This is a follow-up to an Instagram post I shared back in March 2021. A reflection on one of the hardest points in my life, and everything that’s shifted since.

You can view the post here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CMfuy96Hl3I/?igsh=MThyMmpiMmkwdXNvYw==

---

Back then, I was deep in anxiety, or at least, that’s what I thought.
Every day felt like I was walking on a tightrope made of overthinking, exhaustion, and internal chaos I couldn’t explain.
My boss at the time (who I’m still so grateful for) pulled me aside one day and simply asked, “Are you really okay?”
And I wasn’t. That small moment cracked something open, and I finally let it all out.

But here’s what I didn’t know then:
That anxiety I was trying to “fix” wasn’t the root of the problem, it was a symptom.
Over time (and a lot of trial and error), I discovered that what I was really living with was undiagnosed ADHD and autism.
And suddenly, so many things made sense.
The spiralling thoughts. The sensory overload. The fatigue from masking. The social anxiety that felt like it came out of nowhere.

Getting that diagnosis didn’t “solve” everything, but it gave me a new lens. One that’s allowed me to understand myself with more compassion and way less shame.

Since that post, I’ve grown in ways that aren’t always visible. But they’re real.
I know myself now. I know how to care for myself. And I’ve built a life that has more grace, more softness, and more structure than I ever thought I was capable of.

Still proud. Still learning. But a very different version of me than the one who wrote that post in 2021.

---

If this post has raised issues and you need support:
Lifeline: 13 11 14
ACON: 1800 063 060
QLife: 1800 184 527 (3pm–midnight)