The Exhausting Truth Behind Verbal Masking

What if being talkative was just a clever disguise for burnout? Peek behind the mask of AuDHD and discover the silent cost of seeming verbal.

Lifestyle | Foodie | Family | Bryony on Instagram: "Winnie. My wild child. My curly girl. So proud of how hard she tries despite the challenges she has, what I find hard to see sometimes is everyone posting how their children are thriving but not each childhood is like that and not everything comes easy - of course got to take into account not everyone posts their struggles online and not everyone is honest online - and you don't have to be, no one needs to post their sh*t on the Internet. Winnie is a creative soul - the crafts she makes with cardboard and sellotape is incredible. She loves to paddleboard and knows how to swim. She's coming out her shell at Beavers now and can give you good banter and quips that surprise you. It isn't something I speak about often to people because it feels like I just see all these parents/carers only ever sharing the positive things, the positive thriving school reports where their kids are successful at everything - and honestly that's awesome for them but I didn't have that experience at school (most people who met me diagnose me with ADHD) and neither does Winnie - School is where the challenge lies. Since being in Reception it was noticed her learning and communication was different to other children and 2 years later she's now on the waiting list to be diagnosed with autism which is taking a very very long time. She was diagnosed with a speech impediment at 5 so that has meant reading is a challenge and they think she's dyslexic so writing is also a challenge... Every success feels bigger, any time she speaks to another child I want to celebrate, whenever she comes home with a terrific ticket for simply trying is a reward day. I've never had a child with learning differences so it's a learning curve for me too and I need to learn patience with it and no matter how frustrating it can be it's 100x worse for her but she tries and tries and thats all that matters I think. Her little happy face when she creates or swims or joins in on something is something special. Finding what works for you in learning is key and she's so loving, caring and considerate and I'm very proud of her. She was my surprise wild card and I wouldn't change her for the world."

bryonyannie on July 14, 2025: "Winnie. My wild child. My curly girl. So proud of how hard she tries despite the challenges she has, what I find hard to see sometimes is everyone posting how their children are thriving but not each childhood is like that and not everything comes easy - of course got to take into account not everyone posts their struggles online and not everyone is honest online - and you don't have to be, no one needs to post their sh*t on the Internet. Winnie is a creative soul - the crafts she makes with cardboard and sellotape is incredible. She loves to paddleboard and knows how to swim. She's coming out her shell at Beavers now and can give you good banter and quips that surprise you. It isn't something I speak about often to people because it feels like I just see all these parents/carers only ever sharing the positive things, the positive thriving school reports where their kids are successful at everything - and honestly that's awesome for them but I didn't have that experience at school (most people who met me diagnose me with ADHD) and neither does Winnie - School is where the challenge lies. Since being in Reception it was noticed her learning and communication was different to other children and 2 years later she's now on the waiting list to be diagnosed with autism which is taking a very very long time. She was diagnosed with a speech impediment at 5 so that has meant reading is a challenge and they think she's dyslexic so writing is also a challenge... Every success feels bigger, any time she speaks to another child I want to celebrate, whenever she comes home with a terrific ticket for simply trying is a reward day. I've never had a child with learning differences so it's a learning curve for me too and I need to learn patience with it and no matter how frustrating it can be it's 100x worse for her but she tries and tries and thats all that matters I think. Her little happy face when she creates or swims or joins in on something is something special. Finding what works for you in learning is key and she's so loving, caring and considerate and I'm very proud of her. She was my surprise wild card and I wouldn't change her for the world.".

Bluesky