Stories, insights, and hard-earned wisdom from the AuDHD human experience. I write about autism, ADHD, resilience, relationships, grief, healing, and the everyday challenge of being human. Part personal reflection, part practical wisdom, and part ongoing experiment, my work helps people feel less alone while discovering what becomes possible when they stop trying to be someone else.
Notes From the Thick of It (July 1, 2026)
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I call this Notes From the Thick of It because I’m writing from inside real life, not from a polished finish line. These are reflections from the messy middle of AuDHD and chronic Illness, where overwhelm, grief, humor, healing, and small flashes of clarity all show up together. If you like what you read, please share it. The kitten and the campfireSome memories stay with you because they were loud. Others stay because they were gentle. When I was 15, a friend invited me to spend a week camping with his family. I had never seen darkness like that before. Not city darkness. Real darkness. The kind where the stars finally get their turn. I remember lying on the ground one night, staring up at a sky so crowded with stars it almost didn’t look real. I had no idea there were that many. It felt like seeing the world for the first time. There was also a kitten. One of a litter, maybe a few months old. Orange and white, like a little puff of cotton with a motor inside. I never knew if it was a boy or a girl. It didn’t seem important. That kitten followed me around all week. One night, as we slept near the fire, it purred and cuddled against my ear. My heart melted. I felt chosen. I couldn’t help but smile. Then it laid across my neck and purred itself to sleep. I tried not to laugh at how adorable it was. I also tried not to turn my head because I didn’t want to wake it up. I can still remember the sound and vibration across my throat. I remember how safe and loved it made me feel. Funny how some memories stay with you. Not because they were dramatic, but because they were gentle. I found myself thinking about that kitten while writing Agatha’s Garden. When Sam first arrives at the garden, he sleeps outside for the first few nights. Part of it is practical. Part of it is emotional. Sometimes it takes time to trust a new place. Sometimes it takes time to believe you’re allowed to belong somewhere. And sometimes healing begins with something small. A garden. A campfire. A sky full of stars. Or an orange-and-white kitten that decides you’re worth keeping company. That feeling lives inside Agatha’s Garden. If you’ve ever felt out of place and wished something quiet would remind you that you still belong, I think you’ll understand Sam. You can read Chapter 1 at AgathasGarden.com. And if the story feels like one you want to continue, you can get your copy of Agatha’s Garden: A Novel About Family Secrets, Healing, and Finding Where You Belong here: Review of Agatha's GardenWhen Your Child Changes Everything: A Mother’s Journey to Truth - Riffin with Heather HesterThere are moments that divide life into before and after. For Heather Hester, one of those moments came through a terrifying phone call in the middle of the night about her missing son. What followed was not just fear. It was the unraveling of beliefs, identity, relationships, and the version of herself she had been taught to be. In this episode of Riffin’ About Life, Heather and I talk about what it means to choose your child fully, especially when doing so forces you to question the beliefs, family patterns, and expectations you inherited. The hardest part was not accepting her son. It was confronting everything else. If you have ever wrestled with beliefs that no longer fit, struggled to set boundaries with family, or tried to live more honestly while knowing some people may not come with you, this conversation will stay with you. Because sometimes love asks us to become braver than we planned. Reflect on this: What belief are you still carrying that no longer feels true? Thanks for being you, |
Brian R. King MSW
Stories, insights, and hard-earned wisdom from the AuDHD human experience. I write about autism, ADHD, resilience, relationships, grief, healing, and the everyday challenge of being human. Part personal reflection, part practical wisdom, and part ongoing experiment, my work helps people feel less alone while discovering what becomes possible when they stop trying to be someone else.
I call this Notes From the Thick of It because I’m writing from inside real life, not from a polished finish line. These are reflections from the messy middle of AuDHD and chronic Illness, where overwhelm, grief, humor, healing, and small flashes of clarity all show up together. If you like what you read, please share it. Meanwhile, in My Brain Life with AuDHD lends itself to latching on to a lot of unhelpful ideas about our own worth, how relationships work, and more. Then the day comes when...
I call this Notes From the Thick of It because I’m writing from inside real life, not from a polished finish line. These are reflections from the messy middle of AuDHD and chronic Illness, where overwhelm, grief, humor, healing, and small flashes of clarity all show up together. If you like what you read, please share it. Meanwhile, in My Brain Unmasking isn’t safe to do in every situation. There are times when masking makes sense because stripping naked in front of others isn’t always safe....
I call this Notes From the Thick of It because I’m writing from inside real life, not from a polished finish line. These are reflections from the messy middle of AuDHD and chronic Illness, where overwhelm, grief, humor, healing, and small flashes of clarity all show up together. If you like what you read, please share it. Meanwhile, in My Brain We don't have cookie cutter brains. Accommodating one person's ADHD doesn't mean the problem is solved for all of us. To suggest otherwise is...