Tired of ADHD strategies that don’t work? Here’s what actually does. FREE training here.
July 15, 2026
She was good at the job. She just kept bombing the people.
Dr. Shannan Palma has a PhD from Emory, founded a master's program, and taught as a college professor. Then, in midlife, she found out she was autistic. ADHD turned up right behind it.
For decades she had followed the rules exactly as they were written and could not work out why that kept failing her. She was direct when directness was not wanted. She said no when everyone else said yes and did nothing. She ran full speed until she collapsed, then ramped back up and did it again. The diagnosis did not just explain the pattern. It ended it.
Today she identifies as AuDHD, co-founded the autistic-led nonprofit Independence Through Interdependence, and serves as CEO of ITI Lab, where her team built Decide, an app for decision fatigue.
In this episode, Tracy and Shannan get into why decision fatigue is not a willpower problem, what happens when the autism wants routine and the ADHD wants novelty, the assessment that went badly wrong, and what it takes to rebuild after burnout on your own terms instead of someone else's.
If your brain has ever turned a small decision into a full-body shutdown, this one will help you understand why. And more importantly, what actually helps.
“Our brains are treating every decision like it's life or death. And then an actual big decision comes along and we don't have the bandwidth for it. So we make an impulsive decision, or we don't do anything”
- Dr. Shannan Palma
“You aren't going to be able to learn when you're in fight or flight. And people like us are in fight or flight most of the time.”
- Dr. Shannan Palma
“I was telling people for decades, please be direct with me. I would say, could you talk to me like I'm autistic? So it turns out — because I am.”
-- Dr. Shannan Palma
"It's a lot easier to bolster a strength than to bring a weakness up even to neutral. So if you focus on your strengths, you have so much more capacity."
-- Dr. Shannan Palma
"We don't really need to be told what to do. We need help staying focused on the process"
-- Dr. Shannan Palma
"The autistic parts of me crave routine, calm, and stability. The ADHD parts of me crave novelty, interest, and stimulation."
- Dr. Shannan Palma
"If I try to do the hardest thing first, I will do nothing all day. If I do the easiest thing first, odds are good I will keep going."
- Dr. Shannan Palma
- Dr. Shannon Palma shares how school structure masked her differences for years.
- She explains struggling after college with networking, workplace politics, and literal communication.
- Her autism assessment leads to an AuDHD diagnosis and a clearer understanding of lifelong burnout.
[25:45 – 49:09] Leaving Academia and Building Around Strengths
- Shannon describes why academia’s unspoken rules, inconsistency, and lack of accountability became unsustainable.
- Positive psychology helps her focus on regulation, character strengths, and environments that support learning.
- She explains the tension between autistic needs for stability and ADHD needs for novelty.
[49:09 – 01:27:55] Decision Fatigue, AI Support, and Momentum
- Shannon explains how AuDHD brains process more information, making small decisions cognitively exhausting.
- She describes building Decide to reduce decision paralysis without taking away autonomy.
- Her main workaround is sustaining momentum by switching tasks, taking short resets, and watching external burnout signals.
ADHD isn’t a productivity problem. It’s an identity problem.
That’s why most strategies don’t stick—they weren’t designed for how your brain actually works. Your ADHD Brain is A-OK Academy is different. It’s a patented, science-backed coaching program that helps you stop fighting your brain and start building a life that fits. 👉Learn more here
- Website: weareiti.org
- Website: itilab.io
- LinkedIn: shannanpalma
