Living Beyond ADHD

DrB
  • 4.7 (120)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Daily

After a three-year hiatus due to health challenges, DrB returns to Living Beyond ADHD with a message that hasn't changed — and a conviction that's stronger than ever. In this comeback episode, DrB lays out the truth about adults with ADHD: you are bright, gifted, and capable of extraordinary things. What's holding you back isn't a disorder — it's missing pre-skills and executive function skills that were never taught to you. And the most radical idea of all? Those skills can be learned. Welcome back.

  1. 3h ago

    Time Blindness Is Real — Here's What To Do About It

    "You're always late." "How did you forget — it was TODAY." Adults with ADHD hear these sentences constantly — and have spent years unable to explain the experience underneath them. This episode names it: time blindness. DrB explains the neurological reality of how ADHD brains experience time (hint: it's not the same as everyone else), why willpower doesn't help, and five concrete, skill-based strategies that actually work. This is not about trying harder. It's about working smarter with the brain you have. Key Points Covered • Time blindness: the neurological reality behind ADHD and time • Now vs. Not Now: how ADHD brains actually experience time • Why willpower and trying harder make things worse, not better • 5 concrete strategies: visible time, time buffers, transition alarms, timing yourself, accountability • The skill-based approach to becoming reliably on time Links Mentioned • drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources • Get Sh*t Done (GSD) 9-Month Program — drbarbaracohen.com • It Was Never You Masterclass, August 25, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm pacific time / link coming soon

  2. Jul 21

    The Shame Spiral and How to Get Out of It

    Beneath the disorganization, the unfinished projects, the chronic lateness, and the avoidance — there is almost always shame. In this episode, DrB goes straight to the root. She explains the difference between guilt and shame, traces where ADHD shame comes from, breaks down the mechanics of the shame spiral, and offers a clear, practical path out. This is not feel-good talk. This is skill-based, brain-based work that changes the foundation everything else is built on. Key Points Covered • Guilt vs. shame — and why the difference matters for ADHD adults • How ADHD shame is built across a lifetime of misunderstanding • The shame spiral: trigger → story → nervous system → paralysis • 4 concrete steps to interrupt and exit the shame spiral • The long-game: building a new relationship with yourself Links Mentioned • drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources • Get Sh*t Done (GSD) 9-Month Program — drbarbaracohen.com • Masterclass coming August 25, 2026 – It Was Never You Masterclass – 10 am – 2 pm Pacific Time – links and more information coming soon.

  3. Jul 14

    There Are No Skills in Pills

    DrB's most provocative episode — and one of the most important. She is not anti-medication, and she makes that clear. But she will not pretend that medication is enough. This episode draws a definitive line between what medication can do (create a window, reduce static, improve focus) and what it can never do (build skills, rewrite identity, heal shame). If you've been medicated for years and still feel like something is missing — this episode will tell you what that something is. Key Points Covered • DrB's clear position: not anti-medication, but deeply pro-skills • What stimulant medication can genuinely do for ADHD adults • What medication cannot do — and why this matters so much • Why so many medicated adults are still struggling • The complete picture: medication as a window, skills as the building Links Mentioned • drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources • Get Sh*t Done (GSD) 9-Month Program — drbarbaracohen.com New date for upcoming Masterclass - August 25, 2026 - details coming soon.

  4. Jul 7

    It's Not Your Fault — And You're 100% Responsible

    In this foundational episode, DrB delivers the message that sits at the heart of everything she teaches: it is not your fault — and you are 100% responsible for what happens next. These two truths are not a contradiction. Together, they are the most liberating framework an adult with ADHD can internalize. If you've been waiting for permission to stop blaming yourself and start building — this is it. Key Points Covered • Why ADHD is not your fault — and what that really means • The critical difference between blame and responsibility • How the "old story" becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy • What it looks like to take 100% responsibility in practice • The question that changes everything: "What skill am I missing?" Links Mentioned drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources Get Sh*t Done (GSD) 9-Month Program — drbarbaracohen.com

  5. Jun 30

    The Pre-Skills Nobody Talks About - 124

    Why do ADHD strategies always seem to work for a week and then collapse? DrB answers this question with a concept almost no one in the mainstream ADHD space is teaching: pre-skills. Before executive function can be built and integrated, there are foundational skills that must come first — self-awareness, nervous system regulation, understanding your own brain, and a relationship with yourself not built on shame. This episode explains what pre-skills are, why they matter, and how they work together with executive function to create lasting change. Key Points Covered • Why strategies fail: building without a foundation • The 4 core pre-skills every adult with ADHD needs • Self-awareness as the bedrock of all change • Why nervous system regulation is not optional • The soil-and-seeds model: how pre-skills and executive function work together Links Mentioned • drbarbaracohen.com — All episodes + show resources • Get Sh*t Done (GSD) 9-Month Program — drbarbaracohen.com

  6. Jun 23

    What Executive Function Really Is (And Why Nobody Told You) - 123

    "Executive function" gets thrown around constantly in ADHD conversations — but rarely explained. In this episode, DrB breaks down exactly what executive function is, walks through every core skill (working memory, cognitive flexibility, inhibitory control, planning, task initiation, emotional regulation, and time management), and delivers the most important reframe in ADHD education: these are skills, not fixed traits. They can be learned, built, and integrated for life. Key Points Covered • Executive function explained plainly: your brain's management system • The 7 core executive function skills and what they look like in ADHD adults • Why "executive function disorder" is a misleading framing • The difference between a deficit and a skill gap • A preview of pre-skills — the foundation that makes everything else possible Links Mentioned Register for the June 23 Masterclass for free with optional VIP upgrade:   https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/ Learn about GSD: https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram Learn about the Gifted Underachiever: https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/blog?tag=gifted+underachiever

  7. Jun 16

    Nobody Taught You How to Learn - 122

    It took DrB fifteen years to finish a four-year degree — not because she wasn't capable, but because she was searching for an education and kept finding a factory. In this episode, she shares her full story and connects it to a message she received from a high school student halfway around the world who asked the question she hears from almost every student: why can't I concentrate, and why doesn't studying work for me? The answer isn't willpower or discipline. It's about a system that teaches what to learn but never how — and a population of gifted, high-capacity brains that pay the heaviest price for that gap. DrB breaks down what concentration actually is, why re-reading your notes is largely a waste of time, and six strategies for finally working with your brain instead of against it. Key Topics: • DrB's personal story: 15 years, multiple schools, and a brain that refused to settle • Why gifted brains are most harmed by standard education • The truth about concentration — it's not low, it's discerning • Retrieval practice vs. re-reading — the most important switch you can make • Six evidence-based strategies for brain-aligned learning • The connection between this and the work of GSD Links: Register for the June 23 Masterclass for free with optional VIP upgrade:   https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/ Learn about GSD: https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram Learn about the Gifted Underachiever: https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/blog?tag=gifted+underachiever

  8. Jun 9

    I'm Back — And So Is Your Brilliance - 121

    After a three-year hiatus due to health challenges, DrB returns to Living Beyond ADHD with a message that hasn't changed — and a conviction that's stronger than ever. In this comeback episode, DrB lays out the truth about adults with ADHD: you are bright, gifted, and capable of extraordinary things. What's holding you back isn't a disorder — it's missing pre-skills and executive function skills that were never taught to you. And the most radical idea of all? Those skills can be learned. Welcome back. Podcast Episodes & Transcripts https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/blog?tag=podcast GSD Program Information: https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/gsdprogram  Most ADHD programs give you strategies. GSD gives you a transformation. In nine months of deep, structured, high-touch work, you go from the inside out — dismantling the limiting beliefs and outdated identities that have been running your life, building the pre-skills that make everything else possible, and then systematically developing all 13 core executive function skills that may have been derailed by ADHD, depression, anxiety, trauma, addiction, or chronic illness. With weekly live coaching, individualized assessment, personal debriefs from DrB, and a community of adults doing the same profound work — you don't come out of GSD with better habits. You come out a different person. Not because you became someone new. Because you finally built what was always supposed to be yours. That is not a promise — it is what the data shows.TTC Program Information:  https://www.drbarbaracohen.com/ttcprogram  Most adults with ADHD have spent their whole lives being told what's wrong with them — but nobody ever gave them the actual skills to change it. The Transformation Club is 12 lessons covering the executive function and life skills that were never taught to you: from mindset and beliefs to priorities, decisions, emotional maturity, and living with intention. With monthly live coaching calls and a supportive community, this is where real, lasting transformation happens — at your own pace, on your own terms.Exciting New Masterclass Debut:  June 23, 2026, 10 am – 2 pm Pacific Time with VIP Option.  https://itwasneveryoumasterclass.com/

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4.7
out of 5
120 Ratings

About

After a three-year hiatus due to health challenges, DrB returns to Living Beyond ADHD with a message that hasn't changed — and a conviction that's stronger than ever. In this comeback episode, DrB lays out the truth about adults with ADHD: you are bright, gifted, and capable of extraordinary things. What's holding you back isn't a disorder — it's missing pre-skills and executive function skills that were never taught to you. And the most radical idea of all? Those skills can be learned. Welcome back.

Information

  • Creator
    DrB
  • Years Active
    2017 - 2026
  • Episodes
    128
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 @2026 Living Beyond ADHD with DrB
  • Show Website
    Living Beyond ADHD

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