The Cost of Silence: Neurodivergent Men, Masking, and Finding Support

About this episode

Shane Thrapp and Braden Young discuss the challenges faced by neurodivergent men regarding masking and the importance of seeking support.

Shane Thrapp and Braden Young discuss “the cost of silence” underneath masking, arguing that many men are conditioned from childhood to push through struggles quietly and treat needing help as weakness, which becomes even harder when layered with ADHD or autism-related executive dysfunction, overwhelm, and emotional dysregulation. They explain that without language or diagnosis—often delayed into the late 30s or 40s—men may assume they’re lazy or broken, avoid asking for help, and absorb escalating costs that show up later as anxiety, depression, substance abuse, relationship distance, shame, anger, burnout, and isolation. Braden shares how his son Landon could name feeling overwhelmed, highlighting what he lacked growing up. Both emphasize the value of community, describing the Men’s ADHD Support Group as a non-toxic space where men can listen, feel seen, and find peer support, and they encourage viewers to seek men’s support groups and share the episode.

People in this episode

Hosts: Shane Thrapp, Braden Young

Topics covered

• neurodivergence
• masking
• mental health
• ADHD
• autism
• support groups

Keywords

• neurodivergent men
• masking
• ADHD
• autism
• mental health
• support groups
• emotional dysregulation

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