Tired of ADHD strategies that don’t work? Here’s what actually does. FREE training here.
September 09, 2026
Dr. Ann Bennett has spent more than 20 years studying what helps people learn, adapt, and thrive. So when she decided to look at what ADHD podcasts were actually doing for women, she was not expecting the results to be THIS strong.
Dr. Bennett leads Applied Research & Evaluation at Understood.org and identifies as disabled, autistic, and AuDHD. In a first-of-its-kind study with Torrens University Australia, she and her research partner looked at how podcasts hosted by and for women with ADHD affect self-perception, health literacy, relationships, and hope for the future.
What they found was bigger than “podcasts are helpful.
Women were moving from “something is wrong with me” to “I am a woman with ADHD, and I can navigate this.” About 85 to 86 percent reported a stronger sense of hope for their future, and the benefits showed up across every dimension of thriving the researchers measured.
In this episode, Tracy and Ann talk about why lived experience matters as much as credentials, why being talked with feels different from being talked at, what clinicians could learn from podcasts, and why hearing another woman say “me too” can genuinely change the way you see yourself.
“With my systems in place, I looked effective. Without them, I realized I did not actually know how to navigate the world very well.”
-Dr. Ann Bennett
“My ADHD hyperfocus and my autistic special interests interlocked. That combination helped me become the person who could say, ‘Give me a week, and I’ll figure it out."
-Dr. Ann Bennett
“Every time I entered a new role, I could dive into what was needed and learn it. Research, dashboards, new skills, I became that jack of all trades because my brain wanted to understand.”
-Dr. Ann Bennett
"The study showed that podcasts can be a supplemental intervention for women with ADHD. About 85 to 86 percent of women reported an increased sense of hope for their future after engaging with these podcasts."
-Dr. Ann Bennett
"The by-us, for-us piece is doing a lot of the work."
-Dr. Ann Bennett
"Women wanted expertise, but lived experience mattered just as much. They wanted to hear from women with ADHD who actually knew what it felt like."
-Dr. Ann Bennett
"For some women, listening to ADHD podcasts was deeply emotional because they were hearing their own lives explained for the first time'’
-Dr. Ann Bennett
- Dr. Ann Bennett shares how her ADHD diagnosis came five years after her autism diagnosis.
- She explains how autism helped her build systems that masked her ADHD for years.
- Looking back, Ann connects childhood boredom, rule-challenging, justice sensitivity, and high achievement to AuDHD.
[14:23 – 27:56] Invisible Disability and Podcast Research
- Ann discusses living with type 1 diabetes and how advocating for one invisible disability shaped her later neurodivergent advocacy.
- She explains how diabetes technology, alarms, and constant tracking interacted with her autistic and ADHD traits.
- Ann introduces her study on how podcasts hosted by and for women with ADHD affect health literacy, self-perception, and thriving.
[27:56 – 42:31] Hope, Thriving, and ADHD Workarounds
- Ann explains why lived experience matters and how podcasts can feel like being talked with instead of talked at.
- Her research found that podcasts supported self-concept, purpose, autonomy, relationships, and capacity.
- Ann shares how hyperfocus, special interests, and fidgeting help her work with her AuDHD brain.
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: www.understood.org
- Instagram: @understoodorg
- LinkedIn: dr-annbennett
- TEDx Talk: An Invisible Disability in an Able-Bodied World | Dr. Ann M. Bennett
- Podcast Study: The power of podcasts: How podcasts are supporting women with ADHD
