What is auDHD? Autism and ADHD Combined | The Neurocuriosity Club

What is auDHD? Well, on the surface, it's easy: it's autism & ADHD.

But the reality of being auDHD is actually really complicated. Because autism and ADHD are such different experiences, so when they go together, it gets...weird.

If you want to utilize my Autism & ADHD Discovery Binders to figure some of this out for yourself, you can check those out here:

If you want to work with me as your coach (I cannot diagnose, but I can help with many of the traits discussed in this video) book a Discovery Call here:

To learn more about Neuroemergent Time, follow Marta Rose on Instagram:

😊 Hi, I'm Megan Griffith, I'm an auDHD life coach for the neurocurious, meaning I love helping people who know they're neurodivergent, but aren't quite sure specifically where they fit yet.

🚨 DISCLAIMER: I am a life coach, not a therapist or doctor. I cannot diagnose anything, especially not from a YouTube video. Please use my videos as informational, rather than diagnostic. 🚨

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If you or a loved one is experiencing an immediate mental health crisis, please go directly to the nearest emergency room.

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[nathanhallisey]

I was diagnosed with ADHD aged 42. I have been told for years that i am autistic. I have two kids with both ADHD and autism. I have only come to understand that i am autistic in the last few months aged 45. Now i know why my life is on hard mode.

[vazzaroth]

Internal screaming/meltdowns are extremely adaptive, like you said: Safer... but it's at an extreme personal cost that no one externally can see, evaluate, or even understand really.

[PChuu]

I got my ADHD diagnosis the year before my autism diagnosis. Both together explain SO much of my 40 years of life and I'm honestly kinda pissed that I spent so much of my life feeling like I was a failure of a person when in reality, I was just a totally different operating system.

Or, as one person so kindly put it, I wasn't a failed dog. I was a cat who did such a good job of pretending to be a dog that most dogs had no idea I wasn't one. 😂

[misce_]

I feel like there are many ways audhders self-medicate, even unconsciously, with other things than substances. for example, i used to need to eat a whole tablet of chocolate before starting a demanding task for my executive function, in order to provide to my brain a sufficient enough dopamine level to be able to start

[TheAGcollector]

I usually say "undiagnosed neurodivergent", but truthfully this is the thing that I believe describes me the best.

[zenpie]

I thought I didn’t feel a lot for most of my life. Then I realized I was actually angry all the time. And then it clicked when I found out what being disregulated feels like to me (spoilers, it’s anger) 😬

[fintux]

I've said that AuDHD is sometimes like car whose brake and gas pedals are pushed the same time. The casual observer doesn't notice anything special going on, but it's really straining the engine and finding the balance is hard (kind of like the over/under stimulation). I often feel like I need to rest but I'm not able to as I want to use the free time to do something interesting etc. Also I just recently found out about the seven types of rest people need, and while my hobbies give me some kinds of rest, I should really focus more on making sure I get all kinds of rest I need.

[melaniesf]

OMG!!! I HAVE NEVER EVER HEARD OF ANYONE ELSE RUBBING THEIR PAINTED FINGERNAILS ON THEIR LIPS TO CALM DOWN!!! I THOUGHT I WAS ALONE!!! I'm sorry for the shouting but hearing you say that made all of the emotions just burst out at once ❤

[ronjaj.addams-ramstedt]

3:49 Re: emotional dysregulation, we need to remember that many of us* have also experienced significant trauma, often in childhood, so post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or complex PTSD (C-PTSD) can add to the lability / fragility of our emotions. An unexpected reminder of a past traumatic experience can easily trigger a PTSD/C-PTSD flare, which - at least in my experience - is often difficult to distinguish from a "pure" neurodivergent meltdown or shutdown (I sometimes wonder if truly "pure" melt/shutdowns exist).

* autistic, ADHD, AutDHD, and/or otherwise neurodivergent

[lajourdanne]

Alexithymia is awful. My most common issues are: “am I bored, sleepy, sad, or hungry?” and “am I hot, angry, hungry, or anxious?” it’s bad.

[Blue]

Bro why am i crying 2 minutes into this! Ive never self diagnosed myself with anything but even just the inital explanation hit so close to what ive been feeling for actual decades.

[sparklemotion]

I flipped out once after being tormented for two weeks. I could postpone the meltdown with the idea that the situation would end after two weeks. When it didn't, I had to deal with both the continuation of the horrible situation but also losing my job if not back on time. I locked myself in the bathroom to have a complete melt down in never had before. Needless to say nobody cared for the reasons of my meltdown, and I was only shamed for having a meltdown.
All my meltdowns are internal. I can't get the image of a whole police squad throwing themselves on a man having a meltdown in his cell. He was in his cell and couldn't hurt anybody, the police was called and they came in full force on the man. I will be forever hunted by the terror of that poor man. I think it was in Belgium.

So, I always think don't give them an excuse to lock you up and throw away the key.

[ArtificialSweetners.]

Intro (what is auDHD?)
(0:00 - 1:47)

Autistic traits
(1:47 - 12:13)

1:47 - Hyper/hyposensitivity
3:20 - Alexithymia
3:48 - Emotional dysregulation
4:56 - Black + White thinking
5:28 - Stimming
6:08 - Meltdowns
8:28 - Shutdowns
9:28 - Special interests

Signs of ADHD
(12:13 - 18:48)

12:13 - No input filter
13:21 - Rejection Sensitivity
14:09 - Boredom
14:42 - Emotional dysregulation
15:28 - hyperfocus
16:00 - difficulty starting, finishing and switching tasks
16:50 - Misperception of time
17:40 - Fidgeting/internal restlessness

AuDHD traits/signs
(18:48 - 22:49)

18:48 - Emotional dysregulation
19:32 - Inconsistent sleep needs
20:21 - Narrow window of tolerance
21:04 - Self medicating
21:50 - Compensatory behaviours + masking

Outro
(22:49 - 23:18)

[keirapendragon]

The black and white thinking - Can that look like Very frustrated and anxious about something ambiguous but being okay with the thing being ambiguous once we're able to determine it's a genuinely ambiguous thing and not just that we don't understand the thing? Cause like, I Really hate ambiguity unless I'm sure the thing belongs in the 'ambiguity box'. And the ambiguity box is usually acceptable to me though I do still often feel the urge to poke at things in it to try to figure them out 😅

[miagasparovic]

Good LORD. A month or two ago, it occurred to me randomly how my personality is basically just a mix'n'match of other people's traits that I simply acquired throughout years.
I can't believe you just mentioned that.

[AKKritter]

Definitely seeing a pattern here. I so have special interests, but only until my adhd gets bored and finds somthing new to hyperfocus on. The Special special interests I will get back to at some point. I forget to eat for long periods of time then get hangry and have no idea why. I can feel.the breeze of a person coming into a room and miss Ive cut myself and I'm bleeding.

[danielaruhl]

❤ This is one of the best videos, if not THE best video on the topic I have seen so far, so thank you!
Found out that I am AuDHD at age 48, in research mode for 2 years now. Got my ADHD diagnosis age 49, trying ADHD meds for the first time at 50, still waiting on autism assessment (2 year waiting list). Many struggles throughout my life, many other diagnosis, nothing ever helped … Still on my journey to find out how to improve the quality of my life. And of my AuDHD kid!

[emilycatlady]

The way my face lit up when you said you rub your nail on your lip cuz they’re so smooth… I feel so seen 😅

[kaitlinhillier]

AuDHD here and new sub. Thank you soooo much for your thoughts on addiction. Sober now, but alcohol was my crutch when I needed it and I might not be here without it.

[elvwood]

As a child I used to describe what I now recognise as my shutdown mechanism as "the little man in the back of my head". When things got too much, he would flip a switch and take over to make sure I looked OK on the outside so I could get on with silently screaming inside. It meant I had no direct access to the outside, but at least I kept smiling. Looking back, I'm sure I probably didn't _actually_ look OK, but everybody thought me weird anyway, so hey.