Philly, an actor, acting teacher, and surf instructor from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, shares his lifelong journey with ADHD, diagnosed at age six. His mother, a teacher, recognized his hyperactivity and impulsiveness early, but a special school was unaffordable. Philly struggled in traditional schools, getting expelled twice—once for accidentally killing a duck while trying to skip class. This led to a lifetime of feeling misunderstood and traumatized, as he was often labeled as "wrong." However, he found solace in sports like football and, later, surfing, which allowed him to recharge and understand himself. Theater acting became a transformative tool, teaching him to control anxiety, face his aggressive and impatient traits, and channel his ADHD into creativity. Through hyperfocus, he could work long hours on acting projects, but impulsiveness and lack of diplomacy caused career setbacks. Philly learned about ADHD by reading psychology, attending therapy, and observing his own behavior, as resources were scarce. He also uses astrology to categorize personality traits, though he remains skeptical. To stay organized, he constantly challenges himself, like doing this podcast in English, to train his brain and maintain control. Philly emphasizes that accepting his energy and trusting his feelings helped him realize his ADHD was not his fault, turning it into a strength.
So welcome to the third episode of all my friends of ADHD. I'm here with Philly Pfefugundis in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. So before we start, we now have a brand new jingle that my brother made and that I'm gonna play. - Nice. - I don't know how loud it's gonna be. Oh, my friends have ADHD. All my friends have ADHD. Well, thank you for being here with me today. Can you start by introducing yourself? What do you do? Okay, first thing I'm actor, I live in the cradle. I was born on the bottom of the hole and go to live in the cradle. And then I turn myself to a surfer. And then when I do 18, I started to study acting. And then I'm still doing this. I'm actor and teaching of acting for television. So I teach in the people how to feel comfortable in front of their camera. And I'm today, so I work with 22 years with this. Studying acting, I travel whole Brazil with acting, with shows of acting. And now like two years ago, I started to work on the ocean doing surf class for foreigners to practice my English and met people from the whole world and give some break for my acting time because you expand a lot of time studying the people. And script is you know, and all only human human things and stories. So then I give a break for myself and to be close off the nature and come back to the cradle because I need to leave it to study and work. And then I am teacher of acting actor and teaching of surf class. So you're an actor, acting teacher and surf instructor, and a surfer of course, of course. So you have ADHD. Oh, yeah. How long have you known that you've had? I think size I was born. And don't remember when this happened. If I drink something wrong. But when did you know? When did you find out? When I was six, I was totally different from my wrong kids, you know, like I on the school. So my mom, she is a teacher. You know, she learn, she teach teach how to write and read when you are get out for the first steps on the school and going to know that. And then she get used it with kids and all the behaviors and then she noticed on me something different. And then she we're going to the doctor. Some famous not famous, but a specific on the issue like a neuro something. And then he give to her like the Jagnosses, Jan Arx, diagnosis, diagnosis about about. And then my condition. And then the first step, all they think to give me a medicine, you know, drugs like that. And then my mother understood I always love sport and expand my energy. And all time when I expand my energy, I feel more balanced. Science from the beginning. So when I was six, a doctor, my mom observed on the school and the doctor gave me the Jagnoresk. And then from there, I am a person with HD HD. Yeah, thank you for doing this podcast in English, by the way, I think it's very brave of you. So I appreciate it. I've been a HD HD. I need to take out me of the comfortable zone all time. Yeah. So this is for me, it's opportunity to, you know, to train in my brain, my left side. What do you mean you have to go out of your comfort zone? Because when you train yourself a lot, because I always have therapy on my life, because of this, I never been like a normal kid. So I always need to try to be normal. So I always have training on myself. So you turn yourself not a leader, but something strong inside of you. So all time you need to be strong. And never you accept to stay like a rainbow, you know, doing something new. Or the only one when you are studying something new, you know, on acting, for example, some new method. And then I am students. Otherwise, I don't have opportunities to that because I need to be on the control all the time. So you mean it's good for your HD to be to challenge yourself all the time? Yeah. But why? To try to have more chance to be organizing, to try to prove myself. Yeah. Because being an actor, I have a lot of moments with people who shows television and interviews or maybe podcasts. And then if you don't have the ability to control my ideas, my response, you know. And so I don't feel comfortable with myself. Yeah. So I would take myself to the right. So if I have the chance to train something new, just to be more calm, not so addicted on to being on the control, maybe it's going to be a little bit more. Makes sense for you. But you don't want to be used to being in control. Yes. All the timing. Yeah. This is making me feel tired. And will I distract myself? Everything wrong happened. Everything wrong? Yes. What do you mean? I need, I forgot the things. I forgot my, the day, important dates. Yeah. I can, I can't forget this. Yeah. If I was totally fooled myself. Or I just just, just so much of myself. And then I forgot to organize. Yeah. So you kind of need the challenge in order to become disciplined in a way. Yes. You know my worst point. Yeah. I have many abilities that can control my upper focus because theatre teach me how to become to breathe and not stay all time imperative, you know. But if I lose this, if I feel some, if I'm looking for a side to learn something or just looking something different, I can lose my point. All timing. So I have not a big problem, but big question with always being organized. Yeah. So don't forget nothing. Yeah. And being challenged helps you with that. All time. Yeah. So when you were six and you were diagnosed, did they tell you? Yes, but on the time I cannot understand nothing. Yeah. And just burning inside of me. Yeah. It's out of me. Do you remember how you felt back then when you were six? You just knew you were different. Valued? When you were six when you found out. Oh, yeah. How did you, what was your life like? Like, I never, I never was a stop at, you know, calm. All time, you're moving my, my fingers, my doing this with my nails. I'm looking everything. Not concentrating on one thing only is difficult to read in the school. All the method or the school is completely difficult for me. I repeat three times on the school. I have always been supposed two times. You're expelled twice. Yeah, expelled twice. For what? Wow. We don't have to go into the first one. It's a crazy story. You know, I killed. I killed a duck in the school. You killed a Jack. Yeah. We got my intention. Oh, no. Yeah. I have a friend. We, the school was like a farm. We haven't. And many animals around us. And then he want to don't go to the, we say, kill, kill the class. You wanted to skip class. Yeah, skip the class. And he say, oh, let's go to that farm, that only school, you know, but in another place and to see the ducks. And okay, we go. So we skill the math class. And then there he say, I want to take the duck on my hand to do carinho to do. To, to, to hug the duck. Hug the duck. And then the duck's not a dog you call and come, you know. So I think so. They always run. And then we do a plan. We did a plan. I stayed like behind the duck, the dropping stones, stones rocks on the ducks to the ducks going to the actual, my friend, him, you can grab the howl. Are you 12? Okay. So then my first expo. Right. And you killed the duck by hitting the rock. And the rock kick and going on the neck of the duck and it like, Oh my god. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Because I don't want to try to kill that duck. Of course not. Okay. But all the things, the funny things, you love thing because the ducks try to running. Yeah. And then I was expeled. Yeah. In fact, to retire yourself to this group. If you, if you're not a sapped, they, right. Yeah. Okay. And then there is another time, a second time. Yeah. The second time it was, you know, when you have like the first alarm, the second alarm, the third one. And then you stay two days at home after the third alarm. Oh, you mean, like you have some, if you have like a, if you do a bad thing and fly like a strike, you know, we're said a lot. Okay. So first strike, second strike, third strike. Okay. And after the third one.
they suspend you, - Uh-huh. - Give you, put you to a two days at home. - Right. - And then after the three suspensual, you are. - That's a lot of strength. So you were a lot of trouble as a kid. - Yes. - And you think. - Because the method is not what's made for me. Maybe I need to be close of the autism. - Autism? - Yeah. - Maybe. I'm so close of them, not of the normal people. - Yeah. Yeah. What do you think would have been better for you? 'Cause you told me. You told me that you wish your parents, you wish your mom put you in a special school, right? - Yeah. - Why? - Because I did not suffer too much. I would be understood. I don't have nothing wrong with me. I don't need to feel like that. And all my whole life, I felt like that. And today I have a trauma because I all time feel I'm going wrong on my life. That the reason I need to talk at my organization to don't be wrong. - Yeah. - Because I all time have people saying this for me. You're a river or they never understood my creativity. My freedom, the way I need to do my things, to dress myself. Well, time people trying to take me off myself. I cannot be myself. I need to hire you. - Yeah. - You know? - Yeah. - Yeah, my mom was teacher, but on Brazil, we don't have, I think in the whole world, they don't have like, we'll be expensive. If you have this, the good schools here, it's so expensive. So they include paint. They have different methods to teach you how to learn and read and understand the whole world and all the rules of the society. - Right. Yeah. ADHD is co-morbid with depression, right? They often happen together. And I do think that, at least from my personal experience, and it sounds like for you too, it's because your whole life, you're told that you're not doing things correctly, right? You think there's something wrong with you. You're always losing things, you're always late. You always forget things. And then you just think that there's something wrong with you. And that is traumatic. It's a whole life of thinking you're stupid, basically, right? So how did you realize that it wasn't your fault? - I started to understand. I started to trust on my power for-- - In your own power? - Yeah, on my energy. - Yeah. - On my feelings, because I never felt bad with myself. I ever felt bad when someone appoints me the hand. But I never did that with myself. So the all this effort helped me a lot. On the beginning was the football, because on Brazil, you was born and you gained a ball. And you'll be the next name, man, you know, the next player. - Yeah. - And the only toy you would receive, you know, is it's a book, like something different, I'm paint. So on most natural, you know, I'm saying, I come from the medium, my brother said, the medium poor family, you know? - Middle class. - Middle class, yes. So it's the same thing for the popular things, you know, like a ball and blue and pink, you know, you think that things, the traditional family. - Yeah. - So after the football, so all this effort always helped me. And when I start with surf, we were alone there. And then you have all the rules in the system and the method. And then I started to met myself, you know, understand myself. And there it's a safe spot to me. And I always come back. So I lose my energy on the society, and I recharge on the ocean with the waves. So I never realized in the general, no, when I was young. But when I did 18, my family gave me to me the chance to choice what I need to study. And then the divisor for me, because for lucky, I tried something that helped me theater. And then I keep, keep, I could organize myself. How did theater help you? - Yeah, to control my anxiety. - Your anxiety? - I was so inside, you know, out timing eating my nails, thinking in everything over everything, you know. And then, dear to make you feel comfortable with yourself, to hear, to read, and to do all the things on the right point, on the right moment. So it's like a university for humans. You can know yourself. And then I could understand who I am out of the ocean. Because in-- - So theater acting for you taught you to understand yourself? - Yeah, helped me a lot. - How? - Accepting and showing to me who I am, the first thing, because I don't knew it. So show how aggressive I was, how impatient, how unseals I have. And then I started to see that, saw that, see that, and fix it. Slowly the points. Because I don't like all these reflections of the D, H-D. - Mm-hmm. - It's make bad for me, you know. It's the height, heightest, bad point. - The worst part. - Yes. - So is it because when you're acting, you're forced to see yourself? - Because you need to use yourself to do the character. - Right. - So you need to know yourself a lot first. - Right, so you need to know how you come across. - Yeah, so you face yourself. You face your family story. You accept how you it is, how you're aggressive, how you are impatient, how you are block it with the motions. And then when you realize who you are, so for I, building a character, I need to come from myself. So if I don't know myself, I don't have a character. So first, understand yourself. So during the university on theater, you're just knowing yourself. When you get out to do an investing, you need to play. And then you started to be reading things, you know, and then you started to lose the other person you are or still new, but you control that. So theater make you play with your life. And then you can do the talks with your character, you know, because if you are aggressive, you put all in the character. And then you use this thing. - You can detox with acting. - Yes. - Interesting. It's like an outlet. - Yes, just like sports. - Yeah. So if I wanna kill someone, I will do a assassin. If I wanna be happy, I will do some romantic movies. If I wanna be loved, and then you taste, and you feel, "Oh, this is for me, and you can grab this for you." "Oh, this is not for me." Now I understood more about the aggressive things. No, no, this is not for me. I cannot touch this. - Yeah. - So theater for me is like a school life. And still difficult because you're still not normal. - What do you mean? - You're not a normal actor. You have more feelings. You have more sensitivity. You know, you have-- - Because of your ADHD. - Yes. It's look like a drug. - Yeah. - You know, you have a drug in some of you saying, "Go, go, do that. Use this field." Did you smell? Do you want a water? You want all time? If you say one word, my brain do that. (laughs) And in time, crazy enough, I will say everything. Sometimes some friend talked to me, and I go so deep. And my friend, on the talk, he gives up to still talk, you know? Because-- - Right, he gives up talking because you, right, because you just go out on a tangent. - Yeah. - So, how does your ADHD affect you? - Your acting career. - Wow. I am more impulsive sometimes. I'm not so politicized. - Polish. - I am. - Polish? - Polish? - Like when you need to be nice with everyone, you know? - Uh-huh. - You need to do the right answer on the right time. - And you're not this. - Sometimes I am literal. A lot. - So you're not so diplomatic, you mean? - Today I am because I'm training a lot. (laughs) - But that can be a problem. - From the beginning. - Wow, I lose so many things. - Yeah. - Yeah. - Yeah. - Because the impulsive is like a, have that interaction with my acting. The other things, sometimes a lot of good things. They eat the fuck, you know? It's perfect for the theater. Because sometimes you spend like 15 hours working and studying and I am the unique, healthy guy. - Right, you're the only person who can take that. - Right. - You know, because everyone, Tyred, go to the bathroom and give up because they don't want to stay more there. - And you're just in hyper focus. - Easier. - Yeah. - After I control my hyper focus, everything was explaining more for me. - Was, was, yeah. Yeah. I mean, it seems like you've reached a place of being very aware of your ADHD, right? Like you understand how it expresses itself. You understand how it affects you and your interactions with people. You explained how acting helped you understand yourself. But how did you learn about ADHD? How did you understand that this was a hyper focus? Where did you get that information? - I started to read alone about, but not only any read, you know, like because sometimes you just [BLANK_AUDIO]
search and you figure out the tradition of things. You need to go more deep because you are specific. So you need to realize the points, not only the traditional study. So I started to observe my behavior. I don't have anyone around me with the same thing. Anyone, you know. So I completely alone. My mom's teacher helped me and I started to study psychology, not like only visiting nothing else but nothing like that, but something when you're going by yourself. Just independent. Yeah, independent. Independent. Independent. So I started to read piece by piece. People who say about the energy we have, about the inputs, about all the problems with this. Because today if you say these words, everything, everyone like that. But on my time, if you put this on Google, Google just show you the bad side of this. You're saying now people see it as a good thing? On Brazil is like something like moda, you know. Oh, it's trendy. Yeah. I think, yeah, people say that. I'm smart. I'm quickly. I'm doing everything on the same time. Interesting. Yeah. Here is everyone on that. You know, but in the real and I figure out alone also, and I always need to do therapy. So therapy give me all these studies. You mean therapy like with a therapist? Yeah, with a therapist. Yeah. Not like alternative one. The therapist talking. Because I just, there's a point. I just was accepting the school if I have the therapist and the therapy and all the schools was thinking I was a monster. Yeah. On the first day on the new teacher, on the room of the teachers in the break, you know, my mother was a teacher. So she was on the same room. And all the teachers going to the new teachers to say, and how was going with Felipe? Tell me. Imagine 20 teachers asking for the teacher that and my mom on the road, you know, my mom totally regrets to don't say it's normal. He's a kid. What the problem? She just here, you know, and the teachers and the teachers say, "Narmo, he's a kid." You know, but I never can stay with that. So therapy helped me to understand more and the question was, how did you learn about ADHD? Like, did you, are there a lot of resources about ADHD? On the time not. Yeah. And so I always need to understand, yeah, understood my behavior, the therapist, therapist helped me to something like a Meeho, you know, about myself. A mirror. Yeah. And reading alone, basically. And psychology. Yeah. Psychology helped me because I'm addicted on behavior, you know. Yeah, as an actor, it makes sense. Right. So all the little things I love, you know, for me, this is a good point for the ADHD, you know, ADHD. It is how you can connect with the word. So I can feel everything in the same moment. So psychology started to be curious for me. And then I started to observe the signs of the zodiac, you know, helped me a lot also. How come? Astrology helps you. Yeah. How come? Because I started to have curious about the behaviors. So if you're always late, what are you saying? Oh, I'm Libra. Okay. So Libra, how is late? I'm Virgo. I'm Nero's and I'm pragmatic. So it's like about putting people into categories. Yeah. So astrologer things give me the catalans, you know. And So do you believe in astrology? Not at all. You don't believe in astrology. I believe. You do. But not a lot of the reason. Right. But it just helps you. It helps you realize there's different types of people. Yes. And understand how they can do. So I think I am a little bit sad. It's a spatical, you know. Special? No, spatical. Skeptical. Sorry, it's a skeptical. Because I need to see to believe. Of course. And what sign are you? Virgo. I'm a Capricorn. And you look like one. Oh, what does that mean? You're organized. You like to work. You talk good. You're serious. You know, you know, how to do that ADHD though. Not that organized. But you look like. Yes. Well, earlier, you were saying, right? Like from an early age, you have to learn to mask. You have to learn to hide it. Or you have to learn to control. I'm full of masks. Yeah. This is my mask. And then you can on theater, we say, you cannot use a mask. You need to be, you know, this is the different, the difference. Some people say, Oh, you're an actor. So you know how to lie. And I say, no, when you are acting, we are not lying. We are believing. This is the point. So if I try to be light to you, even when I try, I will try to believe in, you know, I will try to turn myself on that. Not unfantity on rear. Yeah. So we cannot, from the beginning, I was not using a mask. I was trying to be organized. And yes, not anyone know myself, my mom, my brother, maybe you, and some people come close of me, know myself, know me, you know, but the others, they just try to say, Oh, he's intense. Oh, he's strong. He's never, you know, yeah. Yeah. So how does ADHD affect your life now as an adult? It's still like a kid, you know, I cannot take a vacation of myself. I cannot relax. I need to focus all time. I cannot drink a lot. I don't like drugs anyway, you know, any drugs, you know, medicine, this part is my medicine. But today, I need to pay attention on all the healthy problems, you know, like Alzheimer's, for example, like a diabetic, for example, for example, all the strong disease, because you can turn yourself addicted easier, in food, in sugar, in anything, you know. So you always are close to lose something important. Today, affecting like you cannot stop to have this attation, always calm, don't forget to breathe. So before to sleep, after to wake, you need to read this method, you know, and say for yourself, yeah, because I don't take any pills, you know, about if I have something for me, and this organization, this kind of organization, okay, I just wake up, poof, everything will work, you know. But I not started that, never, I don't know if I'm. You mean medicine. Yeah. Have you tried? Never. Do you want to? I like to challenge myself without it, not because I don't like the medicine. But I prefer, I think we'll turn myself lazy, not lazy, but I know you. You haven't tried it. What's interesting, right? Because I, so I take ADHD medication, I didn't today. I've been on it for about two years now, and I don't need it. I like taking it, and it's very subtle. But I often have this conversation with people with ADHD, and I think especially people like our age, like younger people, I think, are more likely to take medicine because ADHD is more accepted. But I think the older people, especially if they have gone this far without medication. They're like, why do I need it now, right? I don't. No. But it's so interesting. I always wonder, you know, how much of it is. there is stigma against taking medicine for sure. And then I think I understand, you know, you want to do it on your own. But for me, personally, I realized there is a pill I can take that actually does make things easier every day, and it's subtle. It doesn't change my personality. It isn't take the ADHD away, but it just makes things a little easier. And I'm not pushing medicine, but I'm always curious as to the decisions that people make, right? But not because. you say about the stigma. Yeah, not because about the stigma. It's because. And I thought like the first thing I feel like myself not lazy, but not fighting with this. Yeah. But I don't care about this stigma. I don't have this problem with the age and if it's a society, because I always been in the side of the society. So for me, it's easy just to say, okay, I want to know, you know? Yeah. But I think it's this because I feel addicted. You're scared you'll be addicted. You know the movie? I don't know the name on English. Limitless? Yeah. You know? The high and everything. Yeah. I know. So I like my power for about the ADHD. So if I'm gone more, I have fear to turn myself a monster. So. What do you mean? Like you think you'll be too powerful or you think you'll be addicted? Yeah. What would you tell your younger self if you could go back and talk to
10, 12, 15-year-old Philly Bay, what would you tell him? Wow. I would say something like, you don't need to suffer a lot. Enjoy yourself. Enjoy yourself a lot, you know. You're fucking special. So just, yeah, crazy. You just need to like yourself. Did you not like yourself? Today I love. But I think I skip all my young time to like myself. I all-time watching out, you know, looking at. Because I wasn't normal. I wasn't normal. Everyone made me believe that. You know, my family never give me an opportunity to speak. So my traditional family, so kids don't talk on the table, for example. On the time I'm telling you. So you don't have desire, you don't, you can have an opinion. So when I do 18, I just go out of my home. So into my 18, I was different from everyone. I don't know myself. I cannot recognize me and feel myself. And then when I do theater, I put myself here and I started to laugh with myself. I started to like myself, like my way to think, my way to believe in myself and everything. And then I understood, oh, I need to build myself. I need to build these guys. So I have these, what I will do with this. So, yeah, I would say for me just to look more for myself, stay more alone, don't care about the others, you know, go deep on me. How do you think having ADHD benefits your life? Wow, it's a dream. Because I love everything. I'm all my poros. How do you say this? Your pores. My pores. They are opening, feeling everything. So, be alive for me. It's so crazy. For me, the human people, they try to normalize life. And some day I hear something. The meds in the doctors, they don't know where it's come from. Your first bit of your hurt. So, how the life can be normal, you know? So, they don't, they cannot explain what is it. So, being alive for me is so special. I can breathe, I can walk, I can feel my legs, I can understand myself like a human, I can talk. So, just because it was a big challenge, be a human, I enjoy this play, you know? So, I like how I can look for someone. I like how I can touch and feeling the other, how I can use the energy of the nature. I like to go wrong on my life. I like to be rumble, I like to ask, "Pologize, I like to be human." So, being human for me is like a big adventure. But what does that have to do with your ADHD? Do you think it, your ADHD makes you more sensitive? Yes, more sensitive, more connected, more loving more the things. Yeah, feeling more the emotions. So, the question was. How does ADHD help you in your life? What are the good things? Because we talk so much about the bad parts of having ADHD, right? What are the good parts? You are so creative. Creative. Creative. You have this freedom of fantasy in your mind. You can talk to yourself. So, the good thing is how you feel the life, how you feel the others, how you can be free, how you can use your crazy mind to your project. Difficult to say like a specific, right? Even the answer you, how you can feel the good parts of the ADHD? I think it's why I do well under pressure. I think I need a bit of pressure, right? You need pressure to do things. Otherwise, you're not going to do it, right? But I think that also means that I do well under pressure. I think that's why I was good at rugby. That's why I'm good at photographing in really intense situations, like a protest or war or even a carnival. I think being in a really intense situation is when I can actually focus the best. But for some people, it's too much, right? Yes. Yes, of course. I think, of course, hyper-focus, right? Yes, yes. But I don't, for me, it's kind of hard to get into hyper-focus. It's quite rare. It's quite rare. Why? I don't know. I think maybe I don't give myself the chance to become hyper-focus. I'm trying to think of rugby really was when I would get hyper-focus or sometimes. Maybe on the war, for example. Yeah, of course. Yeah, for sure. I think I would like to, like, if I'm on the front line for two hours or. When I'm writing sometimes, I'll put off an article for weeks and then for three hours, I'll hyper-focus and finally write it out. So there's that. I think I like that it makes me spontaneous. I'm spontaneous, which is similar to being impulsive, right? You just do think. You're always up for something. Impulsive. Impulsive is also something like you're bad, you know? Yeah, you mean not being impulsive is bad? Yeah, being impulsive can be bad. Of course, of course. But the other side is not being impulsive. Like a fencing impossible. Impulsive is like something you say spontaneous. Right, that's true. Imposivity can be bad, for sure. I think sometimes, oftentimes, it puts me into maybe not so safe situations. I haven't killed a duck by accident, but. You have to try. And yeah, I think one of the things that I've realized, I really enjoy that I didn't know until recently was how easily I connect with other people with ADHD, right? When you ask to me this question, I never realized the answer, you know? You started to say in my brain, wow, yeah, of course. That the reason I do that and. Yeah. Spontaneous, yeah, the connection with the people. Yeah, well, you connect with people in general, but connect people with ADHD, which is why I did this, started this podcast because I realized. Now I can pretty easily tell, I'm not always right, of course, but I can tell when someone else has ADHD, because there's this flow to the conversation, right? And I think that's quite special, actually, that there's just this vibration or this wavelength that people with ADHD have when they meet. And I think that's exactly the same plan. I think that's really cool. But. A good thing, you can like, forgot the things easier. So you think, "Do you have a relationship?" You're just going to other things. That's true. It could be good or bad, right? Yeah. Because intense can make you insist and suffer a lot. Yeah, there's always good or bad. Yeah. So how do you think your work fits with your ADHD? It seems like your life now, right? You do. You surf, you teach surfing, you teach acting, you act. It seems like you've designed a life that works well for your ADHD. Yes. I need that to keep healthy and happy, you know, not happy. But I'm saying good with myself. Happy. So. The question. Was it on purpose? Did you. I think one of the things that I find interesting about talking to people with ADHD is that often they seem to have built a life that works well for their ADHD, right? They've managed to choose a career or have a lifestyle that allows them to live with their ADHD. Do you think you did that on purpose? Like how did your life happen? It's probably. Yeah. When I did 18, when I did 18, I realized that I need the plan, you know, because my family cannot help me. And in general, in Brazil, you need to grow. You need to have your own money and all the things on work. But on my time, my family not helping. So. I have options, you know, just enjoy my life, be a normal guy and have a normal work or decide the plan to have something when I have 40, you know. I own. e eu tenho tudo que eu preciso. Então eu preciso ficar em uma vida normal, para o que eu fico muito. Mas quando eu estava 18, eu tenho esse visual, esse, esse, esse, essa possibilidade de, e eu não sei onde eu comece, porque eu não tenho esse, esse capacidade, você sabe? Eu estava com o feio, no segundo momento de minha vida, para decidir o que eu vi e quando eu fazer. E então, eu vou se olhar para a vida e eu acho que eu vou. Se eu não tenho um plano, quando eu tenho esse tempo, eu vou fazer nada, eu vou ser não um, você sabe? E aí eu me deixo de investir em meu, em meu mesmo, e eu me deixo muito mais, mas hoje eu tenho um lote de coisas. Então eu me deixo de ser feliz, agora, não, não quando eu tenho uma coisa. Eu preciso trabalhar, estudar, trabalhar e estudar um lote, e ser curioso, e todo mundo tem três trabalhos, estudar, e procurar como você tinha valor hoje em seu trabalho. Então, eu acho que as pessoas me me deixaram, me deixaram, como eu. Eu estou tentando, pensar em o futuro, para programar com a minha vida, com a minha família, com tudo. Então. Porque eles nunca pensam que eu vou ser alguém, meu mãe tem um medo sobre o que eu estou estudando, e não sobre o meu futuro, porque não estou trouxendo a mim, eu estava difícil de ter um medo de ser um homem, eu era alienado por dia, você sabe? Como eu posso ler, como eu posso ir para o tempo, como eu posso ir para o tempo, como isso, como você pode fazer alguma coisa. Be alguma coisa. Então, eu estou tão curioso em esse tempo, eu não estou confortável, eu não estou confortável, eu estava como um. "Shaking, Freit", sobre meu futuro. E aí eu só realizava que eu não estava na plana, e eu estava começando a trabalhar muito, então, não era fácil, mas naquela vez eu acho que eu estou mudando, você sabe? O que foi o plano? O trabalho, o organizador de empurras, eu試ed fazer as outras, também, não para organizar. O plano foi. um. Preun. toda a informação que você precisa ter, você pode ter, você sabe? Sim. Para ter um alurro, você sabe? No trabalho. Para ir com a informação, então você pode. fazer alguma coisa valida. Sim. Por exemplo, então eu pude toda a minha energia em teotor. Sim. E eles estão ali há 8 anos, e estápado, você sabe? Se você está em teotor, em teotor, sim. Em teotor, em grandes teotor. Então eu estava em Brasil, tem 25 estates, eu estava em 22, 3. Então eu ganhei muita energia e experiência em teotor, pessoas, talhão, matam, você sabe, meia, e. E, de fato, tudo sobre teotor. Teotor fala sobre o seu trabalho. Então eu investi em mim, eu estava em um slowly accepto do IAN, sem dinheiro, você sabe? E aí eu estava em um lugar de ser. ser. ser. ser teotor. E hoje eu tenho esse conforto para ficar com teotor. E fazer classes para que precisam fazer sobre televisão, e o posição, tudo isso. Isso faz sentido. Sim. Eu acho que o que você acha, é algo que é muito difícil, para alguém com ADHD. Sim. Quando você acha que você tem um ponto que você quer ser. Eu sempre tenho isso porque, até com tudo, se perdi, sobre mim, porque eu sempre me pergunto, não é o problema. Eu sempre gosto de ser meu. Eu nunca me pergunto com a mesma coisa, você sabe? A brilha, a loufe, então é muito fácil para mim ter bons momentos. Então eu. Quando eu era, por exemplo, com 12, eu realized como se o curto é ser um live. Mas não como com esse material. com esse. bom mind, assim. Eu sempre ser um problema, mas eu não estou estudando, não é fácil. E então eu estava começando a ter uma boa coisa. Então, é fácil conectar, é fácil, ainda com a pesquisa para as coisas. E aí, a terapia, me showi a minha melhor coisa e a boa coisa. Então eu sempre me pergunto com as coisas de boa coisa. Terapia. A história é terapia. Se eu não terá essa direção, talvez eu precisar muito mais de anos, você sabe? Então, eu tenho a terapia. Um teacher que disse que eu era normal quando eu estava com 7, ela disse a minha mãe, ela só precisa terapia. E aí eu estou aqui e aí eu vou sempre regular a cada dia. Então eu tenho todos os seus insurso. Então você é muito lucky para ter sido tão bom, né? É muito lucky. É isso que é comum em Brasil? Não. O da. da Gnácia? Não, não. Por exemplo, Gabriel aqui. - Olá. - O que é aqui em este dia? Ele tem 2 e ele tem 2. E ele se vai ficar com, que é Gabriel, por favor? - 36. - 36. - Você sabe? - Sim. - 36? - Sim. - E eu. - 36? - 32? - Sim. - Você estava na casa. - Sim. Todo esse dia, com isso, não sabia o que aconteceu aqui, não é? Sim. Eu tenho essa agressiva, a HD, não é? Não é uma uma boa. Eu estou quase torno a ser mais serios. - Sim. - Você sabe? Pensava que a razão talvez é de Deus para dar uma oportunidade para saber isso naquele momento. Sim. Porque, por isso, talvez eu não sei a vida. Eu estou pensando em isso, não é tão estranho. Sim. Sim. Então eu tenho a terapia, eu tenho a teota e eu tenho a connecta de terapia. Ou talvez a destina, talvez eu não sei. Sim. Mas eu tenho a seta. Você nunca se perdi. Como é que você é HD, porque eu acho que há vezes, né? - Quando. - Onde você é HD. - Onde você é HD. - Exatamente. A partir de quando você está direto, e você começa a aprender sobre HD, e você está falando, "Wow, isso explica tudo, sobre mim." Quando a HD, a HD, a gente é mais popular, eu estava mais confortável com a minhaself. Mas antes disso, eu era alho. Na verdade, eu estava entendendo. Isso existe. Eu disse que é isso na teota. Você tem as organizas, e você tem a sua mente. É diferentes pessoas, não é? É algo de um piológico, um piológico, e algo que você está criando na sua mente. Então. Quando você está entendendo isso com a ajuda da teota, porque há alguns dias em teota, você está entendendo a teota e você precisa fazer o prato, mas você não precisa. Porque você nunca faz isso antes. Então antes de fazer o prato, você precisa ir fora do seu corpo e tentar fazer ou ir e imaginá-lo. E você comece para o prato com o seu corpo. E aí eu estava entendendo sobre meu organismo. E quando ele não queria fazer isso, eu estava entendendo com esse organismo. Então se eu precisar memorizar algum test, um script, e não funcionar em um momento, eu estava entendendo. Eu não vou mais falar com você, mano. Você está "Wow, você estava. algo, eu vou ir para um café, eu vou me adorar minha vida". E aí eu vou write o script. E aí eu vou colocar em seu rio de rio. Então eu estava entrando que o que é esse pessoal que se faz isso? E aí eu me falava de uma incrível pessoa. Um homem que é uma pessoa que pode ser. Eu posso ser, eu posso ser, eu posso fazer tudo. Eu posso ser um dos. Eu acho que é. O meu amigo que foi o pessoal que me interviewava para o primeiro episódio. Ele é um fotógrafo e ele é um cientista. E once ele se realiza, ele tinha um ADHD. Ele basicamente tratou de ele, tipo um animal, tipo um labrat. Ele era tipo, "O que eu preciso?" Exatamente. Exatamente. Ele era tipo, "Eu preciso ficar com o meu corpo e o meu brain, o que isso precisa." E o que aconteceu se eu fazer isso? Exatamente. Se eu fosse isso. Sim. Sim. Então o que funciona para você? O que funciona para o seu organismo? Todos os coisas que eu digo, de fato, são de que não são pessoas que não são pessoas que não são pessoas que não são pessoas que não são. Porque eu posso me comparar a minhaself e ainda é normal. Porque eu times me lembro de como se o mundo precisa ser. Você sabe? Então você não precisa ser pessoas que não são pessoas que não são pessoas que não são pessoas que não são pessoas que precisam ser. Wantos bonitão para Os pirassards. A >> Neo wat. >> Inter Esp equality. Ok, um sur, eu sei lá eu e ai t
the other can be paranoid, the other can be depressed, the other can be a lot of things. So if you want, you won't have your own problem. And the A to D is not something wrong. You just need to know this turning point, treat yourself like investing on yourself. I forgot the question again. What do you need as some of the issues? Meet new people. I just need around humans all the time. Dogs help me a lot, kids a lot. Because with dogs and kids, I'm a human. So I all the time on this street, I see a dog. It's my recharge. It's my recharge phone. Dogs, I am like that. Oh, hello. So yeah, nature, nature, animals, people. You mentioned creatine before. Creatine? Yeah. Today I use. Because I started to do a workout and expand a lot of energy on the ocean. Yeah, but you said that helped with your ADHD? Yeah, a lot. A lot. It's looked like you're mad at me. When I don't do, I am myself. But when I have super powerful, oh, yeah, today, this month, I am organized with creatine. Yeah, the nutrition, food. You eat really healthy, right? Yes, of course. You cannot go in for the unhealthy food. You need to be healthy all the time. That's the same to you. You first seek, you first said, like upset, you want to sugar. You want to something to feel dopamine. You know, you need to. Yeah. OK, I think we're just about out of time. Is there something else you would like to say about ADHD or anything else? There's a message you would like to say to the world about ADHD. I would like to say, I don't know now, but something like, look, being sweet, sweet to yourself, you know, try to be sweet to yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be kind to yourself. Because probably you don't like about a lot of things. And if you don't have the information to be kind, well, you can kill yourself. You can lose your life. I met, I have some friends that they coffed your own life and some strong, because they don't have the same opportunity. I have mom, teacher, there's four, you know, they go into the, how cold they're going to the other points. And they never be kind to themselves. And I have this, this look at the same point my family have difficult with me and my progress. They always give me love and kind of thoughts and this way dedicated to be yourself. So try to be kind to yourself. It's a good tip. Yeah, as good advice for everyone. Right. Kind to yourself, love yourself. Yeah, we are, we push ourselves a lot of time, you know, you need to do, we need to do it. You never say, oh, you fucking beautiful. You know, you, this idea, no one's have your eyes, you know. You need to say that for yourself. Do you tell that to yourself? Every single thing on the me, your hands on the guy. All right. Well, thank you very much. Thank you to this challenge. I love it. All my friends have ADHD.
Podcast Summary
Key Points:
Philly was diagnosed with ADHD at age six after his mother, a teacher, noticed his differences and took him to a specialist.
He was expelled from school twice, once for accidentally killing a duck while trying to skip class, reflecting his impulsive and restless behavior.
Philly believes a special school would have helped him avoid trauma and feeling misunderstood, but such options were expensive in Brazil.
Theater acting helped him understand himself, control anxiety, and channel his ADHD traits like impulsivity and hyperfocus into creative outlets.
Surfing provides a safe space to recharge, as the ocean offers solitude and structure away from societal pressures.
He learned about ADHD through independent reading, therapy, and observing his own behavior, as resources were limited when he was younger.
Philly uses challenges, like speaking English for the podcast, to train his brain and maintain organization and control.
Summary:
Philly, an actor, acting teacher, and surf instructor from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, shares his lifelong journey with ADHD, diagnosed at age six. His mother, a teacher, recognized his hyperactivity and impulsiveness early, but a special school was unaffordable. Philly struggled in traditional schools, getting expelled twice—once for accidentally killing a duck while trying to skip class.
" However, he found solace in sports like football and, later, surfing, which allowed him to recharge and understand himself. Theater acting became a transformative tool, teaching him to control anxiety, face his aggressive and impatient traits, and channel his ADHD into creativity. Through hyperfocus, he could work long hours on acting projects, but impulsiveness and lack of diplomacy caused career setbacks.
Philly learned about ADHD by reading psychology, attending therapy, and observing his own behavior, as resources were scarce. He also uses astrology to categorize personality traits, though he remains skeptical. To stay organized, he constantly challenges himself, like doing this podcast in English, to train his brain and maintain control.
Philly emphasizes that accepting his energy and trusting his feelings helped him realize his ADHD was not his fault, turning it into a strength.
FAQs
He was diagnosed at age six after his mother, a teacher, noticed he was different from other kids. A specialist confirmed the condition, but his mother chose sports over medication to help him manage his energy.
He struggled to concentrate, was expelled twice—once for accidentally killing a duck while trying to skip class—and felt misunderstood by teachers and peers, which led to trauma.
He uses sports like surfing and acting to channel his energy and control anxiety. Theater helped him understand himself, and therapy provided tools for self-awareness and organization.
Theater taught him to control anxiety, face his behaviors like impatience and aggression, and use them constructively in characters. It served as a school for self-knowledge and emotional detox.
Surfing is a safe spot where he can recharge away from societal pressures. The ocean's rules and solitude help him balance his energy and reconnect with himself.
He sees ADHD as a source of hyperfocus, sensitivity, and deep connection with the world, which benefits his acting. It allows him to work long hours and feel emotions intensely.
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