Cloud19 Mars 2025

Dopamine and the ADHD Brain With Neuroscientist TJ Power!

We know that the ADHD brain operates in some different ways to a neurotypical one, but what’s actually going on inside our brains?
We’re joined today by neuroscientist, international speaker, and author of The DOSE Effect, TJ Power. TJ’s work focuses on small, practical habits that can help us regulate our brain chemistry.
Today we dive into:

How our dopamine levels differ from a neurotypical brain and what this means for our motivation, concentration and attention span
How dopamine is connected to hyperfocus
Changing the narrative of ‘disorder’ and ‘deficit’ to ‘difference’
TJ’s experience with OCD
How to find your ADHD ‘superpower’ and flow state
Task initiation challenges and transition stages
How dopamine is linked to novelty and impulsivity
How changing the first 5-10 mins of your morning can affect the whole rest of your day
The science behind therapies like ice baths and saunas & how they compare to drugs in the brain

We are then joined by clinical nutritionist Georgia Farrar to chat through which foods are best for maintaining focus and attention, which types of foods can exacerbate ADHD symptoms and whether caffeine is good or bad for our brains!

Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro

2:50 - Differences in ADHD brains

4:30 - The problem with the labels 'disorder' and 'deficit'

6:15 - TJ's experiences with OCD

11:45 - Finding your flow state

14:20 - How social media impacts dopamine

17:00 - Task initiation

19:40 - Dopamine & novelty

21:50 - Waking up and jumping on your phone

30:00 - Procrastination

31:30 - Deliberately reducing our stimulation

39:30 - Ice baths and dopamine

43:50 - Sleep and neurochemicals

46:00 - Nutrition for focus and attention

48:50 - Ultra processed foods

53:20 - Supplements that aid attention and focus

59:55 - Is caffeine good or bad?

You can find more from TJ including his new book from his website
TJ's Instagram

You can find more about ultra processed foods and nutrition advice from Georgia

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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