The book is about how to manage money, but also about ADHD. How does ADHD affect your attitude towards money?
ADHD is a cognitive impairment, and everything that involves money involves you using your cognitive functions. Whether it's debt, or spending, impulse control or making money, all of it is affected by ADHD. And then you’ve got things like task paralysis, when you have to do something but you really don't want to do it. Sometimes that's getting up and going to work. ADHD tax, the money people with ADHD lose as a result of having the condition, is a big thing, and is estimated to be around £17,000 a year on average. I think it’s way more than that, to be honest, when I think of some of the mishaps I’ve got myself into. One of my ADHD tax moments cost me about £45,000.
How did you go about writing the book, and how long did it take?
Writing a book has been the hardest thing I've ever done, even in comparison to giving birth! As well as ADHD, I have autism. When I read the contract from the publishers it said write 90,000 words, so that's exactly what I did. It was way too long, so I’ve spent weeks cutting it down so it's more like 75,000 words. I write how I think in my head, and I'm also dyslexic, so there's been a big editing process. I started writing it in April 2024. I have two small people in my life, so I took myself away, on my own, to Majorca for five days. It was the best experience. But I had a few ADHD moments while I was there, which are in the book. The biggest one was when I went to the beach and locked my belongings in one of those lockable safes. The guy told me the instructions on how use it, but I didn't listen properly, so I was crying my eyes out for an hour unable to unlock it! It has been gruelling, but I’ve also enjoyed writing it too.
You were diagnosed with ADHD later in life. Do you think that your life would have been different if you had an early diagnosis?
It would have been, but I don't have any regrets because I think it's made me really resilient. I probably wouldn't have got into debt, but then I wouldn’t have written the book. I'm incredibly grateful for the life that I've had and the way that it's panned out. At times it's been dark. In my earlier life, with regard to friendships and relationships, which I cover in the book too, if I'd known I was neurodivergent it would have saved me a lot of heartache. But the path I've ended up I’ve really enjoyed. Now that I've embraced my neurodivergence I actually love my life. I'm fully weird, and I accept that, and I want anyone else who is also weird to come into my life and celebrate their weirdness with me!
Do you have any advice for someone who is deeply in debt?
The first thing to do is take stock of where you are. Write down how much you owe and to who, put it in order of smallest to highest, and pay the small debts off first. It will spur you on to do the rest. Write down everything that you’re spending, and work out what you can afford. Make sure that you have enough money to enjoy your life. My biggest tip, though, is to find ways to make more money. Find a side-hustle, another income stream. Start your own business – you don’t have to do it full-time. The second time I was in £45,000 of debt I paid it off in two years. Making that money and switching your income up really helps.
You write about perimenopause and menopause in the book – do you think that these are areas of health which have been overlooked in the past?
Absolutely. I've got an autoimmune disease, which means that my hormones are always all over the place. I’ve also got PMDD, pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder, which is essentially PMS times a million. It's very distressing at times, and then there’s the perimenopause. ADHD exasperates all of these things, so it was important to me that I addressed them in the book.
You also include a playlist of songs which tie in with each chapter. How important is music to you?
It's basically my life. As an autistic person, music is my special interest. From the age of eight I wanted to be a radio presenter. I played bass guitar and the flute from a young age, and at university I was a DJ and radio presenter. Music has been a strong theme throughout my life. In my spare time, I don't do anything other than go and see bands or go to festivals. Music is very emotive, so I wanted people to look inside my brain and see what I was feeling at any time. Also, it’s a bit different – I don’t know of anyone else who's added a soundtrack to a book about money!
Which other authors inspire you in your work?
I love Sue Perkins's book Spectacles. The best book I've read recently is Able to Laugh by Jade & John Reynolds. It's all about disability, but it’s really, really funny. I mainly read business books, authors such as Stephen Bartlett. But I also read fiction, Bella Mackey is one of my favourites, and I also love Harlen Coben.
What do independent bookshops mean to you?
They are the core of this country. My passion and purpose has always been to support independents. My first business was a discount card which helped people to shop locally. I get followed by indie bookshops on my TikTok, @madaboutmoneyofficial, and I’ve been asked to do a signing for one of them. It’s important to keep the love alive for books, and for smaller authors like me. There’s a great bookshop near me called The Snug Bookshop.
