Narrator: In the fourth grade, a smart, creative, but easily bored child decided to liven up the classroom. She organized a coup, convincing her classmates to stand on their desks and chant at the unsuspecting teacher. While the other children saw it as a game, the adults saw something else. The young girl was labeled "troublesome," "disruptive," and "consistently inconsistent." This incident led to her diagnosis: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. That child was Dr. Sasha Hamdani, and her experience highlights a central conflict for many with ADHD: a brain brimming with energy and creativity that is often misunderstood and pathologized by a world not built for it.

In her book, Self-Care for People with ADHD, Dr. Hamdani, now a board-certified psychiatrist, provides a roadmap for navigating this conflict. She argues that for those with ADHD, self-care is not an indulgence but a fundamental necessity. It is not about pampering, but about survival. The book offers a comprehensive guide to understanding the ADHD brain and developing a personalized toolkit of over 100 strategies to manage its challenges, harness its strengths, and live a balanced, fulfilling life.

Narrator: The book's foundational premise is a radical reframing of self-care. For the neurotypical world, self-care often conjures images of spa days and bubble baths. But for someone with ADHD, whose brain is constantly battling distraction, impulsivity, and emotional intensity, everyday tasks can be draining. Dr. Hamdani asserts that self-care in this context is not about luxury, but about essential maintenance. As she writes, "Self-care for people living with ADHD involves more than just the stereotypical acts of pampering—it is a cache of survival techniques that prevent you from burning out."

This means self-care includes the unglamorous work of building systems that support executive function: creating a budget to manage impulsive spending, meal planning to avoid decision fatigue, and learning to say "no" to prevent social over-commitment. It is a proactive, behavioral approach to managing the disorder from the inside out. The entire philosophy rests on a single, powerful belief that must be cultivated first: "Self-care starts with the belief that you are valuable!"

Narrator: A core, yet often overlooked, aspect of ADHD is emotional dysregulation. People with ADHD tend to experience emotions with searing intensity, from the highs of excitement to the lows of frustration and rejection. This can lead to a lifetime of feeling "too much" and internalizing shame. Dr. Hamdani dedicates significant focus to emotional self-care, providing tools to manage this internal volatility.

One key strategy is to reframe the concept of failure. She shares the famous story of Thomas Edison, who, after thousands of unsuccessful attempts to invent the light bulb, stated, "I have not failed. I’ve just found ten thousand ways that won’t work." This perspective is crucial for the ADHD brain, which is often paralyzed by a fear of not getting things perfect. By celebrating effort over outcome and viewing mistakes as data, individuals can build resilience. This also involves challenging the "toxic positivity" of the "ADHD is my superpower" rhetoric, which can minimize the very real struggles of the disorder. Instead, the goal is emotion-neutral observation and acceptance of both the strengths and challenges.

Narrator: Dr. Hamdani emphasizes the profound connection between physical health and ADHD symptom management. While medication is a valid and often necessary tool, it is not a magic bullet. Its effectiveness is maximized when paired with consistent physical self-care. As a medical student, Dr. Hamdani went on her own arduous journey, trying seven different medications before finding one that worked for her. This experience taught her that "medication is not going to 'solve' your ADHD." It is one part of a holistic strategy.

This strategy includes fundamental practices like proper sleep, hydration, and nutrition. But one of the most powerful tools is exercise. Dr. Hamdani describes how, during the chaos of medical school, she felt unanchored until she discovered yoga. The practice of focusing on breath and movement helped slow her racing mind, improving her memory, emotional regulation, and executive function. The key is not to force a grueling gym routine, but to find a form of movement that is genuinely enjoyable and sustainable, whether it's walking in nature, dancing, or taking a class with a friend for accountability.

Narrator: Many with ADHD spend their lives trying to force their neurodivergent brain to operate according to neurotypical standards, leading to frustration and burnout. The book argues for a different approach: understanding the unique wiring of the ADHD brain and working with its tendencies. This includes recognizing and managing traits like hyperfocus—the ability to concentrate intensely on a topic of interest. While often misunderstood as proof that someone "can't have ADHD," hyperfocus is a core symptom that can be a tremendous asset when channeled, but a liability when it leads to neglecting other responsibilities.

A crucial part of working with the brain is finding humor in its chaotic moments. Dr. Hamdani shares a story about her cat, Pearl, who walked through her wet oil paints and sat on the palette, requiring an emergency trip to the vet for a full-body shave. Instead of spiraling into self-criticism over her disorganization, she learned to find the humor in the situation. This ability to laugh at ADHD-related mishaps is a "pivotal protective agent" against the shame and guilt that can be so corrosive.

Narrator: Social and professional environments can be minefields for people with ADHD. Social interactions can be draining, and the workplace often rewards skills that are the inverse of ADHD's challenges, such as sustained focus on mundane tasks and long-term organization. The book provides practical strategies for building a life that accommodates these realities.

In the social sphere, this means finding a like-minded community, often online, where shared experiences provide validation and reduce isolation. It also means learning to handle conflict constructively and being aware of the tendency to interrupt or overshare. In the professional world, it involves learning to set boundaries by saying "no," using paid time off to prevent burnout, and finding a "body double"—a person whose mere presence provides the accountability needed to complete a task. Dr. Hamdani also provides guidance on the difficult decision of whether to disclose an ADHD diagnosis at work, suggesting individuals first request accommodations that enhance performance without necessarily revealing the diagnosis.

Narrator: The final piece of the puzzle is practical self-care—the day-to-day systems that reduce stress and simplify life. A major challenge is "time blindness," a core deficit in the brain's ability to perceive the passage of time. Dr. Russell Barkley, a renowned ADHD expert, famously said, "ADHD disrupts the fabric of time." To manage this, Dr. Hamdani recommends externalizing time with alarms, visual timers, and building in generous buffer periods between appointments.

Another common struggle is messiness. The book offers tangible strategies like the "pick up thirteen things" rule or making piles to sort later, which break down the overwhelming task of cleaning into manageable steps. A particularly vivid example of practical self-care is Dr. Hamdani's story of writing a chapter for the book. When she felt stuck and stagnant, she changed her venue, taking her laptop into an empty bathtub to write. This simple act of breaking her routine reset her brain and allowed her to regain focus, illustrating a key principle: when your brain feels stuck, change your environment.

Narrator: The single most important takeaway from Self-Care for People with ADHD is that managing the disorder is not about fixing a flaw, but about learning to collaborate with a different kind of brain. Dr. Sasha Hamdani dismantles the narrative of shame and deficit that so often accompanies an ADHD diagnosis and replaces it with one of compassion, self-acceptance, and empowerment. The book is a testament to the idea that by understanding the neurobiology of ADHD and building a personalized, flexible toolkit of self-care strategies, it is possible to move beyond mere survival and truly thrive.

The ultimate challenge the book presents is to fundamentally shift one's relationship with their own mind. It asks individuals to stop fighting their brain's natural tendencies and instead become a curious and compassionate observer, learning to provide the specific support it needs. Can you reframe what you see as your greatest weaknesses and discover the practical tools that allow your unique strengths to flourish?