In this episode of Adulting with Autism, April sits down with Leah Marone — psychotherapist, speaker, and author of Serial Fixer: Break Free from the Habit of Solving Other People's Problems — to unpack why autistic and neurodivergent adults are often vulnerable to people-pleasing, masking, over-accommodating, and chronic burnout.

Leah explains how "fixer mode" can start in childhood as a trauma response or learned pattern tied to love, praise, and survival — and how it becomes an exhausting loop of false ownership, hypervigilance, and anxiety.

In this conversation, we cover:

• What it really means to be a "serial fixer" and how to recognize the pattern

• Why high emotional intelligence can become premature problem-solving

• How anxiety pulls us into the past (rumination) or future (worst-case planning)

• The connection between masking, people-pleasing, and losing your authentic self

• How to set boundaries without collapsing into guilt or conflict avoidance

• Why recovery matters for autistic adults navigating overstimulation and social decoding

• Micro-regulation tools for anxiety (cold on the chest, breath, movement, blood flow shifts)

• How caregivers can support neurodivergent young adults without "over-solving"

• Practical strategies for boundaries and burnout prevention in the workplace

This episode is especially helpful for autistic adults, ADHDers, late-diagnosed individuals, caregivers, and high-achievers who feel stuck in overfunctioning and want to find their own version of calm, balance, and "enoughness."

Guest: Leah Marone
Website: leahmarone.com
Book: Serial Fixer: Break Free from the Habit of Solving Other People's Problems