ADHD Realities

Welcome to ADHD Realities , the podcast where ADHD and sexuality collide in the most empowering, brain friendly way possible. Hosted by Clinical Sexologist, Certified Sex Therapist, and Psychotherapist Dr. Leann Borneman, this space is all about unmasking, unlearning, and unleashing your full neurodivergent self, in and out of the bedroom. We live in a world built for neurotypicals, and that narrative has been bringing you down for way too long. Here, we challenge those norms, call out the shame they create, and replace them with tools and truths that actually work for your beautifully wired brain. If you’ve ever felt like your ADHD made intimacy, communication, or self-worth harder, you’re not alone, and you’re definitely not broken. This podcast gives you the full lens, psychological, relational, and sexual, to finally understand your experiences through the ADHD perspective you should’ve had all along. It’s time to stop people pleasing, start permission giving, and take up space, authentically, awkwardly, and unapologetically.. DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for therapy or professional support.

Episodes

Apr 7, 2026

1 hr 52 sec

If you've ever been told you're just lazy, that you lack willpower, or that GLP-1s are some dangerous experimental drug — this episode is going to piss you off in the best way.
Dr. B sits down with obesity medicine specialist and lipidologist Dr. Spencer Nadolsky to cut through the noise and get into the actual science of GLP-1 medications — what they are, how they work in the ADHD brain specifically, and why ADHDers may be experiencing them differently than anyone's talking about.
They go deep on food noise (and why it's not just "being hungry"), the dopamine-reward connection, sexual desire changes, anhedonia, PCOS, binge eating, loose skin, and the very personal reality of what it's like to be an ADHDer on a GLP-1.
Oh, and Dr. B drops her own 84-pound journey — including the moment she cried in a parking lot over a pistachio cookie.
In this episode:
What GLP-1s actually are and where they came from (yes, including the lizard)
Food noise vs. hunger vs. cravings — they are not the same thing
Why the ADHD reward pathway means GLP-1s may hit differently for us
The real conversation about anhedonia, flatness, and sexual desire changes
PCOS, insulin resistance, and the ADHD overlap nobody's screening for
Binge eating disorder and ADHD — the research, the shame, and the relief
Bio: Dr. Spencer Nadolsky brings over a decade of expertise in obesity medicine, with board certifications in obesity medicine and lipidology. Since becoming a doctor, he has helped 1000s of patients lose weight and improve their quality of life through innovative healthcare delivery platforms. Dr. Spencer also has fun, educational social media content where you can laugh and learn at the same time.
Find Dr. Nadolsky: Instagram: @drnadolsky | Clinic: joinvineyard.com | Podcast: Docs Who Lift
ADHD is not a monolith and neither is your relationship with food, your body, or medication. This is educational content based on research and clinical experience, not therapy, not a diagnosis, not one-size-fits-all. Your experience is layered and specific to you. If you're struggling, work with a qualified professional. 

Apr 7, 2026

1 hr 52 sec

Mar 24, 2026

59 min

Everyone has an opinion about porn. Almost nobody is looking at the actual research.
In this episode I am doing what I do in my human sexuality classroom on day one — separating what we actually know from what we have simply been told, repeatedly and loudly, until it started to sound like fact and those are not the same thing.
We are talking about why "porn addiction" does not exist as a clinical diagnosis and what that means. We are talking about the research that was rejected, the diagnostic manual that said not yet, and the finding that should have completely changed this conversation — but didn't, because it doesn't sell anything. We are talking about dopamine mythology, the desensitization narrative, what the violence research actually shows, and why the NoFap movement is a belief system with a marketing strategy, not a clinical intervention.
And we are talking about ADHD because your brain is being caught in a narrative that was never built with you in mind — one that takes a nervous system doing exactly what it's supposed to do and calls it broken...again.
I have spent more hours than I want to admit reading this research. Pulling primary sources. Analyzing methodology. Looking at every claim through both a researcher's lens and a clinician's lens. What I found is that a significant portion of what is being handed to you as settled neuroscience is ideology wearing a lab coat.
You deserved to know that. So here it is.
Every study and article referenced in this episode is linked below. The supplies are there. Go read them. Critical thinking means doing your own work — I'm just here to show you where to start.
This is educational content based on research and clinical experience — not therapy, not a diagnosis, not one-size-fits-all. Your experience is layered and specific to you. If you're struggling, work with a qualified professional. 
Reference Links:https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5775124/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027273582600019X
https://www.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.books.9781615379279.lg01
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33038740/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29412013/
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2167702620922966
https://akjournals.com/view/journals/2006/14/1/article-p131.xml
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1277583/full
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844023020418
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1240222/full
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11930-023-00380-z
https://publichealth.jmir.org/2021/10/e32542
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9295218/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10374865
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33774451/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26185674/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/364356755_RebootNoFap_Participants_Erectile_Concerns_Predicted_by_Anxiety_and_Not_MediatedModerated_by_Pornography_Viewing
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26095441/
https://cdn2.psychologytoday.com/assets/Ley-PornAddictionReview.pdf
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5039517/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26606725/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26372200/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32661813/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-025-03199-y
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32691692/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37309642/
https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/The-association-between-pornography-use-and-sexual-Loutzenhiser-Arrighi/58de0d7a9d2f485ed03e810544bd9b45e0c0b3df
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343108786_Pornography_and_Sexual_Aggression_Can_Meta-Analysis_Find_a_Link
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/08862605241299442
 

Mar 24, 2026

59 min

Mar 10, 2026

1 hr 11 min

This episode goes everywhere — but somehow still lands exactly where it needs to.
I sat down with Elle Stanger, AASECT certified sex educator and longtime sex worker, to talk about the massive cultural confusion surrounding sex work, sex trafficking, criminalization, and morality.
What unfolds is a chaotic, honest, ADHD-style conversation about:
why society constantly conflates sex work with trafficking
how criminalization increases harm
the role of religion, shame, and social narratives
why people struggle to hold two truths at once
ADHD brains, stimulation, and unconventional career paths
how autonomy and variety can make certain environments more accessible for neurodivergent people
We also talk about masking, strip club economics, freelance life, trauma narratives, media portrayals, and why nuance is so hard for people to tolerate.
No script, no clean outline....Just a real conversation about sex, power, stigma, and ADHD brains trying to make sense of the world.
To find more on Elle:
WebsiteThe Talk Sex PodcastIG

Mar 10, 2026

1 hr 11 min

Feb 24, 2026

18 min

You've seen the posts: "Never date someone with ADHD" vs "ADHD is a superpower." Both sides are loud, both are pissed, and both are missing the point.
Most relationship research measures executive function, not love. And when we use neurotypical relationship standards to evaluate ADHD partnerships, we're measuring the wrong shit.
In this episode, I break down what the data shows, why the parent child dynamic happens, and what accommodation looks like when you stop pretending ADHD brains work like neurotypical ones.
ADHD doesn't ruin relationships, but unmanaged symptoms, rigid expectations, and zero accommodation? Yeah, that'll do it.

Feb 24, 2026

18 min

Feb 10, 2026

1 hr 1 min

If you've ever been told you're "lazy," "not trying hard enough," or "just lack discipline"... yeah, this one's for you.
I sat down with ADHD educator Kendall Delamont for a conversation about what ADHD really is and all the bullshit it's not. We're talking about why ADHD isn't a moral failing or a time management problem, why the internet's dopamine obsession is mostly wrong, and why generic ADHD advice is basically set up to make you feel like shit.
We get into the real stuff:
Why ADHD traits get turned into character judgments ("if you really cared, you wouldn't be late")
Why systems stop working — and why that's completely normal, not evidence you're broken
Self-diagnosis: when it's helpful, where it gets messy, and why you need follow-through
Supplements, wellness grifters, and the role of confirmation bias
Parenting ADHD kids when you're ADHD yourself: lead with education, ditch the shame
Living in the "messy middle": building systems that work most of the time, because perfection is fake
The bottom line?  ADHD isn't one thing. It's a your brain thing — and moving forward means actual education, self-compassion, and systems designed for real human brains, not fantasy ones.
Find Kendall: theadhdtoolkit.com | @theadhdtoolkit
Bio: 
Kendall Delamont holds a B.A. in Behavioural Sciences, a B.Ed., and certification as an ADHD Educator. She spent 8 years teaching in the classroom before creating The ADHD Toolkit– a series of in-depth, research-based courses designed to support people with ADHD and the people who love them.
Thanks to her own ADHD diagnosis, Kendall brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work. She's passionate about equipping others with practical tools designed to work with the ADHD brain rather than heaping on shame, guilt, and ineffective viral trends. 
Kendall also empowers over 200k followers across her social media platforms with practical strategies, relatable experience shares, and ever-advancing scientific research.

Feb 10, 2026

1 hr 1 min

Jan 27, 2026

24 min

In this episode of ADHD Realities, I’m unpacking why the way we talk about desire — especially in heterosexual relationships — has never sat right with me. For years, we’ve framed libido differences as “higher vs. lower drive,” quietly centering access instead of capacity, and calling it neutral. It isn’t.
We talk about what happens when desire gets mistaken for entitlement, why fluctuating desire (especially in women’s bodies) is so often pathologized, and how ADHD, nervous system regulation, hormones, perimenopause, menopause, stress, and life stage all shape access to desire in ways effort alone can’t fix.
I also dig into why “weaponized incompetence” is frequently misapplied in these conversations, why desire is a state — not a skill — and what real accountability actually looks like when two people want different things. This episode isn’t about blaming men, excusing shutdown, or telling anyone to settle. It’s about honesty, capacity, compatibility, and knowing when a relationship can be redesigned — and when it can’t.
This is not a how-to episode. It’s a reality check. Because no book, podcast, or framework can replace the work of understanding your own layers and deciding what kind of relationship truly works for your body, your brain, and your life.

Jan 27, 2026

24 min

Jan 13, 2026

59 min

In this episode, I’m joined by Caitlin V, sex and relationship coach, researcher, and host of Good Sex, for a conversation that is giving male pleasure the nuance it deserves.
We unpack why so many men experience sex as pressure instead of pleasure and how performance anxiety shows up as premature ejaculation, erectile dysfunction, delayed ejaculation, or complete shutdown, often without anyone naming what’s happening.
This isn’t a “just relax” or “take a pill” conversation.
We talk about:
Why performance anxiety is less about control and more about tension—physical, emotional, relational, and neurological
How porn, cultural scripts, and silence around male pleasure shape insecurity and self-monitoring
Why many men are hyper-focused on their partner’s experience while completely disconnected from their own bodies
The role of breath, pacing, communication, laughter, and nervous system regulation in sexual control
How ADHD can complicate arousal, stimulation, and orgasm—for better and worse
Where premature ejaculation and delayed ejaculation may  be adaptive responses
Why male pleasure is culturally minimized while male performance is overemphasized
We also dive deep into Erotic Blueprints and how naming arousal styles can radically shift shame into curiosity, creativity, and agency.
This episode is for:
Men who feel like sex has become a test they keep failing
Partners who don’t understand why “trying harder” makes things worse
Clinicians and educators who want a more humane, body-based framework for male sexuality
Anyone ready to stop treating sex like a machine problem and start understanding it as a whole-person experience
If you’ve ever wondered why sex feels harder instead of more connected—or why no one ever gave you the blueprint—this conversation is for you.More on Caitlin V:
Check out her book Harder, Better, Longer, Stronger: Science, Skills, and Secrets for the Best Sex of Your Life
Website
Youtube

Jan 13, 2026

59 min

Dec 30, 2025

17 min

“She has energy for everything else — just not for me.”
This episode unpacks one of the most common and damaging misunderstandings I see in relationships, especially when ADHD and autism are part of the picture.
We’re talking about why energy isn’t about effort, love, or priority, it’s about access, executive function load, and nervous system cost. And why, in heterosexual relationships, women are so often carrying the emotional and executive labor of the relationship until there’s nothing left.
This isn’t about blaming partners or making blanket statements. It’s about understanding how unexamined expectations, gendered roles, and neurodivergent burnout quietly erode connection and why personalizing that burnout keeps couples stuck.
You won’t leave with neat answers.You will leave more informed, more curious, and better equipped to stop turning nervous system limits into personal rejections.
Disclaimer:This episode is education, not therapy. I’m sharing clinical observations and recurring patterns, not diagnosing, treating, or solving anyone’s relationship in 18 minutes. The point here isn’t to walk away with neat answers, but to walk away better informed, less stuck in the wrong stories, and asking different questions about what’s happening.

Dec 30, 2025

17 min

Dec 16, 2025

54 min

What happens when sex therapy is built for brains that don’t work like yours?
In this episode, I sit down with clinical sexologist, researcher, and former dissertation chair Dr. Erika Miley for an unfiltered, deeply nerdy, and very human conversation about ADHD, sexuality, and why so many people—especially cis women and AFAB individuals—are still being failed by the research and clinical models meant to help them.
We talk about the massive gaps in ADHD and sexuality research after puberty, the harm of moralized language in scientific literature, and why traditional sex therapy approaches often increase shame instead of pleasure for neurodivergent clients. We dive into attention, arousal, distraction during sex, performance pressure, and what can help ADHD brains stay engaged—without pathologizing them.
This conversation is part research deep-dive, part lived experience, and part call-out to the field: if clinicians aren’t trained in neurodivergence, they’re going to miss the mark.
Whether you’re a provider, a researcher, or someone with ADHD who’s been told to “just relax” or “be more present” during sex—this episode will make you feel seen and give you language for what’s really going on.
 
More about Dr. Erika Miley:
Dr. Erika Miley, PhD, LMHC, CST, is a sex therapist, sex researcher, whose work centers ADHD, neurodiversity, and sexual functioning for AFAB folks. She founded TwoX Labs and teaches clinicians evidence-based, trauma-informed continuing education. An AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and Supervisor in training, she is currently accepting supervisees.  She hosts TwoX Labs as well as The Soft Science, both you can find anywhere you get your podcasts and YouTube.
 
Socials: @drerikamiley (Insta, Tiktok, YouTube)
 

Dec 16, 2025

54 min

Dec 2, 2025

24 min

Every January, the world expects us to reinvent ourselves like we’re software updates — new routines, new habits, new personalities. But ADHD brains aren’t failing resolutions… resolutions are failing us.
In this Extra Hot, no-BS episode, I break down exactly why New Year’s resolutions collapse for ADHD minds (especially if you’re juggling work, parenting, sensory overload, or perimenopause chaos). We get into the science of executive function, dopamine drop-off, time blindness, emotional regulation, and why Dr. Russell Barkley deserves a shrine for explaining ADHD better than half the self-help industry.
You’ll hear the truth about:
🔥 Why “fresh start energy” feels amazing… until February hits🔥 Why neurotypical goal culture gaslights ADHDers into feeling broken🔥 How perimenopause and parenting drain the exact functions resolutions rely on🔥 Why shame and perfectionism murder motivation🔥 Why habit culture is basically fanfiction for neurotypicals🔥 And what actually works for ADHD brains (it’s not discipline)
Plus, a listener Q&A that dives into ADHD activation issues, autistic sensory load, PDA demand avoidance, nervous system shutdowns, and how to build goals that support your brain instead of suffocating it.
If you’ve ever set a resolution, bought the planner, color coded the pens, made the vision board, and then abandoned the whole thing by week two… this episode will feel like oxygen.
You’re not the problem.The system is.And your brain deserves scaffolding, not self-gaslighting.
Press play. Let’s tell the truth about January.

Dec 2, 2025

24 min

Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Version: 20241125