ADDvantage Hypnotherapy

One reason many high-performing people with ADHD stay stuck...

is that they're trying to take steps that are too big.

They set ambitious goals.

Create detailed plans.

Commit to major changes.

And then wonder why they struggle to follow through.

It's rarely because they're lazy.

And it's not usually because they lack motivation.

Often, the problem is that the next step feels too large for their nervous system.

When something feels overwhelming, the brain looks for relief - not progress.

So instead of doing the thing...

we procrastinate.

Avoid.

Overthink.

Or suddenly find something else that feels urgent.

This is one reason I believe sustainable performance is less about discipline and more about regulation.

When I work with ADHD professionals and entrepreneurs, we're often not trying to get them to do more.

We're trying to reduce the activation energy required to begin.

Because once movement starts, momentum often follows.

The trick is making the first step small enough that your brain doesn't resist it.

Not:

"I need to write the report."

But:

"Open the document."

Not:

"I need to exercise."

But:

"Put on my trainers."

Not:

"I need to fix my business."

But:

"Send one email."

The most successful ADHD adults I've worked with aren't necessarily the most disciplined.

They're often the people who've learned how to consistently take the next manageable step.

Small actions.

Repeated consistently.

That's where sustainable performance lives.

What's one goal you're making harder than it needs to be?

What's one goal you're making harder than it needs to be?

If you chunked it down into a smaller step that feels like:

"Oh, I could do that..."

What would that step be?

Comment below. The simple act of identifying the next small step often increases the chances you'll actually take it...

The ADHD Belief That's Sabotaging Your Success...

One of the biggest mistakes I see ADHD professionals and entrepreneurs make is assuming they need a better system.

A new planner.

A new app.

A new productivity method.

A new morning routine.

And don't get me wrong — systems matter.

But what if the real problem isn't your system?

What if it's what you believe about yourself?

And your belief is sabotaging any system you might use?

In his work on behaviour change, Nir Eyal describes what he calls the Motivation Triangle.

To create lasting change, we need three things:

✔ Belief
✔ Facilitation (making it easier)
✔ Triggers (reminders and prompts)

Most people focus almost entirely on the last two.

They buy the planner.

Install the app blocker.

Set up reminders.

Create accountability.

But they neglect the first corner of the triangle.

Belief.

Because if you genuinely believe:

"I'm inconsistent."
"I never follow through."
"I always lose momentum."
"I can only work under pressure."
"It's not meant to be this hard... I can't cope."

Then every new system is fighting an uphill battle.

Your brain will unconsciously look for evidence that confirms what it already believes to be true.

And eventually many people conclude:

"That system didn't work."

or worse still:

"Nothing seems to work for me!"

When in reality...

The system may have been fine.

The belief wasn't.

This is one reason I'm so passionate about hypnosis for ADHD and allistic minds.

Not because hypnosis magically solves everything.

But because many neurodivergent people have already spent years trying to think their way into believing something different.

Reading affirmations.
Repeating positive statements.
Being reminded of their strengths.
Receiving encouragement from others.

And yet a part of them still quietly (or very loudly!) says:

"Yes, but..."

Hypnosis is different because it works closer to where many of these patterns begin - in the subconscious...

..The stories we tell ourselves.

(After all, we become the story we tell ourselves, or the story that others tell about us!)

..The assumptions we carry.

..The identities we rehearse every day without even noticing.

In short, sustainable performance for ADHD professionals and entrepreneurs isn't just about managing your calendar.

It's about changing the relationship you have with yourself.

And sometimes...

The belief is the missing piece of your jigsaw puzzle.

Because when you change your beliefs, you get to rewrite your story, and turn it into reality one thought one step at a time...

So I'm curious to know: What's one belief about yourself you've started questioning recently? And what difference did that make?

If you have ADHD, there’s a good chance you’ve said this before:

“I work best under pressure.”

Or maybe:

“I can only focus when it becomes urgent.”

The strange thing is…

for many ADHD people, that actually feels true.

Deadlines sharpen focus.
Urgency cuts through procrastination.
Last-minute pressure suddenly unlocks motivation.

And for a while, it works.

But what many people don’t realise is:

you may not be relying on a productivity system…

⚠️ you may be relying on stress chemistry.

Because when pressure rises:
• adrenaline increases
• cortisol rises
• attention narrows
• distractions fade

In other words:

🧠 stress creates focus.

The problem is not that adrenaline works.

The problem is when it becomes the ONLY way your nervous system knows how to perform.

That’s when you start seeing:
• inconsistent performance
• hyperfocus → burnout cycles
• emotional crashes
• needing urgency just to begin

From the outside it can look like poor discipline.

But internally, it’s often something very different:

⚡ state-dependent performance.

One week:
high-performing, focused, productive.

The next:
unable to engage at all.

This is why so many ADHD professionals feel like “two different people.”

The goal isn’t necessarily to eliminate pressure completely.

It’s to stop being dependent on it.

Because sustainable performance doesn’t come from intensity alone.

It comes from stability.

I and many of my clients used to rely on deadlines and adrenaline-only activation, until we learned how to activate our ADHD brains in other ways.

HypnoCoaching can show us how to get things done with more focus and enjoyment, turning a boring task into something more engaging, something we want to do - or at the very least can do.

I made a video breaking this down in more detail — including why adrenaline-based productivity happens in ADHD, why it backfires long-term, and what healthier performance can start to look like.

👇 Watch here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5Iuh3rV5x8&t=21s

Curious:
Have you noticed yourself becoming dependent on pressure to function?

“I Work Best Under Pressure”… Until You Crash (ADHD) If you feel like you only work under pressure…and then crash…This is why....Many ADHD professionals rely on pressure, urgency, and deadlines to get things do...

"I'm finally following through". Latest ADHD Hypnosis testimonial from Ashley...

ADHD Hypnosis Testimonial — “I’m Finally Following Through” Ashley’s ADHD hypnosis journey shows what can shift in just six weeks. In her own words, she went from planning endlessly to actually following through — wi...

Ever notice your brain still working… even when you’ve stopped?
For ADHD minds, this isn’t a discipline problem.

I had a reminder this morning about something I know… but occasionally forget.

Boundaries between work and recovery matter more than we think.
Last night, I broke one of my own rules.

I told myself I’d do “a little extra work”…
and of course, it turned into much more.

Worse—it was technical work.

The kind that keeps your brain switched on long after you’ve stopped.

Normally, if I work in the evening, I choose something lighter.
Something that feels more like flow than effort.

Because the transition matters.

As someone with ADHD and autism, I don’t switch states quickly.

Work → rest isn’t a simple flip.

It takes time. It needs clarity.

Otherwise, the mind doesn’t let go.

You feel it when:

• You can’t switch off at night
• Your brain is still solving problems in bed
• You wake up already “in work mode”

Some people wear that like a badge of honour.

But it’s actually a sign the system hasn’t completed the cycle.

Recovery isn’t just “doing nothing.”

It’s when your brain processes in the background.

Integrates. Resets. Rebuilds.

And that only happens when you fully step out of work.

This morning, even during prayer, my mind kept drifting back to the problem from last night.

So I did what I teach my clients:

Containment.

I imagined placing the thought into a cloud…

Breathing out… and letting it dissolve.

Then gently reminding myself:

“Not now. Later.”

Sometimes I also give it to God in prayer—
because this moment has a different purpose.

“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
— 1 Peter 5:7

This is where many people go wrong—especially with ADHD.

We try to control distraction, daydreaming, or impulsive thoughts.

But often, the issue isn’t lack of control.

It’s lack of space.

When you don’t give your mind space to think, feel, or wander…
it will force its way in at the wrong time.

But when you do create that space intentionally—
those same thoughts become much easier to manage.

And this is something I’ve come to see very clearly in my work as an ADHD Hypnotherapist:

When we’re neurodivergent, we often focus on getting organised externally—calendars, systems, routines.

And yes, that helps.

But what’s often missing is internal organisation; some mental spring cleaning is just as important!

Your thoughts.
Your beliefs.
Your mental habits.

If those are jumbled, no external system will fully hold.

A big part of what I do is helping people create that structure internally.

Organising thinking.

Creating mental “containers.”

Turning noise into clarity.

Because when your inner world is structured, your outer world becomes much easier to manage.

And that’s the real skill:

Not suppression—but creating the right space at the right time.

And when you slip?

You don’t beat yourself up.

You return.

I often say:

Inconsistently consistent is good enough.

Because the ability to return—quickly and without friction—
is what actually builds long-term consistency.

Sometimes going slower…is exactly how you start moving faster again, especially when you have a neurospicey brain.

I'm wondering: “What helps you ‘park’ a thought when your brain won’t let it go?”

Most ADHD professionals think they’re inconsistent.

But what if you’re actually stuck in a cycle?

Hyperfocus → Crash → Recover → Repeat

Which part of that cycle do you find yourself in most often?

I break it down here, including how to recover and interrupt this cyclical pattern:

ADHD Hyperfocus Burnout Cycle: 8 Steps of the Cycle If you’ve experienced ADHD hyperfocus burnout… this is part of a wider pattern known as the ADHD hyperfocus burnout cycle. At first, it can feel confusing. One day, you’re working at a high level – focused, productive, even energised. Then, without much warning, that state disappears. Motiva...

This free webinar on "demand avoidance" / PDA in ADHD could be worth attending. :-)

Demand avoidance in adults is still too often misunderstood.

What can look like resistance, disengagement or refusal may actually be linked to anxiety, overwhelm, executive functioning differences, sensory pressures or a strong need for autonomy.

That is why better understanding matters.

In this upcoming webinar, Dr Laura Pipon Young will explore demand avoidance and PDA in the context of adult ADHD and autism, helping attendees build a more informed and compassionate understanding of these experiences.

If you work with, live with, or identify as a neurodivergent adult, this is an important conversation to be part of.

Free registration is now open
https://lnkd.in/eZ5-KSh7

It’s Autism Acceptance Month… so it feels like the right time to share this.

It’s official.

I’m not only ADHD — I’m autistic too.

I was diagnosed just a few days ago.

---

The funny thing is… I’ve known for a long time.

Even back when people said you couldn’t be both.

I was diagnosed with ADHD at 24 (back in 2004), and it helped a lot.

In my experience, it's better to know than not known, so you can accept and do something about it.

But there was always this underlying confusion:

"I’m pretty sure I’m autistic as well… but apparently that’s not possible?"

That tension became hard to live with.

Because in many ways, ADHD and autism can feel like opposites.

Wanting stimulation, connection, interaction…
but also getting overwhelmed by it — and needing to retreat completely.

How does that add up?

---

One of my biggest struggles has been sensory.

Extreme sensitivity to light and sound.
Even hearing electricity.

It led to burnout.
And I lost multiple jobs because of it.

At the time, none of it made sense.

And people tried to explain it away:

"You’re too sensitive."
"But you don’t look autistic."
"We’re all a bit autistic."

But when you are autistic — or AuDHD (both ADHD and autism) — you know.

You might not have the official language for it yet…
but you’ll know it in your own way.

---

Over the past couple of years, even before the diagnosis, I started accepting it.

Not because I needed a label —
but because I was tired of wondering if I was just imagining it.

That’s another quiet struggle with neurodivergence:

Spending years feeling like you’re making it all up…
because you’ve been told, directly or indirectly, that you are.

And let’s be honest — when you’ve spent a lifetime masking, adapting, and “figuring it out as you go”… it can feel like you’re making it up.

Oh, and it's no coincidence (like many with autism) I became obsessed by human psychology.

It became my special interest but it was also a way to study "human" and figure out how to change myself to fit in and get on.

We all do that to some degree, yes, but when you're autistic, you end up doing it a lot, forgetting a lot of who you really are, putting on the act, and paying the price for it.

In the end you may not even be yourself when you are by yourself!

But there would always be something there to remind me...

Like why, even though I am a proficient reader, do I stop on a particular word and start to repeat it over and over?

It's simply the autism stimming and liking the sound and feel of the word...

---

What helped me most was a shift in perspective.

Instead of seeing ADHD and Autism as conflicting parts…
I started seeing it as a Team.

Like being both the employer and the employee, an analogy that my clients often find helpful when moving into self employment.

Or as I jokingly call it:

“Just the three of us.”

When I approach it that way, something changes.

There’s more cooperation.
Less internal conflict.
Fewer crashes and burnouts.

And a lot more self-understanding…
and compassion.

---

I also want to say this clearly:

I don’t share this for sympathy.
And I’ve never resonated with a victim mindset around neurodivergence.

I have deep compassion for those who struggle — truly.

But for me, this isn’t about something being "wrong" with me.

I’m just… ordered differently.

(In my mind, ADHD = A Different Hard Drive.)

---

If you’re ADHD, autistic, both… or even just questioning it:

Things can get better.

With understanding.
With acceptance.
With support.
And yes — with real effort.

---

Let’s keep building more awareness, compassion, and support.

Because honestly… I believe neurodivergent people have a huge amount to offer.

And too often, that potential gets misunderstood — or wasted.

- - -

Anyway that's my story. But I'd love to hear yours.
If you’re navigating ADHD, autism, or both — how has your experience been? I think more of these conversations need to be had openly...