Attention Different | Adulting with ADHD Late Not Less Ep. 05 | ADHD Shows Up in Adulthood … and it All Clicks — with Meredith Carder
Why do so many adults with ADHD grow up believing they’re just lazy or unmotivated?
Meredith Carder—ADHD coach, writer, and author of It All Makes Sense Now— joins Late, Not Less host Devin Pitts-Rogers to unpack the moment when ADHD finally clicks into place in adulthood.
Meredith shares how recognizing ADHD while evaluating her child felt like “someone turning on the lights in an old house.” Suddenly, years of struggles with motivation, organization, and shame began to make sense. Together, Devin and Meredith explore how late diagnosis reshapes the way ADHD adults understand their past, their relationships, and the way their brains actually work.
The conversation dives into the realities of ADHD motivation, dopamine-seeking behaviors, hyperfocus, and why so many ADHD adults feel like they’re constantly trying to “try harder” when the real solution is learning how their brains operate.
✨ Highlights ✨
✔️ Why ADHD adults often grow up believing they’re “lazy” or “unmotivated”
✔️ How masking begins in childhood and follows many people into adulthood
✔️ How dopamine drives distractions like social media, shopping, and sugar
✔️ Why transitions and stopping points are so difficult for ADHD brains
✔️ Simple strategies like walking meetings and environment changes to boost focus
✔️ How ADHD impacts relationships, self-confidence, and identity
Along the way, Devin and Meredith also share practical strategies and tools that help ADHD adults manage focus and impulsivity, including using YouTube playlists for background focus, blocking social media with apps like Opal, creating transition routines with phone alarms and reminders, and adding friction to impulsive habits like online shopping by disabling tools like Apple Pay.
This episode is a reminder that understanding your brain can change everything. What once looked like character flaws may actually be signs of a brain wired differently. Learning how it works can open the door to a more compassionate and sustainable way of living.
🎧 Watch more ADHD conversations and Late, Not Less episodes on the Attention Different YouTube channel.
We are Attention DIFFERENT not DEFICIT An advocacy and edutainment podcast centered on radical acceptance and neurodiveristy. Attention Different aims to de-stigmatize and build community by exploring the intricacies of living life and "adulting" with ADHD in the modern world. We periodically feature experts, special guests and influencers in the ADHD community.
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