Is it just us, or does a vacation sometimes feel like you need another vacation just to recover from it?

In this week’s episode of ADHDville, your Ex-Mayors, Martin and Paul, pull up a chair at the King’s Agitated Head pub to tackle the ultimate neurodivergent dilemma: the Summer Vacation Paradox.

For the ADHD brain, a break from routine sounds like a thrilling dopamine hit—new places, new foods, and all the novelty we crave. But for the Autistic side of our brain? It’s a sensory nightmare of disrupted routines, strange pillows, and noisy buffet lines. It’s the classic battle between wanting to explore the world and wanting to hide in the hotel room.

We dive deep into why vacations can leave us feeling burned out instead of recharged. From the chaos of packing and airport anxiety to the pressure of "having fun," we unpack:

 * The hidden stress of planning trips with an AuDHD brain.
 * Why the novelty of a new place can sometimes be more exhausting than exciting.
 * The simple pleasures of a "cookie-cutter" vacation (and the comfort of knowing the food at the local Indian restaurant is good).
 * How to be honest with yourself (and your partner) about the kind of holiday you actually need.

We also share our infamous "Two Truths and a Lie" quiz and read your incredible feedback from our last episode.

Whether you're an ADHDer, AuDHD, or just someone who comes back from a beach holiday feeling like you've been through a war, this one's for you.

Be fucking kind to yourself and join us for a chat.

Don't forget to LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and hit the bell to join us every Tuesday in ADHDville!

Need more of our nonsense?

 * Watch our beautiful faces on YouTube and TikTok.
 * Drop us a line at adhdville@gmail.com.

Episode 142 - ADHD & The Summer Vacation Paradox: Why You're Exhausted After Your Vacation

Welcome back to ADHDville, you beautiful bunch of distracted souls! We’re your ex-mayors, Martin and Paul, and this week we are diving headfirst into a topic that is equal parts heavy and... well, still heavy, but we’re making it funny anyway.

We’re talking about Trauma Responses. Buckle up, because the science dropped and it turns out we’re not just dramatic—we’re statistically screwed. New research says that folks with ADHD are 400% more likely to develop severe trauma responses than our neurotypical peers.

Four. Hundred. Percent.

That’s not a typo, that’s just our brains being overachievers.

In this episode, we break down why our ADHD brains are basically trauma magnets. We’re talking about the "Bi-Directional Loop of Doom" where our executive dysfunction makes trauma worse, and the trauma makes our ADHD worse. Fun, right?

We get into the nitty-gritty of those specific trauma responses we all know too well:

 * Hypervigilance: You know, the superpower where you can tell how pissed off your partner is just by the way they close the fridge door.
 * Disassociation: Ah yes, the classic "zoning out" that makes you forget you have a body for an hour.
 * Fawning & People-Pleasing: Becoming a chameleon just to keep the peace, even if it means losing yourself in the process. (Spoiler: Martin has a lot to say about this one).
 * Maladaptive Hyperfocus: Using a deep-dive research rabbit hole to avoid eating, sleeping, or dealing with your actual life.
   

Plus: a quiz about Eddies in history, a run-in with a Michelin sommelier, and the real reason Paul buys rosé based on font design.

If you’ve ever stood in a supermarket aisle for 20 minutes trying to pick a pasta sauce… this one’s for you.

🔔 Subscribe for fresh ADHD chaos every Tuesday.

Episode 141 - ADHD and Trauma: Why We’re 400% More Likely to Get F*cked Up

The Mayors of ADHDville are back with their third round of everyone's favourite neurodivergent hate-fest!

Martin and Paul are once again perched at the King's Agitated Head, ready to banish the world's most irritating things into the fiery depths of Room 101. And this time? They've got ChatGPT playing judge (because Paul Merton was simply too expensive).

Will Martin achieve a clean sweep? Will Paul's culinary grievances stand up to ChatGPT's ruthless judgement? And what exactly IS the proper punishment for tailgaters in Italy?

Pull up a pew, grab your favourite beverage, and join the mayors for another chaotic, laugh-filled trip through the wonderfully disorganised world of ADHDville.

New episodes drop every Tuesday! Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and most importantly - be fucking kind to yourself.


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ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 140 - ADHD Room 101 - Game 3. 

Ever feel like “keeping your composure” is just not in the ADHD manual? Yeah, same.

Welcome back to Radio ADHDville, where your ex-mayors Martin (diagnosed combined ADHD + self-diagnosed autistic) and Paul (late-diagnosed combined ADHD) are once again trying to figure out what “calm” even means.

This week, it’s Paul’s turn to pick the topic, and he’s got one problem: he has no idea what composure actually feels like. 😅

We get into:
- Why looking calm on the outside often means pure chaos on the inside
- The weird way road trips, ferries, and trains actually help our brains chill out (hello, sensory blanket)
- Martin’s very uncomposed awards show moments (including a hypnotist who saw right through him)
- What happens when burnout catches up and the chaos monkey takes over

Plus: deep-sea creature quiz chaos, your feedback on hormonal cycles, and a very honest rating of composure as a dopamine hit vs. burnout trap.

If you’ve ever been told you look “so calm” while your brain sounds like a washing machine full of rocks… this one’s for you.

👉 Subscribe for fresh ADHD chaos every Tuesday.


Drop a comment: When do YOU actually feel composed?

Watch us on YouTube or listen wherever you get your pods.

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ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 139 - ADHD and Composure: Why We Lose Our Cool (And Find It Again on a Ferry)

Welcome back to ADHDville, population: us, barely holding it together.

I’m Martin, officially diagnosed with combined ADHD and self-diagnosed autistic.
And I’m Paul, also rocking the combined type, diagnosed a few years back.
We’re your ex-mayors of this glorious, distracted little town, and this week? Oh, this week we’re getting properly middle-aged about things.

First up: a quiz. Martin tries to sneak a Snugglepuss question past me, fails, pivots to Charlie Chaplin, and somehow I still get tricked. Classic ADHD energy. There’s also a very nerdy debate about exclamation marks and whether putting three in a row is a personality trait. (Spoiler: yes.)

Then we head to the park bench — blanket on the knees, thermos optional — to talk about something blokes don’t nearly talk about enough: andropause. The so-called male menopause. Lower testosterone. Brain fog. Low drive. Grumpy old man syndrome. And how all of that crashes headfirst into ADHD burnout, RSD, and executive dysfunction.

We’re not comparing it to female menopause (we’re not daft). But we are saying: men get weird hormonal changes too, and we need to talk about them without buying a Harley Davidson or starting a podcast.
…Too late for that last one.

Plus: Martin shares the most awkward doctor’s visit of his life. It involves gel, a hospital gown, and an unexpected tap on the nuts. You’ll never hear “joie de vivre” the same way again.

So if you’re a bloke of a certain age, your ADHD symptoms feel worse than ever, and you’re not sure if it’s burnout, testosterone, or just being tired of everything — this one’s for you.

Subscribe, rate us, and for the love of chaos.

ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 138 - ADHD & The Male Menopause (Andropause)

We’re your ex-mayors, Martin and Paul, and this week we’re talking about something that hits every single one of us with an ADHD brain at the worst possible moments: choice paralysis.

You know the scene.
You walk into a coffee shop. 383 billion drink combinations. You just wanted an espresso with a little extra water… but it “doesn’t have a name.” So you walk out with nothing. Or worse, a Venti Americano you didn’t want.

Paul doesn’t get choice paralysis. He once moved to Palermo on a whim and stayed three years.
Martin, on the other hand, still hasn’t spent $1,000 he owes himself from 2020 because he can’t decide what instrument to buy.

Together, we break down:

 * Why the ADHD brain treats every option like an emergency 🚨
 * The difference between small choices (wine labels, screw tops, gold foil) and big life decisions
 * Three weirdly effective hacks to break the brain freeze (including the coin flip trick that actually works)

Plus: a quiz about Eddies in history, a run-in with a Michelin sommelier, and the real reason Paul buys rosé based on font design.

If you’ve ever stood in a supermarket aisle for 20 minutes trying to pick a pasta sauce… this one’s for you.

🔔 Subscribe for fresh ADHD chaos every Tuesday.

ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 137 - ADHD & Choice Paralysis: Why We Freeze (and How to Unfreeze)

Martin and Paul—ex-mayors of ADHDville—are hanging out in the king’s agitated head again. And this week? Things get visual.

We talked about sound last time (misophonia, anyone?). Now we’re diving into misokinesia—the hatred of movement. Sounds fancy. It’s not. It’s that moment when someone’s leg is bouncing in your peripheral vision, and your brain just goes: stop it, stop it, STOP IT.

From finger-tapping to gum-chewing to the pure chaos of Comic Sans (yes, really), the boys unpack why repetitive movements can trigger distraction, irritation, and—for some—full internal rage.

Plus:
- The science bit (mirror neurons, we see you)
- Paul finally remembers one that drives him mad
- Martin tries to bond with a librarian… and fails
- Seth tries mushroom coffee and regrets everything

And of course—the quiz, the tractor, and a very strong opinion on Papyrus.

If you’ve ever wanted to yeet someone across the room just for chewing with their mouth open… this one’s for you.

🔔 Subscribe for fresh ADHD chaos every Tuesday.

ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 136 - ADHD & Misokinesia: when other people’s fidgeting makes you lose your mind

Ever feel like certain sounds — loud chewing, slurping, bagpipes, or even someone saying the word "trimmings" — send your brain from zero to rage in 0.2 seconds? Welcome to misophonia, the not-so-fun cousin of ADHD sensory sensitivity.

In this episode, your honorary ex-mayors of ADHDville, Martin and Paul, get into the good, the bad, and the please-make-it-stop sounds that trigger disproportionate levels of internal chaos. From noodle slurping in China to accidentally befriending a mosquito in Italy (yes, really), they explore why ADHD brains struggle to filter certain noises and why that baby crying on the plane isn't just annoying — it's physically painful.

Plus: harpsichords, farting as a greeting (not a joke), and a quiz that goes exactly where you'd expect.

So grab a drink (no beer with milk, please), put on your headphones, and join us for a very loud chat about why silence is sometimes the only true love language.

🔊 New episodes every Tuesday. Subscribe for more ADHD chaos, curiosity, and questionable life choices.

Episode 135: ADHD & Misophonia: When chewing sounds make you want to leave the planet

Pull up a chair at the King’s Agitated Head, because the co-mayors are back and we’ve got ink on the brain.

This week, Martin and Pablo are tackling a very visible question: What is it about the ADHD brain and tattoos?

Martin is a blank canvas (who almost gets a hyperfixation on tattoos every two years, designs a whole folder, and then… forgets). Pablo has 28 tattoos, a mate who does them for free (dangerous), and a painful eight-hour Koi fish story that involves trying not to cry in front of a hardcore Japanese artist.

We’re asking the big questions:

 * Are tattoos just “vibes” or deep emotional regulation?
 * Is getting a tattoo the ultimate anti-masking move?
 * And why does Martin think it’s funny to tattoo fake “cut here” surgical scars all over his body? (Just for the off-chance a surgeon laughs one day.)

Plus, the Bloody Quiz returns with ancient monks, Winston Churchill’s alleged anchor, and a very tattooed caveman.

If you’ve got zero tattoos, 28, or somewhere in between—this one’s for you.

Hit play and let’s get inked (metaphorically). 

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ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 134 - ADHD & Tattoos: Why We Can’t Stop (or Won’t Start)

So… retirement.
For some people, it used to be a gold watch, a carriage clock, and finally some peace and quiet.

For the ADHD brain?
It’s time blindness on steroids, a sudden identity crisis, and way too many hours to overthink everything.

In this episode, we’re asking the big questions:
What happens when you stop doing the job that defined you?
Can you retire without losing your mind, or just losing your keys constantly?
And is it true that ADHDers are statistically more likely to die holding in a pee at a royal banquet? (Probably not. But we found some weird deaths anyway.)

From supermarket jobs to DoorDash, from burnt-out creative directors to 93-year-old painters doing their best work — we’re talking about retirement, semi-retirement, and the weird, unmasked, slightly creaky-kneed reality of getting older with ADHD.

Oh, and there’s a quiz about famous people who “retired from life” in spectacularly stupid ways.

So grab a cheese sandwich (no pickle, you absolute rebel), settle in, and let’s take the old tractor for a spin.

New episodes every Tuesday.

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ADHDville, the podcast where hosts Paul and Martin bring 40 years of friendship to your ears. As late-diagnosed adults, they explore the ADHD world with fun, games, and the occasional guest—no boring lectures, just a comfortable and hilarious conversation you’d have with old friends. A new episode drops every Tuesday to make your week brighter!

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Theme music was written by Freddie Philips and played by Martin West. All other music by Martin West.

Please remember: This is an entertainment podcast about ADHD and does not substitute for individualized advice from qualified health professionals.

Episode 133 - ADHD & Retirement: Time Blindness Meets the Longest Weekend of Your Life

Welcome to ADHDville - an Adult ADHD Podcast—a place where two old friends (who’ve known each other for way too long) talk about the beautiful glittery chaos of ADHD. We’re here for the laughs, the stories, and yes, sometimes even advice… but don’t take us too seriously.

Think of us as an ADHD park bench: plenty of space, no judgment, and maybe a squirrel or two. We chat about the wild ride that is adult ADHD, bring in the occasional guest for fresh perspectives, and somehow always end up on a completely unrelated tangent.

We’re not professionals (unless you count professional over-sharers), we're all about real talk, big laughs, and a lot of “same!” moments. Grab a seat and join Paul and Martin (the co-mayors of ADHDville) on this hilariously messy journey!

Martin West

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