ADHD & Navigating Grief: Coping, Healing, and Finding Support

In this heartfelt episode, we explore the often unspoken connection between ADHD and Grief. We share what it’s really like to experience loss while managing the unique challenges of ADHD, offering personal stories and hard-earned insights. Together, we talk about why grief can be so different for those with ADHD and how to find support and healing amidst the overwhelm.

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Transcript

Hypercast ADHD & Grief

[00:00:00] Melissa: Hi Welcome back to Hypercast.

[00:00:01] Brianna: Wow, that's a lot of enthusiasm for today's episode, which is, uh,

[00:00:05] Brianna: Today's episode is on ADHD and grief. 

[00:00:08] Brianna: It's an important topic to discuss because loss is unavoidable in life. You can't escape it no matter how hard you try, and ADHD impacts every aspect of our lives, including the way that we process loss and grief. it's not a fun topic to talk about. We will acknowledge that. It's really hard, and if this episode is not for you, we totally understand.

[00:00:33] Brianna: But we do try and keep things positive here, so we're going to give you some information about grief in general, how ADHD impacts. Grief and then talk about some of our personal experiences with it today. 

[00:00:46] Melissa: 

[00:00:46] Brianna: 

[00:00:46] Melissa: grief, comes from loss and grief is not always just from death. It can come from major life transitions divorce, the loss of a job. Sometimes you're impacted something major in your life that shifts your life in a different direction. And that can also cause grief.

[00:00:59] Brianna: Loss is not just death. We should clarify that. And it's also not just divorce. A breakup is a loss. A friendship breakup which needs to be talked more about is also a loss. Moving out of your childhood home, changing countries, if you move to a country, for example, like I did, where they use manual cars and don't speak English.

[00:01:20] Brianna: I had to learn both of those skills, learn a new language, and learn how to drive manual. So I lost independence for a bit, and it was hard. 

[00:01:27] Brianna: so it's not just death. 

[00:01:28] Melissa: in health too. 

[00:01:30] Brianna: Oh, God, physical health. Yeah, I'm currently dealing with that situation. and I have to grieve what I could have otherwise done if I was healthy, something that we need to discuss is ADHD . Receiving that diagnosis is also a loss. It's a form of grief that you have to go through, especially if you're later diagnosed. 

[00:01:53] Brianna: But if you're diagnosed later in life, then you have this grieving period 

[00:01:56] Brianna: And it's not saying that the ADHD wasn't there, right? It's just saying you had imagined a life without it, and now you've received this diagnosis, and you have to come to terms with the fact that your life is going to change. 

[00:02:08] Melissa: Looking back and actually seeing the, points where if you,

[00:02:11] Melissa: would have received the right accommodation or 

[00:02:13] Melissa: the right support, those pivotal points where your life could have changed and could have been different. You have to grieve that possible future. What could have been

[00:02:22] Brianna: everyone grieves differently, 

[00:02:23] Brianna: There are different types of loss, which we've discussed.

[00:02:26] Brianna: There are different types of grief, and the way that grief impacts your body, can vary. Grief can cause trouble focusing, a low attention span, sound familiar, you can have this like constant need to move your body, just this restlessness about you, You can distance yourself from your peers, from your interests it can cause depressive symptoms or even depression, that like distancing of what once brought you joy.

[00:02:51] Brianna: It can impact your performance at school or work. You can I have like brain fog and have difficulty learning new materials. You can have trouble eating, sleeping. It can cause physical symptoms like stomach pain, loss of appetite, exhaustion, sleep disturbances, which are very common for people with ADHD.

[00:03:09] Brianna: And then also like impulsivity, because your executive functioning, your decision making processes are currently being drowned by grief. They're not working correctly, so you can make a lot of impulsive decisions, things that could get you into trouble. Does any of this sound familiar?

[00:03:26] Melissa: does. your decision making process could be a little impaired in this moment. And these moments of grief 

[00:03:31] Brianna: Grief is disabling to everyone. That is a universal fact. Thing there are people who deal with loss better, and may have a shorter grieving period, or the relationship to the person might not be what was expected, so that grieving period is shorter, or because of the toxic relationship, it could be a really long grieving period.

[00:03:52] Brianna: Grief is disabling. 

The Physical Impact of GriefThe Physical Impact of Grief

[00:03:54] Brianna: You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can't think, you can't process, you can't function.

[00:03:59] Brianna: just going about the day to day tasks of life. are so hard when you are grieving, all of those things that I just listed are the constant daily things of ADHD. So imagine the combination of grief and ADHD, and now do you see the impact that grief and loss can have doubly on a person with ADHD.

[00:04:22] Brianna: here's why this is so important to talk about. There is a certain expectation around grief and mourning where, you bring them food, you take care of them for a couple weeks, and then they're expected to get back to work as normal, business as usual, some people don't step back, and then there's this social stigma around, oh it's been a year, why are you still grieving?

[00:04:43] Brianna: Why are you still like this? And then there are people who return to normal, work life, and they seem to be okay, and then anniversaries hit, or every once in a while it comes up and they have to take a day,it's normal, and it's viewed as normal in society.

[00:05:00] Brianna: But with ADHD, it might take a little bit more time, it might be doubly as impactful because you're already dealing with these things and now there's more of them, and you have to somehow be okay in three weeks. I receive extra time on my exams, you don't think that I'm gonna need extra time to process this huge emotional disturbance when I'm already emotionally dysregulated ,

[00:05:21] Brianna: And that societal expectation, and this lack of awareness and knowledge around it, really, because, for example, the five stages of grief? Bullshit.

[00:05:31] Melissa AI: Okay. So, we've all been told this even by our therapist, definitely by

[00:05:36] Brianna: grief counselors! 

[00:05:38] Melissa: there are five stages of grief.

[00:05:40] Brianna: you want to know what the five stages of grief are for,

[00:05:42] Melissa:  What are they

[00:05:43] Brianna: if you yourself are dying.

[00:05:45] Brianna: Please explain that to me.

[00:05:47] Brianna: The original theory of the five stages of grief is if you have received a terminal diagnosis. So cancer, for example, you go through those five stages of grief, not in order you flip flop through them. And acceptance is the last one because you have to accept that you're dying. If you are the loved one of that person, you never have to accept their death.

[00:06:10] Melissa: Because the relationship, the memories, continue after death. It's awful, and it's sad, and it's horrible, but you never had to accept that your life was gonna be over. That acceptance piece is really harmful for those who are left behind Because 

[00:06:26] Brianna: saying this is the end that's cutting off the relationship, even though relationship can continue through memories and things they've taught you 

[00:06:36] Brianna: Exactly. 

[00:06:37] Melissa: Interesting.

[00:06:37] Brianna: So that's why the dual process model of grief exists, it's this fluctuation between, the loss, the grief, thinking about your loved one, missing your old life, and the restoration, which is figuring out How to life with the whole, without this person, without whatever is lost, how to continue creating new life roles, figuring out new traditions, new experiences, forming new relationships, adjusting And you flip flop between those two processes, and you're supposed to.

[00:07:07] Brianna: we're gonna flip flop quickly between I'm devastated, and I know how I'm gonna move forward.

[00:07:12] Brianna: And there are a lot of processes that play into that. Like time blindness, object permanence, things like that. if you can forget people that aren't dead, you can absolutely forget people when they can no longer reach out to you, right? And then you get hit with this memory, something triggered you, and now you're in that loss, All over again, you were fine three or five or seven years later, and all of a sudden it hits you again, 

[00:07:34] Brianna: it's not as typical for a neurotypical person to be hit because they have the memories that stay present in their working memory and they, move forward, whereas we fluctuate still, 

[00:07:46] Brianna: Is there a way to combat that? would you? want to combat it. It's healthy. 

[00:07:50] Brianna: 

[00:07:51] Melissa: don't know if I'm relating it to being re traumatized by someone passing.

[00:07:55] Brianna: let me explain a little bit better, the way that you feel the loss and the grief does change. it's not like you're completely incapacitated five years, seven years down the road. 

[00:08:06] Brianna: The emotions hit you fresh. it's really hard to be emotionally dysregulated when the support systems have been withdrawn because time has passed. Whereas for us, time hasn't passed. And we get hit with it,

[00:08:19] Brianna: but through this process of going back and forth, we're better able to find that balance in homeostasis and continue on with that restoration orientation path of I'm so grateful that this memory came to me, maybe instead of crying about it, now I'm laughing about it, or I'm thinking about it, and I'm just grateful that it's there, and I can continue to process and move forward, right?

[00:08:40] Brianna: it's, definitely difficult. It's something that is unique to me. ADHD, Autism, people with memory issues. But it's not unhealthy. It's the way it's supposed to 

[00:08:50] Brianna: work. 

[00:08:50] Melissa: That's interesting.

[00:08:51] Brianna: I think I've talked too much. 

[00:08:52] Melissa: let me ask you some questions is there anything that has come up for you while I've been explaining this? 

[00:08:58] Melissa: something that was coming up is that I've definitely experienced grief on multiple levels, different times in my life and I've, Reacted different ways during each of these moments that I've encountered grief. I don't think that's wrong. I don't really know the reason why, and maybe that's just my relationship with somebody or what is needed of me in the moment. Or even what my own personal needs areat that time, but. I'm still the same person. I reacted differently at pretty much every instance that I feel like I've experienced grief in my life.

[00:09:31] Brianna: Different loss causes different reactions. And that's normal, and it's healthy, and it's the way it should be. Even if it's, the same loss. two people died. Those are two different people. Even if they both died of colon cancer, those are still two different people that you have two different relationships with.

[00:09:49] Brianna: And the way that you will grieve that loss differs based on Your attachment to that person, your relationship to the person how important they were in your life. If you had a healthy relationship, if you had a toxic relationship if if there is something that is complicating the grief, 

[00:10:07] Brianna: I had, a dog for 16 years, sometimes you'll have a dog that's like the dog. It's the best dog in the entire world. 

[00:10:12] Melissa: I had one 

[00:10:12] Brianna: hmm. 

[00:10:13] Melissa: he. Just passed away about a year ago at 16 and I felt so deeply about that more so than I would about my grandmother's sister passing away because that relationship was really close to me 

[00:10:25] Brianna: for weeks like I would just see something of his and I'd cry and I'm not a crier 

[00:10:30] Brianna: It's, especially difficult with disenfranchised grief like that. There is grief that you are expected to grieve, so the loss of a husband is somehow more socially acceptable to grieve than the loss of a friend, the loss of a parent, or a child is more socially acceptable than the loss of a distant aunt or a distant uncle, right?

[00:10:51] Brianna: partially it's due to the closeness of the relationship, you're expected to experience more grief as a result. But also, there's more supports around it.

[00:10:58] Brianna: for example, the loss of a child versus a miscarriage, there is support for the loss of a child. Oh, I can't imagine losing a child. That must be the hardest thing a mother will ever experience.

[00:11:09] Brianna: it is horrible, gut wrenching, the worst thing you can experience and their support for it. If you have a miscarriage, you're still feeling a lot of those feelings, but maybe there's not as much support.

[00:11:21] Brianna: there's no bereavement time for that, there's no disability for that, there's no social support or people bringing food, because it's so private and so personal,

[00:11:29] Brianna: Have you seen the movie Inside Out?

[00:11:31] Melissa: Absolutely.

[00:11:32] Brianna: Okay, it is a fantastic movie. One of the key takeaways is that you have to experience sadness. You can't shove it in a little box because being sad brings support.

[00:11:44] Brianna: When Riley, the main character, is sad, her parents hug her. She receives that support that she needs. If you are visually able to be sad, to express sadness, it's socially acceptable, you're allowed to say, hey, I'm sad, are gonna come and support you. And if you're not allowed to say, hey, I'm sad about this, or if someone dismisses it like, oh, it's just a dog, or, oh, it wasn't a real baby yet, it's

[00:12:06] Melissa: How do you react to that?

[00:12:08] Melissa: Yeah. this is making me think about how we grieve in different ways or, like you were saying, according to the relationship, the feelings may come in different ways. And I don't know that any of it's wrong. I'm not, a big crier and I don't sit and sob at the same time, sometimes I have a hard time understanding when someone needs to go to a grave site and sob every year.

[00:12:26] Melissa: I don't personally identify with that. I don't think it's wrong. It's just not how I specifically am comfortable grieving.

[00:12:33] Brianna: And if it makes you uncomfortable, then if you aren't aware and capable of knowing that about yourself, you might shame or judge or ostracize that person who feels the need to weep, over the memory. If it is impacting her daily living and you can't stop weeping, then that would be a cause for concern. maybe you haven't moved on to the restoration orientation of the process and you're stuck in the loss. that's something that would need to be addressed. But if it's a memorial event or something that.

[00:13:00] Brianna: Isn't impacting your daily life, then absolutely do whatever it is that you need to, 

[00:13:04] Melissa: Yeah. 

[00:13:05] Melissa: to feel your emotions and to take that space to process that And I know culturally things can be different too. my godmother is Ethiopian and she's like, an Ethiopia, we cry and we scream and we yell and we just, get the emotions out of our body and push it out into the world. I thought it was such a beautiful way of her explaining how that culture grieves 

[00:13:25] Brianna: I think it's beautiful to know that, people do grieve in different ways. Oh,

[00:13:31] Brianna: women is one of the most amazing things that I've come across as well. Very common in a lot of cultures, indigenous cultures some African cultures, some South American cultures where they have a designated whaler. Yeah, absolutely. Someone who it is their job to cry, to express emotion, to be loud, to be visual, to be seen, grieving, which allows people who might be more uncomfortable sharing that grief I know there's a lot of machismo men might be uncomfortable crying.

[00:14:00] Brianna: If you have a designated person who is taking that attention, who is saying it is okay to grieve, this is sad, cry, wail, whatever you need to do, it opens the door for other people who might be a little bit more shy, a little bit more reserved, to also feel and to have that reflected back to them.

[00:14:18] Brianna: And it makes it real. it allows you to process, to receive support, to receive help, to receive the validation that this is sad, I'm allowed to be sad. Just having that is so important.

[00:14:30] Melissa: it's really beautiful because it's also showing the importance of the person who has passed, and honoring them 

[00:14:37] Brianna: on the flip side the, Celtic tradition is To have a wake, to have drinks and party all night long. So it's not just you have to weep, you have to be sad. It could also be expressing joy to, honor that person, the way that they lived or through memory, through celebration of life, whatever it is 

[00:14:55] Brianna: Someone, recently said, recently told me that you die like you live. being able to remember someone and, all the wonderful things they've brought into your life. 

[00:15:02] Brianna: Remembering the departed and discussing their memories. discussing those memories, help cement those memories so that we can remember them in the future. you mentioned earlier in the episode that as people with ADHD we forget, but can taking the time to actually record those memories help us remember in the future?

[00:15:22] Brianna: Yeah, for people with ADHD, the memory piece of it is particularly difficult. 

[00:15:27] Brianna: I think it would help, but also if that's not your style, then that won't feel natural. So I wouldn't force anyone to keep a scrapbook or to have pictures up 

[00:15:39] Brianna: Yeah. 

[00:15:40] Brianna: I don't know if you necessarily need pictures to remember constantly. But if you have a word document or a journal, you can even bullet point memories of someone to go back to if you feel like you miss them. And would like to remember, You can have a place when they do come up, you can write them down. The sweet things that you'd like to keep with you. 

[00:16:00] Brianna: so you can

[00:16:00] Melissa: savor those moments those 

[00:16:01] Brianna: idea. That's actually, something that I have considered a lot in my life. I have family members with dementia who, it's a loss because they're not dead yet, but they're losing their memory, and I'm losing my memory.

[00:16:16] Brianna: The, person they were in my life and that connection as they start to no longer fill that role and, be further down that dementia journey I, with my ADHD already have really bad memory. ADHD has a high connection with dementia, comorbidity, with my ADHD, with it in my family history, with that connection, I'm going down that road, so I've had to think a lot about how I'm going to remember as I'm losing.

[00:16:47] Brianna: And yeah, pictures, thoughts, journaling, writing down the stories of my family members writing down my own stories, keeping those pictures, and organizing them, which is a struggle for me, my ADHD, so I can look at them without feeling overwhelmed. It's really important. And also, this is another form of disenfranchised grief I should mention it's pre grieving, it's doing a lot of the grief work before the final loss, has occurred, which can help with the restoration.

[00:17:17] Brianna: orientation process of things. Yeah, it's definitely something I've thought about.

[00:17:21] Brianna: Thank you for sharing that. I think it's important because talking about those other disenfranchised forms of loss, like being late diagnosed, like miscarriages, like living with someone with dementia, 

[00:17:33] Melissa: It's all important and it all impacts us, and it's not given the space it deserves. This topic isn't heavy at all.

[00:17:39] Brianna: But, here's another reason why it's so important. loss is isolating. being able to share and talk about this and have some knowledge, because it's, such a hard topic to talk about. So how are you supposed to know this information?

[00:17:55] Brianna: How are you supposed to know how your ADHD is going to impact you How are you going to know that it's okay to talk about these secondary kinds of things? Loss,secondary loss. There's normally a main or primary loss. And then there's a whole bunch of other things that come along with it.

[00:18:10] Brianna: If you lose a person, then you're losing whatever role they played in your life. You're losing that connection. You're losing all of the things and activities that you did with each 

[00:18:20] Brianna: other. 

[00:18:20] Melissa: You don't get through grief, by the way.

[00:18:21] Brianna: You live with grief. It just becomes manageable. if you don't have these conversations, if you're isolated by your loss , then how are you supposed to get help?

[00:18:29] Melissa: How do we

[00:18:29] Brianna: Um, how do we get help, know. 

[00:18:33] Melissa: help can come through personal relationships, such as friends and family gathering together and commiserating and also in a professional form, which you are definitely well acquainted with,

[00:18:43] Brianna: if there are therapists out there, you obviously want to get one that knows about ADHD. And knows that the five stages of grief are not for,

[00:18:53] Melissa: not for not for the living

[00:18:54] Melissa: living

[00:18:54] Brianna: Thank you, that's a great way of putting it. It's not for the living, it's for the dying. Just someone who can listen and support you because not everyone has access to those resources, Friends, community groups, even some Facebook groups. just having people who get it is really helpful. And then specifically ADHD groups as well, an understanding that is built in with the people with having ADHD. There is just you're, going to be supported. 

[00:19:17] Melissa: Absolutely.

[00:19:18] Brianna: would you like to share your experience and how you've managed to 

[00:19:22] Melissa AI: cope a little bit? A big reason why this, topic was something we decided to explore right now is because two weeks ago I lost my father in law. he was not an in law to me. He was a father figure to me, and also a friend to me. it was a blow. It's a, blow to not just me, but my entire family. And his entire community. He was an amazing civil servant. He was so adamant about the right to vote. he was appointed as the chair of the election board in his city. 

[00:19:54] Melissa AI: His whole life was nothing but serving it's feels like a huge, amazing loss, but I'm also overwhelmed by the amount of love a community can give to a person. And also how much impact 1 person can have

[00:20:06] Brianna: how has that been helpful to you? having, yes, the community support around you, but that awareness of how many lives. he has touched.

[00:20:15] Melissa AI: I think it's important because it's reminding me. Of how wonderful he was as a person. And also what I feel like he's given to me and my husband and, other members of our family, like things he's taught us, 

[00:20:27] Melissa AI: He's helped shape me as a person. And I feel like I'm taking part of that with me and I've, become a better person. I'm realizing that it's not just me he's impacted, all these people. 

[00:20:39] Melissa AI: And seeing that community outpouring it's, a confirmation of how amazing this person was. I only wish I can walk in his footsteps and hope that the lessons I've learned, I can continue on 

[00:20:48] Melissa AI: That's probably part of this whole grief thing too, our brains swirl and it's confusing and overwhelming. I think that's part of why I was asking about memorializing my mother in law wants to have a celebration of life. We asked who wants to come and share their memories.

[00:21:02] Melissa AI: I'm hoping that, hearing other people's memories will help me remember myself.

[00:21:06] Melissa AI: maybe I can take a moment to write those things down of how, we shared moments together and how they impacted me and how I think I'm a better person because of it. I know I'm rambling do you have questions?

[00:21:17] Brianna: First of all, thank you for sharing. he sounds like an amazing person, and I don't think it's woo to want to follow in his footsteps, because he was really important in your life, really important in your husband's life, and really important to the community. And that's something we should all aspire to, to do, to 

[00:21:37] Melissa: Yeah, 

[00:21:38] Brianna: the lives of the people around us.

[00:21:40] Brianna: I think, one of the things that helped me cope with. Loss is seeing, the people who cared just makes it feel less meaningless, 

[00:21:48] Brianna: that makes a lot of sense. I feel like I have reacted differently in times of loss in this moment, I'm rising to the occasion to be. A person of strength in this moment, I don't know if that's part of my own brief process, but I think my ADHD actually maybe even helping me in this moment. That is the ADHD connection right there. ADHD people, ADHD brains are amazing in a crisis While the neurotypicals in your life have been dealing with the emotions of this, have had the ability to see the bigger picture, to set the emotions aside for now, which is something you're going to have to deal with later, unfortunately, which is that delayed processing, which is why it takes ADHD people longer to grieve.

[00:22:31] Brianna: And you're able to switch directly into that restoration orientation, manage things for the people in your life. You're probably a huge help, a huge comfort to people because you said earlier you were able to go through some paperwork and things like that. You are providing structure and strength and a safe place for people they're going.

[00:22:51] Brianna: Through their emotions and then it's going to switch and you're going to need to go through your emotions and they're going to be able to support you and be the strength and the structure There always has to be one and it tends to be the neurodivergent people do really well in a crisis .

[00:23:06] Melissa AI: but isn't that actually really beautiful because. We all have needs and someone needs to pick up right now. And if my brain is great and a crisis and an emergency, and I can help then maybe it's a handoff. It's like a relay race. when I need support, when they're ready, they'll be able to support me. That actually is a really wonderful, healthy form of relationship and helping each other through grief and loss.

[00:23:29] Brianna: And this is why the community aspect you were talking about is so important of having people around you who can support you when you need it and you can support them when they need it.

[00:23:37] Melissa: You mentioned at the top of the show the, brain reacts in, funny ways. You have memory problems, you have executive functioning problems. And my husband went to the grocery store and he was like, I was lost. I forgot things. I was confused. And I realized that this is something you deal with all the time.

[00:23:54] Brianna: I am so sorry it was the first time he's ever had to deal with his executive functioning. Just not functioning. It's a great way to build empathy, what an amazing realization that your husband had oh, like you deal with this all the time. thank you so much for stepping up in this moment because I finally understand what you're going through, but also I'm dealing with the loss right now and I need help.

[00:24:18] Brianna: I don't know how to navigate this. I haven't been doing this my whole life like you have. So you can step up. And I mentioned earlier as well loss is isolating and you have that community around you. So you're not being isolated by your loss that you're able to, support, to have that support, to be that support.

[00:24:33] Melissa: If we feel like we're isolated in a time of grief, how do we reach out?

[00:24:39] Brianna: Great question. It's hard. It's really hard because if you are in that restoration process, not going to think that you need it. if there's no awareness, no understanding, no conversation about this, if you don't know that this is happening, you're like, oh, I'm fine.

[00:24:53] Brianna: I'm fine. I don't need help. I'm good. And then it hits you, and now you're not fine, and you don't know how to reach out, and you can't, because you're dealing with executive functioning and processing, And you were fine during that time period, that window of support where people are bringing food, or whatever the cultural tradition is.

[00:25:10] Brianna: A couple weeks later, when that support has gone, now you need help. How do you get it? How do you access it? What do you do? And if you don't, prepare for that. it's really hard, and I don't know if I have a bunch of solutions

[00:25:21] Brianna: I was in a position where I was completely overwhelmed with the emotions and I couldn't get out of it. I couldn't get past it and I wasn't telling anyone I was further isolating myself Because the social expectation was that you would be fine, you had already demonstrated that you were fine, the social support had gone away, and now when you needed it, it wasn't there, and you couldn't ask, because there was no one offering.

[00:25:48] Melissa AI: it took me reaching out and actually saying it, I'm having trouble, I'm struggling it, actually took a lot for me to say that because I was expected to be done with that already. as soon as I said it to someone who loves me, they said, I'm going to get you connected with someone who can help you and help me get reconnected with the therapist.

[00:26:09] Melissa AI: that was very important. It was something I needed even if it was just giving me a phone number, It was, like a guiding light guiding me to a better place.

[00:26:17] Brianna: with ADHD, sometimes that's just impossible. It's really hard to make decisions, to navigate things, to make your own appointments, to even know what direction to go in. And grief mimics that, doubles it if you have ADHD. So reaching out and having them find the resources is the solution.

[00:26:34] Brianna: because you can't do it yourself. Your brain is broken. It is grieving. It is suffering. It's suffering,it needs help. And so if you can reach out to someone and be like, I need help, and then they provide the path,

[00:26:47] Brianna: this was a really enlightening episode. I think it's something we all need to talk about because it's something we all deal with. Every single one of us ,

[00:26:55] Brianna: Absolutely. you cannot avoid loss. It is coming for you in any way, shape, or form, and a reality. And it needs to be handled in advance , especially if you have ADHD, because you need to create the structures and supports for our differences, that's why I was so passionate about talking about this topic, because is already secret. It's already hush in society. ADHD and grief, I've never heard anyone talk about.

[00:27:23] Melissa: we're talking about it right now.

[00:27:25] Brianna: hopefully this episode helps someone who needs it, 

[00:27:29] Brianna: if you're struggling and don't know which direction to go, take a deep breath and ask someone you care about to help you. You can ask for help.

[00:27:37] Brianna: Today's episode about grief and ADHD, we talked about grief, what it looks like, and how it is incredibly similar to ADHD symptoms, and then how it doubly impacts people with ADHD. 

[00:27:51] Brianna: and then being isolated by loss, which is hard for everyone. But if you 

[00:27:56] Brianna: you really need that support And then we also talked a little bit about our personal experiences with, grief and with loss and How we felt supported through that, how we navigated that, and some interesting insights that came as a result.

[00:28:10] Melissa: Hopefully through this very important, but very heavy episode, we have shone a light on this topic and maybe helped someone out there, learn a little bit more, and be a little bit more supported as they're going through this journey.

[00:28:27] Melissa: thank you so much for joining us. If you've gotten this far, I know it may have, been a difficult episode to get through, 

[00:28:33] Brianna: I know that this is a heavy topic, and losing someone, or dealing with loss and grief, can be quite difficult. 

[00:28:40] brianna-morton--she-her-_4_07-14-2024_210307: If you need immediate support, please call emergency services in your country. I know the numbers are different in different countries. So please reach out for help. Don't suffer alone.

[00:28:50] Brianna: Thank you for joining us. We really appreciate you sticking, it out through this episode. All right. Thanks everyone. Bye 

[00:28:56] Brianna: bye.