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[](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/) # [The Dopamine Dispatch](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/) Subscribe Sign in # Your favorite ADHD posts over the last year ### \+ a note about writing a book with ADHD and anxiety [](https://substack.com/@divergentcoachkelly) [Kelly Banks](https://substack.com/@divergentcoachkelly) Jan 25, 2026 51 5 2 Share Some way, somehow, the deadline to submit [my manuscript](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/holy-crap-this-messy-chaotic-adhder) is just around the corner. Naturally, I’m petrified. I’ve honestly been petrified throughout this whole process. Don’t get me wrong, I’m *beyond* grateful for the opportunity to write this book, which centers around my practice of [chaotic discipline](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/if-you-have-adhd-try-practicing-chaotic). And I weirdly *love* writing\! For my entire life, I’ve felt more comfortable writing than speaking, and I worked for years as a freelance writer and editor, among several other careers. (Have I mentioned I have ADHD?) So writing a book has truly been a lifelong dream of mine. But that’s one reason why it feels so scary. I’m putting *a lot a lot a lot* of pressure on myself to nail it, because it’s finally here! This opportunity! ***DONTFUCKITUP!!\!*** That’s actually one of the first things I said to my partner when the deal came through this summer: “God, I cannot fuck this up.” That feeling has pretty much been my baseline since June. Just a constant 24/7 hum of anxiety, panic, self-doubt, and [fear of being an imposter](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/the-adhd-fear-of-being-found-out). So when people in my life say, “Are you so excited??” The answer is very much, YES! But also, I’M SO SCARED ALL THE TIME\! There’s so much uncertainty. I’ve never written a book before. Unsurprisingly, I’m finding that writing, editing, organizing, refining, and making decisions about 80,000 words is exponentially more challenging than doing it for 1,500 words. Plus, promoting myself has always made me feel like vomiting. And I’ll have to do *a lot* of it in the coming months, including interviews on various platforms where I’ll need to constantly pray that my ADHD impulsivity doesn’t make me blurt out something career-ending. And then there are the inevitable *reviews.* As any ADHDer knows, [rejection sensitivity](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/the-gift-and-curse-of-adhd-sensitivity) can make critical feedback feel like a punch in the face. But even the very best books in the world get bad reviews, so of course there will be people who don’t like it. Still, it will be an immense personal challenge for me not to attach my worth as a human being to reviews of the book. All this is to say I’m so grateful, but also very, very anxious and stressed at the moment, so I’m taking a break from writing a full ADHD post this week and sharing some of *your* favorite posts over the last year instead. I’m also laughing at myself because I fully intended to write a super brief intro here, then post the links. But true to ADHD form, I’ve done the absolute most and written a mini personal essay on my book anxiety instead lol. At any rate, I’ll be back next week with a full post that isn’t centered around my anxiety, but in the meantime, here are the ADHD posts that resonated most with you all over the past year. If you haven’t read them yet, here’s your low-pressure invitation. **But most importantly, thank you so, so, SO much for supporting me and my work over the last year. It’s meant more to me than I can properly articulate, especially during this stretch. Your comments, kindness, and willingness to** ***subscribe*** **to yet another thing while we’re all swimming in too-many subscriptions is deeply meaningful to me.** - **[If you have ADHD, try practicing “chaotic discipline”](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/if-you-have-adhd-try-practicing-chaotic) -** This is my most popular post on Substack, and it’s what my upcoming book is based on\! - **[Self-care for ADHDers that isn’t f\*cking journaling or meditating](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/self-care-for-adhders-that-isnt-fcking) -** This is my second most popular post on Substack, offering accessible ways to show some care and love to yourself that don’t feel like homework. - **[How to ACTUALLY rest when you have ADHD](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/how-to-actually-rest-when-you-have)** - This is my third most… okay, I suppose I can stop saying that. You get it. This is all about ways to rest with ADHD that don’t require you to sit quietly. - **[How to create an ADHD-friendly home that works WITH your brain (not against it!)](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/compassionate-ways-to-create-an-adhd) -** What you won’t find here: elaborate organizational systems. What you will find here: Ways to design a more compassionate, emotionally safe home. - **[Why traditional productivity advice doesn’t work for ADHD brains](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/why-traditional-productivity-advice) -** Just set a reminder! Get a planner! Make a list! This is about why traditional productivity advice often falls short for us + advice that tends to work much better. - **[If you have ADHD, stop trying to be consistent](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/if-you-have-adhd-stop-trying-to-be) \-** Here you’ll find out why I think ADHDers focus too much on not being consistent with routines, work, etc. and not enough on being consistent at restarting. - **[I regret to inform you that meditation helps with ADHD](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/i-regret-to-inform-you-that-meditation) -** I worried you’d all unsubscribe after reading this post, but turns out, you liked it! It covers *why* meditation and mindfulness help us so much, along with ADHD-friendly ways to practice. - **[How to do things when your ADHD hates doing things](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/how-to-do-things-when-your-adhd-hates) -** This covers ways to make doing things easier that don’t include trying harder than you already are. - **[Why giving your ADHD brain permission to do LESS helps you do MORE](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/why-giving-your-adhd-brain-permission) -** Here you’ll learn all about why, as the title suggests, intentionally giving yourself permission to do less can paradoxically make it easier to do more. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. 51 5 2 Share Previous #### Discussion about this post Comments Restacks [](https://substack.com/profile/577577-amy?utm_source=comment) [Amy](https://substack.com/profile/577577-amy?utm_source=substack-feed-item) [9h](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/your-favorite-adhd-posts-over-the/comment/204847631 "Jan 25, 2026, 2:35 PM") I completely understand your book-related anxiety -- I get the same kind of anxiety with almost anything I have to write for work, putting enormous pressure on myself and feeling that imposter syndrome despite having done my job for 25-plus years now, a job, requiring writing, at which I excel. Please know you have my support with your book -- and the support of so many others -- who will write positive reviews and create posts on all the socials and, in general, be helpful for you! You've got this\! [Reply]() [Share]() [1 reply by Kelly Banks](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/your-favorite-adhd-posts-over-the/comment/204847631) [](https://substack.com/profile/3089114-nicole-evans?utm_source=comment) [Nicole Evans](https://substack.com/profile/3089114-nicole-evans?utm_source=substack-feed-item) [1h](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/your-favorite-adhd-posts-over-the/comment/205073901 "Jan 25, 2026, 10:06 PM") Another author here! It is \*so terrifying\* to write a book and SO terrifying to be perceived and marketing can go eat rocks. Yet, it's also been worth it, despite the stress? And, for whatever this nugget is worth, I send this newsletter to my writing partner every week, where we lament about how you're speaking into our very souls every single time, and just last week, I told her how excited I was to read your book; to have it physically in my hands to be able to annotate, take notes and learn from. I don't say that to add pressure! But to instead remind you that there are people excited about your book (me!) and who have complete faith in you to do it well, just based on your writing here (also me!) There has \*never\* been a doubt in my mind that your book is going to be anything sort of wonderful. Love, a very excited future reader 🖤 [Reply]() [Share]() [3 more comments...](https://divergentcoachkelly.substack.com/p/your-favorite-adhd-posts-over-the/comments) Top Latest Discussions No posts ### Ready for more? © 2026 Kelly · [Privacy](https://substack.com/privacy) ∙ [Terms](https://substack.com/tos) ∙ [Collection notice](https://substack.com/ccpa#personal-data-collected) [Start your Substack](https://substack.com/signup?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=web&utm_content=footer) [Get the app](https://substack.com/app/app-store-redirect?utm_campaign=app-marketing&utm_content=web-footer-button) [Substack](https://substack.com/) is the home for great culture This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. 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