0:04

Recently. On the podcast I have

0:06

a with a psychologist around eighty

0:09

Hd in adults and managing money

0:11

doing live and it really was

0:13

a bit of appear say for

0:15

those who might lead with someone

0:17

that has a D H D

0:19

someone going through the diagnosis of

0:21

having a D H D and

0:23

just a look under the hood

0:25

of how that plays out in

0:27

everyday life. Following on from that

0:29

I wanted to jump on and

0:31

share my own story about my

0:34

kind of. History around this

0:36

issue and then my diagnosis around

0:38

this issue and the change that

0:40

has occurred since having that. So

0:43

I'm not really planning to much

0:45

of this episode out. I really

0:47

don't think it's going to take

0:50

more than half an hour to

0:52

my story that might about. We're

0:55

talking all things eighty Hd and

0:57

my story. My name is Glenn

0:59

James and this. Is money.

1:10

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uh1.com. Before

1:44

we start, I do want to

1:46

preface this episode number one. It

1:49

is my story only. Okay, anything

1:51

you hear me say it's my

1:53

experience. It is my view. and

1:56

even if I say something that

1:58

a medical professional said. my

2:00

wife's may be in cross that might not be 100%

2:02

accurate. So don't listen and

2:04

say, Oh, I did that. Like Glenn,

2:06

I've automatically got this condition. This

2:09

is my story. And

2:11

it is more as a PSA. If

2:13

some of the things that I do

2:15

talk about resonate with you, maybe

2:18

chat with your GP. Okay. So

2:20

number one, it's my story. Number

2:22

two, if you

2:24

aren't interested in this type of

2:26

topic, I probably

2:28

wouldn't listen any further because I'm

2:31

just sharing my own journey around

2:34

how I've, you know, I thought

2:36

something was up for many

2:38

years. And then finally in

2:40

2024, I got an answer and

2:44

then how I've dealt with that. So it

2:47

really is probably not really,

2:49

I guess, money content

2:51

in terms of how to invest or, you

2:53

know, how to pay off debt. But what

2:56

I can share with this episode

2:58

is how I manage money being the impulsive

3:00

spender that I am and all that stuff.

3:03

So yeah, number two, it's really, it might

3:05

not be relevant for all. I did ask

3:07

our Facebook group if they wanted me to

3:09

do this episode, because I was like, Oh,

3:12

I'm happy to be honest and open about my

3:14

experience. But if most people don't care,

3:17

well, I won't waste my time and I'll literally

3:19

save my breath. So 98% of

3:21

people that we surveyed in the Facebook group said

3:23

that they would find this helpful. So

3:26

I think that's the main things. One,

3:28

it's my story. Two,

3:33

don't listen if you're not interested in, in this

3:36

type of content. And three, see

3:38

your own GP always if you

3:40

have suspicions of issues or

3:43

anything medically related. All right. I

3:46

will say my journey was a long journey.

3:50

And, you know, I know,

3:52

it's weird, like, there's a lot going on in the

3:54

world, and I'm always guilty of negative

3:57

positivity or whatever they call that. But

4:00

Like, yeah, probably not he's big

4:02

deal on a wealthy white

4:04

dude living in Australia. What's your problem?

4:06

There's a lot of crazy stuff happening

4:08

in the world that really matters. But

4:11

I guess comparing my

4:13

own self today

4:16

with my own self yesterday, there certainly

4:20

was something that needed to be addressed.

4:22

Okay. So we're not, this

4:25

is what I get stuck in my own head, don't

4:27

I? So yeah, this is, I'm just going to

4:29

chat about it. So what I'll do, I

4:31

think I'll start by saying for

4:33

many years, I just even,

4:36

I'll rewind like, I've

4:38

always, I've always said, if I

4:41

could be good at reading and comprehension, I'd

4:43

be a lawyer because I love, you know,

4:46

getting into the nuance of stuff and

4:48

the scenarios and all that stuff. And

4:51

I've never been a strong reader,

4:53

uh, which can mean

4:56

you're not good at comprehending

4:58

and it's interesting. Like I did some

5:00

study, um, obviously with my

5:03

career and I think because I

5:05

am interested in it, I

5:07

can kind of tolerate a little bit more

5:09

like reading all the financial stuff. Um, even

5:13

with like I've recently known that taste thing

5:17

before I was like taking the

5:19

medication for ADHD in

5:21

the, um, multiple choice

5:23

question, this is, and

5:26

this is some of the sloppy, um,

5:28

mistakes and I don't think it's

5:31

dyslexia. I think it

5:33

is that, um, hyperactivity

5:36

just got to move on, got to get

5:38

moving. Yep. That'll do like, it

5:40

could be like, uh, answered the following question,

5:42

ABC or D, um, what

5:45

month comes after January and

5:47

they might have December, February,

5:49

March, and July. Okay. Um,

5:52

so what month comes after January? And

5:55

I've peeped D and like, no,

5:57

that's wrong. Oh, no, I knew that

5:59

it was. February. I just, so

6:02

that's kind of, and it's really embarrassing

6:04

because there's some basic things in the,

6:06

some of the little TAFE exams

6:10

that I was doing that I categorically

6:12

knew the answer to, like 100% knew

6:14

the answer to, but my mind would just

6:16

be like, yep, got to get through this. Yeah.

6:19

What month is it? Yeah. February.

6:22

So that had kind of happened my whole life with a range of different

6:24

things. Now I

6:27

had always found it hard

6:30

to read and comprehend and

6:32

pay attention. And

6:34

the psychologist that I went to, I

6:37

went to a neuropsychologist and

6:40

they did a, you know, a couple of hour assessment with

6:42

me and then went

6:45

to a psychiatrist to go through that

6:47

report. But the neuropsychologist

6:49

said to me, it sounds like

6:51

you've like always just had careless

6:53

mistakes. And I'm like, yes, that's

6:56

like the perfect essence of the word.

7:00

My life is summed up

7:02

as just careless, sloppy mistakes,

7:04

but I'm not a careless person. And

7:07

like, I don't know if some of these stuff

7:09

is ADHD or not, but I'll give

7:11

you an example. I

7:13

had my own business being a financial

7:16

advisor for over 10 years. And before

7:18

that I was a financial advisor. And

7:22

before actually, before I get onto that, when

7:24

I was an employee as a financial advisor and

7:26

power planner in an office, I

7:29

struggled to hit KPIs because it was like

7:31

a deep focus work. Like

7:34

you've got to sit there, you've got to pay

7:36

attention. And this is an open office area, you

7:38

know, distractions everywhere. Like, oh, this guy's walking around,

7:40

this girl's walking around like this is just wild.

7:44

So I was really struggled to have a

7:46

high output in that role. And

7:49

I look back and be like, far out, if I would have had some

7:51

Ritalin back then, I would have smashed that

7:53

role. So it did

7:55

start to call problems when I

7:57

was an employee and the psychiatrist.

7:59

said to me that, look, being self-employed

8:01

now and for many

8:04

years since 2010, it's probably

8:06

masked a heap of the issues because if

8:08

I didn't feel like doing something, I could

8:11

just not do it and just kind of

8:13

float around. So,

8:15

it had been a problem for a while, but going

8:17

back to when I had my own business, it's

8:20

this weird thing that in the

8:22

ordinary course of life, I

8:24

would make careless mistakes. Now,

8:27

one thing with financial

8:30

advice, lots of

8:32

numbers, lots of detail, lots

8:36

on the line, okay? And

8:38

I was looking, I was thinking back the other day, I

8:41

really didn't make that many careless

8:43

mistakes when I was a

8:46

financial advisor, you know, putting wrong amounts

8:48

in and, you know, deducting 20 grand

8:52

out of a client's bank account instead of $2,000 like extra, you

8:56

know what? And this kind of speaks

8:58

to kind of some of the spending and how

9:00

I've managed money. I

9:03

knew that I had

9:05

to really focus with this job or

9:07

doing this advice document or doing this

9:09

application or doing this investment trade. And

9:13

I knew that because I

9:16

did usually make careless mistakes that

9:18

I had to be hyper focused

9:20

and hyper sensitive to, you

9:22

know, when I was working on client stuff. And

9:25

for me, I would

9:27

often be really, really exhausted

9:31

after a day working as a financial

9:33

advisor. Now, a lot of

9:35

people might get really exhausted, but I put

9:37

that back too because I'd never made any

9:40

real, you know, careless mistakes

9:42

of significance or any mistakes that, you

9:45

know, there's always mistakes in

9:47

human error, but it didn't plague me that

9:49

I kept investing the wrong amounts of people.

9:52

And we had checks in balances like if you're going to

9:54

do an investment in the office before

9:57

you hit trade, you'd get someone else

9:59

in. and they would double check it. So

10:01

that was just best practice anyway. But

10:04

yeah, I just was like, that's interesting looking back.

10:06

I knew that there was a problem. I knew

10:08

my proclivity was to be sloppy and not focused.

10:11

And yeah, I would

10:13

just really heavily concentrate and just

10:15

be so mentally exhausted after

10:18

a big day in the office, which I

10:21

don't really get mentally exhausted like that

10:23

anymore. So

10:26

yeah, that was an interesting thing. So if

10:29

we move now to, I guess, with the ADHD,

10:35

with TikTok and Instagram and all that stuff,

10:38

there is more an awareness out there now. There

10:41

are people like

10:43

me, I'm part of this awareness now.

10:46

I've realized I've had this problem and

10:49

I've heard someone talk

10:51

about and I'd resonated with

10:53

some of the things that people said.

10:57

I'm like, yeah, that could be a thing. So

10:59

I basically went, I

11:02

knew that you had to get a psychologist referral to

11:04

actually have this looked at. And

11:07

I didn't go to my GP, but I would encourage

11:10

everyone to go direct your GP first for

11:13

a referral or just to have

11:15

some questions answered. But

11:17

I went to a private type clinic

11:19

in Sydney and I won't actually give

11:21

the name of it because one, I

11:23

don't think it actually matters and I

11:26

think they may have closed

11:28

their books since I've booked. But

11:30

anyway, go to your GP. So I

11:33

first went to a private

11:35

clinic and like, hey, I'd like to go through

11:37

this process and either confirm

11:40

a diagnosis or rule it out

11:42

because I was quite open

11:44

to the fact that, oh, these are some of my symptoms.

11:47

It resonates with me hearing

11:49

other people's stories about ADHD.

11:53

I'm happy just to go through this process and

11:56

if you think that it is an issue, I'm

11:58

happy to treat it. you're like, no,

12:01

that's fine. I'll get on with my life. I

12:03

was totally okay. I

12:06

just wanted to kind of

12:08

confirm or, you know, confirm whether I

12:10

had ADHD or

12:12

not. Weirdly, I

12:14

think about 2013, after

12:18

I started my business, because I

12:22

wasn't, I kind of, I'm kicking

12:24

myself, because I'm

12:26

not a productive person. I don't feel

12:28

I'm productive. And I'm

12:31

just, I went to the doctor in 2013. Don't even

12:33

know who it was. I don't

12:36

even know who it was. And I'm like, Hey,

12:38

I'm thinking, is there any way that I can

12:40

get a medication for ADHD? Like,

12:42

I think I said that to the

12:44

doctor. And it was an interesting thing.

12:46

And it probably was more of a

12:48

that GP may have not have been

12:52

up to speed on all the stuff. And

12:55

he was pretty much like, Oh, well, you know, you'll

12:57

have to go to a psychologist and do the thing.

12:59

And, and he said to me like, Oh,

13:02

can you like watch a movie without getting

13:04

distracted? I'm like, Yeah, yeah. Like,

13:07

come to the movies. Oh, yeah, mine. I'll be so and that

13:09

kind of went away. I was a bit annoyed that I didn't

13:12

continue to just look on that

13:14

and, and I get it like, as

13:17

I said, at the start, I might be mischaracterizing

13:19

that. But I kind

13:21

of did scratch this nine years ago, or what

13:24

was it 11 years ago, rather. So,

13:29

yeah, that's, you know, we're

13:31

here now. So I went

13:33

to the neuropsychologist as

13:36

part of this private cleaning. So their

13:38

process was not just to go to

13:40

the psychiatrist, they would send

13:42

you to a neuropsychologist, do

13:44

the three hour, two

13:46

and a half or whatever it was booking

13:50

meeting, then see the psychiatrist

13:52

and chat about it. And we can

13:55

get into that. But what I thought

13:57

it might be interesting to do, I'm

13:59

going to actually read the

14:01

report that I got back

14:04

and it's called an ADHD screening assessment

14:06

report, my name, the

14:08

date of assessment, it was the end of last year, start

14:12

of November and

14:15

I'll be

14:18

pretty honest, I'll just read most of

14:20

it. I think there's one or two

14:22

lines of things that are hugely private

14:24

that I actually won't read but you'll

14:27

get the idea of the process for

14:29

me and the report and

14:32

then I'll talk to you about the

14:35

experience with the psychiatrist and

14:38

then I'll, I think

14:40

well then we'll have a break and then

14:42

I'll talk to you about some of the

14:44

wild, actually let's do

14:46

the wild impulsive stuff now because looking

14:48

back on this this is so crazy,

14:50

alright. So if you've done

14:52

the Glen James spending plan, that plan,

14:54

it was born realistically

14:58

me noting I had a problem

15:00

in my life with spending and

15:03

it's just like you can be

15:05

a spender or saver but then you

15:07

can be like hugely impulsive, right and

15:09

I think I've even called this episode,

15:12

what am

15:14

I gonna call it, I'm just gonna bring up the thing,

15:19

riveting podcast content, this isn't it. Yeah,

15:23

I'm calling this episode, I was an

15:25

impulsive buyer and not a mindful spender

15:28

and it just speaks to like

15:30

exactly what I was, I was

15:32

so impulsive with so many things

15:34

in my life, it was so

15:36

disruptive and financially

15:38

I would just

15:40

in my early 20s just could not save

15:42

money, I would buy everything, it was so

15:44

crazy and then when I

15:46

developed the Glen James spending plan, it

15:49

was actually designed in a way looking

15:52

at it to protect me as an

15:55

impulsive ADHD spender but

15:59

within all that when we do the Glen James Spending

16:01

Plan online course, which is free. Everyone you can just

16:04

Google the Glen James Spending Plan. It's a free

16:06

online course as a spreadsheet. It

16:08

actually gives the savers an amount and permission

16:10

to spend as well. But for people like

16:12

me, it really helped me, um,

16:16

have all my bills covered, save

16:18

for the future and spend weekly

16:20

without any issues and really see

16:22

money increase. Uh, so I, I, in

16:25

the online course I talk about, I woke up one

16:28

morning, went to the city and bought an Apple watch

16:30

with some friends. That was a thousand dollars or whatever

16:32

it was, $1,100. That

16:35

morning I didn't plan

16:37

to buy an Apple watch. So

16:41

that's, that's an issue. It

16:44

was also an issue that I had a

16:46

thousand dollars just laying around at easy access

16:48

at the checkout. Um, so

16:51

that was like one kind of note. And

16:53

these are kind of just funny things that,

16:55

and I'm fortunate enough that money

16:58

has been good in terms of my

17:00

income. Uh, I've got a really good

17:02

income. I've, um, I've done well

17:05

financially, like building a business up and all

17:07

that, selling it and, but there's

17:09

been so much turmoil. And

17:12

one thing that I think

17:14

is a really good word for the last, however, many

17:17

years of my life has been

17:19

this turmoil. And

17:23

if you are listening to this and

17:25

you have a diagnosis, it

17:27

probably makes sense to you. Just I've

17:30

lived in chaos, internal,

17:32

internal turmoil. It

17:34

hasn't been pleasant. What

17:37

is wrong with me? Like this is not

17:39

normal at the time. It feels normal

17:41

because it's just you. Another time we

17:44

actually had Chelsea Pottinger on the

17:46

podcast and in 2018, you know,

17:48

the more recent spendy things, um,

17:52

she was doing a keynote, um,

17:55

about her story and she

17:57

was talking about, you know, sleep and not,

18:00

Oaring during her presentation.

18:02

I logged on to the ordering

18:04

website and purchased an $800 ordering

18:07

Just like that and then at the time

18:11

the sense of Urgency, I

18:14

need to buy this right now.

18:16

This is so crazy. There's just

18:18

no I it's really hard

18:20

to explain The

18:22

sense of urgency that I would

18:24

get with the impulsive spending like

18:28

Crazy crazy crazy crazy. So

18:31

there's that impulsive spending and

18:33

then I've also got this thing happening

18:36

Where or if sums good more

18:38

must be better like absolutely during

18:41

covered you remember guys I talked about

18:44

I'm buying a kayak because I want to go

18:46

kayaking. This is how dumb this

18:49

was I purchased

18:52

Brand-new kayak delivered

18:55

to my house not only one kayak,

18:57

but two kayaks Because

19:00

someone will come with me. Why don't they? But

19:03

two brand-new kayaks just

19:06

under two grand or whatever it was without

19:08

even thinking about it The

19:11

crazy thing was and this is this

19:13

whole impulsive not

19:16

rational The

19:18

day the kayaks got delivered I

19:21

got home from wrist surgery Why

19:24

did I bother buying kayaks? Three

19:27

days before when I knew I was getting wrist

19:29

surgery and I would need to

19:31

recover before I could use them This

19:33

is crazy end up just Selling

19:36

them or giving them a whaling. I gave one away

19:38

and sold the other like it's a

19:40

waste of money this impulsive behavior so

19:43

not only the You

19:46

know impulsive behavior being there

19:50

In the background for many

19:52

many years. I would suffer

19:54

from extreme extreme boredom like

19:57

boredom So Crazy. And

20:01

it's different. the depression and I'd on

20:03

traded for that. But

20:05

yeah, so. Ah

20:07

has a keen on my main

20:10

board. So much known, his mother,

20:12

crazy stories and nieces. Again, it's.

20:15

It's an interesting exercise because I'm

20:17

financially well off and privileged. So

20:21

I. I. Bought

20:23

that bloody boat that are talk about. While

20:26

it was getting seats. I.

20:29

Unlock all the boats getting seeks. It's gonna be getting

20:31

a new engine for a couple of. Months

20:34

or whatever. it's offline. I when bought

20:36

a temporary both. And

20:38

I remember the by who was his

20:40

nine thousand dollars. And

20:43

rocked up. Might hi.

20:46

Bill. Or by at. The

20:49

the I grad Yeah right am. Guggenheim,

20:52

Mermaids and I we to refer

20:54

run and the big they'd crap

20:56

two strokes dang wouldn't see so

20:58

bad and then i sold at

21:00

managed to make fifteen hundred dollars

21:03

but this will happen within like

21:05

a one week period. Like this

21:07

is not normal like stunk of

21:09

by temporary but that's a piece

21:11

of crap. But

21:16

then again I'm like well I saw

21:18

a temporary both his home in and

21:20

bought sign a lot better. offered twenty

21:22

five thousand dollars and damn. And

21:25

I met him basically solved that. So

21:27

what I bought a for wasn't a

21:29

financial loss, but the whole thing was

21:31

that impulsivity of buying that. First.

21:35

Little boat without thinking about it and

21:37

all that. One

21:39

thing. That. Has also

21:41

been a problem in a. That.

21:44

Tales some states ah have had

21:46

a recent issue. oh it's just

21:49

a nightmare. Dislike talking staff holidays

21:51

or airline two years and booking

21:53

the wrong date and does not

21:55

double checking like just Tales and

21:58

States. Bit of a superior. Attitude:

22:00

There's so many other

22:02

little financial things that.

22:05

I'm. I'm

22:08

just wasted money doing. By.

22:10

Users would not believe it. I'm.

22:15

Sure, I

22:17

don't like the impulsivity thing. Mrs.

22:20

Interesting like if I go. To.

22:23

Shop. And wanna buy something by?

22:25

Yeah, I'll do. I'll get them on. The

22:28

haven't looked at all the other things available. I

22:30

haven't researched it. I'm

22:33

so I. Just.

22:35

Like total. Funny. To

22:37

train wrecks. But because I knew that

22:39

when I did the Glenn's I'm Spending

22:42

plan I put a system in place

22:44

cause I knew that I was really

22:46

crap. like really really tramp at saving

22:48

money. Like so so crap.

22:50

So I had to set up different bank

22:52

accounts and a had to only set them

22:55

up. At the from back

22:57

house but we different banks. Sub

22:59

got my week we spend thing that on my

23:01

phone that I tap. My.

23:04

Other bank. It's. Not even on

23:06

my phone it out of sight out of

23:08

my my savings cause what I've learned with

23:10

a hasty thing. Is.

23:13

A. Lot of it is. Or

23:17

can be visual stimulation says i see

23:20

something and just. So.

23:22

The money they have. the money say

23:24

I'm I must spend at. I mean

23:26

it's sitting there. it's gonna do anything

23:29

now. I can save more money another

23:31

time. This time I'll just spend a

23:33

couple thousand over some kayaks that I

23:35

used swat s than of a mention

23:37

that before and it. It's.

23:39

Wild and then though. these other side of

23:41

it, right? Where I

23:44

was. Ah, really learning about.

23:47

In our i was saving money

23:49

and I really wanted to buy

23:51

one of those seem rigs racing

23:53

simulators and I actually did research

23:55

this. And was

23:57

looking around and started buying all the stars.

24:00

Then. Become. A Christmas is go

24:02

over the holiday season. I purchased at

24:04

all and said it all up and

24:06

as great as that thrill of setting

24:08

it all up. and mind you. I

24:12

spent twelve thousand dollars. On. Buying

24:14

B C. Murray the computer.

24:16

Three strains because none, I

24:18

don't. Don't. Buy it.

24:20

Logitech. Hundred dollar. Steering.

24:23

Wheel and put on your desk. and as

24:25

by a computer game and Cp like playing

24:27

games, know that craps spent twelve thousand dollars

24:29

and by simmering with the big metal thing

24:32

if you don't know, with a rising seed

24:34

and vibrates and all that spent twelve thousand

24:36

dollars on a similar age, I just play

24:38

that. May. As well or some.

24:42

I used simmering twice. Because.

24:45

I was bored. Nabbed boring

24:47

playing that, not doing it. Sold.

24:49

It. But. A soulful

24:51

I Grant segment. Throwing

24:54

money away by was only couple years ago.

24:58

So. It wasn't that. Impulse.

25:00

So my whole lot One: the sending up

25:02

to bail on the podcast. Was

25:05

anything either one percent of my annual

25:07

income? I've gotta sleep on it. So.

25:10

If I and one hundred grand a year anything

25:12

over a thousand dollars you sleeping on it. Pick.

25:16

Point: Five percent. Anything

25:18

either point. Five percent of my annual incomes

25:20

behind one hundred grand a year. He.

25:22

Something comes up and it's five hundred dollars. You sleeping

25:25

on it. Pick. Two

25:27

hundred. I'll pick some type of threshold to

25:29

protect you. So.

25:31

Choose and I'm sort of been learning like

25:33

I did. Have

25:36

that threshold where I didn't buy the seem

25:38

rigs vote was in all the past twelve

25:40

thousand and all over not. I was thinking

25:42

about the Samantha and. This

25:44

is awesome setting it up you

25:46

know music on it took me

25:48

a few days the said lob

25:51

ah set up the and on

25:53

fans gone. Domains.

25:55

Worn off. as

25:57

you that kind of fun but not really into

25:59

games Waste

26:01

of money. So

26:03

the Glen James spending plan really did help me

26:07

because I identified that it

26:09

was a terrible saver. So

26:12

I had to learn that I

26:14

would become an amazing investor and

26:16

that was to set up my

26:18

financial life like the financial

26:20

house that we talk about. We

26:23

do the foundations, we have all this and

26:25

then we allocate money automatically to our investments

26:27

out of sight, out of mind. My

26:32

investment property is principal and interest. I've

26:34

got the money, most will pay extra

26:36

on the investment property for savings, I'll

26:38

probably spend it. So

26:41

I became a really good investor. Once money is

26:44

committed to my investment account, it stays. Once

26:47

money obviously gets taken out of

26:49

my account and goes into

26:53

the property, it obviously stays. So

26:55

it's this kind of wild thing. I

26:58

think a lot of people like

27:00

me, you might be a

27:02

bit loose on the spending thing but often you can

27:04

be very generous. And

27:08

I'm very generous and done a lot of

27:10

generous things. I haven't

27:12

done anything generous that was to the detriment

27:14

of my financial life

27:17

but maybe some of the

27:19

things I shouldn't have done. Like

27:25

if I'm in a relationship and I'll

27:28

buy someone something extravagant like

27:31

$1000, hey surprise,

27:33

he's a new TV or he's a new iPhone.

27:38

It just doesn't, it's just ridiculous, just doesn't

27:40

in that sense, you don't need

27:42

to do that. So

27:44

that's kind of what I've learned. They

27:47

reckon those with ADHD

27:50

really suffer from emotional regulation.

27:54

It's just been very interesting to reflect on

27:57

relationships and all that stuff. Yeah,

28:02

I don't really want to get

28:04

into the relationship stuff too much

28:07

because it's hurtful because you just

28:10

regret and anyway.

28:14

Yeah, it's and I'm going

28:16

through all this stuff at the moment with like

28:19

schema therapy and you know looking at why

28:23

I do different things and you

28:28

know the biggest schema thing in schema

28:30

therapy was insufficient impulse control. That was

28:32

my biggest thing and then the coping

28:34

mechanism for that is withdrawal. I

28:36

was like, oh my gosh. So this guys

28:40

started 2024 for me. I've

28:43

had this huge emotional reckoning. I've

28:45

had a mental reckoning. I'm learning

28:47

more about me. ADHD

28:49

is getting under control leaning into this

28:51

schema therapy and the insufficient impulse control

28:54

which looks like ADHD is my main

28:56

schema and that also has emotional regulation

28:58

problems and my life's a train wreck

29:00

when I look at that but I'm

29:03

so happy that I'm

29:05

facing this stuff on like head on

29:07

now. So

29:10

it's been a really interesting journey the last few

29:12

months for me. ADHD diagnosis.

29:14

I had another event in my

29:16

life that it's irrelevant but it

29:18

really rocked me mentally and went

29:22

to the psychologist and working through this schema stuff.

29:25

So yeah, this is an emotional reckoning for

29:27

me. So

29:30

it's just been so wild and

29:32

I kind of do you talk

29:34

about this stuff publicly. I

29:37

guess I am but if it

29:39

helps someone you know who's got any

29:41

type of issues go and talk to someone

29:43

else well surely

29:45

I'll be your martyr. You

29:48

know I'll put all my crap on the line to help

29:50

someone else. So

29:52

that's the only reason I really want to

29:55

do this awareness and encouragement and I really

29:57

appreciate your grace for just letting me Chat.

30:00

Freely about the stuff. So let's

30:02

have a look at what's the

30:04

nearest psychologists wrote to. I'm. Actually,

30:07

Will have a bright and will be back

30:09

and I'll read it right off the speakers

30:11

like did all that money while stuff so

30:13

we'll be back on after this. If you're

30:15

off the first. A Financial Advice: Don't get

30:17

it from a podcast. If you would like

30:19

health placed on your own personal situation, head

30:21

over to sort your money out the.com clicks,

30:23

get help and will be happy to introduce

30:25

you to one of our trusted advisers. Our

30:27

panel of advises, mortgage brokers and accountants with

30:29

the clients all over Australia so they can

30:31

connect with you wherever you are. That's what

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Gas. Okay,

31:44

I'm back for this is

31:46

the idea. Has the screenings

31:48

assessment report it's confidential report

31:50

the my name a database.

31:53

and as it on on and as a as

31:55

a said i'm going to read this pretty much

31:57

is probably only two three sentences and i won't

31:59

read by You'll get the gist of that.

32:03

Reason for referral. Mr. James

32:05

is a 39-year-old right-handed male who

32:07

presented for an assessment with query

32:10

for ADHD or attention

32:13

deficit hyperactivity disorder due to

32:16

complaints of focus-slash-concentration, difficulties

32:19

and impulsivity in his day-to-day life. I

32:22

will say as well, this is anecdotal, but I've

32:24

heard and seen that bad handwriting, and I

32:26

talk to the psychiatrist about this, is

32:29

quite common in those with ADHD, and

32:31

also being like uber-flexible, like

32:33

I've got so much

32:35

ligament laxity, it's so wild.

32:39

Brief physiosocial and medical history.

32:43

Mr. James was born in Australia

32:45

and reported no delays in meeting

32:47

the developmental milestones. Still

32:49

can't read. Throughout his

32:52

schooling, he recalled having difficulties focusing in

32:54

class and said he always found learning

32:56

in the classroom environment challenging. He

32:59

described himself as an average student

33:01

academically. He

33:04

reported experiencing

33:06

reading and comprehension difficulties, the

33:09

irony is fascinating, or I can't read

33:11

that probably, during school but was not

33:14

diagnosed with any specific learning disorder. He

33:16

left high school at the end

33:19

of year 11 and subsequently pursued

33:21

a certificate 3 in telecommunications, including

33:24

an apprenticeship in this field. He

33:26

then completed both the diploma and advanced

33:29

diploma of financial planning and another

33:32

master's level certification course. Currently

33:35

he's completing a certificate 2 in maritime

33:37

operations. In terms of employment,

33:40

he was previously employed as a financial

33:42

advisor. Currently he's

33:44

a podcaster hosting a successful

33:46

personal finance podcast for the past six

33:48

years where he manages a small team

33:50

of employees. Currently he's

33:53

altered two books and he's currently working on a

33:55

third. So we'll say just a

33:57

sidebar from that report, there were times when he was a

33:59

student who where I could have intense

34:01

focus and hugely intense

34:04

focus. So when I wrote

34:06

the sort your money out

34:08

book, I went to Queenstown

34:10

for three weeks straight, got

34:13

an apartment overlooking the water there, and every

34:15

day for 10 hour days, just sat there

34:17

and brain dumped and wrote the book. 120,000

34:21

words, basically within

34:23

three weeks, pumped it out. Might

34:25

have been a week or two at home, but

34:27

the lion's share of that, solid

34:30

focus, hyper focus, three

34:33

weeks straight, 10 to 12 hour days writing

34:35

the book. Weird. He

34:39

reported a long standing history of anxiety

34:41

and depression. Should have

34:43

read this as the podcast, would have solved a

34:46

lot of problems. After being more aware

34:48

of his mental health issues in his early 30s,

34:50

he sought help from his GP, saw

34:53

a psychologist and began taking the venloflaxine,

34:55

75 mil, which he had found very

34:59

effective in improving his mood and

35:01

anxiety. In

35:05

2000, I'm

35:08

just going to

35:10

skip this. Currently

35:13

he rarely experiences headaches

35:16

because I just mentioned I went and

35:18

got some CT scans a few years ago

35:20

because I had some headaches and I just

35:22

had to change medication for depression and anxiety.

35:25

He's a teetotaler and a non-smoker. School

35:29

reports. Mr. James provided school

35:31

reports from year seven till 10 to 10. Overall

35:35

he was described as a courteous and well

35:38

behaved student. However, teacher

35:40

comments noted that he lacks concentration in

35:42

class, needs to apply more effort in

35:45

class and with his homework. He's

35:48

easily distracted in groups and

35:50

attends class without required studying

35:52

materials. LIRL.

35:55

So yeah, they basically got all my

35:57

reports and they had my family. like

36:00

my mum and my sister, do

36:02

a questionnaire, what was Glenn like when he was 16. Assessment.

36:06

Behavioral observations. Mr.

36:09

James was seen over telehealth for a

36:11

two-hour assessment and was on time for

36:14

his appointment. Mind you, my friends, the

36:17

morning of the first of the 11th, when

36:19

this appointment was, I landed

36:22

in Sydney Airport, drove straight home two

36:24

hours, sat down at my desk and

36:26

clicked go. I was on

36:28

time, just because my

36:31

plane got delayed. I extended my trip anyway. I

36:34

was impressed that I was on time, just saying, guys. He

36:37

was friendly, cooperative and engaged well

36:39

throughout. Mood

36:41

was reported as good and effect

36:44

was appropriate. Overall,

36:46

he focused well throughout, but did appear

36:48

to become distracted during conversations on a

36:50

few occasions. He was

36:52

also quite fidgety throughout, not overt,

36:55

expressive or receptive

36:57

language difficulties were evident

36:59

on a conversational level. Self-report

37:02

symptoms. Mr. James had

37:05

a range of symptoms in keeping with

37:07

ADHD, which he described

37:09

as long standing and pervasive, persisting

37:12

during times of mental wellness. In

37:15

his leadership position at work, he said that

37:18

he tends to impossibly change his mind often,

37:21

which adversely affects the workflow and productivity of

37:23

his team. Sorry, friends, I am working on

37:25

it and you know, I'm working on it.

37:27

I'm sorry. He reported,

37:29

he reportedly often says things

37:31

without thinking and he's aware of the

37:34

issue, but still finds it challenging to

37:36

control in his role as

37:38

a podcaster. He's mindful of his

37:40

tendency to interrupt guests, which

37:42

was a particular issue raised earlier

37:44

during his podcasting career. He

37:47

also experiences intense frustration with traffic

37:49

and cues, especially when feeling on

37:52

edge. As

37:54

I know, when I'm not right, when I'm so like,

37:57

hurry up, for me, that's a symptom

37:59

where I'm not. a balance if I'm

38:01

annoyed in traffic. Just

38:03

my little thing. Don't know if it's relevant to ADHD.

38:08

Where are we? He

38:10

reportedly comes bored easily both in

38:12

activities and relationships. He

38:14

has a pattern of starting projects such as

38:16

online courses and hobbies. Amen

38:19

brother, amen. I'm

38:21

a starter, not a finisher, but struggles

38:23

to see them through to completion. He

38:27

also struggles with maintaining a consistent

38:29

exercise routine. Yeah boy. His

38:33

spending habits are reportedly impulsive,

38:35

including significant expenditures on tech

38:37

gadgets like cameras and microphones,

38:39

which he often ends up

38:41

giving away. It's true. I

38:43

buy so much crap and give it away. He

38:47

acknowledged having a strong addiction to his

38:49

phone and social media, noting

38:53

that he sometimes deletes and reinstalled distracting

38:55

apps on his phone. He

38:57

experiences significant difficulty staying

39:00

focused while reading, like I'm experiencing

39:02

now, noting that he's easily

39:04

distracted by other thoughts that excite him, prompting

39:07

him to get up and work on these new ideas.

39:10

He feels like he lacks productivity,

39:12

he's easily distracted and he's prone

39:15

to procrastination. Although noted

39:17

he can lock himself away, quote

39:19

unquote, and work efficiently when

39:22

required under time

39:24

pressures. Diagnostic

39:26

interview. The diagnostic

39:28

interview for ADHD in adults, third

39:30

edition, DIV slash

39:32

five was conducted

39:35

with Mr. James. The

39:37

interview used to ask

39:39

about the, the interview was used to

39:41

ask about the presence of ADHD in

39:43

patients experienced during both childhood and adulthood.

39:46

The questions are based on the DSM five criteria

39:48

for ADHD. Number

39:50

one, attention. Mr.

39:52

James indicated that the following symptoms were

39:55

present during childhood and adulthood, often

39:57

failing to give close attention to detail. or

40:00

makes careless mistakes, often

40:02

has difficulty sustaining attention while

40:04

completing tasks and activities, often

40:07

does not follow through on instructions and

40:09

fails to finish work and

40:11

chores, often avoids dislikes

40:14

or is reluctant to engage

40:16

in tasks that require sustained

40:18

mental effort, often

40:20

easily distracted by extra

40:25

nayus stimuli, I don't know what that word is, that's

40:28

the new one, whatever, easily

40:30

distracted I'll take that as. Number

40:34

two, hyperactivity slash impulsivity.

40:38

Mr. James indicated that the following symptoms were

40:40

present during childhood and adulthood. Often

40:42

fidgets or taps with hands or feet or

40:45

squirms in seat often feels restless, often

40:48

blurts out answers before questions have been completed,

40:51

often finds it difficult to wait his

40:53

turn, often interrupts or intrudes on others

40:56

during adulthood but not childhood, often

40:59

on the go acting as if driven by

41:01

a motor quote unquote, age

41:03

of onset, when asked whether he had these

41:06

experiences when he was in primary school

41:08

he largely endorsed they were present since

41:10

his childhood years, impact

41:12

on functioning, Mr. James identified that

41:14

his symptoms impact his

41:17

functioning in work relationships and home

41:19

settings, test

41:21

results based on his performance on a

41:23

formal word reading task, Mr. James pre

41:26

morbid functioning was estimated to fall

41:29

in the average range,

41:32

his basic auditory attention span and

41:34

auditory working memory were both in

41:36

the average range, he

41:38

performed in the extremely low range

41:40

on speeded colour naming, on

41:43

a speeding colour naming task and

41:45

the borderline range on speeded word

41:47

reading tasks. That's

41:50

an interesting one, I've always you know that

41:52

thinking fast thinking slow thing you

41:54

know if you threw numbers to me like then what's 10

41:56

plus 10 I'll just like what 10 plus 10 how do

42:00

What do you expect me to think about that on the fly

42:02

so far? So I need time to sit

42:04

down and like, okay, 10 plus 10. Oh

42:07

yeah, 20. On

42:10

a response inhibition task requiring him

42:12

to inhibit a more salient response,

42:14

reading the printed word in

42:17

order to perform a more conflicting task,

42:19

naming the dissonant ink

42:21

colors where the words are

42:23

printed in, he performed in the borderline range

42:25

on a more complex response

42:28

inhibition paradigm requiring alternative naming of

42:30

the ink of a printed word

42:32

and reading that word, he performed

42:34

in the extremely low range. Mood.

42:39

On a self-report mood inventory

42:41

regarding experiences over the past week,

42:43

his response were consistent with mild levels

42:46

of anxiety and to fee levels of

42:48

depression and stress. Yeah,

42:51

okay. Yeah, probably was at

42:53

that time. Connors.

42:57

Mr. James completed the Connors

42:59

Adult ADHD Scale

43:02

self-report long version to exam features

43:04

consistent with ADHD as well as

43:07

other comorbid conditions. He rated

43:09

himself as being very elevated

43:11

in terms of hyperactivity restfulness

43:13

lists, can't even read it,

43:15

restlessness and mildly elevated

43:17

in terms of impulsivity and emotional

43:19

liability. There's a little chart there.

43:23

Impression. Based on the current

43:25

assessment which includes interview

43:27

behavioral observations, brief cognitive

43:29

testing, self-reported ratings and

43:32

school records, it

43:34

is my impression that

43:36

Mr. James meets diagnostic

43:38

criteria for attention deficit

43:40

hyperactivity disorder combined

43:42

presentation. Mr. James

43:44

has history of symptoms arising during

43:46

the developmental period that

43:49

continue to persist in adulthood. His

43:51

depression and anxiety are reported to be currently

43:53

well managed and there is no clear evidence

43:56

to suggest these issues are significant factors in

43:58

contributing to his past or current ADHD. ADHD

44:00

symptoms. Recommendations, one,

44:03

Mr. James may benefit from a trial

44:05

of ADHD medication, two,

44:09

pseudo-education around the importance of regular

44:11

exercise in managing the symptoms of

44:13

ADHD and there's a

44:15

list of some resources, blah,

44:18

blah, blah, blah, signed

44:20

the clinical neuropsychologist. So,

44:23

all that to say, I

44:26

went to the psychiatrist and we discussed

44:28

this report and

44:31

he agreed that it may

44:34

be beneficial for me to try medication, which I

44:36

did. That process,

44:38

and I don't think it even is helpful

44:40

to name the medication because

44:46

you've got to get your own advice, right? It's like if someone's

44:48

like, oh, what should I invest in? Well, I use

44:50

this ETF, but it might not be good

44:53

for you. The thing is you need to invest,

44:55

you've got to work out what to invest in. It's

44:57

like, well, I'd benefit from medication. You may as well

44:59

speak to a professional. I don't know, call me crazy. Before

45:04

that, so he's like, yeah, we'll get you started. And

45:07

so before that, I had a blood test.

45:09

I think they just did a usual

45:15

full blood count and some other stuff and

45:17

I did an ECG as well, which

45:20

were all clear. I went back and

45:22

talked to the psychiatrist and we

45:25

started on some short acting medication.

45:28

And look, it actually has changed

45:30

my life. I then

45:32

tried another

45:34

type glue kind of AB testing and there

45:36

was kind of two types of short acting.

45:38

And I said, I'll take that type.

45:40

So I did that. I'm like, I'd be interested to

45:42

see. So he gave me a small, very small supply

45:44

of the other type. And then I

45:47

did the first type for like a week. And then the

45:49

next day did the other time. Like, oh,

45:51

wow, I can notice this is actually much better than that one. So

45:53

that's kind of what we got to. And then I'm kind

45:56

of like, yeah, I think I'm

45:58

so the The words that I

46:00

said to the psychiatrist after this, as

46:03

a person, when I'm on

46:05

the medication, I feel

46:07

more measured and considered and

46:10

I'm more productive. I

46:13

was talking to Rach in the team yesterday. We're

46:15

talking about some stuff. I'm like,

46:17

as you can notice, now I'm medicated, there

46:19

are a lot more recordings happening because

46:22

I can actually function at a

46:24

really healthy capacity where before

46:27

my capacity was very, very

46:29

low, very low. I

46:32

could hide that, being self-employed, working

46:34

when I want to work, all

46:36

this stuff. It's changed

46:38

my life. I have been

46:40

also trying some long acting medication,

46:44

which stays in my system. It

46:46

has messed with my sleep a little bit,

46:48

so I'm going to talk about that with

46:51

him last time. What

46:53

I've basically learned in wrapping

46:55

up, and I hope this was just

46:57

helpful in you understanding

47:01

personally what I've been through because a lot of

47:03

you listen to me every single week, maybe multiple

47:06

times a week. I hope

47:08

it's helpful if you are

47:10

experiencing some of this weird stuff and there's

47:12

a question mark, there's something always been there.

47:17

I hope you can maybe speak to your GP and

47:20

walk down this road because I think maybe like

47:23

5% of the population might

47:26

have this condition or 10, I'm not

47:28

sure, but it's answered a lot

47:30

of questions for me. Just

47:32

understanding, not going to

47:35

lie, at the moment today

47:37

I've had my medication and I feel

47:39

really good. I've been doing

47:41

some deep work. This

47:44

is interesting as well. When I'm on

47:46

the medication, so when I was

47:48

recording a podcast, like if I do an

47:50

hour podcast with someone without the medication, I've

47:52

got to concentrate so much and

47:55

really, really, really, like it's really

47:57

hard. Now with the medication I

47:59

can pop. three deep episodes a

48:01

day and not feel exhausted. It's

48:05

probably the effective

48:07

speed in my body, but I

48:11

don't carry that same

48:13

mental fatigue after

48:15

the deep work. I feel accomplished

48:18

after I get a heap of work done.

48:20

I feel more, as I said,

48:22

considered and measured. And

48:25

as an example, so my book, Sought

48:27

Your Money Out, and Get Invested,

48:30

I wrote that in Queenstown. The

48:32

publisher, like, we wanna do an update version. I need to

48:34

go and update a few things. So

48:36

I'm thinking about, so I've

48:38

blocked out my diary in a couple of weeks,

48:40

like four or five days, that I'm just gonna work

48:43

on this. And I'm like, I

48:45

might go back to Queenstown and work on

48:47

it there. No distractions and

48:49

just, but the old Glen

48:51

would have instantly booked a ticket to

48:53

Queenstown, booked it all. And

48:56

to be honest, at the start of

48:58

the year, I did this before I was medicated. Or

49:00

even the old last year, I booked another ticket

49:03

to Queenstown to write the investing book impulsively,

49:07

and then changed my mind and canceled it. Didn't get

49:10

a refund on the flight. Like, just

49:12

crap like that. So bad,

49:14

so bad. So now it's like today,

49:17

I'll spend the next couple of days

49:19

actually just thinking about whether

49:21

I want to book

49:24

a ticket and go to Queenstown, have

49:26

a bit of a break and just work on the

49:28

book edit itself. So that in

49:30

itself, just being aware

49:33

that I'm impulsive is

49:35

because of that. Actually

49:37

has helped just the awareness piece. And

49:40

also having the medication

49:43

allows me to get done, get down

49:46

and get into some deep work. I

49:48

can now sit down and do

49:50

some work, either at a cafe or

49:52

at my desk, three hours straight

49:55

without a break, two

49:57

hours probably without even getting up and

49:59

time. flies so much and

50:02

that is life changing.

50:05

I say to the psychiatrist, I wish I had that when

50:07

I was in my early twenties. And

50:09

he said, no, that would probably wouldn't

50:12

have been helpful because you may have

50:14

been stuck in a desk job where

50:17

you're quite entrepreneurial and you needed to take those

50:19

risks and you wouldn't be here today if you

50:21

didn't say it was this like weird thing, but

50:23

now that my career in business is

50:25

established, it is now this more,

50:28

I've got a tool now. The

50:30

first tool is I'm aware of what's

50:33

happening in my body and why I might be

50:35

impulsive. And then secondly,

50:37

I've got a tool which

50:40

I can take as a medication and

50:42

keep me focused, keep me measured. To

50:45

be honest, side effects haven't really noticed any, which

50:47

is good. Yeah. So

50:49

look, it's been a long and

50:52

winding road. I

50:54

think I've kind of covered everything and

50:57

I really apologize that this was a

50:59

bit haphazard. I just

51:01

didn't know really how to do this

51:03

episode. But

51:06

I, like I say, it's worth what you paid for

51:08

it. We'll leave it there, please.

51:11

If you are listening to this and you're in

51:13

any maybe ADHD groups

51:15

or follow Instagram pages,

51:17

it might be helpful to

51:19

share to people as

51:21

a tool that they can share with others

51:25

if they need an honest account

51:27

of the process. So

51:29

yeah, please feel free to share it. Will

51:32

I regret reading my confidential report

51:34

publicly? I mean,

51:36

probably, but I didn't really, I took

51:39

out some, like I didn't read some stuff that was heaps

51:42

confidential, but I'm, as I said,

51:44

if it helps one person see

51:47

a doctor and get some answers or particularly

51:49

you might be listening to them, your spousal

51:51

partner has these type of issues. It's, yeah,

51:55

it's just a PSA everyone. And I'm

51:58

like, I'm actually. not

52:00

unlike anyone else. I'm just

52:02

the same as everyone. Just so happens I've

52:04

got a big podcast and platform but Glenn

52:06

talking on this platform to maybe thousands and

52:08

thousands of people. He's

52:11

still Glenn when he like goes

52:13

and sits on the lounge night and watches

52:15

Netflix and catches up with friends and goes

52:17

out like I am not above anything and

52:19

I'm just a person like you. So

52:24

yeah, we'll leave it there. Although I was

52:26

gonna tell you one last thing. Mmmmmm.

52:30

Nah. Be good. I'll see you

52:32

soon. Bye. Thanks

52:59

for watching. Thanks for watching. Bye.

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