Unmasking Autism & ADHD with Ellie Middleton

From A Need To Read by Ed Cunningham

July 23, 2025 · 1h 5m · Episode 194

About this episode

Ellie Middleton discusses her journey of self-discovery through late diagnoses of autism and ADHD, exploring themes of mental health, writing, and self-compassion.

Today’s paid partner is BetterHelp, to get 10% off your first month of online therapy with a credentialed therapist head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread In this episode, I sit down with Ellie Middleton — author of Unmasked and How To Be You — to talk about the messy, powerful journey of self-discovery through a late diagnosis of autism and ADHD. From anxiety misdiagnoses and burnout cycles to the pressures of “being normal” and the power of simply understanding yourself, Ellie opens up about it all. We also dive into reading habits, writing under pressure, self-compassion, and learning to be a big brave girl (in the surf). What We Talk About The cycle of burnout and the misdiagnosis of anxiety and depression Ellie’s late diagnosis journey and the “lightbulb” moment in therapy Masking and why “being normal” is so damn exhausting Reading as a neurodivergent person — fiction, nonfiction, and dropping the book snobbery Writing two books in under two years (and nearly breaking herself doing it) Neurodivergent time vs. linear time — and why “spinning out in space” matters The power of somatic work, surfing, and getting comfortable looking silly Gendered differences in how autism and…

People in this episode

Host: Ed Cunningham

Guest: Ellie Middleton

Topics covered

autism
ADHD
self-discovery
neurodiversity
mental health
writing
self-compassion

Keywords

autism
ADHD
self-discovery
neurodiversity
BetterHelp
writing
mental health
self-compassion

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Unmasked, How To Be You