ADHD Beyond the Label – Episode 7 -Vanessa D’Souza & Kim Raine

In this episode of ADHD: Beyond the Label, hosts Dr Phil Anderton (CEO of ADHD 360) and John Reynolds are joined by Vanessa D’Souza, a MasterChef semi-finalist, and Kim Raine, an ADHD coach and author, for a conversation about what ADHD really looks like - and why so many people are still being misunderstood.

Vanessa shares her story of reaching the MasterChef semi-finals while unknowingly heading towards burnout. She talks about the pressure to hold it all together, the relief that came with finally being diagnosed, and how the same traits that helped her succeed were also overwhelming her.

Kim brings both personal and professional perspective to the conversation, reflecting on how often women are missed, mislabelled, or only recognise themselves in the condition once someone else speaks up.

Together, they unpack the problem with the language used to describe ADHD - words like “hyperactivity” and “deficit” that still shape how the condition is judged, even though they don’t reflect what it feels like to live with it.

This episode is about being misread, about the cost of masking, and about how powerful it is to finally have the words that make everything make sense.