Part 2 of our Valentine’s Day special - we talk about Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) and how it specifically shows up in relationships!
Highlights of Episode Eight:
- Recap of RSD: common in people with ADHD, and experts suggest that shame/RSD should be considered as part of ADHD diagnostic criteria.
- LeAnn shares her experience of how RSD shows up in relationships as fear of being rejected and feelings of shame and incompetence.
- Suz shares that her RSD shows up as jealousy and untrusting/fear of being duped.
- Hyper-vigilance often leads us to go down a rabbit hole of mistrust as a result of forming trauma bond attachments with our romantic partners; we unconsciously seek out people who reinforce traumatic experiences we have had previously.
- Finding ways to distance our thoughts and emotions from situations to separate fact from fiction can help when we are feeling upset; this helps to uncover the meaning we attach to situations.
- When do we go to others to communicate feelings/issues, and when do we do the work within ourselves first?
- Emotional flooding and releasing the dam of emotions; how to balance our emotions with others.
- Fear of rejection and determining safety in relationships, how our trauma response can miss red flags and erode trust within ourselves.
- How does the trademark ADHD symptom of impulsivity show up in relationships? We discuss our terrible reckless dating decisions and other impulsive choices.
- Healing the abandonment wound and finding safety and security within ourselves, versus seeking validation externally.
- We can always improve ourselves and change unhealthy patterns to form healthier relationships; the more self-aware we are, the easier it is to change our habits.
- Forming healthy relationships with others: doing the work ourselves and breaking codependency; not putting our “shit” on others with the expectation that they need to fix us.
References from the Show:
ADHD For Smart Ass Women Episode on RSD: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6gSMhSsWWdvdBJqZEGgRmY?si=fk8dDEx2Ssa3qsMOAEPzAA
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