What’s Stopping You?
Identifying Creative Blocks as a Neurodivergent Music-Maker
If you’ve been circling your projects but not touching them…
Opening your DAW and closing it again…
Thinking about your next release without making a move…
You’re not alone.
For neurodivergent creatives, blocks don’t just come from “lack of discipline” or “procrastination”. If you’ve ever tried productivity hacks aimed at neurotypical brains and thought you were just lazy or were told your actions showed you weren’t passionate enough about your work… you’ll know what I’m talking about.
Blocks can arise from deep, often undefinable places: Executive dysfunction. Perfectionism. Burnout. Fear of success. Fear of finishing. Fear of starting. The sheer overwhelm of juggling your art alongside life, work, health, and responsibilities that others don’t see.
This post isn’t here to fix you. It’s here to help you name what might be happening, so you can start to work with it rather than trying to fight it.
Common Blocks Faced by Neurodivergent Creatives (Especially Musicians)
We often think of creative blocks as just “lack of inspiration” but for neurodivergent folks, the reality is often much more layered. Blocks can come from inside or outside. Sometimes they’re structural, sometimes emotional. Sometimes we know exactly what we need to do and still can’t do it.
Let’s look at some of the blocks that might be getting in your way — and why it’s definitely not just you.
Overwhelm
You might well be freelance trying to juggle lots of roles which is hard enough usually but for neurodivergent brains- it can leave you feeling in a state of constant anxiety- knowing you should be doing something but feeling there are so many things it’s hard to know what to prioritise- the result is feeling burned out, overrun and paralysed in inaction at the same time
Financial
You don’t have the money to invest in gear, tuition, mastering, or even travel. You might fear making the wrong decision or wasting money. You might not know what’s “worth it” or what’s actually necessary.You might feel like you’ve wasted money on unfinished courses etc in the past.
Social
You’re outside the networks that open doors. Maybe you struggle to know how to connect, or just feel exhausted by having to show up consistently. There's fear of rejection, fear of judgement, and the very real fatigue that comes with masking or people-pleasing.
Creative
Sometimes the ideas just won’t come. Other times you have too many- so many you can’t settle on one. You can feel stuck, numb, or too scattered to focus long enough to follow a thread.You can also feel paralysed by knowing if you create something now, someday you’ll have to finish it and that potential future hard work can stop you from enjoying the ideation process or stop you from even starting.
Technical
You feel behind. Unsure. Embarrassed that you “should know” something you never got taught. Or you do know how to do it — you just forget every time
Resource Access
You might know what to do but not be able to get what you need. Maybe the studio space is too far. Maybe you don’t drive. Maybe your laptop’s too old. Maybe your brain can’t hold the steps to open that plug-in you do have but forgot how to use.
Time
You literally don’t have the hours- or, you do, but they’re scattered, and you never know when your energy will line up with your calendar. You try to protect time, but it disappears.
Responsibilities
Caring for others, dealing with life admin, being the reliable one- it all takes priority. Your creative time keeps getting bumped down the list.
Energy & Regulation
You might have the time and the intention, but not the regulation. Your nervous system is too spun out or too flat to create. Starting takes energy you don’t have yet. Being in the right brainspace is vital but not always easy to transition in and out of.
Scarcity Thinking
Possibly related to historical unmet needs and how you internalised these- a deep belief that there isn’t enough. Enough time. Enough space. Enough support. Enough chances for you. So you don’t ask, don’t risk, don’t expect. It’s safer not to want too much.
Perfectionism
It has to be brilliant, or what’s the point. You freeze under the weight of expectations- your own or others. You revise endlessly or never begin.
If-Only Paralysis
“If only I’d started younger. If only I had better connections. If only I had started music lessons at five…” The fantasy version of who you could have been makes it hard to accept and build from where you are.
Fear of Having to Repeat Success
It’s not always fear of failure. Sometimes it’s the pressure of having to live up to a moment of success. If it works once, people will expect it again. So maybe best not to try. Maybe you don’t want to be pigeon holed from one idea or project so you stay in stasis.
Knowing But Not Doing
You know what to do. You’ve read the guides. You’ve made the plans. But you still can’t bring yourself to start. It’s not about laziness. It’s executive function overwhelm. You can mentally rehearse a task ten times and still not be able to click the button.
Just do the thing= Unclear
“Finish a song” or “release an EP” isn’t a task, these are whole projects. In our accountability sessions we often say goals like “mix that track” or “do promo for song” when we actually mean we need to do one component part of the bigger project but when we keep mentioning the big picture (that we can’t possibly achieve in one go) we feel like we are failing- when we aren’t. When the steps aren’t clear, your brain can’t latch on to anything. So it shuts down.
Shame
Shame about being behind. About not finishing more. About being too sensitive, too messy, too slow, too fast. Shame makes it hard to start and harder to ask for help.
Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria
Even imagining the possibility of criticism or misunderstanding can be enough to stop you before you begin.
Waiting for the Right Conditions
Waiting for your space to be tidy. For your health to improve. For the energy to arrive. For the ideal schedule. It’s a long wait.
Why Naming It Matters
Before you can build momentum, you need clarity.
Not “how do I force myself through this” — but “what’s really going on?”
Recognising or naming the block gives you back some agency. You stop internalising it as failure and start seeing it as something that can shift, or be worked around. Not by trying harder, but by working differently.
What Comes Next
You try asking yourself questions, perhaps in relation to 1 goal or area:
What do I want?
What resources do I have available that could help me?
What have I already achieved towards this?
What else might be stopping me move forward with this
What do I want? (not a typo)
What will I do now?
I’ve been exploring an idea I had back when I was first diagnosed- a tool for neurodivergent music-makers to check in with how they’re feeling each day and match that to a creative action that actually works for their energy. It’s not built yet, but this blog and your response to it might be the start of testing some of that thinking, let me know what you think.
Over to You
Which blocks feel familiar?
Are there ones you’ve named for yourself that aren’t on this list?
What’s one thing that’s helped you feel a little less stuck?
let me know if you found this blog helpful or if you’d like to share any humdinger feedback stories, we’ve all got them!