The Neurodivergent Creative Podcast

Caitlin Fisher
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The podcast for creatives of all types (and neurotypes) to celebrate passion and creativity, stop hiding your unique brilliance, and embrace what makes your mind and spirit come alive! Previously known as Run Like Hell Toward Happy, this show is hosted by Caitlin Fisher, a writing and creative coach who helps neurodivergent, chronically ill, and/or queer folks connect with their most passionate lives.

  1. 6D AGO

    Trauma, Identity, and Learning to Be Yourself in Relationships | #203

    ⚠️Trigger Warning: This episode contains discussions of abusive relationships and trauma recovery. If these topics are difficult for you, please listen with care.---In this episode of The Neurodivergent Creative, Caitlyn explores Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stage of Intimacy vs. Isolation, the developmental stage that typically happens in our twenties.Through the lens of psychology, trauma recovery, and personal storytelling, Caitlyn examines the cultural script many of us grow up believing: Meet someone → date → move in → marry → build a life. This “relationship escalator” can feel like the default path to adulthood, especially when you’re young and still figuring out who you are.If you’ve ever found yourself twisting into pretzels to keep a relationship, losing yourself in the process, or staying because you’re afraid to be alone—this episode offers both validation and perspective.💬" If you are twisting yourself up into pretzels and walking on eggshells and like trying to stay safe in a relationship by being what they want you to be, and you're not your real self, maybe you don't even know who your real self is, choose isolation for a minute. Get to know yourself. Be on your own. Figure out who you are when you're single." - Caitlin Liz FisherWhat We Explore in This Episode Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages of developmentThe stage of Intimacy vs Isolation and why it defines your twentiesHow childhood shame, guilt, and role confusion shape adult relationshipsThe pressure of the relationship escalator and cultural scripts about marriageWhy fear of being alone can keep people in unhealthy relationshipsThe difference between performing a personality vs. being your real selfHow safe relationships feel different from survival relationshipsReflection Questions Are you being your real self in your relationships?Where might you still be performing safety instead of authenticity?What would it look like to get to know yourself outside of relationships?Are you staying somewhere because it’s right or because it’s familiar?🌈Support the Show!If this episode resonated, tell me. Seriously. Leave a comment. Send a DM. Tell me what this podcast has meant to you.Affirmation helps me keep showing up.You can also: Join The Creatives Rebellion on Patreon (tiers start at $3)Download the Audacity Bill of Rights at audacityarchives.comLeave a 5-star review on Apple PodcastsGo make weird art. Stay hydrated. Have the audacity to be yourself. I love you and there’s nothing you can do about it!💜

    26 min

  2. FEB 27

    You Don’t Have to Exhaust Yourself to Matter | #202

    ⚠️Trigger Warning: This episode is about burnout, trauma anniversaries, abusive relationship recovery, productivity shame, nervous system regulation, romance novels as harm reduction, and redefining success on your own terms.My OCD brain tells me I am a better person if I am constantly stressed about the news. It says: “If you’re not spiraling, you’re not caring enough.” That’s not true. Being informed does not require being dysregulated.Your value is not determined by: how exhausted you arehow visible your activism ishow many hours you workedhow productive your trauma recovery looksYour value is measured by doing what you can.Not what you think you “should.”Not what someone else can.Not what you did before burnout.Not what you can do on a good spoon day.You are not required to exhaust yourself to deserve to exist.What We Explore in This Episode OCD, productivity shame, and the lie that you’re only good when exhaustedThe difference between safe love and survival loveRebuilding self-worth after gaslightingDoing what you can as a disabled, neurodivergent person🌈Support the ShowIf this episode resonated, tell me. Seriously. Leave a comment. Send a DM. Tell me what this podcast has meant to you. Affirmation helps me keep showing up. You can also: Join The Creatives Rebellion on Patreon (tiers start at $3)Download the Audacity Bill of Rights at audacityarchives.comLeave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts Go make weird art. Rest if you need to. Read the romance novel. Extend the break.You are not required to exhaust yourself to deserve to exist.I love you. There’s nothing you can do about it!

    23 min

  3. FEB 20

    "It’s Just a Phase” and The Truth About Identity Exploration | #201

    In this episode of The Neurodivergent Creative, we keep rolling through Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages of development! We’ve officially reached the stage where everything feels dramatic, your body is doing weird stuff without your permission, and adults suddenly want you to “be yourself” while also punishing you for it.Welcome to Stage 5: Identity vs. Role Confusion (roughly ages 12–18)💬" A lot of things in our life are phases and that's fine. It's morally neutral. I think the problem comes in when we start getting upset that a phase is just a phase and that it wasn't a lifelong thing. We gotta stop that. What the hell is that? Why are we trying to make everything last forever?" - Caitlin Liz FisherWe talk about adolescence as the developmental era of experimenting, trying things on, and figuring out who you are beneath performance, survival, and other people’s expectations. We also talk about how being forced into adult roles too early can fracture identity development and why it makes perfect sense if you still feel like you’re rebuilding “you” now.As you sit with this episode, you might ask and reflect about: What phases did I have that I was shamed for?What parts of me were real, but I had to hide?Did I get to experiment safely or did I have to become someone else to survive?Where do I still feel like I’m “trying on” versions of myself?What would it look like to let that be okay?What We Explore in This Episode Erikson’s Identity vs. Role Confusion stage explained simplyWhy adolescence is supposed to be full of phases (and why that’s morally neutral)How caretaking roles and parentification can disrupt identity developmentWhy “being the good kid” can become a mask instead of a selfThe difference between who you are vs. what you do (and why the constant should be you)How identity gets shaped through experimentation: style, interests, community, valuesQueerness, gender exploration, and why language helps kids feel less alone

    32 min

  4. FEB 13

    Industry vs. Inferiority: "Smart Kid" Burnout and the Fear of Being Average | #200

    Imposter syndrome isn’t always about not being good enough. Sometimes it’s about believing: “If I don’t know everything, I won’t be safe.”For some of us, the way we survived this stage was by becoming “the smart one.” High-achieving. High-performing. Teacher-approved. If your identity becomes “the smart one,” then not knowing something becomes dangerous.In this episode, Caitlin continues their deep dive into Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages of development and land squarely in Stage 4: Industry vs. Inferiority. This is the school-age stage. Roughly ages 5–12. The era of gold stars, spelling tests, group projects, comparison, praise, shame… and the moment many neurodivergent kids begin to feel different in ways they don’t yet have language for!💬" You are not a bad person 'cause you don't know everything. Knowing the sum total of knowledge in the universe is not how you stay safe. You stay safe by surrounding yourself with safe people who love you and will treat you nicely even if you make mistakes." - Caitlin Liz FisherWhat We Explore in This Episode Erikson’s Industry vs. Inferiority stage explained in human languageHow school environments can reinforce shame in neurodivergent kidsADHD, autism, and the early roots of “I’m bad at this”The “smart kid” identity and how it turns into imposter syndromeWhy perfectionism can feel like protectionHow shame about confidence becomes compulsive modesty

    27 min

  5. FEB 6

    I Will Gladly “Waste Time”: Burnout, Rest & Being Human Again | #199

    In this episode of The Neurodivergent Creative, Caitlin shares a real-time update from her burnout recovery journey—what happened when she took January completely off from her business, why she’s extending that break, and what she’s learning about rest, usefulness, creativity, and nervous system repair. Caitlin talks about stepping away from selling and marketing, rediscovering hobbies (hello knitting and romance writing), navigating rejection sensitivity as a neurodivergent business owner, and realizing how much praise and external validation matter when you’ve been running solo for years.💬" I will gladly waste time if it means that time is spent existing in my human body doing human things." - Caitlin Liz FisherThis is not a productivity episode. This is an anti-hustle, pro-human, “seven loads of laundry counts as a win” episode. So, if you’ve ever felt like your value is tied to output… this one’s for you.What We Explore in This Episode: Why burnout recovery takes longer than a week offThe nervous system shift that happens when you stop hustlingRejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) and marketing as a neurodivergent entrepreneurWhy praise hits differently when you’re not self-employedThe difference between being useful and being worthyRedefining “wasted time”Small wins as survival strategy during hard seasons

    22 min

  6. JAN 30

    How Childhood Play Shapes Adult Confidence | #198

    In this episode, Caitlin continues the psychology mini-series on Erik Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development. The focus is on Stage 3: Initiative vs Guilt—the developmental era where kids try things, make up games, ask why a thousand times, and learn whether their creativity is safe or shameful.We talk about how discouragement and criticism can create guilt, how neurodivergent kids get punished for being inventive, and the way early guilt can become adult executive dysfunction, perfectionism, and discomfort with doing anything “just for you.” 💬"Just because it's not how you would play with the toys doesn't mean that they're weird. It just means that they're playing different. If you like to make a circle of cans and that's your fun, creative initiative, you're allowed to make a little stack of cans." - Caitlin Liz Fisher What We Explore in This Episode How Initiative vs. Guilt (ages 3–5) shapes creativity, confidence, and self-trustWhy “playing wrong” is not a thing and how autism gets misunderstood hereThe connection between childhood criticism and adult self-doubt + executive dysfunctionHow to reparent your inner child through play, permission, and curiosity

    32 min

  7. JAN 23

    Autonomy vs Shame: The Childhood Stage That Shapes Confidence | #197

    In this episode of The Neurodivergent Creative, Caitlin goes full “spicy brains, unpacking all the shame” and dives into why childhood development has its own pace, and why trying to rush it creates more stress for everyone. Using Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages (Trust vs. Mistrust + Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt), Caitlin connects toddler “purple cup chaos,” risky play, and messy learning to the adult realities of people-pleasing, shame spirals, and inner child repair. We also get a Caitlin-style tour through special interests (biology, evolution, brains), a candid story about changing majors, and a big, tender reminder: kids learn through experience—and so do we. 💬" We have seriously lost the plot on allowing kids to experience things and learn. We just are like, 'No, I know better. So do it this way!' When like making a f*****g mess is part of the process." - Caitlin Liz Fisher If this episode resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone who’s healing their relationship with trust, autonomy, or creativity. And remember:Making a mess is part of learning.Making mistakes is part of becoming.Your inner child is allowed to take up space here. What We Explore in This Episode Why parenting requires slowing down to the pace of child developmentErik Erikson’s Stage 1: Trust vs. Mistrust (and what it teaches us about safety)Erik Erikson’s Stage 2: Autonomy vs. Shame & DoubtRisky play, natural consequences, and why “making a mess” is part of learningHow childhood shame shows up later as overdependence, anxiety, and people-pleasingUsing Erikson’s stages for inner child work (especially for autistic/ADHD brains)

    37 min

  8. JAN 16

    Oscar the Grouch, Eeyore, and the Radical Power of Feeling Your Feelings | #196

    In this episode, Caitlin makes a heartfelt case for grumpiness, sadness, anger, and all the emotions we were taught to rush past or hide. Starting with a surprising realization about the purpose of Oscar the Grouch, Caitlin unpacks why children’s media gets emotional regulation right in ways adults often forget—and why we desperately need permission to have our “Oscar,” “Eeyore,” and anger moments as grown humans. 💬“We have to talk about stuff that upsets us, and we have to normalize our Oscar the Grouch moments, our Eeyore moments, and our anger moments—because they’re part of us, and they’re part of the messy human experience of being alive.” - Caitlin Liz Fisher We go over reflections on Sesame Street, Winnie-the-Pooh, Inside Out, Disney movies, family estrangement, healing relationships, and the courage it takes to say, “Hey, that hurt me.” If you’ve ever felt ashamed of your grumpiness, afraid of your anger, or worried that being honest about your feelings might cost you love or safety, this episode is for you. What We Explore In This Episode: Why Oscar the Grouch exists, how he teaches kids that it’s okay to be grumpy, have boundaries, and like things other people don’tThe difference between processing emotions (Oscar) and bypassing them with forced positivityEeyore energy: what it looks like to love and include people who are sad without trying to “fix” themHow children’s media models emotional regulation, community care, and non-performative belongingWhy avoiding difficult emotions doesn’t make life easier, it just makes it smallerLetting your inner child heal by allowing the full spectrum of feelings, not just the “nice” onesPS - You don’t have to be cheerful to be worthy. You don’t have to be easy to be loved. Go make some weird art. Have the audacity. Stay hydrated.💜

    29 min
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About

The podcast for creatives of all types (and neurotypes) to celebrate passion and creativity, stop hiding your unique brilliance, and embrace what makes your mind and spirit come alive! Previously known as Run Like Hell Toward Happy, this show is hosted by Caitlin Fisher, a writing and creative coach who helps neurodivergent, chronically ill, and/or queer folks connect with their most passionate lives.

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