Breaking down ADHD Neuroscience, Menstrual Cycles, Hormones and Anxiety

Aug 28, 2024

Joined by Nicole Vignola, a neuroscientist and author of 'Rewire: Your Neurotoolkit for Everyday Life', the conversation delves into the science behind ADHD and emotional regulation. They explore how brain networks influence creativity and attention, highlighting the benefits of meditation for focus. Nicole shares tips on managing social media distractions and improving sleep for ADHD support. The interplay between hormonal cycles and ADHD traits is also discussed, revealing how estrogen affects emotional regulation and impulsivity.

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INSIGHT

Understanding DMN and TPN in ADHD

The brain's default mode network (DMN) causes rumination and negative thinking especially in ADHD.
Activating the task positive network (TPN) helps redirect attention and reduce DMN overactivity.

ADVICE

Effective Meditation for ADHD

Use breath-focused meditation to develop introspective awareness and manage spontaneous thoughts.
Meditation trains the brain to redirect attention and handle distractions during tasks.

INSIGHT

Power of Visualization in Brain

Visualization activates the brain's reticular activating system to focus on goals and filter distractions.
Thought alone can rewire brain pathways and prepare the body to act on visualized scenarios.

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Neuroscience explains so much about our ADHD brain and the many traits, tendencies, and behaviours that come along for the ride. The more we understand our beautiful yet complex neurobiology, the more empowered we are to make sustainable and manageable changes to better enhance our lives.

So, I'm delighted to welcome this week's guest, Nicole Vignola, a neuroscientist, author, consultant, and brain performance coach, to the podcast.

Nicole's first book, Rewire: Your Neurotoolkit for Everyday Life is available now.

On today's episode of The ADHD Women's Wellbeing Podcast, Kate and Nicola speak about:

The science behind meditation
The brain's negativity bias
The function of the brain's 'DMN' AND 'TPN'
How self-interruptions affect our daily life
The power of meditation for emotional regulation
Nicole's tips for feeling more calm and positive
Feeling more self-aligned
The damaging effects of your phone and social media
Ways to be more mindful of your phone usage
Understanding dopamine better
The life-changing benefits of a healthier sleep routine
How hydrating first thing can be essential for the ADHD brain
How visualising works in the brain and how it can improve our habits
Aphantasia and learning how to visualise

You can find out more about Nicole via her website, www.nicolesneuroscience.com.

My other guest on today's ADHD Women's Wellbeing episode is Dr Lotta Borg Skoglund. We are at the cusp of new understandings about combining medical disciplines so we can understand ADHD in girls and women better through the lens of both menstrual cycles, hormones and psychiatry. This is for the lost generation of women who never got answers and for the future generations of girls who deserve better medical knowledge and research.

Lotta is an associate professor in psychiatry at the Department of Women and Children's Health at Uppsala University and an affiliated researcher at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet. She is the author of six popular science books on ADHD and addiction, and her book ADHD Girls to Women - Getting on the Radar has been translated into several European languages, English and Korean.

On this episode of the ADHD Women's Wellbeing Podcast, Dr Lotta Skoglund and Kate spoke about:

Feeling abandoned by healthcare professionals after an ADHD diagnosis
Why healthcare professionals should be working together to help patients
How an understanding of ADHD can change your health outcomes
Building autonomy to feel more empowered with our ADHD
Improving female-based medical research and ADHD
The importance of talking about your experiences with hormones to help others
Precision and patient-led medicine
Connecting Hormones and Psychiatry to help more ADHD women
Why fluctuating hormones and cycles need to be part of the bigger health picture
Getting to know your unique hormone cycle traits
How you can create a personalised health journal

You can learn more about Lotta's work via her website, www.borgskoglund.com and Letterlife.

Look at some of Kate's ADHD workshops and free resources here.

Kate Moryoussef is a women’s ADHD Lifestyle & Wellbeing coach and EFT practitioner who helps overwhelmed and unfulfilled newly diagnosed ADHD women find more calm, balance, hope, health, compassion, creativity, and clarity.