Cat Manasa Art, Healing & AUDHD

12/11/2025

“Maybe your brain doesn’t need more discipline — maybe it just needs more trees.” 🌿
🌱 Nature & Neurodivergence — Why Your Brain Feels Better Outside
If you’ve ever noticed that stepping outside — even for a few minutes — somehow quiets the chaos in your mind, you’re not imagining it.
For ADHD and autistic brains, nature isn’t just relaxing. It’s regulating.
Research shows that time in green spaces helps calm the nervous system, restore focus, improve mood, and even enhance executive function — the very skills that neurodivergent people often struggle with.
It’s not magic. It’s biology.
🧠 Why Nature Works So Well for Neurodivergent Brains
ADHD and autistic brains are constantly flooded with sensory information — sounds, thoughts, feelings, details.
It’s like having 40 browser tabs open and all of them auto-refreshing.
But nature does something miraculous: it gently reduces sensory overload while still giving your brain enough stimulation to stay engaged.
The soft rustle of leaves.
The warmth of sunlight.
The rhythm of wind and birdsong.
It’s predictable, yet rich. Stimulating, yet soothing. Exactly the kind of sensory balance that helps ADHD and autistic minds breathe again.
🌤️ How to Use Nature to Restore Focus and Emotional Balance
You don’t need a forest or a weekend getaway. Even tiny moments of connection with the natural world can reset your nervous system.
Here’s how to start:
🌿 1. Take Short “Green Breaks”
When your brain feels foggy or overstimulated, step outside — even for two minutes.
Look at the sky. Feel the air on your skin. Notice a tree or plant near you.
These micro-moments of stillness act like mental defrags — they help your brain reorganize itself.
If going outside isn’t an option, even looking out a window or viewing pictures of nature can help regulate your mind.
☀️ 2. Work, Read, or Think Outdoors When Possible
ADHD brains thrive on sunlight and movement.
If you can, bring your laptop, book, or notebook outside.
Sunlight increases dopamine and serotonin — neurotransmitters that help with motivation, focus, and mood.
The gentle background noise of nature (wind, birds, distant sounds) also provides white noise that helps drown out internal distractions.
🪴 3. Add Nature to Your Environment
If you spend most of your time indoors, bring nature to you.
Add a plant (real or artificial) to your workspace.
Keep a few stones, shells, or wood textures nearby.
Choose nature-themed wallpapers or screensavers.
These simple sensory cues can help ground your mind and reduce anxiety.
🌊 4. Use Nature Sounds for Focus or Relaxation
Nature sounds — rain, waves, birdsong — can act like dopamine-friendly background music.
They’re rhythmic enough to soothe but not repetitive enough to bore.
Try:
Listening to rain sounds while working.
Using forest ambience to unwind.
Playing ocean waves before sleep.
This creates a sensory bridge between calm and concentration — perfect for ADHD’s need for stimulation without overwhelm.
🪶 5. Track Your Energy Around Nature
Neurodivergent brains love patterns — even emotional ones.
Try journaling or noting how you feel before and after time in nature. Ask yourself:
Do I feel calmer or more focused afterward?
Does natural light help my motivation?
Do outdoor walks help with overstimulation?
Over time, you’ll start to learn what kind of nature exposure works best for you — and how much of it you need to recharge.
🌾 Why This Matters
Many neurodivergent people grow up being told they’re “too distracted,” “too sensitive,” or “too lazy.”
But often, they’re just out of sync with the environments they’re forced to live in.
Fluorescent lights, constant noise, artificial air — these things are hostile to brains that crave organic rhythm and sensory safety.
Nature, on the other hand, meets the brain where it is.
It doesn’t demand silence or stillness — it offers gentle regulation instead.
It’s not about escaping life.
It’s about remembering what balance feels like. 🌿
For ADHD and autistic people, focus and calm aren’t about “trying harder.”
They’re about creating conditions where the brain doesn’t have to fight itself.
So, next time your mind feels too loud — don’t open another productivity app.
Open a window.
Step outside.
Breathe.
Because sometimes, the most healing thing your brain needs is sunlight on your skin and a breeze that doesn’t expect anything from you. 🍃

07/11/2025

So grateful I get to do this work 🙏

31/10/2025

Merry Samhain 🎃🧡

Pumpkins by my daughter and her bf 😊

20/10/2025

The conflict is real.

Signs of Being AuDHD (Autistic + ADHD)

Some people have both Autism and ADHD — this combination is often called AuDHD.
It can be a unique mix of traits that make life both beautiful and challenging.

Here are some common signs that someone might relate to being AuDHD 👇

🔹 1. Constant mental tug-of-war
You want structure and routine (autism), but also get bored easily and crave novelty (ADHD). It’s like two parts of your brain pulling in opposite directions all day.

🔹 2. Deep focus… or zero focus
When something truly interests you, you can hyperfocus for hours.
But if it doesn’t capture your attention, it feels almost impossible to start — even small tasks can feel like climbing a mountain.

🔹 3. Sensory overload
You might get easily overwhelmed by sounds, lights, smells, or textures — especially when your ADHD brain is already overstimulated or tired.

🔹 4. Struggle with transitions
Switching tasks, changing plans, or stopping something you enjoy can feel extra hard. Your brain resists both the change (autism) and the executive function demand (ADHD).

🔹 5. Emotional intensity
You might feel emotions very deeply — happiness, sadness, frustration.
Small things can trigger big reactions, and it takes time to calm down again.

🔹 6. Social confusion and fatigue
You may overthink social rules, worry about saying the wrong thing, or replay conversations later. Even if you enjoy people, socializing can leave you mentally drained.

🔹 7. Difficulty prioritizing or finishing tasks
Your ADHD side wants to start everything at once, while your autistic side wants it perfect.
You might spend hours planning — but feel stuck actually finishing.

🔹 8. Needing “recovery time”
After social events, work, or busy days, you might need quiet time alone to recharge. This isn’t being antisocial — it’s how your brain resets.

🔹 9. Unique creativity and insight
Many AuDHD individuals see the world differently — you make unusual connections, come up with creative solutions, and notice details others miss.

💬 Remember:
AuDHD isn’t a flaw — it’s a neurotype.
Understanding it helps you build a lifestyle that matches how your brain truly works.

✨ If you relate to this mix of traits, you’re not broken — you’re wired differently, and that difference has incredible strengths.

16/10/2025

"New research has found that ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is linked to higher levels of creativity, and that this creative advantage may stem from a stronger tendency for the mind to wander."

I love allowing my brain to wander. It thinks up the most awesome ideas and solutions when left to do it's thing. ☺️

Researchers have discovered that ADHD’s hallmark mind wandering might actually boost creativity. People who deliberately let their thoughts drift scored higher on creative tests in two large studies. The findings hint that mindful management of mental drift could turn ADHD’s challenges into crea...

15/10/2025

Current location... I have a website to build. This is me not building my website.

The patio got tidied and rearranged yesterday. Autumn hanging baskets got planted up. The garden has been swept numerous times and now I'm creating a new flower bed at the neglected end of the garden. I have heauchera's and violets to b**g in here for now.

I have a website to build. 😳

13/10/2025

They last approximately 1-3 months then end up in the 'Abandoned Planner/Diary box', on the 'Notebooks I'll Probably Never Use But Look At Them! They're So Pretty' shelf.

I love stationary! ❤️