Hyperfocus with Rae Jacobson
Episodes
Can I get rid of my adult sensory issues?
23 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Rae puts on her most uncomfortable pants (on purpose!) to ask a fashion designer and former special ed teacher whether adults can actually get over se...
PMDD: Why women with ADHD are 4x more likely to struggle
09 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Hyperfocus listener Jenna Plonsky opens a raw conversation about ADHD, late diagnosis, and the mental health struggles many women face in silence. F...
Is “ring of fire” ADHD real?
26 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Our team has been seeing something called “ring of fire” ADHD spreading across the internet. It’s a supposed subtype of ADHD promoted by Daniel ...
This changed my mind on what’s possible with a learning disability
12 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Rae has a lifelong misconception about her dyscalculia turned on its head. And she learns why labels don’t mean limits. For more on this topic Lis...
Why there’s no “gold standard” for adult ADHD tests
26 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Last fall, I heard something that floored me: The tests we have for ADHD in adults don’t work very well. As an adult with ADHD, I think about this a...
Conduct disorder: A controversial diagnosis with lifelong consequences
12 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Diagnoses are meant to help people access care, but some diagnoses carry far more consequences than others. Conduct disorder is one of them.Diagnosing...
The ADHD content economy: How algorithms and incentives turn help into grift
29 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The ADHD internet is crowded — and not all content is created equal. From unlicensed coaches to miracle cures and viral “hacks,” misinformation...
Kids are at a breaking point, and school policies might be to blame
15 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
U.S. kids are more depressed, stressed, and anxious than ever. ADHD and autism diagnosis rates are steadily rising. What’s going on? In this episod...
How are ADHD and chronic pain connected?
18 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you have ADHD or autism, research shows you’re at a much higher risk for developing chronic pain — a connection many doctors and patients stil...
The over-pathologizing of ADHD (From Hacking Your ADHD)
04 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Hyperfocus, Rae is in the guest seat for an appearance on Hacking Your ADHD, a podcast hosted by William Curb. Listen for a fascinating ...
Trans with ADHD: Finding good care shouldn’t be this hard
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most urgent ADHD research gaps has to do with ADHD and trans people. We know there are lots of trans folks with ADHD. But when it comes to ...
The uncertain future of special education in the United States
06 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Last month, the Trump administration laid off over 460 people in the U.S. Department of Education. It included nearly everyone in the Office of Specia...
Live Q&A: Is Tylenol really dangerous? An ADHD news roundup
23 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
ADHD just keeps finding itself in the news. It can feel like a lot for those of us who have it or care for someone who does. Recently, Hyperfocus hos...
Suicidal ideation, masking, and overlooked ADHD: A Coast Guard veteran’s story
09 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Inattentive ADHD often goes unnoticed. It’s an easier type of ADHD to miss because it’s more internal and less outwardly visible than its hyperact...
What could the AI boom mean for neurodivergent people?
25 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Artificial intelligence has cemented itself as the latest world-altering technology. It follows the same lineage as electricity, the television, the i...
“How I Met Your Mother” co-creator on parenting, disability, and language
11 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Craig Thomas is best known for his work on TV. He co-created the sitcom “How I Met Your Mother” and has written for “American Dad” and more. H...
Revisiting the groundbreaking Berkeley Girls study
28 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To celebrate this holiday weekend, we’re reposting one of our early favorites. It’s a fascinating — and heartbreaking — deep dive into one o...
“So, when are you having kids?” ADHD and deciding on parenthood
14 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most inevitable questions that comes with early adulthood is also one of the most fraught: “When are you having kids?” The question is...
The R-word is back, and it’s definitely not funny | Part 2
31 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We’re picking up where we left off last time on Hyperfocus for the conclusion of our two-part series on the R-word’s resurgence. Today, we meet a...
The R-word is back: How do you get people to care? | Part 1
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Last year, Rae and Cody at Team Hyperfocus noticed something unnerving: The R-word was coming back into public discourse. People, especially people in...
Best of: Did my ADHD make me more likely to have postpartum depression?
03 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Happy summer, everyone! Because of the holiday weekend, we’re re-airing one of our favorite Hyperfocus episodes yet, which happens to be our very fi...
Is microdosing the next frontier in ADHD treatment?
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When you think about someone taking a psychedelic drug like magic mushrooms, the first images that come to mind probably don’t involve a medical pro...
What parents should know about the MAHA report
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
ADHD gets mentioned a lot in the new report from the Make America Healthy Again commission. It’s pitched as part of the “childhood chronic disease...
The MAHA report on ADHD is misleading — a researcher explains why
09 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On this bonus episode of Hyperfocus, we dive into the controversial new “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) report, released by a commission led b...
Money problems and ADHD? Here’s a financial therapist’s advice
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you haven’t heard of financial therapy before reading this, don’t worry. It’s new for us, too. But when a past Hyperfocus guest told us to l...
Ignored to icons: These trailblazers changed the game for women with ADHD
22 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On this very special episode of Hyperfocus, host Rae Jacobson interviews three of these women — Sari Solden, Terry Matlen, and Dr. Ellen Littman —...
Mother’s Day special: Rae on ADHD Aha!
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join health and science journalist Danielle Elliot as she investigates the rise of women recently diagnosed with ADHD. Listen to Climbing the Walls no...
What does it actually mean to “thrive” with ADHD?
24 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
“Thriving” is often held up as something to work toward in life, the gold standard for existence. If you have a learning difference or you’ve ex...
Introducing “Climbing the Walls,” an investigative ADHD podcast
17 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We have a special treat for you this week on the usual off-week in our feed. It’s an episode of a brand new, investigative podcast called Climbing t...
Meet the reporter who threw herself into the ADHD universe
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you follow ADHD news, you might’ve heard that diagnosis rates in women nearly doubled during the pandemic. Danielle Elliot was one of them, recei...
Can you really “hack” your dopamine?
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It often seems that the more complex a subject is, the more people tend to oversimplify it.If your social media feeds are anything like mine, that’s...
Is ADHD genetic? We asked a Harvard scientist
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We’re back with another episode from our Hyperfocus field trip to San Diego. While we were at the APSARD (American Professional Society of ADHD and ...
Head, heart, hormones: Why women’s ADHD care should treat the whole person
06 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this year, Hyperfocus took a field trip to San Diego for an ADHD conference called APSARD, which stands for the American Professional Society ...
ADHD meds at risk? Unpacking the new executive order, DEA proposal
18 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
ADHD medications have been in the news a lot lately, especially stimulants. In this bonus episode of Hyperfocus, host and mental health journalist Ra...
“Who are we missing?” One doctor’s lifelong fight for women with ADHD
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Kathleen Nadeau is someone who I’d call one of the godmothers of ADHD in women. She was one of the first people to stand up to the medical estab...
In on the joke with Emma Willmann
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week on the show, I’m hyperfocusing not on a topic or a question, but a person: the neurodivergent comedian and actor Emma Willmann. You might...
How to climb out of mental rabbit holes
16 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes, our brains spiral and it seems like there’s nothing we can do about it. This can happen to anyone. Maybe you have an awkward social inte...
ADHD Aha: Jessica McCabe (!!) on motherhood, social anxiety, and ADHD medication
09 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Host Rae Jacobson shares an episode from ADHD Aha, another Understood Podcast, where YouTuber Jessica McCabe shares her experience being a ...
ADHD, addiction, recovery: A yogi’s story
19 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you have ADHD, the science says you’re much more likely to have a substance use disorder in your life than someone who’s neurotypical. ADHD br...
The “devastating” findings of a decades-long ADHD study
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
*Note: This episode includes discussion of suicide and self-harm. Please take care when listening and skip this one if you need to.*Dr. Stephen Hinsha...
Neurodiversity initiatives: Branded lip service or real progress?
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
At work, neurodivergent people face a bunch of different hurdles — stigma, burnout, firings, higher unemployment rates, and more. In recent years, ...
“Hope is not a plan:” How to manage ADHD at work
07 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
ADHD can create all kinds of challenges in the workplace. Like a list of infinite things to do and to remember. A busy, ever-changing schedule. And co...
Two lifelong friends, two very different ADHD stories
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rae Jacobson has been friends with Katherine Martinelli since they were 6. In the classroom, they were polar opposites: Katherine, a star student; Rae...
Did my ADHD make me more likely to have postpartum depression?
10 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rae had heard that there was a link between ADHD and postpartum depression. But with a tiny baby to care for and a life to navigate, she had more pres...
Welcome to Hyperfocus with Rae Jacobson
04 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Hyperfocus is a show that zeroes in on what fascinates us about ADHD, learning, and mental health. Join journalist Rae Jacobson as she tackles big que...