Natalie Lee: “Progress will not be a straight line”

Natalie Lee, AKA @stylemesunday, joins Happiful’s podcast and shares her reaction to her recent ADHD diagnosis and working on herself

Natalie Lee began her Style Me Sunday blog and website back in 2012 and ever since, she’s been creating, podcasting and running events and courses to help people discover more about themselves, including her upcoming Manifest That Shit Workshop, co-hosted with great friend and broadcaster Cherry Healey.

“It’s great,” Natalie shares, smiling. “It’s good for me because I hate the mundanity of a 9-5 job. It’s different all the time, which I like and is part of my nature as I’m led to believe.”

Working on herself

Natalie explains that she’s doing a lot of work on herself, healing and addressing how her childhood trauma influenced the adult she is today. “It’s really enlightening, but also painful at the same time,” she says.

“I’ve been seeing a psychotherapist for a year. My whole world came crashing around me when I decided to leave my partner of twenty five years. He was a real crutch and also helped to mask a lot of things that were going on in my life. Suddenly without him there anymore, my life just seemed to explode and I was in turmoil.

“I felt like I didn’t have any anchors anymore. It was the most incredibly painful period, I would say, but also completely necessary and has led to so many illuminations.”

Alongside therapy, Natalie has been on a retreat, started kundalini yoga and discovered breathwork. “Who knew?” she beams. “Who knew what you can get from just breathing?! All of these feelings came up for me, and I felt like I was back in my body again. That was the most amazing experience.”

Reuniting her mind and body was a pivotal and significant moment for Natalie, as she explains. “I have suffered with that feeling of disconnection and dissociation for a very long time, to varying degrees. I had an extremely traumatic experience when I was 4 years old which probably contributed to part of me leaving my body and disassociating from myself and I’ve had these problems with connection ever since.”

I have to acknowledge the progress that I’ve made but the progress will not be a straight line

Now, she’s able to understand the need for that total connection.“It’s about coming back to yourself – to that true authentic self without all of the added baggage that’s been piled on top,” she shares. “It’s so incredibly difficult to do, it takes so much work and what I’m realising is that the work will never stop. At some points I’ll feel more connected to myself and other times I feel like I’ve gone back to square one, but I haven’t.

“I have to acknowledge the progress that I’ve made but the progress will not be a straight line.”

ADHD diagnosis

Earlier this year, Natalie received an ADHD diagnosis, which she explains has been revolutionary. “It’s just given me so much more understanding of myself and why I’m like I am in certain ways,” she says.

Natalie’s initial reaction to the news was mixed. “There was a real sense of grief and then there was a sense of relief and holding those two together at the same time was tricky to navigate. Now, having that understanding and the medication it feels like a huge weight has been lifted.”

Coping mechanisms Natalie has learned as a result of her diagnosis have been life changing, and she’s quick to encourage other women to seek support or advice if they think that they might be living with undiagnosed ADHD.

“Women are really good at masking symptoms but if what I say on the podcast resonates with you, seek support and think about getting an assessment. Seek it and treat it as something that is important.”

Listen to Natalie’s full episode
Find out more about the Manifest That Shit workshop
Follow Natalie on Instagram

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