Masking, Over-Functioning and the Shame That Keeps You Stuck
About this episode
This episode discusses the challenges of masking and neurodivergent burnout in high-pressure work environments, featuring insights from Kirstie Pickles.
If you've always felt like everyone else got an unwritten handbook about how to behave at work - and you've had to figure it out yourself, one interaction at a time - this episode is for you. This week, Rachel’s in conversation with Kirstie Pickles: vet, autistic ADHD professional, and EDI advocate. Kirstie was diagnosed as an adult - after years of masking in a high-stakes clinical role, performing competence while running on empty underneath. We talk about: What masking really costs - not just after one hard day, but across a career Neurodivergent burnout: why it is different from regular burnout, and why the usual advice doesn't work The shame of late diagnosis - and what it means to finally have a name for it What colleagues and leaders can do to make workplaces work for everyone You don't need a diagnosis to recognise yourself here. A lot of us in high-achieving, high-pressure roles have neurodivergent traits we have never had a name for. We just learned to mask through it. Our ingrained programming tells us to keep performing, keep adapting, keep looking like we're coping fine. But that performance has a cost - and it will affect your next decision, and the one after that…
More episodes of You Are Not A Frog
- How to Work Free From Burnout
- How to Hold Someone Accountable Without Losing the Relationship
- Am I a Snowflake If I’m Not Coping Now?
- How Wanting to Do More at Work Becomes a Burnout Warning Sign for High Achievers
- Why Summer Makes Your Burnout Worse (And It's Not Your Fault)
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the You Are Not A Frog podcast page.