# 29 - Teaching While AuDHD: Autonomy, Masking, & the Exhaustion of External Validation

Send us Fan MailIn this episode of Quietly Autistic at Last, Dr. Allison Sucamele explores what it’s like to be AuDHD and work as a teacher in today’s education system.Many autistic and AuDHD adults are naturally drawn to teaching. The classroom can offer structure, routines, creative lesson design, deep subject exploration, and meaningful relationships with students. For many neurodivergent educators, the learning environment itself is energizing and deeply fulfilling, but the teaching profession is not the same thing as the classroom.Over the past two decades, teaching has shifted from a profession that once allowed significant autonomy to one increasingly shaped by constant collaboration, meetings, evaluations, data tracking, and visible performance metrics. While these systems are often designed to improve outcomes and support teachers, they can unintentionally create invisible exhaustion for neurodivergent educators.In this episode, we explore the psychological tension many AuDHD teachers experience, including:• the difference between true collaboration and parallel work• masking and collaboration fatigue in professional environments• the pressure of constant visibility and evaluation• how modern education can reinforce external validation culture in both students and teachers• and the unique pattern recognition and empathy many AuDHD educators bring to the classroomThis conversation also reflects on the courage it takes to navigate a profession that was not originally designed with neurodivergent minds in mind, and why the perspectives of AuDHD teachers are deeply valuable for the future of education.If you are a neurodivergent educator who has ever felt the quiet tension between how your brain works and how the system operates, this episode may resonate with you.You are not alone in this experience.📷 Follow the podcast community on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/quietlyautisticatlastpodcastIf this episode brings up difficult emotions or you need immediate support in the United States, you can contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988, or visiting:https://988lifeline.org