🍫 Chocolate and Coal

🌈🦥✨️ People who display behavior or performance that is inexplicable from your perspective still deserve the usual respect, regardless of the lack of an explanation.

🏗🧱🏁 If I haven't said anything about something, there's no need to make anything up about it.

🗣📢🏘 But now I have potentially informed my entire town.

🧪🦥🔜🐗 Slander works by spreading lies that, combined with inexplicable peculiarities, create an apparently coherent picture. However, these falsehoods often do not lead to a discussion with the slandered person but rather to changes in behavior.

🙀💬🤨 Confrontation is unpleasant, after all, and people generally avoid it by talking behind someone's back instead. You only notice it through strange comments and odd behavior, which are explained with so-called secret knowledge (people become condescending and mysterious, or even aggressive when you ask how they came to that conclusion, or they reply with "everyone knows").

😖🤝🤨

Everyone is greeted normally, but I get a pause:

"I don't know how to greet you?" - "No idea, maybe you can do a handstand?"

✨️🤸🏘

I simply have ADHD and am treated like a severe case of autism (I am denied basic skills).

🎲🃏👾 However, anyone who still dares to speak about me in this way now risks encountering people who are already informed. Because either they know me – in which case the question arises why they are speaking about me in such a manner – or they don’t know me – in which case the same question arises.

💪🧠🌈 The problem with these people is that they don’t understand how confidently I have integrated my neurological condition into my identity and that I never have an issue talking about my weaknesses—at least the real ones.

🤴👸🦄 This challenges their proud expectations, which they have in that seemingly superior moment, and apparently, such things easily turn into underhanded nastiness.

🪷🤽‍♂️🏐 No one needs to tell me the phrase "don’t listen to what others say". That’s immature and dismisses my experiences and my right to live in a neighborhood where I receive the usual respect and decency, just like any other person.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Sloths are known for their extreme slowness and calmness, while ADHD is associated with hyperactivity, restlessness and impulsivity. The idea that an animal notorious for its laid-back lifestyle is suddenly agitated or overactive creates a comical discrepancy. I enjoy living out opposites and being unique. You could say I'm possibly the fastest sloth in town. In fact, I have the ADHD mixed type.

ADHD can be broken down as follows:

🦦 1. Predominantly Inattentive Type:

Often still referred to as ADD (though this is an outdated term).

Symptoms include difficulty sustaining attention, forgetfulness, and being easily distracted, often without hyperactive or impulsive behavior.

🐒 2. Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Type:

Marked by excessive energy, restlessness, impulsivity, and difficulty sitting still or staying quiet.

🦥 3. Combined Type (Mixed ADHD):

This includes significant symptoms of both inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity.

🎨 ADHD Combined Type means a person can experience both patterns simultaneously or in cycles. For instance:

👾 One moment, you might feel a burst of energy that makes you restless and impulsive. The next, you could find yourself daydreaming or struggling to follow through on tasks due to lack of focus.

👾 You may start a task with high energy but then lose track of details or find it hard to finish because your attention shifts elsewhere.

⭐️ Hyperactivity might mean you're full of energy and enthusiasm, helping you tackle challenges with gusto (even if it's sometimes hard to sit still).

⭐️ Inattention might look like zoning out, but it can also mean you're incredibly creative, with a mind that makes unexpected and original connections.

⭐️ Impulsivity might cause struggles with planning, but it can also make you adventurous and spontaneous, willing to dive into new experiences.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

⛰️🏞 A stream in the distant lands of South America begins deep within a dense forest, hidden beneath the canopy where the air is thick with moisture and secrets. It is a quiet revelation, an inexhaustible whisper emerging from the earth as if the world itself seeks to tell its innermost story. So too, does the human mind.

The stream is not a mighty river, not the Amazon carrying cities or feeding oceans. It is a modest origin, a winding thought between roots, rocks, and moss. Yet therein lies its strength: it understands what remains hidden. Its water, clear and cool, reminds us that the inconspicuous often harbors the most essential things.

The stream mirrors the mind of someone with ADHD. Its flow is unpredictable, leaping from one point to another, changing pace and direction, as if it searches for a path with no clear destination. But like the stream, this mind has a deeper purpose, an inner harmony that reveals itself only to those who look closely.

The dense forest symbolizes the societal prejudices, the misunderstandings surrounding it. It is thick, a labyrinth of opinions and stereotypes, threatening to swallow the stream whole. Yet the denser the forest, the clearer the truth becomes: the stream cannot be stopped. It carves its path because water must flow—it is its nature to move.

Elementally, the stream is a metaphor for the relentless force of life. Water, finding its way through obstacles, is the symbol of the mind that unfolds despite pressure and constraint. It may seem wild, impulsive, and chaotic, but it carries within it a purity and depth that can only be revealed through movement.

And when the stream leaves the forest, uniting with other waters and finally emerging into the light, it is no longer the small, chaotic trickle it once was. It becomes part of something larger, a river that gives life and connects worlds.

Just as the human spirit with its uniqueness: every impulse, every curve, every sudden turn drives it forward—toward a greater understanding, a deeper current that unites it with the world.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Synaptic Optic (2008)

A fictional / symbolic representation:

The green "flower" represents an algae in resemblance of a neuron. The spiral stands for light and transformation and acts here as a technical component. The wires reveal a neuron. The star-shaped one is the soma and the closed circle is the cell nucleus. The chain-like shape is the axon. Overall, the wire mesh is intended to represent a neuromorphic computer.

Neurons can be controlled optogenetically. Optogenetics is a method that allows neurons to be activated or inhibited by light. This is achieved by genetically introducing light-sensitive proteins into the neurons. The genes for this come from algae and bacteria.

When I created the picture, optogenetic techniques, where light is used to specifically activate neurons, made significant progress and opened new possibilities for controlling neural activity.

There were also major developments in brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), with both non-invasive methods like EEG and invasive techniques such as implanted electrodes being refined to extract precise brain signals. Robots and other devices began using these signals to perform human-like movements or assist people with disabilities. Machine learning was increasingly used to decode these brainwaves and turn them into actionable commands. Artificial intelligence helped analyze neural patterns and translate them into actions, taking the interaction between humans and machines to a new level.

These advancements seemed no longer just futuristic but immediately achievable. The idea of merging human biology with technology was fascinating and offered a glimpse into a future that was already becoming a reality. Today, this topic remains a source of endless creative and technological possibilities, continuing to shape not only how we understand the world, but also how we interact with technology and how it is transforming our society and lives.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

✨️🌌 I crafted this talisman myself back in 2006, the year I learned about my ADHD. Even before the diagnosis, I knew I was different. Due to my strong interest in nature, I had noticed parallels between myself and animals even before my diagnosis.

🐯 This is not a bad thing — indigenous cultures often seek their strength and abilities through a spiritual connection with animals. In fact, there is growing evidence suggesting that ADHD might have evolutionary roots, linked to traits that were advantageous in hunter-gatherer societies.

💀 This evolutionary mismatch hypothesis suggests that modern environmental factors, such as a sedentary lifestyle, mean that certain individuals are no longer optimally adapted, which may contribute to the difficulties we recognize as ADHD. Although this is still a hypothesis, I believe that in biology, nothing makes sense except in the light of evolution.

🤠 I have always felt a strong urge to explore nature, and there has never been anything more interesting to me than discovering. This intrinsic drive aligns well with behaviors observed in hunter-gatherer societies, where this knowledge is essential for survival. Animals, too, learn about their environment in similar ways.

🧬 I know that I inherited this passion for nature from my mother’s side, while my father is the one in whom I clearly see ADHD symptoms and behavior. My maternal grandfather also showed some ADHD characteristics.

🛖 When I consider that my closest circle of friends consists mostly of people with ADHD, it can be assumed that we have a similar interaction style, which probably also plays a role in our choice of partner.

🧫 Perhaps I am simply a unique combination of various prehistoric traits that complement each other.

🌱 Thus, it is understandable that I feel a strong connection to nature. This talisman represents value creation. The forked branch symbolizes creation, and the amber in between symbolizes value. Just as the branch splits and takes on a new shape, the amber was formed over time from resin.

🧠 You can now find scientific articles and studies on this topic in my broadcast.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

For someone with ADHD, it’s difficult to speak publicly about the subject when you feel systematically disadvantaged. But it’s precisely those who are affected who can offer real insight, while the media mostly spreads stereotypes and idealized images. I’ve noticed how popular overly simple answers have become, paired with an aggressiveness that leaves no room for nuance. I’ve realized that a lot of what seems helpful at first glance turns out to be the opposite.

We’re talking about slogans that reduce negative behavior to "evil" personality traits. Many people seem to live in a world full of so-called narcissists and disrespect. But most of the people labeled as "narcissists" aren’t that at all. Often, it’s the person making these accusations who’s showing self-centered thinking and limited understanding. People quickly applaud when certain figures simplify behavior with bold, clear words. "People don’t change. If your partner lies to you, it’s a lack of respect!"—what a statement. If only the world were that simple.

When you rely on your own assumptions about another person's motives, you enter the inner workings of the person in conflict without showing understanding, but rather empowering yourself over that person and the conflict.

Humans are not here to fulfill each others personal expectations, there is always a greater context. Communication is not about forcing people into boxes. People aren’t footballs to be kicked into the goal of your perception; they’re complex beings, full of flaws, fears, and mistakes. I realize this poorly nuanced, highly polarized circus.

What I’m trying to say is this: the drive for simple answers and clear-cut villains misses the point entirely. Human beings, especially those with ADHD or other challenges, don’t fit neatly into black-and-white categories. As long as we keep falling for these cheap simplifications, we prevent real understanding and deepen the divide.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Strange? Neither an animal, nor a plant, nor a fungus— something entirely unique with astonishing capabilities. The slime mold Physarum polycephalum is the largest single-celled organism in the world. What you see in the images is the yellow plasmodium feeding on grains of rice. The rectangular piece of agar is the medium on which I acquired the slime mold in its dry dormant phase (sclerotium).

The life cycle of Physarum polycephalum consists of several phases. It initially begins in the spore phase, where the slime mold survives by forming spores that are dispersed in the environment. These spores are resilient and can endure for long periods under unfavorable conditions. When conditions are favorable, the spores germinate and develop into mobile amoebas known as myxamoebas. These myxamoebas are amoeboid and can actively move in search of food, such as bacteria and organic matter.

When multiple myxamoebas meet, they can fuse together to form a plasmodium. In this multinucleate phase, which is responsible for growth and feeding, the slime mold exhibits remarkable behaviors, efficiently navigating mazes and remembering pathways as well as negative experiences.

When environmental conditions become unfavorable, such as during food scarcity or drought, the plasmodium transforms into the fruiting body phase, in which it produces fruiting bodies that contain spores. It is important to note that the plasmodium also transforms into the fruiting body phase in response to light. These spores can then revert to the spore phase, completing the life cycle. Additionally, the slime mold can enter a dry dormant phase, during which it shifts into an inactive state and survives as a sclerotium until conditions become favorable again.

Moreover, Physarum polycephalum can split into multiple individuals and fuse with other individuals, merging memories as well. Not only does it serve as a model organism for science, but its capabilities also stimulate philosophical reflections on how to define intelligence.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Unusual sight: Self-empowerment in men is often met with resistance. This resistance stems from the perception that men are already dominant and favored, and there’s a prevailing expectation for them to always appear strong. I find that such views have some weaknesses, especially in terms of compassion, communication and, above all, health. My open approach to discussing emotions and vulnerabilities is a testament to strength and compassion.

Approximately 7 to 10 percent of people have ADHD, with men being disproportionately affected. I see no danger in expressing my authenticity and openness. You cannot accuse me of anything I don’t already acknowledge about myself. In fact, those who cling to outdated gender roles are often breeding their own tormentors. In a society where individuals are afraid to be themselves, manipulation and deception become the only means of survival.

Having experienced the consequences of such behavior in my own life, I have developed a strong aversion to it. By being open about my emotions and struggles, I create an environment where others can feel comfortable doing the same. This openness helps to create healthier relationships, greater self-awareness, and genuine connections.

It’s time to reject these outdated norms and create an inclusive society where all people can live authentically without fear of judgment or rejection. My journey represents a step toward this change and serves as a call to others to embrace their true selves.

Showing myself as I do in the picture is symbolic of my courage, because everyone in my neighborhood and the whole world can see me like this. Do I care if I fulfill your expectations or if I am criticized? Not really. I follow the community guidelines and do what I want.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Intuition, Mindfulness, and Reflection:

The diagonal forms when the number of posts is divisible by three and represents a moment of balance and alignment in my system. This line signifies the ideal time to realign, as the system is in perfect balance. The diagonal, as a symbol of balance, points to a state of clarity, and that is the moment for change. Each of the three eyes – Intuition, Mindfulness, and Reflection – appears at regular intervals along the line, emphasizing that optimal alignment can only be achieved through a combination of these three qualities.

Intuition: One eye stands for the ability to recognize inner insights, even when external cues are absent.

Mindfulness: Another eye symbolizes the need to be present in the moment and attentive to changes or details.

Reflection: The third eye represents the ability to think about experiences and learn from them.

When the number of posts is not divisible by three, an imbalance occurs, and instead, the eyes form triangles. These triangles symbolize a stable self that reorients itself in different directions during times of imbalance:

A downward-pointing triangle represents inner stability and reflection during a phase of imbalance.

An upward-pointing triangle stands for outward-directed mindfulness and the willingness to adapt and respond to changes in order to restore balance.

Intuition remains a leading quality, even in moments of imbalance, helping to find the right path back to balance.

Once a number divisible by three is reached, the diagonal reappears. This diagonal signals the return to balance and marks the optimal moment for change and alignment.

In summary, the cycle symbolizes the interplay between stability and change, with the three eyes – Intuition, Mindfulness, and Reflection – serving as constant companions:

The diagonal represents balance and transformation through the alignment of these three qualities.

The triangles show that stability can also be achieved in times of imbalance by reorienting the self in different directions through Intuition, Mindfulness, and Reflection.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

🐒 I have now given you some insights into my challenges, strengths, and abilities. ADHD is a spectrum and part of natural diversity. There are people for whom ADHD is a burden, and others who see more advantages than disadvantages in it. It is a misunderstanding to believe that these differences are solely due to the will of the affected individuals. In fact, the expression of the disorder varies, and factors such as medication tolerance, comorbidities, upbringing, worldview, access to free or affordable therapy options, life circumstances, life experiences, stigmatization, and personality traits also play a role.

🦤 In this false assumption, both fundamental attribution errors and the survivorship bias are involved.

🌱 In the past 18 years, I have worked a lot on myself and, as you may have seen in my posts, have struggled with some difficulties.

🏝 I am a calm and peaceful person, which makes it hard for many to understand my experiences. In fact, I have focused on advancing my therapy. I have not attacked anyone; I simply did not meet some of the expectations they placed on me. As a result, I had to leave my family, as we did not harmonize. Therefore, I forgive those who attacked me, as they may not have had the same circumstances as I did. They may have genuinely wanted to help me, even if I find that difficult to understand on both a rational and emotional level.

🏞 It has affected me when I was repeatedly told how 'pitiful' I was while trying to find my own way. I couldn't even breathe as I wanted without being criticized for it. I forgive myself for the anger and bitterness I felt, as they were understandable reactions. However, I recognize their harmfulness and negative impact, not only on myself. That is why I continuously work on improving my self-management. I am not seeking reconciliation but a clear boundary against disrespectful behavior. There is no place for disrespect in my life, as it is incompatible with my self-concept.

🏔 I strive for a life that is in harmony with my values, characterized by respect, understanding, and peace.

🕊 I love myself.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.