April is Stress Awareness Month. ADHD = Stress on Steroids

April is Stress Awareness Month. ADHD = Stress on Steroids

April is Stress Awareness Month and as a late diagnosed ADHDer it's an important topic because for me and my specific experience with ADHD means alot of internalised thoughts, feelings, and space for ADHD villains to creep in (Overwhelm, Burnout, and Emotional Flooding)! The main “villain” all along was undiagnosed ADHD. It wasn't "laziness" or "poor time management"... it was an invisible brain battle, wreaking chaos and self-doubt.

The frustrating thing is that: ADHD stress and burnout can look and feel a lot like regular stress — but because our brains work differently, it hits harder, faster, and messier if we’re not paying attention.

The ADHD-Stress Connection:

ADHD isn't just about being distracted; it's about experiencing the world differently and in a unique way. Our brains are like fingerprints, and each person's experience with ADHD will be different - ONE SIZE DOESN'T FIT ALL! Stress and ADHD often go hand-in-hand, creating a self-sabotaging cycle that's hard to break! Some of the biggest villains that play a part in this are:

  • Self Awareness: ADHD creates this blindspot when it comes to recognising what is going on with ourselves! This makes it harder to spot where the villains creep in & the negative impact that starts causing the chaos!
  • Cognitive Distortions: Negative thought patterns that distort reality. It's like a script our brain creates with a made up story that feels real!
  • Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD): Intense emotional & physical pain/response triggered by perceived rejection. Linked to our fears, worries & negative core beliefs our brain has created for us. 
  • Emotional Dysregulation: Difficulty managing emotional responses. Our brain and body connection is different because we have a neurodevelopmental difference in our brain wiring, this means we feel big emotions intensely, but can struggle to untangle them!
  • Overwhelm & Burnout: Chronic stress leading to physical and emotional exhaustion. We may not recognise where in our day to day lives we are struggling!

 

Burning the Candle at Both Ends 🕯️🕯️

When you’ve got a neurospicy brain, it’s SO easy to slip into "I’ll just do one more thing..." or "I need to do X, Y, Z..." until suddenly you’re:

  • Overcommitted
  • Overstimulated
  • Overwhelmed
  • ...and officially over it.

No boundaries? 🔥
No breaks? 🔥🔥
No backup plan? 🔥🔥🔥

Hello, personal burnout bonfire. (Marshmallows not included.)

The Domino Effect is REAL:
Stress ➡️ Overwhelm ➡️ Executive Dysfunction ➡️ Panic ➡️ Freeze ➡️ Burnout ➡️ Identity Crisis ➡️ “I am a potato, leave me here.”

And once you're in that stress spiral, guess who LOVES to join the party?
👉 The ADHD Villains:

  • Cognitive Distortions (“You’ll never catch up, why bother?”)
  • Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (“Everyone thinks I’m failing.”)
  • Perfectionism Gremlins (“You must do it all perfectly or not at all!”)
  • Time Blindness Bandits (Stealing your whole afternoon without you noticing.)
  • Spoon Thief (Stealing our energy, stopping us from sleeping & resting, making it harder to focus)

"ADHD Burnout is like Stress on Steroids 💥"

When we talk about burnout, it’s not just "I'm a bit tired" — it's full-body, mind-numbing, soul-draining shutdown - with no spoons left! It runs deeper and takes longer to recover from if we don’t catch it early. We have patterns and triggers that we can learn to recognise!

What to look for:

  • Brain fog so thick you can’t find your own feet
  • Emotional outbursts or total numbness
  • Physical symptoms (exhaustion, headaches, feeling sick, sweating, immune system crashes - getting sick when we finally take a break)
  • Feeling like you can’t do anything... but beating yourself up anyway
  • Decision Paralysis making it hard to workout where to start with tasks
  • Retreating from socialising and seeing friends

Breaking the Cycle:

Understanding my ADHD was the first step in breaking this cycle. I learned to recognise the "villains" in my mind and developed strategies to combat them.

Quick Stitch Tips:

🔎 Clue 1: Spot the Villains – Is it perfectionism? People-pleasing? Negative self-talk?
🔎 Clue 2: Set Boundaries – Say no, unapologetically.
🔎 Clue 3: Calm Your Nervous System – Meditation, journaling, dancing to Chappell Roan in your kitchen.
🔎 Clue 4: Build Your Crew – ADHD communities, coaches, therapists – you deserve support.
🔎 Clue 5: Celebrate Progress – Small wins = BIG momentum.

UK Support Resources:

Remember, you're not alone. Embrace your neurospicy self! 

You've got this! 💪✨ 

Heidi xo

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