Backpacking Through ADHD

Gratitude, Grace and Grit

What happens when ADHD meets the chaos of midlife? When emotional regulation collides with hormonal imbalance, and everything—focus, patience, even mental stability—feels like quicksand?
In this powerful, heart-forward episode, host Tera Greenwood explores three pillars that help ADHD minds survive and thrive through life’s hardest seasons:Grace — learning self-compassion when your brain and hormones feel like they’re working against you.Gratitude — how small, intentional moments of appreciation can rewire emotional regulation and ground an overstimulated mind.Grit — the quiet persistence that keeps us moving, even when motivation disappears and life feels heavy.
Tera shares candid stories from motherhood, leadership, and late-diagnosis ADHD, while weaving in current research on self-compassion, dopamine, and how menopause magnifies emotional dysregulation. It’s a raw, relatable conversation for anyone who’s ever wondered: “Why can’t I keep it together right now?”

Neurodiversity in Action – Lead Differently

This week, Tera Greenwood takes listeners behind two very different stages — the AZA Conference and the Colorado Neurodiverse Chamber of Commerce — to explore what it really means to Lead Differently. From stories of zookeepers, CEOs, and entrepreneurs to reflections on vulnerability and inclusion, this episode dives deep into how neurodiverse leadership is transforming workplaces — and hearts.
 

Love, Friendship, and the ADHD Connection

This week on Backpacking Through ADHD, we’re exploring the kind of love that steadies us — the friendships that regulate our ADHD brains and remind us we’re not alone. From heart-hat dinners with lifelong friends to working side-by-side with a best friend who celebrates nonlinear thinking, this episode dives deep into how connection shapes our focus, creativity, and sense of calm.
Tera shares how adult friendship can become one of the most powerful forms of emotional regulation — the way laughter can quiet anxiety, the way a simple “I get you” can reset a spiraling mind, and the way love doesn’t fix ADHD but gives us a softer place to land. She opens up about the friends who show up even when she goes quiet, the ones who understand that silence isn’t distance but exhaustion, and the rare gift of working with someone who not only knows your brain but loves how it works.
If you’ve ever felt misunderstood, stretched too thin, or guilty for not staying in touch, this episode is a reminder that real friendship doesn’t need constant communication to thrive — it needs grace, empathy, and presence. Because when we find the people who love us through our chaos, that connection becomes our greatest source of peace.
Listen now and take a moment to reach out to someone who grounds you, believes in you, and reminds you that your brain — and your heart — are worth celebrating.

Rising Above Labels: Defying Gravity with ADHD

After the “Fiesty” episode, a listener asked me a question that stopped me in my tracks:"What do you do with the weight that comes with owning who you are?"
That conversation inspired this week’s episode—Rising Above Labels: Defying Gravity with ADHD.
In this deeply personal episode, we’re talking about the emotional gravity that comes with ADHD—how labels, expectations, and self-doubt can quietly pull us down—and what it really means to rise anyway.
Join me as I share stories, reflections, and science on how to:
Release the weight of old labels and rewrite your own story
Understand the emotional “gravity” of ADHD and find your lift
 Model self-compassion and strength for ADHD kids
Transform shame into curiosity, creativity, and confidence
This week’s hat—Defy Gravity—reminds us that flight isn’t about ignoring the weight. It’s about learning how to rise with it.
So grab your backpack, take a breath, and let’s climb—one step, one story, one moment of lift at a time.

Weekend Trails – Finding Rest, Rhythm, and ADHD Balance

Weekends: freedom, chaos, or both? In this energized episode of Backpacking Through ADHD, we’re unpacking why unstructured time can be so tricky for ADHD brains—and how to turn those 48 hours into something that actually restores us.
Tera explores the messy middle between productivity and peace, guilt and rest, and shares how her family learned to build “rhythm over routine.” You’ll hear real-life stories, science-backed insights, and simple weekend resets that boost dopamine, connection, and calm.
Whether your weekend looks like a blanket fort, a mountain trail, or a laundry marathon, this one’s for you. Because rest isn’t earned—it’s part of the trail.
In This Episode:
Why weekends can feel overwhelming for ADHD brains
Turning guilt into grace with rhythm, not rigidity
The science of movement, novelty, and connection
How to reclaim play as self-care
Sunday night anxiety and the “Sunday Shift” reset ritual
Listen now and learn how to make your weekends work for your ADHD, not against it.
 

Feisty: Reclaiming ADHD Female Identity

What happens when women with ADHD get called “bossy,” “too blunt,” “difficult,” or “too much”? In this episode of Backpacking Through ADHD, host Tera Greenwood flips the script on the word feisty.
From family stories to workplace moments, Tera explores how the very traits often criticized in ADHD women—intensity, passion, boldness—are actually strengths. This episode is about reclaiming labels, setting boundaries, and refusing to shrink into someone else’s version of “acceptable.”
Tune in to hear how “feisty” becomes a force: unapologetic, empowering, and deeply tied to the ADHD female experience.

Kinder, Braver, Together

What if the ADHD journey could be guided by three simple words: kinder, braver, together?
In this week’s episode of Backpacking Through ADHD, I’m exploring how these words aren’t just ideals—they’re practical tools for both parenting ADHD kids and living with ADHD as an adult.
We’ll talk about:
Why kindness (to our kids and ourselves) can shift emotional storms into connection.
How bravery shows up in everyday advocacy, at school, at work, and at home.
Why togetherness—family co-regulation, community, and shared stories—is the survival tool ADHD families and adults need most.
You’ll hear personal stories, real strategies, and reflections that connect the dots across generations and life stages. Whether you’re supporting an ADHD child, navigating your own late diagnosis, or both—this episode will remind you that none of us are meant to carry the backpack alone.
Tune in and let’s take the trail kinder, braver, together.

Rule Maker

Parenting ADHD means becoming the “rule maker”—but that doesn’t mean playing drill sergeant. In this episode, I explore the messy middle of setting boundaries while leaving space to bend.
From the chaos of chore charts that collapsed, to the nights when breaking bedtime rules meant saving connection, this conversation is all about how rules can both anchor and overwhelm ADHD families.
We’ll talk about why fewer rules work better, how to phrase them so kids actually hear them, why consequences have to fit in the moment, and when love matters more than holding the line.
If you’ve ever wondered how to survive the daily storms without losing yourself in rigidity—or giving up on rules altogether—this one’s for you.
Tune in to Backpacking Through ADHD and let’s keep rewriting the map, one boundary and one breakthrough at a time.

If I Had One Wish: Understanding ADHD

If I had one wish, it wouldn’t be for money, success, or even more hours in the day. My one wish is that ADHD was understood by everyone. Not tolerated. Not brushed aside. Truly understood.
In this episode of Backpacking Through ADHD, I take the “Make a Wish” hat and use it to explore what life could look like if our kids, partners, colleagues, and communities actually got it. We’ll unpack the myths that keep us stuck, share the heartbreak of being misunderstood, and celebrate the small moments when wishes come true—when someone finally sees us clearly.
You’ll hear personal stories from my own ADHD journey and from parenting my son, Grayson, along with reflections on how we can turn wishes into action—whether that’s advocating at school, building neurodiverse-friendly workplaces, or simply listening with more empathy.
Because wishing alone won’t change the world. But when we share our wishes, we begin to create the understanding we’ve been longing for.
Tune in and ask yourself: What’s your ADHD wish right now?

Forged in Fire- Words, Wounds, and Building Real Resilience in ADHD Friendships

Words have power, and for ADHD kids, they often carry an even heavier weight. In this week’s episode of Backpacking Through ADHD, we’re leaning into the theme “Forged in Fire,” a phrase that reminds us how strength is shaped in the heat of challenge. When Grayson asked me to buy this hat, I hesitated at first, unsure of its meaning. But once I understood that being forged in fire is about resilience and growth, I knew the moment would come when this hat tied perfectly into our story.
This episode explores how ADHD kids interpret words more deeply, why they can take comments harder than intended, and the emotional toll that follows. We’ll talk about the science behind emotional regulation, the role of rejection sensitivity, and the tools that can help our kids pause, reframe, and move forward with strength. Most of all, we’ll walk together through what it looks like to teach resilience, not by pretending words don’t hurt, but by helping our kids rise again after the sting.
Join me on the trail as we unpack how to guide our children through the fire of words and into the strength of resilience.