Overcoming the Wall of Awful

You’re not lazy. You’re up against a Wall.

A groundbreaking, practical guide to accomplishing your goals and thriving in life, written for people with ADHD, autism, trauma and anxiety.

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Overcoming the Wall of Awful Book Cover

“‘Overcoming the Wall of Awful’ is not only endlessly validating, but epically empowering. This book needs to be in the hands of everyone who has ever failed at anything.”


– Jessica McCabe

New York Times bestselling author and creator of How to ADHD.

Praise For the Wall of Awful

“Brendan Mahan gives language for something I see constantly within the neurodivergent community: how shame, dread, and old wounds pile up into emotional avoidance. Warm, science-grounded, practical, and unmistakably built for the ADHD brain.”

“Getting things done is rarely about the task itself. It’s everything wrapped around it: past failures, self-doubt, and the quiet pressure that builds over time. With The Wall of Awful, Brendan Mahan names the invisible barriers that make it difficult to begin and shows readers how to get unstuck with practical strategies that work with the brain rather than against it”

“’Overcoming the Wall of Awful’, is an awfully good and needed guide for living well for adults with ADHD and anyone else who sometimes finds many aspects of daily life insurmountable. In user-friendly ways Brendan Mahan distills a mix of professional and firsthand experiences and coping wisdom that empowers readers to take the next steps towards recognition, acceptance, and change that will improve lives, including yours.”

“Each chapter offers powerful insights about the bricks built into your Wall and innovative strategies for dealing with them. With helpful cheat sheets and appendices full of useful information, ‘Overcoming the Wall of Awful’, does more than what the title promises. It delivers the hope and solutions that neurodiverse people need.”

“Brendan is our guide to find both a way to climb our own personal Wall of Awful, and a path to move from stuck to thriving.”

“If you’ve tried all the strategies that should work but don’t, then ‘Overcoming the Wall of Awful’ is the book for you. Brendan Mahan not only helps you identify why you’re getting stuck, he offers the strategies, support, and compassion to get you going. As he says, this book will get you to the good things in life.”

“WHERE HAS THIS BOOK BEEN?! If you are a neurodivergent human, the term ‘The Wall of Awful’ doesn’t need much explanation, even if this is your first time encountering the phrase. We’ve all experienced it—that struggle to get started and do what we need to do. Now we have the instruction manual we have all been waiting for. Concise, compassionate, neurodivergent-friendly, and totally accessible.”

“This book brilliantly and compassionately breaks down how every one of us can develop our own Walls of Awful, irrespective of any one diagnosis. Even more, it offers practical tips to nonjudgmentally analyze our personal walls so we might create toolboxes to put a door in it, climb it, or smash it (only if we absolutely must)!”

“I’ve read plenty of books that explain why your brain won’t cooperate; this one really helps you get unstuck. The Wall of Awful finally gave me language for something I have been struggling with for years, and it gave me a way to finally deal with it.”

“They call it ‘writer’s block’ for a reason… almost every writer I know has experienced it, and has struggled with finding a way to address it. The Wall of Awful is a perfect metaphor and a simple, clear, even fun solution for addressing it. I’d share this with all my clients.” 

Get Your Copy of
Overcoming the Wall of Awful:

HARDCOVER

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EBOOK

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AUDIO (narrated by Brendan)

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Claim your free digital bonuses:

Free Digital Downloads will be available after publication with proof of purchase. So keep your receipt!

  • Bonus Guide: The Wall of Awful & Business

    A full report on how to use my Wall of Awful model to improve productivity at work whether you’re a corporate leader or an entrepreneur.

  • Bonus Guide: The Wall of Awful & Parenting

    A full report to help parents teach their kids about the Wall of Awful and use it as a communication tool when things get hard at home.

  • Color versions of book

    PDFs of every illustration in the book for you to use to remind you of the key concepts they represent in whatever way suits you best!

  • Quick Start Guide for Putting a Door in Your Wall

    A powerful guide to help you manage your emotions so you can get started on difficult tasks quicker and more easily.

  • Flow chart to help you Climb your Wall of Awful

    Infographic walking you through the basics of Climbing.

  • Planning guide to help you get things done

    A brief, Wall of Awful-informed tutorial on how to plan out a task or project Wall of Awful.

In Overcoming the Wall of Awful, you’ll learn how to:

  • See the ways you are affected by Wall of Awful

  • Understand the ways anxiety affects how you experience the world

  • Apply resources and skills to solve the problems you face

  • Avoid the wasting time on strategies that don’t work

  • Limit the damage of using frustration and anger to activate

  • Put a Door in Your Wall to get started more easily

  • Manage your emotions to Climb the Wall!

  • Skillfully navigate transitions and change

  • Build systems and habits that work for you

  • Use planning to both Climb the Wall, and Put a Door in it!

Brendan Mahan Cropped 2026

Meet Brendan

Brendan Mahan, M.Ed., MS., is an internationally recognized ADHD/Executive Function expert, and an engaging, sought-after speaker.  He is the producer and host of the “ADHD Essentials” podcast.

Brendan helps individuals, families, schools, and businesses manage the challenges of ADHD.  His approach blends education, collaborative problem-solving, and accountability, with compassion, humor, and a focus on strengths and growth.

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About the Co-Author:

This is my co-writer, Alex Hughes Capel. She’s an award-winning career writer of twenty-two book-length projects and numerous shorter pieces. She has worked on projects in the fields of psychology and behavior, neurodiversity and mental health, science, business, and the technology industry. In addition to her expertise as a writer, Alex adds patient-expertise on the mental health community, anxiety, and trauma-informed approaches to the book.

You can learn more about her work here:
https://www.alexhughescapell.com/

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