🦅 COURAGE
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” – Mary Anne Radmacher
Courage is the breath you take before stepping onto a bridge you’re not sure will hold. In the ADHD terrain, it often shows up in quiet ways—starting again after forgetting, asking for help after isolating, being honest about what you need when you're used to masking.
Many people imagine courage as bold and loud. But for ADHDers, courage is often found in vulnerability. In trying again after shame. In showing up even though you're late, scattered, or scared. It’s choosing growth over perfection, and authenticity over performance.
Courage invites us to live beyond fear—not by eliminating it, but by walking with it. It says: Yes, this might go wrong… but it also might lead somewhere beautiful. It lets us say, “This is hard, and I’m doing it anyway.”
When we bring courage to ADHD life, we begin to rebuild trust in ourselves. We learn that failure doesn’t mean we’re broken. That risk doesn’t mean recklessness. That effort, even messy effort, is a form of bravery.
🧭 The HOPE Trail Map
- Helps or Harms: Is this fear protecting me—or preventing me from becoming who I want to be?
- Own My Values: I want to be someone who moves forward even when the path is unclear.
- People and Pursuits: Who encourages my courage? What pursuit have I been avoiding that still matters to me?
- Enact and Evaluate: Today, I’ll do one thing that scares me—not to prove something, but to grow.
⚠️ Trail Challenges
- Fear of failure, judgment, or embarrassment often silences courageous impulses.
- RSD makes small risks feel emotionally catastrophic.
- Past experiences may have taught us that trying equals exposure, not empowerment.
🪧 Trail Markers: Small Steps Toward Courage
- Say, “This is scary—and I’m doing it anyway” before taking a small action.
- Share a truth you've been holding back—with someone safe.
- Try something imperfect, unfinished, or public—and let it stand.
🔥 Campfire Questions for Reflection
- What’s one fear I’ve been living around instead of through?
- When did I last surprise myself with courage?
- What would I do if I trusted myself to handle the outcome—whatever it is?
Courage doesn’t wait until you feel ready. It meets you where you are—trembling, real, and still willing to move.
