Rejection sensitivity and ADHD as an Emmy-winning comedy writer (Dan McCoy’s story)
ADHD Aha!4 Feb 2025

Rejection sensitivity and ADHD as an Emmy-winning comedy writer (Dan McCoy’s story)

Dan McCoy understood better his mood swings, fear of rejection, and hyperfocus when he was diagnosed with ADHD last year. He got an ADHD evaluation after reading an article his brother wrote about being on the autism spectrum.

Dan is a comedy writer who’s won two Emmy awards for his work on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He also co-hosts the movie podcast, The Flop House. Dan explains how comedy writing can be exposure therapy for rejection, and how he’s coping with managing emotions.

Related resources

Timestamps

(01:24) Dan’s recent ADHD diagnosis

(03:55) Recognizing emotions and burnout from masking

(06:40) The “Boom Bust” ADHD energy cycle

(08:05) Would it have been helpful to have an ADHD diagnosis as a child?

(11:26) Rejection sensitivity and comedy writing

(15:32) Does ADHD make you funny?

(19:34) Are people considerate of ADHD characteristics?

(22:34) What is Dan working on?

For a transcript and more resources, visit the ADHD Aha! page on Understood

Want to share your “aha” moment? We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at ADHDAha@understood.org.

Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(139)

Comedian Taryn Delanie Smith’s wild ADHD ride

Comedian Taryn Delanie Smith’s wild ADHD ride

Cold-calling strangers about Brazilian butt lifts wasn’t exactly the plan. But for Taryn Delanie Smith — comedian, actor, former Miss New York, and creator of the viral TikTok character “Denise, Heave...

4 Aug 33min

When ADHD feels like your insides are crawling (Kate Moryoussef’s story)

When ADHD feels like your insides are crawling (Kate Moryoussef’s story)

Why does sitting still feel like a physical emergency? Kate Moryoussef, ADHD lifestyle and wellness coach and host of the “ADHD Women's Wellbeing Podcast,” spent years convinced she was the problem. I...

21 Jul 26min

Rage quitting, constant tiny mistakes, and emotional regulation with ADHD (John Garden’s story)

Rage quitting, constant tiny mistakes, and emotional regulation with ADHD (John Garden’s story)

What if the clue to an ADHD diagnosis was making a different tiny mistake every night on stage? John Garden is a therapist and professional musician. He shares how years of strong emotional reactions,...

7 Jul 25min

Painful everyday realities of ADHD and executive dysfunction (KC Davis’ story)

Painful everyday realities of ADHD and executive dysfunction (KC Davis’ story)

KC Davis, counselor, author, and host of Struggle Care, talks about the everyday realities of ADHD and executive dysfunction: messiness, boredom, and keeping up with household tasks like laundry. She ...

23 Jun 32min

I gave 110% with ADHD. They still told me I’d never go to college. (Rebecca Gonzalez-Ojeda’s story)

I gave 110% with ADHD. They still told me I’d never go to college. (Rebecca Gonzalez-Ojeda’s story)

A tangled ball of spaghetti. That’s how aspiring therapist Rebecca Gonzalez-Ojeda describes her ADHD brain. Diagnosed with ADHD in fifth grade, Rebecca grew up hearing messages to “just try harder” wh...

9 Jun 19min

Two adult ADHD diagnoses, opposite reactions (Sam Pittis and Katie Breathwick’s story)

Two adult ADHD diagnoses, opposite reactions (Sam Pittis and Katie Breathwick’s story)

Sam Pittis and Katie Breathwick — best friends and co-hosts of You’re Wrong About ADHD — compare their very different reactions to being diagnosed with ADHD. Katie came to her ADHD diagnosis through h...

26 Mai 29min

Isn’t that every busy mom? Emotional dysregulation and ADHD (Kim Holderness’ story)

Isn’t that every busy mom? Emotional dysregulation and ADHD (Kim Holderness’ story)

ADHD symptoms can be easy to miss — even when you’re someone who knows a lot about ADHD. Kim Holderness shares her adult ADHD diagnosis and the complicated feelings that came with it.  Kim felt embarr...

12 Mai 22min

The voice in my head said “You’re stupid”: ADHD and negative self-talk (Carla Ciccone’s story)

The voice in my head said “You’re stupid”: ADHD and negative self-talk (Carla Ciccone’s story)

Carla Ciccone, author of Nowhere Girl: Life as a Member of ADHD’s Lost Generation, shares what it’s like to grow up thinking you’re the problem. She talks about learning to mask when she was just 6 ye...

28 Apr 23min

Populært innen Fakta

fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
treningspodden
foreldreradet
jakt-og-fiskepodden
mikkels-paskenotter
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
rss-kunsten-a-leve
sinnsyn
hverdagspsyken
gravid-uke-for-uke
babyverden
ryddepodden
fryktlos
rss-var-forste-kaffe
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
rss-sarbar-med-lotte-erik
dopet
lederskap-nhhs-podkast-om-ledelse