The ADHD MUMS Pod
Real talk from two ADHD mums in the thick of parenting, chaos, and clutter. Gen and Claire share honest highs and lows of neuro-divergent life. We are Mums, but you don't have to be to listen!
We share real, unfiltered stories about parenting, neurodivergence, and daily struggles like executive dysfunction, disorganisation, overstimulation, and Mum guilt. We also celebrate the wins—big or small—with honesty and laughter.
We're both AFAB and biological mums, but this space is for all parents, ADHDers, curious minds, and —even your pets. Everyone’s welcome.
We do swear though, so you probably need headphones if there's kids around!
The ADHD MUMS Pod
ADVENT CHAOS CALENDAR: Christmas Plans, ADHD Brains, And Boundaries
We unpack the push and pull of Christmas, from the ache of not having the kids to the relief of a slower day. Practical planning tips help us trade chaos for calm without losing the joy of a second “fake Christmas.”
• choosing quiet or company when the kids are away
• how to plan multiple family Christmases without burnout
• visible fridge calendars and simple photo backups
• scheduling online shopping, wrapping, and nights out
• discreet calendar codes and low-effort colour systems
• Sunday resets and realistic boundaries with family
• giving yourself permission to redefine traditions
Further TW: This podcast references at times: alcohol abuse, depression, mood disorders, medical emergency, miscarriage, traffic accidents, grief and loss, teen pregnancy, anxiety, abuse, PDA, low self esteem, and anti-depressant medications, disordered eating, hoarding...
All music written and produced by Ash Doc Horror Lerczak.
Artwork by Gen
For more information about us, our podcast and our ADHD MUMS community, visit OUR WEBSITE.
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Let's get ADHD MUMS up the pod charts and raise awareness when we all need it most!
See you next Wednesday! xxx
It's a roll up to Christmas and we're moms with A.
SPEAKER_01:We're the ADHD mums and Claire. It's December.
SPEAKER_02:What are you doing this Christmas? What's your plan? Where are ya?
SPEAKER_00:Well, where are ya? I don't know. I've not been able to make plans this year in advance because I might be an Aussie.
SPEAKER_02:That's a unique experience, isn't it?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. It is. Normally I do have a bit of a plan of like which grandparent we're gonna be with on Christmas Day and all this type of thing. What about you? Um I'm having a Christmas without my babies. Oh, I had my first one of them a couple of years ago when her face was with his dad.
SPEAKER_02:And it's different, isn't it? I know. Well that y that year I w I went to my boyfriend's at the time.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Um I don't know what I'm gonna do this year. Like I've got plenty of time to think still, because it doesn't involve creating Christmas for them. So it's kinda like, you know, mmm. There's there's all sorts in my head, like potentially, would I go abroad alone? But I'm trying to save up for me, um, move and everything, aren't I? And do an upper house, so probably shouldn't do that. Um will I try and be with friends?
SPEAKER_00:You can come and see me and birds.
SPEAKER_02:Oh yes, that's a point.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Um will I go to my family, which is a lovely option. I'm not putting that last because of any other reason than the same as a couple of years ago. It's like, if I haven't got my kids on Christmas. Do you want to be around other kids? I don't know if I can handle being around other kids because all day I won't get to forget about because I you just can't help it. I can't look at some kids right in front of me enjoying Christmas and not just be constantly thinking about mine and wondering what they'd look like sat in front of me doing that in the same moment. I'm just my brain works like that.
SPEAKER_00:So Well, I had my first Christmas without my son when he was 11, I think. And um I went to my partner's like grandparents' house, and it was the first Christmas where I've been able to like relax all day.
SPEAKER_02:Oh yeah, you lost it, didn't yeah? I'm not trying to not having him, but you loved soft Christmas.
SPEAKER_00:You know, um yeah, I did, and it was his grandparents dad, like not long after not long after, so I was glad that we'd had that one.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, definitely. Um so yeah, mine is undecided. It's a mixture of like sad and you know, cute and exciting. Like I like being I like being I like this chapter, I like being me, I like being a single agent. So the times when I haven't got my kids, I'm kind of leaning into that. It's like, oh, me and me, what are we doing? You know, like I've got lots of I'll have loads of options, won't I?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Um so we'll work it out. We'll see. Um but we were gonna talk about briefly, let's see. Um planning Christmas, weren't we? Calendars. Oh my god. I mean, it feels easier for me this year because I know what dates they're gonna be going away with their dad.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:But now I will still have to start planning the post-Christmas Christmas, the kind of fake Christmas.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Getting them together with my family. Yeah for like what'll be for them, round two.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:But will be my kids' like first time of having Christmas with them that year. So I need to get on to that.
SPEAKER_00:And this is the thing, a lot of families now, it's not just one big get together at Christmas, is it?
SPEAKER_02:Oh, most.
SPEAKER_00:It's like you might have so scattered. Well, yeah, if you with your with a partner, you've got your partner's family, you've got your family, then my son's grandparents on all sides are a split. So there's like four sets of grandparents. Then there's like my brother lives in London, so there's like well he lives in Brighton actually. So then there's that to consider. Um, so you'd have to get it all down.
SPEAKER_02:Then there's all the things about like Christmas with the kids. It's like what day they go into the grotto, or this and that, what's on at school. We'll come back to that at a later point as well. But like, there's so many things to add on. You were suggesting before when we were riffing on this, like putting your like Christmas shopping days in.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:But that does feel like of an antiquity because we are doing most of it online on it.
SPEAKER_00:But even to do it online, you need to schedule some time to do it. You're right. You need time to rap.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:You need time, like sh if you're in work, there'll be work nights out to think about, nights out with your friends. Yeah. Um pantomimes, shows, this, that, the fucking other.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:It all needs to get into a calendar, really, doesn't it?
SPEAKER_02:But it's something that we often struggle with.
SPEAKER_00:But it's boring doing that, boring putting dates into a calendar.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and we were coming up with ideas for the hacks to give you, and I was saying, like, oh, you know, a big memo board on the fridge, which I use now. Claire was like, Aren't you hiding that from your kids? Because aren't you gonna have certain I would go for rather than try and hide it from your kids, get a big central impossible to miss calendar going on on your fridge and use some sort of code. I've been doing it about dates for ages. Putting on the family calendar, like my little code that means I'm on a date with and like who it's with.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, so it could be like today I'm centre is on the on your code, on your calendar, but you just I don't know what you'd puff for that like T-O-I-S. Today. Today I'm Santa. Charge them toys. But just idea, calendar it, schedule it. What? Charging your toys. Well, let's move on. Um, but the other thing is like to put the dates in, sometimes you've got to have them phone calls with families that you might want to put off because, like, oh, you've got to say, I'm not coming to you, I'm not this, this, that, the other. And that's speaking from place of privilege of people who have family to go to at Christmas. Obviously, we know not everyone does. Um, but yeah, that's a big visual calendar for you on the fridge.
SPEAKER_02:Um, then you've got things like well, we're talking about like before, about colour coding your things. So it's like we saw an idea online when we were researching that was like um colour code for like when you're going out, when you're staying in, this and that. Like, obviously, that's just one way of doing it. I personally am nowhere near that level of like sorted. I have my Google calendar on my phone, that's my main thing, and I put my fridge calendar according to that every Sunday or aim to.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, yeah, this week it's been not refreshed since actually give yourself schedule some time to do this, like a meeting pop up on your phone or whatever. I'm gonna do my December calendar now.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, but even this is me saying, even in the Google calendar, I've got all sorts of colours going on, so it looks like I can tell the different things apart.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, me too.
SPEAKER_02:But I don't have a structure for like the only system that I have in place is red is like a meeting or a going somewhere, like it's a doing thing, and pink is the girls, that's very gender influenced, isn't it? Pink is me children, um, but everything else is just chaos of different colours that don't have a meaning. So maybe I'll remind myself, just like remind myself to have a little breath, I'll remind myself to have a think about creating those colours. But do you know what? I'm gonna do that in January or the New Year lull as part of So that could be a resolution. And next year's like, yeah, sorting out.
SPEAKER_00:But um the thing is as well, if you if you've put your stuff on your whiteboards and you then you can't be bothered to be putting it all in your Google Calendar as well, you can just take a picture of it.
SPEAKER_02:It's a good idea.
SPEAKER_00:It's easier, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02:And favourite the picture so it's easy to find in your photos.
SPEAKER_00:That's right, yeah. And label it. See, we're coming up with all sides that we've got. You could do that each month. You can have a little folder in your photos, calendar, can't ya? Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Give it a whirl.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. So there are tips. Start thinking now, get your dates in. Make them calls that might be you've been putting off because of opinions. Yeah, and you know what happens when they all pile up. Check your emails for any invitations you've accepted in Wayhood, editing. Check the school announcements for editing there and get it all in. And remember to schedule in some time for you to have a nice glass of wine and a rinse pie if that's your bag. Ho ho ho!
