Aug 25, 2026 · 51 min
ADHD care must account for emotional regulation
193: Dr. Sasha Hamdani: ADHD, Anxiety and How to Regulate your Emotions
Misreading emotional dysregulation as anxiety, depression, trauma, or poor attention can delay accurate diagnosis and effective support.
- 1ADHD diagnosis requires confirming persistent patterns while ruling out anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and medical conditions.
- 2Emotional volatility may persist, but self-awareness, movement, delayed reactions, and healthier routines can make regulation more automatic.
- 3Screens do not cause ADHD, yet constant high-stimulation media can intensify attention problems, anxiety, and emotional dysregulation.
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Hamdani describes being triggered by a canceled podcast appearance during her book tour, then explains how recognizing the reaction early can create room for regulation.
The brief
Psychiatrist Sasha Hamdani argues that ADHD is often understood too narrowly: emotional sensitivity and dysregulation can shape symptoms, treatment, and daily life.
The diagnostic challenge is separating ADHD from anxiety, depression, trauma, sleep problems, and medical conditions, rather than treating every attention difficulty as the same disorder.
Hamdani recalls being triggered by a canceled podcast appearance during her book tour, using the moment to show how early recognition can interrupt emotional escalation.
The practical tools are deliberately concrete: move the body, delay charged responses, challenge negative thoughts, improve sleep, and break overwhelming tasks into smaller steps.
The episode’s hopeful claim is that repeated practice can reshape habits and executive function, so ADHD and emotional dysregulation need not define a fixed future.
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