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Episode: Leaving the ADHD Label Behind (with Joseph Pack)

In this conversation, I sit down with my coach, Joseph Pack, to talk about something that might ruffle a few feathers:
What happens when you loosen your grip on the ADHD label?

We both have ADHD. We both coach ADHD’ers. And yet, we’re both speaking about it less and less. Not because we’re denying struggle – but because we’re more interested in the human underneath the diagnosis: values, environment, habits, food, sleep, connection… and what’s actually possible when you stop treating four letters as a life sentence.

We talk about:

• How an ADHD diagnosis can both validate your experience and quietly limit you
• The difference between understanding your brain and living inside a label
• When diagnosis helps – and when it becomes an excuse not to try
• Medication, side-effects, and why Joe had to go looking for alternatives
• Ultra-processed food, inflammation, sleep, and why your “busy brain” might be screaming for a reset
• The power of coaching, challenge, and having someone who refuses to buy your limiting story

This is not an anti-diagnosis episode. It’s an honest, messy, hopeful chat about identity, agency, and what changes when you start asking:

People, books & ideas Joseph references

If you want to go deeper into some of the thinkers Joe mentions:

• Dr Sami Timimi – Searching for Normal: A New Approach to Understanding Mental Health, Distress and Neurodiversity
  Book link: Searching for Normal
  
• Prof. Tim Spector – ultra-processed food & gut health
  Channel 4 series What Not To Eat: Show info
  
• Dr Chris van Tulleken – Ultra-Processed People: Why Do We All Eat Stuff That Isn’t Food… and Why Can’t We Stop?
  Book link: Ultra-Processed People
  
• Dr Gabor Maté – ADHD and trauma
  ADHD page & his book Scattered Minds: drgabormate.com/adhd
  
• René Girard – Mimetic desire
  The idea that we often desire what others around us desire, which shapes behaviour and identity in deep, often unconscious ways.
• Opal – screen-time & focus app Joe mentions for cutting down distractions
  Website: https://www.opal.so
  

Connect with us

• Host – Ben Cook
  Busy Brain & ADHD Coach
  Podcast: Something for the Busy Brain
  Email: ben@goodtothinkdifferently.com
  
  
• Guest – Joseph Pack
  ADHD coach, founder, consultant (and my own coach)
  Email: hello@josephpack.com

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to ADHD and Busy Brains
02:53 The Impact of ADHD Diagnosis
05:39 Memetic Desire and Identity Crisis
08:44 The Weight of Diagnosis
11:30 Shattering Limiting Beliefs
14:31 The Role of Coaching in Self-Discovery
17:33 Challenging the ADHD Narrative
20:29 The Subjectivity of ADHD Diagnosis
23:21 Conclusion: Beyond the Diagnosis
24:15 The Missing Heritability Link in ADHD
26:18 ADHD Medication: A Controversia

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Yesterday I tried to record this episode and I couldn’t get one word in front of the next.

But because my brain was completely and utterly fried.

This episode is about that place.
Wired but tired.

I’ve been building something that matters deeply to me these last few weeks. Up at 6am. Laptop by 6:05. Every waking moment has been consumed by this.

Caring is expensive.

This isn’t about laziness.
It’s not about discipline.
It’s about complete nervous system dysregulation.

Key takeaways:

What “wired but tired” actually feels like (and why it’s not the same as being sleepy)

Why ADHD burnout often looks like talking more, not less

The hidden cost of hyperfocus and caring deeply

“We don’t lack capability — we lack containment”

How to spot your personal burnout warning signs

Why external scaffolding is regulation, not weakness

How body doubling and accountability can stabilise your nervous system

The concept of “borrowing energy from tomorrow”

A simple way to start your own energy audit today

The reframe: energy management = nervous system management

Hit follow/subscribe, and if this lands, send it to someone in your world who needs a push to press go.

About the host:
I am a mental health and wellbeing coach who supports adults with busy brains — including ADHD — to find calm, clarity, and self-trust.

Support beyond the podcast:
I offer a free, no-obligation 30-minute call.
You’ll find my contact details below:

https://www.goodtothinkdifferently.com/coaching
ben@goodtothinkdifferently.com

Send me a message, from episode feedback to theme requests.

Why would someone already 100 miles an hour like me choose to get a puppy?

Because it’s not about being less busy - it’s about adding the right kind of energy.

This episode explores playfulness, grief, connection and designing a life that actually fits who you are.

Key takeaways:

1️⃣ Busy Isn’t the Question - Alignment Is

It’s not about how full your life is.
It’s about whether what fills it aligns with who you are.

2️⃣ Know What You Need - Then Build Around It

Clarity about self makes decision-making simpler.
Not easy, but simpler.

3️⃣ One Word Can Be a Compass

My word is: Playful.

Playfulness isn’t trivial.
It’s a regulation tool.
It’s a processing tool.
It’s a survival tool.

4️⃣ Playfulness Is a Doorway to Hard Emotions - Not an Escape From Them

Humour and play can create safety around pain, without diminishing it.

5️⃣ Design Your Life Around What Works for You

Instead of asking “Does this fit my current life?”
Ask “Can I design my life to support who I want to be?”

6️⃣ Focus on What It Says Hello To - Not Goodbye To

Expansion requires choosing where you place your attention.

7️⃣ Structure Isn’t Confining - It’s Containing

Sometimes the thing that feels like “another commitment” is actually regulation disguised as responsibility.

8️⃣ Connection Is a Non-Negotiable Human Need

The puppy becomes symbolic of leaning toward:

• Companionship
• Love
• Presence

9️⃣ Choosing Growth Despite Nerves

If you’re both nervous and excited, you’re probably expanding.

Hit follow/subscribe, and if this lands, send it to someone in your world who needs a push to press go.

About the host:
I am a mental health and wellbeing coach who supports adults with busy brains — including ADHD — to find calm, clarity, and self-trust.

Support beyond the podcast:
I offer a free, no-obligation 30-minute call.
You’ll find my contact details below:

https://www.goodtothinkdifferently.com/coaching
ben@goodtothinkdifferently.com