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June 23
Nobody prepares you for ADHD pregnancy brain. Decisions become impossible when choosing between 200 strollers for a baby you've never met, how appointments can completely derail your routine, and focus. The brain fog that hits like a wall, or the surprising clarity that some women experience when hormones align just right with their neurodivergent wiring.
Dr. Kalin Johnson is back, and this time she's sharing what she learned from experiencing pregnancy, childbirth, and early motherhood with ADHD firsthand. Diagnosed with ADHD, autism, PTSD, and hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome in adulthood, Kalin recently welcomed her daughter Indie Rue—and discovered just how much the medical system doesn't prepare ADHD women for this journey.
In this episode, Tracy and Kalin explore the hormonal rollercoaster of each trimester, why some ADHD women experience incredible focus during pregnancy while others struggle with brain fog, and how conditions like MCAS, dysautonomia, and hypermobility intersect with ADHD. They dive deep into medication decisions, the realities of postpartum life, and why being kinder to yourself isn't optional—it's essential for being the parent you want to be.
Whether you're thinking about pregnancy, currently pregnant, or supporting someone who is, this conversation will give you the real talk nobody else is having—and the science to back it up.
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"Even with all of those challenges, when you see her (the baby’s) little smile and that face and you get those snuggles, all of a sudden, those sleepless nights really don't seem so bad."
- Kalin Johnson
"My headphones are my biggest ADHD tool that I use every single day. If I need to wear them to cope when she's fussy at bedtime, that's okay."
- Kalin Johnson
"I'm seeing every day how building a life that supports my ADHD directly improves the quality of my life."
- Kalin Johnson
"When I can connect what's happening back to the science, it gives me the ‘why.’ When we can explain what's happening in the body, shame doesn't hold space."
- Kalin Johnson
"I'm massively, overwhelmingly kinder to myself now. I really get to see that meeting my needs allows me to be the mom I want to be."
- Kalin Johnson
"The body does not do things for shits and giggles. It was screaming at me, telling me what it needed. It was my job to respond and give it what it needed."
- Kalin Johnson
- Dr. Kalin Johnson explains how ADHD connects to MCAS, dysautonomia, and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome through chronic nervous system activation, creating a "brain-gut-access vortex" from dysregulation to disease.
- Six months postpartum with daughter Indie Rue, she shares how pregnancy appeared "brilliant" medically but was significantly more challenging from an ADHD perspective than records would suggest.
- ADHDers rely on norepinephrine when dopamine is low, staying chronically in "running from a tiger" state, which diverts blood flow from gut function and triggers cascading health issues.
- First trimester brought brain fog, emotional dysregulation, and severe fatigue from progesterone surges, while second trimester improved as estrogen helped dopamine processing and the default mode network quieted.
- Third trimester challenges included appointment overwhelm (two weekly due to "geriatric pregnancy"), decision paralysis around baby products, and unknown labor timing creating constant "is it today?" anxiety.
- Ehlers-Danlos syndrome worsened as progesterone relaxed already loose connective tissue, causing severe hip pain and limiting exercise—a crucial ADHD regulation tool—forcing adaptation to walking and seated dance parties.
[01:00:00 - 01:35:00] Birth Experience, Medication Decisions, and Postpartum Reality
- Kalin shares her 30-hour labor, including forgetting to drink water due to ADHD excitement, leading to dehydration that affected the baby's heart rate and forced her to abandon her unmedicated birth plan after 18 hours of back labor.
- She continued Clonidine during pregnancy after benefit-risk analysis, noting that stopping ADHD medications can increase preterm birth risks, while recent research shows stimulants don't increase autism or ADHD in children.
- Postpartum challenges include exclusive pumping due to Ehlers-Danlos skin fragility, baby's food allergies, 2-3 hour sleep stretches, and the reality that pumping every two hours prevents fully caring for the baby while producing her food.
- Website: kalinjohnson.com
- Instagram: kalinpharmd
- Linkedin: kalin-johnsonpharmd
- Youtube: @queensoftheneuroverse
- Spotify: spotify.com
