Left Unattended

The Cost of High Functioning: ADHD, Masking, and Systemic Burnout with Ashley Gibson   Ron Sosa hosts Ashley Gibson, a psychotherapist and founder of Meaning in Practice, to discuss the hidden cost of “high functioning” neurodivergence at work. Ashley shares being late-diagnosed with ADHD after building a successful marketing career through willpower and masking, including work on Broadway’s Hamilton, while simultaneously training as a clinician, parenting, and navigating major life stress. They explore how office culture and mission-driven environments intensify performance, overstimulation, and internal load, and how the pandemic revealed what was actually masking versus true preference and rhythm. Ashley describes using clinical frameworks, including Structural Analysis of Social Behavior, to map how systems teach people to internalize blame, contributing to burnout that is systemic rather than individual. The episode reframes common questions from “what’s wrong with me?” to what the system taught and what functioning has been costing.  

ADHD, Brainwaves, and Neurofeedback: Training Attention with Ofer Lizski Ron Sosa speaks with Ofer Lizski, founder and CEO of Excellent Brain, about ADHD, brainwaves, neurofeedback, leadership, and why the ADHD brain shouldn’t be treated as a problem but something that can be trained and supported. Ofer shares his background as a lifelong entrepreneur and technologist, how his son’s experience in special education led him to EEG sensors and neurofeedback, and why he believes neurofeedback is an effective and underknown approach for improving ADHD symptoms. He explains neurofeedback as real-time brainwave-based training using a headband sensor and game-like tasks, typically delivered in 30 sessions over about 15 weeks, with many people noticing changes within 10 sessions. They discuss age ranges (7+), late diagnosis, labeling, changing attention in a technology-driven world, education system limitations, AI concerns, and Ofer’s emphasis on discipline over motivation.

In this episode of Left Unattended, Ron talks with Dr. Kelly Cooper, a veterinarian and consultant, about receiving an ADHD diagnosis at 55 and why she called it a “liberation day.” Kelly shares how the diagnosis helped her understand chronic self-criticism, anxiety, rejection sensitivity dysphoria, and the perfectionism she realized was protecting her from rejection. They explore pressure-driven productivity, procrastination that was reinforced by academic success, and how time, energy, and resource management becomes harder with age and changing capacity. Kelly describes how perimenopause intensified ADHD-related challenges, what prompted her to seek help, and how coaching, mindfulness, and tools like externalizing the inner critic support regulation and follow-through. She also discusses vulnerability in leadership, content creation fears, and her work through Reality Vet Coaching, including launching a women’s group coaching program.

 Overachieving in School, Underachieving in Life: Raising Neurodivergent Kids Toward Independence   On Left Unattended, host Ron Sosa speaks with Dr. Norrine Russell—founder of Russell Coaching for Students, and author of ‘Asking the Right Questions about ADHD’—about what happens when bright, capable neurodivergent students are so supported that they perform well but don’t build independence. They discuss how parents and schools often overtake kids’ executive functioning through constant oversight and accommodations, how fear and risk-avoidance can grow internally, and how to distinguish “laziness” from age-appropriate timing or true executive-function challenges based on outcomes and consequences. Russell links “failure to launch” to broader cultural and economic realities and to over-scaffolding that reduces problem-solving and self-esteem, and she emphasizes balancing high expectations with the right support at home, school, and work while teaching explicit life and workplace skills without promoting unhealthy masking.  

Many people carry invisible load at work: masking, shame, fear of being misunderstood, pressure to prove competence, and the exhaustion of trying to seem acceptable. Kristin’s story asks what becomes possible when we stop defining people only by their hardest chapters and start asking where their brain, skill, and lived experience still belong.

On this episode Left Unattended, Ron Sosa hosts James Lang, a med tech COO turned AI growth architect and managing partner of Overlang Venture Partners, about normalizing neurodivergence in the workplace. James shares his unconventional path from college dropout and freelance writer to helping scale a med tech company past $20M in revenue with a global team of 60+, and how being diagnosed with ADHD and autism in his 30s reframed his “brain OS,” masking, and leadership. They discuss coping strategies like offloading thoughts onto paper, why remote work reduced social strain, and how James’ “camp counselor” approach helped him read team dynamics. James also reflects on physical health limitations, palliative counseling, legacy, chosen family, building teams around limitations, and how resilience and empathy can shift under pressure, before inviting listeners to connect via LinkedIn and learn.overlaying.com.

Traci Austin on ADHD, the And/Both Method, and Designing Teams Around Strengths   Host Ron Sosa welcomes Traci Austin, founder of Elevated Talent Consulting and creator of the And Both Method, to discuss normalizing neurodivergent experiences at work and focusing on how people operate rather than diagnoses. Traci shares how being held back in kindergarten and later placed in gifted programs drove her to collect credentials to prove she belonged, and how an ADHD diagnosis helped her understand her focus patterns, deadlines, and the differences between laziness, procrastination, and executive dysfunction without letting a label define her identity. They explore curiosity as a tool for collaboration, building teams around complementary strengths, creating environments that support focus, and shifting workplace conversations from blame and shame to clarity, accountability, and outcomes. Tracy describes tools like Predictive Index, challenges around culture fit, and “left unattended” as the need for structures to manage thoughts and reduce rumination.   00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 00:56 Credentials and Identity 01:36 Kindergarten Story 03:30 ADHD Insight Not Identity 05:46 Curiosity and And Both 07:29 Hyperfocus and Team Design 09:24 Environment and Asking Needs 12:53 Labels and Self Discovery 15:32 Better Workplace Questions 18:05 Capacity Burnout and Careers 24:21 Culture Fit Reframed 29:23 Left Unattended Meaning 31:46 Wrap Up and Where to Find 32:14 Final Takeaways and Outro  

In this episode of Left Unattended, host Ron Sosa talks with Diana Feinstein, founder of Max Packed Health, about normalizing neurodivergence at work and what changes when high achievers stop treating capacity as an afterthought. Diana shares how her son’s neurodivergence evaluation helped her recognize her own patterns, and they explore nonlinear thinking, being mislabeled as underperforming, and the burnout that comes from masking and over-functioning. They discuss behavior change through prompts and positive reinforcement, “clean vs. dirty energy,” and how perimenopause can collapse previously reliable scaffolding, highlighting broader costs of inadequate menopause care. Diana explains “vibe coding,” using emotionally resonant experiences to support healthier habits, and demonstrates a brief breathing exercise as an example of productive rest. She also shares resources, including Max Packed Health’s 12-minute Capacity Audit.   https://www.maxpacthealth.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/diana-feinstein-76a36b8/ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61553425215670 https://www.instagram.com/maxpacthealth/  

Have you ever felt like you were just born as the problem? In this powerful episode of Left Unattended, host Ron Sosa sits down with Gazit Khaya Nikosi (also known as Z) to discuss the journey of unlearning the message that being neurodivergent means being too much. Together, they explore how to move away from a life of masking and burnout toward a future built on self-compassion and radical accommodation. 🌈 Z shares their personal history with fundamentalist religious trauma and the pressure to appear as one of the shiny happy people while struggling with intense sensory sensitivities. From the physical pain of sock seams to being put on professional probation for crying in the workplace, this conversation highlights the real-world costs of living in a society not built for neurodivergent nervous systems. 🧠 You will also learn about practical tools for sensory regulation, including the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) and specialized prism glasses. Z explains how transitioning to self-employment allowed them to build a work structure that honors their needs, proving that when we stop apologizing for our requirements, our true brilliance can finally emerge. ✨ Chapters 0:00 Intro and meeting Z 3:15 Realizing you were never the problem 6:45 Religious trauma and the pressure to be shiny 10:30 Childhood sensory struggles and the sock story 14:15 Justice sensitivity and emotional intensity 18:00 Being penalized for crying in the workplace 22:30 Hyper-empathy as a neurodivergent strength 26:15 Reclaiming your life after late diagnosis 30:00 Prism glasses and neurological vision therapy 34:30 Creating a sensory-friendly environment 38:15 Transitioning to self-employment and the SSP 42:00 Closing thoughts and resources If this conversation helped you realize you are carrying an invisible load, we invite you to take the next step toward support. Subscribe to the podcast for more stories that normalize neurodivergence and leave a review to help others find us. You can find more resources and coaching opportunities at the links mentioned in the episode. 🔗 #adhd #autism #neurodiversity #sensoryprocessing #mentalhealth Website: https://www.syn-apt.me https://therootedcoop.com/

Host Ron Sosa welcomes Jay Setchell, founder of Never Quit Trying, to discuss resilience, learning, and adaptation shaped by Jay’s lived experience with traumatic brain injury, PTSD, ADHD, paralysis, repeated surgeries, and near-death events including COVID. Jay explains “Never Quit Trying” as a lifelong mindset rooted in farm life and reinforced by a high school algebra teacher who valued effort over grades after Jay was the only student to retake a failed final. They explore Jay’s fast-moving, always-problem-solving mind, how “stubbornness” fuels achievement and survival, and why time and life feel increasingly precious. Jay emphasizes communication as core to leadership—reading the room, adapting, and understanding others’ processes—and defines “left unattended” as being overlooked and unsupported. He shares his book, "The Strength Within You: It’s Always Too Soon to Quit," and its impact on readers.