What is ADHD Mamas in Midlife?
Hey! I’m Rebekah, a late-diagnosed ADHD mama who is in that midlife place where hormones are being fickle and the ADHD that I was diagnosed with 9 years ago (at 43) is now, ironically, coming into better focus. When I had four kids at home—while I did choose to medicate for my ADHD and I did some research to understand it—I didn’t really spend a lot of time breaking it down and coming up with strategies to help me overcome some of the obstacles it presents.
In other words, I was too distracted and overwhelmed with managing a household of six and all the moving pieces that entailed to truly put my own oxygen mask on first and figure out how to thrive instead of just survive.
Now, I don’t have kids at home taking my time and energy, so the glaring issues caused by the unique way the ADHD brain works are standing out more to me. Not to mention, fluctuating hormones make ADHD symptoms worse. And I’ll be damned if I’m going to let those struggles take me down. So, I’ve been working very hard to come up with practical ways to smooth the pain points of living with ADHD as well as filling my mental toolbox with great hacks to maximize the positives of ADHD (gotta love that hyperfocus, baby!).
As I began to do more research on the ADHD brain, particularly in late diagnosed ADHD women who tend to present as the Inattentive Type, I realized that I knew a lot of women my age who were struggling with ADHD and hormones and launching kids and all that goes with this stage of life. Once we’ve launched our kids, we are often excited to try something new…maybe starting a new job or a new business, only to find we are getting smacked in the face with ADHD symptoms we never took the time to understand. Add in the fact that estrogen—which is now fluctuating for us—is the pre-cursor to dopamine (we already have little to no dopamine reserves when we have ADHD) and this time of life can be very challenging.
But it can also be extremely rewarding! So I’m on a mission to help other ADHD mamas in midlife, like myself, start thriving instead of the default “surviving” we’ve been doing for most of our lives. If you’d like to join me on this journey, take a look around the website and find the tools that are helpful to you.
What You’ll Find on this Website:
ADHD Toolbox: This is where I'm continually adding resources that I find helpful in understanding how the ADHD brain works and how to thrive with ADHD. In this section you’ll find loads of links to external resources, a glossary of ADHD related terms, and my ADHD library of books, websites, podcasts, and social media accounts I recommend.
Blog: I am a writer by trade and I love to write about all sorts of topics but in this blog—while topics may vary—they will always be tied in to ADHD. My goal is to help others like me realize they are not alone, lazy, broken, a failure, useless, a burden, or any of the other lies those of us with ADHD (especially those late-diagnosed) tell ourselves.
Reduce Toxic Load: This may seem like an odd pillar to have on an ADHD website, but I’ve recently done a ton of research on how toxic load affects us all and I’ve discovered that reducing our toxic load can be especially beneficial to those of us with ADHD. From the foods we eat, to the cleaners we use, to the air we breathe…all of it affects our neurotransmitters and can exacerbate ADHD symptoms. And while I wanted to be the kind of person who reads all the labels and makes good choices, it has always seemed like an overwhelming task. So I found an easy button that has helped me eliminate the vast majority of toxins in my home and I love helping others do the same.
ADHD Marketeer: If you run any kind of business, check out this tab. One of the things that woke me up to the fact that I had a lot of unresolved issues from my late diagnosis of ADHD was the fact that I started a business last year that I love, but I was struggling massively to make follow up calls and do the things that I knew I needed to do to build my business. It felt like I was sabotaging myself and I couldn’t understand why. Until I connected the dots and discovered certain ADHD traits (RSD in particular) can make it really difficult to build a business. But other traits can make you wildly successful. So I decided I would share what I’ve learned with other ADHD biz owners to help them avoid ADHD pitfalls and maximize ADHD strengths so they can thrive both personally and professionally. I’ll be building this page out more and more through 2025. My goal is to get my ADHD coaching certification so I can offer reasonably priced ADHD coaching.
ADHD Mim (Mamas in Midlife) Facebook Group: We are not alone. There are so many women who are in this same stage of life, dealing with hormones and ADHD and all the things. We are the first generation of Late-Diagnosed ADHD Women who are also entering peri/menopause and these connections are only now beginning to be studied. Sometimes we need a safe community where we can ask questions or seek understanding and validation. Sadly, not everyone in our lives understands ADHD, so being able to make some friends who do get it can be a huge relief. Click on this tab if you’d like to join our private Facebook group.