Back-to-school season is expensive for every family — but when you have an ADHD brain, it hits differently. Time blindness makes September feel unreal in June. Executive dysfunction turns a simple list into a spiral. And the moment August arrives, the dopamine hits and suddenly you've spent twice what you planned.

In this episode, Esther breaks down exactly why back-to-school spending is so hard for ADHD parents and neurodivergent adults — and what to actually do about it.

You'll learn:

• Why the standard budgeting advice (compare prices, make a list, use cashback apps) often backfires for ADHD brains
• The 5 ADHD patterns behind back-to-school overspending — including time blindness, dopamine-driven urgency, and all-or-nothing thinking
• What NOT to do: why visiting multiple stores and making exhaustive lists makes things worse
• 4 practical strategies that work with your ADHD brain — not against it

This week's gentle action: Open your phone, create a note called "Back to School Fund," write down one number, and move even £20/$20 into a separate savings pot. That's it. You've already started.

Ready to go deeper? Book a 90-minute brain-friendly money session with Esther: 👉 estherbangura.com/coaching

Your ADHD brain isn't broken at saving — it's wired differently. In this episode, we're getting into the real, neurological reason why executive dysfunction makes traditional savings advice fail so many neurodivergent adults. If you've ever transferred money into savings only to move it straight back out, this one is for you.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Why the ADHD brain experiences savings as "dead money" — and how dopamine plays a role
• The neuroscience behind executive dysfunction and future-self disconnection
• How money anxiety and nervous system threat responses drive stress spending
• Why "just save more" advice almost always backfires for neurodivergent brains
• The link between nervous system regulation and building a consistent savings habit
• Three practical, brain-friendly tools to start saving without willpower or guilt

Key Concepts Covered:

• Time Blindness & Savings — Russell Barkley's research on why the ADHD brain sees time as "now or not now," making future-focused financial decisions feel impossible.
• Future Self Continuity — Psychologist Hal Hershfield's research on why we treat our future selves like strangers — and how to change that so saving feels personal and real.
• The Savings Reframe — Savings isn't money you lose access to. It's the thing that lets your nervous system regulation finally kick in. It's choice. It's calm. It's protection.

Your Gentle Action This Week:

Open your savings account. Look at whatever is in it — whether it's £5 or £5,000. Then say out loud or in writing:

"This is for future me. She is real, and she is grateful."

No transfer needed. No new system. Just reconnection.

Resources & Next Steps:

• Work with Esther 1:1 → www.estherbangura.com/coaching
• Connect on Instagram @bossofymoney for weekly ADHD money tips and community
• Join the newsletter for gentle, shame-free financial guidance delivered to your inbox at → www.estherbangura.com/newsletter
• Loved this episode? Please leave a review — it helps other neurodivergent adults find this space

Why do you know what to do with money — and still not do it? The answer might be in your body.

In this episode, Esther sits down with Maxine Anthony, founder of Unika, a wellbeing company that uses movement, mindfulness, and connection to help people regulate stress and show up fully. Maxine shares her deeply personal story of burnout, breakdown, debt, and recovery — and the surprising tools that helped her rebuild not just her health, but her financial life too.

What we cover:

• How a high-performing year in business collapsed into burnout, debt, and depression
• Why stress hijacks your money decisions (and what to do about it)
• The link between a dysregulated nervous system and impulse spending, avoidance, and shame
• Why budgeting is a regulation problem, not a maths problem
• The small, practical tools — walking, journaling, therapy, and movement — that changed everything
• How Maxine began investing imperfectly and why she calls it her "abundance fund"
• What slow is smooth, smooth is fast really means for your finances

Resources mentioned:

• I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi
• Stacy Flowers (YouTube)
• Dave Ramsey
• Connect with Maxine: Instagram, YouTube & Threads: @UnikaByMaxine Linkedin:

Ready to work on your money foundations?

If this episode resonated, Esther works with neurodivergent adults to build the practical and emotional foundations for better money management. Visit estherbangura.com/coaching to find out how to work with her.