Feb 8
Join Tracy in Episode #60 of ADHD for Smart Ass Women as she welcomes her guest, Brandi Noll. Dr. Noll is currently Associate Professor at the University of Akron in Ohio where she teaches both graduate and undergraduate courses. She has 23 years of experience in education, which includes teaching children how to read and write, as well as teaching fellow adults how to best teach children to read and write. Brandi is also an author, presenter, and consultant in k-12 schools. She has co-authored a book related to preschool literacy curriculum, written numerous articles found within national journals regarding literacy instruction, and presented across the country at education conferences, sharing her knowledge and passion about how to best help students succeed. Brandi is also the mother of three. In 2016, while recovering from her second major hip reconstruction due to hip dysplasia, Brandi founded the Bucket List Adventure Company Ohio. Her focus was on bringing people together by encouraging them to step outside of their comfort zones to overcome their fears. Over the last few years Brandi has jumped out of a perfectly good plane, free-dived with sharks in the Atlantic Ocean, walked across fire, kayaked in alligator-infested waterways, ice climbed, rock climbed, and rappelled her way through much of the United State’s most strenuous and iconic trails. No surprise that Brandi’s also one of us. She has ADHD! Brandi shares: How she completed her Ph.D. in three years while working two part-time jobs with three children The circumstances surrounding her own ADHD diagnosis Symptoms that she always wondered about but now with the benefit of hindsight she recognizes as clearly ADHD? What has changed since her diagnosis? Why did she decide to start her travel company? Why did she start the “Adventure Club?” The knowledge that Brandi imparts on every one of her students What she believes the key to living successfully with ADHD is? Her number one ADHD workaround Her advice to a young woman just diagnosed with ADHD.
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"I will say that as I've gotten older, we learned so much more about it. And in retrospect, we start to recognize things from the past that we didn't recognize in the moment."
- Dr. Brandi Noll
"Go easy on yourself. That might be more of a perspective."
- Dr. Brandi Noll
"So we don't aren't able to match that label with successful people in our mind to start changing the perspective about it."
- Dr. Brandi Noll
- Dr. Brandi shares her experience with ADHD, including being diagnosed later in life and how hormonal changes affect her symptoms.
- Dr. Brandi and Tracy discuss the challenges of balancing work and personal life, particularly for high-powered career women who are often expected to prioritize their work over their personal well-being.
- Dr. Brandi shares her experience as a professor openly discussing her ADHD with students, challenging societal stigmas.
[22:49 - 38:18] ADHD, Stigma, and Starting a Business
- Dr. Brandi and Tracy discuss the stigma surrounding ADHD and how it affects individuals, including feeling ashamed and hiding their diagnosis.
- Dr. Brandi shares her experiences starting a business without a traditional business plan, instead relying on her adventurous spirit and desire to learn.
- Dr. Brandi starts an adventure club for people like her who enjoy trying new things every month, finding it hard to understand how non-ADHD people can focus on one interest area.
[38:18 - 52:52] ADHD Workarounds and Self-Care Strategies
- Dr. Brandi overcomes fear by understanding brain's processing of fear.
- Dr. Brandi and Tracy discuss how hyperactivity and anxiety can impact an individual's confidence and behavior.
- Dr. Brandi advises young women with ADHD to learn as much as possible about the condition and its effects on sleep, recognizing that it's a characteristic of ADHD and not a personal failing.
