Holly B. | Science & Self
@scienceandself.bsky.social
🔬Exploring the intersection of science, mental health, and neurodiversity.
✍️Writer, advocate, and curious thinker.
✍️Writer, advocate, and curious thinker.
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Executive Dysfunction: When Simple Tasks Feel Like Climbing Everest
How executive dysfunction turns everyday tasks into uphill battles
medium.com
A fridge filter changed my life.
(Not really. But it did spark this piece about executive dysfunction and why the simplest tasks can feel impossible.)
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #ExecutiveDysfunction #Neurodivergent
(Not really. But it did spark this piece about executive dysfunction and why the simplest tasks can feel impossible.)
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #ExecutiveDysfunction #Neurodivergent
I just wrote something I care deeply about: “What I’d Tell a Friend Who Is Worried About the Vaccine Schedule.” It’s a calm, science-based response to someone’s thoughtful public comment — because doubts are real, and empathy matters.
🔗 medium.com/science-for-...
#Science #Vaccines #PublicHealth
🔗 medium.com/science-for-...
#Science #Vaccines #PublicHealth
What I’d Tell a Friend Who Is Worried About the Vaccine Schedule
A calm, science-based response to a thoughtful public comment
medium.com
November 25, 2025 at 11:23 PM
I just wrote something I care deeply about: “What I’d Tell a Friend Who Is Worried About the Vaccine Schedule.” It’s a calm, science-based response to someone’s thoughtful public comment — because doubts are real, and empathy matters.
🔗 medium.com/science-for-...
#Science #Vaccines #PublicHealth
🔗 medium.com/science-for-...
#Science #Vaccines #PublicHealth
Yes flu shots were updated for 2025-2026, and they should be available near you soon (and may be already).
August 9, 2025 at 9:14 PM
Yes flu shots were updated for 2025-2026, and they should be available near you soon (and may be already).
On this Wednesday evening (well, in my time zone anyway)...
May your stress hormones chill and your thoughts not spiral. 😌
May your stress hormones chill and your thoughts not spiral. 😌
July 3, 2025 at 2:17 AM
On this Wednesday evening (well, in my time zone anyway)...
May your stress hormones chill and your thoughts not spiral. 😌
May your stress hormones chill and your thoughts not spiral. 😌
On this Monday evening I wish you a calm brain, chilled nerves, and an unclenched jaw.
July 1, 2025 at 1:46 AM
On this Monday evening I wish you a calm brain, chilled nerves, and an unclenched jaw.
A neighborhood sidewalk chat shouldn’t ruin your whole day. But with ADHD and rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD), it can.
New post: RSD, childhood shame, and the time I misspelled guppy.
🔗 medium.com/invisible-il...
#ADHD #Neurodivergent #RSD
New post: RSD, childhood shame, and the time I misspelled guppy.
🔗 medium.com/invisible-il...
#ADHD #Neurodivergent #RSD
RSD — Ruining Good Days Since Childhood
A real-life glimpse into rejection sensitive dysphoria
medium.com
June 18, 2025 at 3:11 PM
A neighborhood sidewalk chat shouldn’t ruin your whole day. But with ADHD and rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD), it can.
New post: RSD, childhood shame, and the time I misspelled guppy.
🔗 medium.com/invisible-il...
#ADHD #Neurodivergent #RSD
New post: RSD, childhood shame, and the time I misspelled guppy.
🔗 medium.com/invisible-il...
#ADHD #Neurodivergent #RSD
Have you ever wondered what EMDR therapy actually feels like?
After 16 years in traditional talk therapy, I finally tried EMDR. I wrote a breakdown of my EMDR experience including the weird, powerful, and surprising parts of the process.
medium.com/@scienceands...
After 16 years in traditional talk therapy, I finally tried EMDR. I wrote a breakdown of my EMDR experience including the weird, powerful, and surprising parts of the process.
medium.com/@scienceands...
So What Is EMDR Actually Like?
From Someone Who Did Years of Talk Therapy First
medium.com
June 10, 2025 at 3:31 PM
Have you ever wondered what EMDR therapy actually feels like?
After 16 years in traditional talk therapy, I finally tried EMDR. I wrote a breakdown of my EMDR experience including the weird, powerful, and surprising parts of the process.
medium.com/@scienceands...
After 16 years in traditional talk therapy, I finally tried EMDR. I wrote a breakdown of my EMDR experience including the weird, powerful, and surprising parts of the process.
medium.com/@scienceands...
RFK Jr. has been in office less than 4 months and has:
— Downplayed a deadly measles outbreak
— Spread vaccine misinformation
— Released a report citing nonexistent research
This isn't normal.
Read my take here: medium.com/@scienceands...
#RFKJr #MAHAReport #ADHD #PublicHealth
— Downplayed a deadly measles outbreak
— Spread vaccine misinformation
— Released a report citing nonexistent research
This isn't normal.
Read my take here: medium.com/@scienceands...
#RFKJr #MAHAReport #ADHD #PublicHealth
We Need to Talk About RFK Jr.
He Should’ve Never Been Confirmed and Needs to Resign.
medium.com
June 3, 2025 at 12:23 PM
RFK Jr. has been in office less than 4 months and has:
— Downplayed a deadly measles outbreak
— Spread vaccine misinformation
— Released a report citing nonexistent research
This isn't normal.
Read my take here: medium.com/@scienceands...
#RFKJr #MAHAReport #ADHD #PublicHealth
— Downplayed a deadly measles outbreak
— Spread vaccine misinformation
— Released a report citing nonexistent research
This isn't normal.
Read my take here: medium.com/@scienceands...
#RFKJr #MAHAReport #ADHD #PublicHealth
Not sure if he made it, but I saw this on one of Dr. Noc's social media pages and died laughing. (But also let's acknowledge how scary this is.) @drnoc.bsky.social
May 30, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Not sure if he made it, but I saw this on one of Dr. Noc's social media pages and died laughing. (But also let's acknowledge how scary this is.) @drnoc.bsky.social
Executive dysfunction isn’t about motivation. It’s more like...you're trying to walk a straight line toward a goal but your brain is lobbing 3000 dodgeballs your way.
You want to do the thing. You know how to do the thing. (1/2)
You want to do the thing. You know how to do the thing. (1/2)
May 29, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Executive dysfunction isn’t about motivation. It’s more like...you're trying to walk a straight line toward a goal but your brain is lobbing 3000 dodgeballs your way.
You want to do the thing. You know how to do the thing. (1/2)
You want to do the thing. You know how to do the thing. (1/2)
Some of us have learned to look like we’re doing fine…even when we’re not.
Sometimes I look like I have it all together from the outside. But my body always knows the truth (often before my mind does). 1/2
Sometimes I look like I have it all together from the outside. But my body always knows the truth (often before my mind does). 1/2
May 28, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Some of us have learned to look like we’re doing fine…even when we’re not.
Sometimes I look like I have it all together from the outside. But my body always knows the truth (often before my mind does). 1/2
Sometimes I look like I have it all together from the outside. But my body always knows the truth (often before my mind does). 1/2
A fridge filter changed my life.
(Not really. But it did spark this piece about executive dysfunction and why the simplest tasks can feel impossible.)
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #ExecutiveDysfunction #Neurodivergent
(Not really. But it did spark this piece about executive dysfunction and why the simplest tasks can feel impossible.)
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #ExecutiveDysfunction #Neurodivergent
Executive Dysfunction: When Simple Tasks Feel Like Climbing Everest
How executive dysfunction turns everyday tasks into uphill battles
medium.com
May 27, 2025 at 12:49 PM
A fridge filter changed my life.
(Not really. But it did spark this piece about executive dysfunction and why the simplest tasks can feel impossible.)
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #ExecutiveDysfunction #Neurodivergent
(Not really. But it did spark this piece about executive dysfunction and why the simplest tasks can feel impossible.)
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #ExecutiveDysfunction #Neurodivergent
I was a good student. How could I have ADHD?
Surprise, surprise…many women/AFAB individuals go undiagnosed because their symptoms don't match the hyperactive stereotype.
Success in school doesn't negate struggles with organization, focus, and emotional regulation that often accompany ADHD!
Surprise, surprise…many women/AFAB individuals go undiagnosed because their symptoms don't match the hyperactive stereotype.
Success in school doesn't negate struggles with organization, focus, and emotional regulation that often accompany ADHD!
May 26, 2025 at 4:54 PM
I was a good student. How could I have ADHD?
Surprise, surprise…many women/AFAB individuals go undiagnosed because their symptoms don't match the hyperactive stereotype.
Success in school doesn't negate struggles with organization, focus, and emotional regulation that often accompany ADHD!
Surprise, surprise…many women/AFAB individuals go undiagnosed because their symptoms don't match the hyperactive stereotype.
Success in school doesn't negate struggles with organization, focus, and emotional regulation that often accompany ADHD!
Sometimes I get this feeling, almost like a wave of depression hits me physically. Does anyone know what I'm talking about?
I can be working at the computer, in the grocery store, writing, whatever, and this sensation washes over me for maybe 10 seconds. 1 of 4
I can be working at the computer, in the grocery store, writing, whatever, and this sensation washes over me for maybe 10 seconds. 1 of 4
May 21, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Sometimes I get this feeling, almost like a wave of depression hits me physically. Does anyone know what I'm talking about?
I can be working at the computer, in the grocery store, writing, whatever, and this sensation washes over me for maybe 10 seconds. 1 of 4
I can be working at the computer, in the grocery store, writing, whatever, and this sensation washes over me for maybe 10 seconds. 1 of 4
What does a neurodivergent meltdown look like?
For me, it looked like crying in the kitchen over...a new dishwasher. 🤦♂️
On ADHD, anxiety, and why even "small" change can feel like too much:
When the Dishwasher Broke Me
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #anxiety #MentalHealth
For me, it looked like crying in the kitchen over...a new dishwasher. 🤦♂️
On ADHD, anxiety, and why even "small" change can feel like too much:
When the Dishwasher Broke Me
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #anxiety #MentalHealth
When The Dishwasher Broke Me
A story about dishwashers, meltdowns, and how neurodivergent brains respond to unexpected change
medium.com
May 20, 2025 at 1:32 PM
What does a neurodivergent meltdown look like?
For me, it looked like crying in the kitchen over...a new dishwasher. 🤦♂️
On ADHD, anxiety, and why even "small" change can feel like too much:
When the Dishwasher Broke Me
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #anxiety #MentalHealth
For me, it looked like crying in the kitchen over...a new dishwasher. 🤦♂️
On ADHD, anxiety, and why even "small" change can feel like too much:
When the Dishwasher Broke Me
medium.com/@scienceands...
#ADHD #anxiety #MentalHealth
May 18, 2025 at 2:14 PM
The past few weeks have been heavy in places.
I haven't “fixed” my anxiety, but I am trying to stop running from it.
That counts.
Here’s to small steps, quiet moments, and acknowledging when we keep showing up anyway.
I haven't “fixed” my anxiety, but I am trying to stop running from it.
That counts.
Here’s to small steps, quiet moments, and acknowledging when we keep showing up anyway.
May 16, 2025 at 4:07 PM
The past few weeks have been heavy in places.
I haven't “fixed” my anxiety, but I am trying to stop running from it.
That counts.
Here’s to small steps, quiet moments, and acknowledging when we keep showing up anyway.
I haven't “fixed” my anxiety, but I am trying to stop running from it.
That counts.
Here’s to small steps, quiet moments, and acknowledging when we keep showing up anyway.
Reposted by Holly B. | Science & Self
I wrote a poem this week about anxiety—how it shows up quietly and sits in your space like it owns it.
Sharing space with it is hard. But pretending it’s not there doesn’t work either.
What helps you get through the quieter, heavier days?
Sharing space with it is hard. But pretending it’s not there doesn’t work either.
What helps you get through the quieter, heavier days?
May 15, 2025 at 2:42 PM
I wrote a poem this week about anxiety—how it shows up quietly and sits in your space like it owns it.
Sharing space with it is hard. But pretending it’s not there doesn’t work either.
What helps you get through the quieter, heavier days?
Sharing space with it is hard. But pretending it’s not there doesn’t work either.
What helps you get through the quieter, heavier days?
Not a great start to the day. Got triggered by the most mundane thing--someone clipping their nails. It threw me into images, smells, feelings of a natural disaster my family survived when I was 11.
Nail clipping.
Wth. Brains are weird.
Nail clipping.
Wth. Brains are weird.
May 14, 2025 at 12:32 PM
Not a great start to the day. Got triggered by the most mundane thing--someone clipping their nails. It threw me into images, smells, feelings of a natural disaster my family survived when I was 11.
Nail clipping.
Wth. Brains are weird.
Nail clipping.
Wth. Brains are weird.
New poem up on Medium: “Sharing Space.”
It’s about what it’s like when anxiety makes itself at home.
I don’t write poetry often, but this one nearly wrote itself.
medium.com/@scienceands...
#anxiety #mentalhealthawareness #poetry
It’s about what it’s like when anxiety makes itself at home.
I don’t write poetry often, but this one nearly wrote itself.
medium.com/@scienceands...
#anxiety #mentalhealthawareness #poetry
Sharing Space With Anxiety
A personal poem on self-doubt, inner voices, and learning not to run
medium.com
May 13, 2025 at 3:13 PM
New poem up on Medium: “Sharing Space.”
It’s about what it’s like when anxiety makes itself at home.
I don’t write poetry often, but this one nearly wrote itself.
medium.com/@scienceands...
#anxiety #mentalhealthawareness #poetry
It’s about what it’s like when anxiety makes itself at home.
I don’t write poetry often, but this one nearly wrote itself.
medium.com/@scienceands...
#anxiety #mentalhealthawareness #poetry
A late ADHD diagnosis doesn’t change your past, but it can help explain it.
At 40, I finally learned I needed to stop calling myself lazy and start asking better questions.
At 40, I finally learned I needed to stop calling myself lazy and start asking better questions.
May 8, 2025 at 2:54 PM
A late ADHD diagnosis doesn’t change your past, but it can help explain it.
At 40, I finally learned I needed to stop calling myself lazy and start asking better questions.
At 40, I finally learned I needed to stop calling myself lazy and start asking better questions.
I didn’t expect guilt and clutter to lead me to an ADHD diagnosis at 40, but here we are.
New post is live:
“I Wanted a Tidy House, but All I Got Was This Lousy ADHD Diagnosis Instead”
medium.com/@scienceands...
#neurodivergentlife
New post is live:
“I Wanted a Tidy House, but All I Got Was This Lousy ADHD Diagnosis Instead”
medium.com/@scienceands...
#neurodivergentlife
I Wanted a Tidy House, but All I Got Was This Lousy ADHD Diagnosis Instead
How guilt, clutter, and my kids helped me find self-compassion at age 40
medium.com
May 6, 2025 at 2:49 PM
I didn’t expect guilt and clutter to lead me to an ADHD diagnosis at 40, but here we are.
New post is live:
“I Wanted a Tidy House, but All I Got Was This Lousy ADHD Diagnosis Instead”
medium.com/@scienceands...
#neurodivergentlife
New post is live:
“I Wanted a Tidy House, but All I Got Was This Lousy ADHD Diagnosis Instead”
medium.com/@scienceands...
#neurodivergentlife
❄️ This winter felt heavier than usual. It wasn’t until I thawed out that I realized: I had seasonal depression. 🤦♂️ 🫤
May is #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, and I plan on sharing more (and not just about #SAD).
What about you? Have you ever experienced #seasonaldepression?
May is #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, and I plan on sharing more (and not just about #SAD).
What about you? Have you ever experienced #seasonaldepression?
May 2, 2025 at 9:20 PM
❄️ This winter felt heavier than usual. It wasn’t until I thawed out that I realized: I had seasonal depression. 🤦♂️ 🫤
May is #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, and I plan on sharing more (and not just about #SAD).
What about you? Have you ever experienced #seasonaldepression?
May is #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, and I plan on sharing more (and not just about #SAD).
What about you? Have you ever experienced #seasonaldepression?
Neurodivergent adults often feel like we're constantly falling behind—missed deadlines, messy desks, forgotten texts. But we’re not broken. We're navigating a world that wasn't designed for us. (1 of 2)
May 1, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Neurodivergent adults often feel like we're constantly falling behind—missed deadlines, messy desks, forgotten texts. But we’re not broken. We're navigating a world that wasn't designed for us. (1 of 2)