. Designing Life Outside the Lines
    Nov 20 2025

    It’s our season 1 finale! Today’s episode is about taking everything you've learned about your brain and weaving it into an actual life that works.

    It brings together all 16 previous episodes into one complete picture: what does ecosystem design actually look like when you're building something that doesn't exist yet?

    No theory. Just concrete examples of how to become the architect when there's no blueprint.

    In this episode:

    • The five principles for redesigning your life when no model exists
    • Real examples: intergenerational housing, hybrid work, balancing home base with adventure
    • Why you have to design for your actual capacity (not your wished-for capacity)
    • How to gather data by working backwards through burnout patterns
    • What becomes possible when your whole ecosystem finally supports your brain

    This is survival-level design—not luxury, not self-indulgence.


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    38 min
  • 16. Rest Looks Lazy (It’s Not)
    Nov 13 2025

    Ever feel guilty for needing to lie on the couch for days? Like you should be doing yoga or taking walks instead of playing video games and rewatching the same comfort show for the third time?

    Real AuDHD rest doesn't look productive. It looks lazy. And that's exactly the problem.

    When you're pulling back from burnout, your nervous system needs something specific—the right level of stimulation without activation. It needs you to stop everything and just be.

    But internalized ableism says lying down while others can see you makes you lazy. Society says rest is a reward for productivity.

    What if "lazy" is actually the medicine?

    In this episode:

    • Why laziness doesn't actually exist (hat tip Devon Price)
    • The difference between maintenance rest and recovery rest for AuDHD brains
    • How cozy games and comfort shows provide regulation, not avoidance
    • Why rest that looks lazy to others might be exactly what your nervous system needs


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    33 min
  • 15. Almost Burned Out? (The Way Back)
    Nov 6 2025

    You know you're headed for burnout. But what do you actually DO about it?

    This episode picks up where Episode 14 left off—you've recognized the warning signs, you're at the tipping point. Now what?

    This isn't about full burnout recovery. This is about strategic emergency management when you catch yourself before going over the edge—and how to tip things back in your favor.

    In this episode:

    • The strategic pullback: what to drop when you need to "bail water from the boat"
    • What a recovery day actually looks like for your AuDHD brain (and what doesn't work)
    • Why forcing yourself to rest might be the only time not to follow sparks
    • The minimum viable day approach when even one task feels impossible
    • How I tracked my way to understanding my true capacity vs danger zone

    If you're at that edge right now—this episode gives you the roadmap back.


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    34 min
  • 14. The Burnout Tipping Point
    Oct 30 2025

    What if the warning signs you're ignoring right now could save you from months of burnout recovery?

    Most of us don't recognize we're headed for burnout until we're already there. But what if you could catch it at the tipping point—that moment where things could still go either way?

    This episode shares the early warning signs that show up before full burnout hits—and why recognizing them changes everything.

    In this episode:

    • The burnout pattern most AuDHDers miss until it's too late
    • Why your special interests are the canary in the coal mine
    • What "energy debt" really means (and how it sneaks up on you)
    • The difference between a bad day and early burnout warnings
    • Why you can course-correct before reaching the point of no return

    If you've ever wondered "how do I know when to pull back before I go too far?"—this one's for you.


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    20 min
  • 13. ADHD Wants It, Autism Says No
    Oct 23 2025

    You get excited about international travel, new projects, spontaneous adventures. Then you're completely overwhelmed because you took on too much without the recovery time your nervous system needed.

    Sound familiar? Welcome to the Excitement Overwhelm Paradox.

    Your ADHD side spots something shiny and goes all-in. Your Autistic side needs predictability and time to recover. You end up bouncing between chasing impulses and emergency management mode.

    In this episode:

    • Why international travel shifted from adventure to impossible (and how I’m making it sustainable again)
    • How to tell when following excitement is healthy vs leading to burnout
    • Honoring both our need for stimulation AND for stability
    • The distinction between aiming for elusive “balance” and intentionally recalibrating


    Connect With Adria:

    • Get your free Unmasking Menu
    • AuDHD Coaching with Adria
    • @iamadriasophia

    Full show notes at AuDHDSparks.com.

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    31 min