Welcome to Peri-Normal

Episode Overview:
Welcome to the debut episode of Peri-Normal, a podcast dedicated to demystifying neurodivergence and perimenopause, especially as they intersect at midlife. Host Steph Sprenger shares her personal journey with ADHD, discusses the challenges of diagnosis for women, and sets the stage for candid conversations with experts and real people navigating neurodivergence in midlife.

Key Topics Covered:

• Steph’s ADHD diagnosis story: growing up undiagnosed, internalizing symptoms, and the journey to self-discovery in midlife.
• The unique challenges women face with ADHD, including misdiagnosis and masking.
• The impact of hormones, perimenopause, and motherhood on neurodivergence.
• The importance of understanding the differences between inattentive, hyperactive, and combined types of ADHD.
• How perimenopause can amplify neurodivergent symptoms and the role of hormone therapy.
• The intersection of perimenopausal hormones, glucose issues, and neurodivergence.
• The need for open conversations about midlife brain and body changes, breaking the silence of previous generations.

What to Expect from the Podcast:

• Real conversations with midlife women about their experiences with neurodivergence.
• Discussions on diagnosis journeys, medication, symptom management, and harnessing neurodivergent strengths.
• Exploration of what happens when perimenopause and ADHD collide.
• Occasional interviews with men diagnosed with ADHD at midlife.
• A supportive space for listeners who are diagnosed, neuro-curious, or seeking strategies and science behind neurodivergence and midlife.

Get Involved:

• Interested in being a guest or have an idea? Email: RabbitHoleProdsinc@gmail.com
• Learn more about Steph, book a 1:1 session, or join a writing workshop on her website here. 
• Follow Steph's writing on her Substack: The Reclamation Era.

Transcript

0:07

Midlife. A DHD can be scary. It doesn't have to be here on paranormal. We are demystifying neurodivergence and perimenopause. Plus, with candid conversations and advice from experts, join me for a no holds barred exploration of what it means to be neurodivergent at midlife. Let's redefine normal together. I'm Steph Springer, and this is Perry Normal. Surprise. I have a new podcast. Some of you may have been Mother plus podcast listeners, or maybe you read my Substack column, the Reclamation Era. However you found me. Welcome, I'm so glad you're here. Today I'm unveiling my new podcast, paranormal, which is an accompaniment to my Substack column, and I'll focus here in more detail on A DHD, midlife perimenopause and the messy interaction between them. First, I'm going to share my A DHD diagnosis story for those who may not have heard it or for my A DHD listeners who may be heard it once and likely forgot. I see you growing up in the Midwest in the 1980s and nineties. I was a classic, smart, quiet girl with A DHD. I know you can't believe I was ever quiet, but believe me, I was. I was the champion. Masker people pleaser and anxious overachiever. And like so many other undiagnosed neurodivergent girls, I internalized the majority of my symptoms. Zero out of 10 teachers would have ever suspected I had a DHD after all. Back then, all we knew about the diagnosis was that it impacted primarily naughty little boys who couldn't sit still. Wrong. This blatant mischaracterization is why so many girls flew under the radar as children and many of us into adulthood, and why we've suffered as a result. Externally, we were fine turning in our work, staying in our seats, raising our hands, and many of us were academically thriving, but inside we were a mess. I was a mess. Racing thoughts, uncontrollable daydreaming, followed by jolts of panic as I snapped back to attention. Emotional dysregulation rejection, sensitivity, and tremendous difficulty following directions. One of the hallmarks of an A DHD brain is that it is wired for interest, not importance. As a child and teenager. This meant that comprehending the science lab or carrying my laundry basket upstairs, ranked right up there with translating Russian poetry not happening. When it came to writing or music, or a topic that lit me up, I could lock in for days. Hyperfocus is a commonly misunderstood element of A DHD. It's not that we can't pay attention. Sometimes we can attend to the same task for hours take. Right now, I've been sitting on the couch happily checking off items on my to-do list, cranking out copy and scheduling workshops because I am absolutely lit up by my work. It's interesting to me bringing in the mail every day. Not so much my subpar executive functioning skills as a child, and let's be honest, an adult left me in a constant low key state of fight or flight. I felt inadequate, incompetent, and terrified that somebody would find me out. But the idea that I had a DHD would've been laughable to me back then. I would've immediately dismissed the idea. Mostly because of the lack of understanding about the diagnosis. Even now, but definitely back then. Now we have more information on the difference between inattentive type, hyperactive type, and combined type A DHD. We understand that it may impact girls and women differently while the DSM five is still woefully inadequate in terms of A DHD diagnostic criteria and the studies to back it up because of the advocacy of women. We have a more complete nuanced picture of how A DHD might manifest in girls and women. People are finally exploring the connection between hormones and neurodivergence, which can wreak havoc on women. Maybe you were a woman who held it all together until the postpartum cocktail plus extra responsibility of motherhood kicked your A DHD challenges into high gear. Maybe you hit perimenopause and wondered if you were potentially going insane. Only to discover, nope, you're neurodivergent and the new chemical imbalance has made it nearly impossible for you to mask or cope. It wasn't until I got curious about myself in my mid forties that I came anywhere close to an A DHD diagnosis. I can't even remember, not shockingly how the first seeds were planted. My childhood best friend shared her intention to get diagnosed and her recommendation that I read how to keep house while drowning as I listened to her talk. The wheels started turning in my own brain. I brought it up to my doctor who casually confirmed via a short questionnaire that yes, it seemed likely I had a DHD, but unless I wanted medication, an official diagnosis was unnecessary. I was still married, managing life, okay, and had zero interest in medicating myself, introducing a stimulant into my body. Forget it. Insert cheeky foreshadowing here. I started doing internal family systems therapy or IFS for short, which is also known as parts work. I went down a rabbit hole. I decided to quit my job to write the book. I had been back burnering for decades. The book that didn't know what it wanted to be when it grew up until its time had finally come and instead of writing it, the book practically wrote me. I wrote myself out of one life and into another. I got a divorce. I realized my preoccupation with the past, the topic of my memoir had less to do with me being a naval gazing nostalgia junkie, and more to do with the fact that there was something niggling at me about my childhood and adolescence that I couldn't quite pinpoint. It wasn't until the burdens of full-time single motherhood sent my executive functioning challenged brain into meltdown mode that I decided it was time to pursue a diagnosis. After a series of unfortunate events involving spoiled milk and a misplaced Christmas present, I finally got my diagnosis and it changed everything. I started meds. Yes, those meds. Stimulants that took my shaken snow globe brain, and gently guided the whirling snowflakes to settle. My daughters got diagnosed. I learned how to stop masking and instead to begin compensating for my challenges with systems and strategies that actually worked for me. I realized the gift of being handed the correct set of operating instructions for your brain. I realized I was also actively in perimenopause. And started estrogen patches and oral progesterone and some of my sleep issues. Itchy skin and night sweats became more manageable. I learned I was also experiencing insulin resistance thanks to extreme stress, perimenopause, and a family history of diabetes. The Venn diagram of perimenopausal hormones, glucose issues, and neurodivergence has brought me to this moment in my life. If you are a midlife woman trying to disentangle the threads of midlife stress, hormone fluctuations, and a neurodivergent brain, you know that it can feel like a full-time job. And until recently, it seems like nobody was talking about it, and we certainly weren't supposed to. Who cares about your midlife brain and body? Our mothers and their mothers suffered politely and fell in line, didn't they? Masking, accommodating and staying silent. Was the work of womanhood, but that's about to change. On this podcast, I'm going to have real conversations with midlife women about their experiences with Neurodivergence, everything from their diagnosis journey to medication, to symptom management strategies to harnessing their superpowers. We'll dissect what happens when perimenopause and A DHD collide and what it means to be navigating our brains and bodies at midlife. And guess what? We may even speak to a few men. I've had some very interesting conversations lately with men who received A DHD diagnoses at midlife. Some with inattentive type, Whether you have a diagnosis are neuro curious, want to understand your own system better, or are eager to learn coping strategies or the science behind your neurodivergence and midlife body. There is a place for you here. As I kick off this new podcast, I want to hear from you what are the topics that roll around in your mind when you're awake in the middle of the night? Where do you need support, guidance, or strategies? Tell me what kinds of experts you'd like to hear from and what conversations are likely to give you that Delicious, oh my God, I feel so seen. Response. I'm listening. We will kick off episodes in late September, and until then, if you have an idea or want to be a guest, you can email me at my brand new business Rabbit Hole Productions email Rabbit Hole Prod inc@gmail.com. That's Rabbit Hole, P-R-O-D-I, nnc@gmail.com. You can find that in the show notes along with my website where you can follow my writing, sign up for a workshop or book a one-on-one session with me. Thanks for being here. Together, we're going to make midlife neurodivergence less of a mystery. I.