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What if the conversation you needed to hear wasn't one Kate was leading, but one where she was being asked the questions for a change?
Welcome back to a More Yourself Monday episode. This week I'm sharing a conversation I had as a guest on the Limited Time Only podcast, hosted by Esther Stanford and Susie Riddell. It's a beautifully produced show that feels like a proper chin wag over a cup of tea, and I had such a good time talking to them.
In this conversation, we go into some topics that don't always get as much space on the main podcast: what my life looked like before diagnosis, the shame that came with finally getting those answers, and the very real experience of sensory overload and limited social batteries. We also talk about how burnout can creep in quietly rather than arriving all at once, how hormones and perimenopause can amplify everything, and why decompression and downtime aren't luxuries; they're necessities.
I hope you find it as useful and validating to listen to as I found it to record.
In this episode, we cover:
What Kate's life looked like before her ADHD diagnosis at 40, and how her daughter's struggles during the pandemic finally connected the dots
Why the initial reaction to diagnosis is so often shame rather than relief, and how that shifts over time
Sensory sensitivities, limited social batteries and why understanding these is so freeing
Why ADHD and trauma are deeply interlinked, but trauma does not cause ADHD
How fluctuating hormones and perimenopause amplify ADHD traits, and why this hits neurodivergent women harder
What ADHD burnout actually looks and feels like when it builds slowly rather than arriving all at once
Knowing which "season" you're in and why that matters before making any big decisions
Why decompression time is non-negotiable, not a nice-to-have
Simple daily practices: movement, outdoor time and breathwork to regulate your nervous system
Learning to say no, protect your bandwidth and stop performing for everyone else
Timestamps:
00:00 - Welcome to this More Yourself episode
01:00 - Introducing the Limited Time Only podcast and what this conversation covers
02:58 - Kate's story: life before diagnosis and how her daughter's struggles led to both of their assessments
07:34 - Why girls with ADHD get missed, and the epidemic myth
08:50 - The shame that comes with diagnosis, and navigating it publicly
10:33 - Labels, autism, and finding language that doesn't hold us back
15:02 - Sensory sensitivities, limited social batteries and permission to protect your energy
18:27 - The parent experience: protecting yourself when you're already pouring into everyone else
23:14 - Hormones, perimenopause and why ADHD traits can feel amplified in midlife
28:57 - Gabor Maté, trauma and ADHD: why Kate disagrees with the causation theory
34:56 - Burnout, boundaries and knowing your bandwidth
40:42 - The empowerment of finally knowing your limits
49:50 - How to recognise which season you're in
52:33 - What ADHD burnout really looks like when it creeps in slowly
55:22 - Simple practices: movement, breathwork and giving yourself buffers
Links and Resources:
Find my popular ADHD workshops and resources on my website here.
Follow the podcast on Instagram: @adhd_womenswellbeing_pod
Get my book, The ADHD Women's Wellbeing Toolkit (also available in ebook and audiobook) here
Join the More Yourself membership community here
Listen to the Limited Time Only podcast on Spotify here and Apple here
Follow Limited Time Only on Instagram: @limitedtimeonlypodcast
Kate Moryoussef is a women's ADHD lifestyle and wellbeing coach and EFT practitioner who helps overwhelmed and unfulfilled newly diagnosed women with ADHD find more calm, balance, hope, health, compassion, creativity, and clarity.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
