Have you ever opened your banking app and wondered:

"Where did all my money go?"

You paid your bills.

You didn't buy a new couch.

You didn't take a vacation.

Yet somehow your checking account looks a whole lot smaller than you expected.

If you're a busy working mom with ADHD, I want you to hear this:

You probably don't have a spending problem.

You probably have spending leaks.

These tiny, recurring expenses often go unnoticed because they're spread out over weeks or months. They're easy to miss, especially when your brain is juggling work, kids, appointments, and the hundreds of other decisions you make every day.

The good news?

You don't need more willpower.

You need better systems.

Let's talk about how to find those spending leaks—and plug them without feeling deprived.

What Is a Spending Leak?

A spending leak isn't one huge purchase.

It's a series of small expenses that slowly drain your money.

Think of it like a tiny hole in a swimming pool.

One drop doesn't matter.

But over time?

You're losing gallons.

Common spending leaks include:

• Forgotten subscriptions

• Streaming services you rarely use

• Duplicate purchases

• Grocery waste

• Drive-thru meals

• Convenience fees

• Delivery charges

• Late fees

• Annual renewals you forgot about

• Apps you no longer use

Most people think financial struggles come from one big mistake.

In reality, it's usually 20 different $20 decisions that quietly chip away at your paycheck.

Why ADHD Makes Spending Leaks Hard to Spot

Many ADHD symptoms make these money leaks almost invisible.

That doesn't mean you're bad with money.

It means your brain processes information differently.

Time Blindness

Ever signed up for a free trial?

You fully intended to cancel.

Then suddenly...

You realize it's been charging you for three months.

Time blindness makes deadlines, renewals, and billing cycles difficult to track.

Object Permanence

Out of sight often means out of mind.

That can lead to buying:

• Another bottle of ketchup

• Extra cleaning supplies

• More school snacks

• A second phone charger

...because you forgot you already owned them.

Dopamine Spending

Scrolling Amazon.

Walking through Target.

Buying something because it's exciting.

ADHD brains naturally seek dopamine, making impulse purchases especially tempting after a stressful day.

Executive Function Overload

Sometimes you're not paying for convenience.

You're paying for relief.

Takeout because meal planning feels impossible.

Rush shipping because you forgot.

Convenience fees because your brain is overloaded.

Those purchases aren't failures.

They're clues.

The 15-Minute ADHD Spending Leak Audit

You don't need to track every penny.

Instead, spend just 15 minutes reviewing the last month.

Step 1: Review Your Transactions

Look through the last 30 days of:

• Bank statements

• Credit cards

• PayPal

• Venmo

• Apple Pay

Ask yourself:

Which purchases did I completely forget about?

Those forgotten purchases are often your first spending leaks.

Step 2: Highlight Recurring Charges

Look for:

• Streaming services

• Apps

• Memberships

• Monthly software

• Subscription boxes

Now ask yourself:

"Would I sign up for this today?"

If the answer is no, it may be time to cancel it.

Step 3: Identify Convenience Spending

Highlight purchases like:

• Delivery fees

• Drive-thru meals

• Rush shipping

• Last-minute purchases

Instead of asking:

"Why did I waste money?"

Ask:

"What problem was I trying to solve?"

That's where the real breakthrough happens.

Step 4: Notice Emotional Spending

Think about how you felt before making certain purchases.

Were you:

• Stressed?

• Exhausted?

• Bored?

• Celebrating?

• Looking for comfort?

This isn't about guilt.

It's about awareness.

Because awareness helps you build systems that actually work.

Fix the System—Not the Spending

Every spending leak points to a system that needs support.

Here's what that looks like.

If You Order Takeout Frequently...

The issue probably isn't takeout.

The issue may be meal planning.

Try:

• A weekly meal plan

• A freezer meal list

• Backup "busy night" dinners

If You Buy Duplicates...

Create a simple inventory.

Keep a list on your phone of:

• Pantry staples

• Toiletries

• Cleaning supplies

Check it before shopping.

If You Forget Subscriptions...

Choose one day every month.

Review:

• Bank account

• Credit card

• App subscriptions

Cancel anything that no longer serves your family.

If Impulse Purchases Are a Challenge...

Create a 24-hour waiting period.

Instead of buying immediately:

• Add it to a wish list.

• Set a reminder.

• Revisit tomorrow.

Many purchases lose their appeal after a little time.

ADHD-Friendly Money Systems That Actually Work

Instead of relying on willpower, build systems that reduce decision fatigue.

Some simple ideas include:

Monthly Subscription Review

Check recurring charges once each month.

Spending Alerts

Most banks let you receive notifications when money leaves your account.

Those reminders help keep spending visible.

Weekly Meal Planning

Even a simple plan can reduce expensive last-minute food purchases.

Simplified Budget Categories

Don't overcomplicate your budget.

Use categories that make sense to your family and are easy to maintain.

Scheduled Money Check-Ins

Set aside 15 minutes each week to review your spending.

Small check-ins prevent big surprises.

Progress Beats Perfection

You do not need to fix every spending leak today.

Start with one.

Maybe it's:

• Canceling one subscription.

• Planning meals for the week.

• Creating one shopping list.

• Turning on spending alerts.

Small improvements create lasting results.

Remember:

Your goal isn't to become perfect with money.

Your goal is to make your money support what matters most to your family.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I always wonder where my money went?

Small recurring purchases often add up faster than large purchases. ADHD can make these expenses harder to notice because of time blindness, impulsivity, and executive function challenges.

What are ADHD spending leaks?

ADHD spending leaks are recurring expenses that quietly drain your budget, including subscriptions, duplicate purchases, convenience spending, grocery waste, and emotional spending.

How do I stop wasting money without feeling restricted?

Instead of cutting everything, identify one spending leak and build a simple system that prevents it from happening again.

How often should I review my spending?

A quick 15-minute review once a week and a monthly subscription check can help you catch problems early.

Is impulse spending an ADHD symptom?

Impulse spending can be related to ADHD because novelty and shopping may provide a quick dopamine boost. Building waiting periods and wish lists can help reduce impulse purchases.

What's the fastest way to find spending leaks?

Review the last 30 days of transactions, highlight recurring charges, identify convenience purchases, and ask whether each expense still supports your goals.

Key Takeaways

• Spending leaks are small recurring expenses that quietly drain your budget.

• ADHD symptoms can make these leaks difficult to notice.

• A 15-minute spending audit can uncover forgotten subscriptions, convenience spending, and emotional purchases.

• Most spending leaks point to systems—not personal failures.

• Building ADHD-friendly money systems reduces decision fatigue and keeps more money working toward your goals.

Conclusion

If you've ever looked at your bank account and wondered where all your money went, take a deep breath.

You're not alone.

And you're not bad with money.

Most likely, your budget has a few small leaks—not a major hole.

This week, spend just 15 minutes reviewing your last 30 days of spending.

Find one leak.

Fix one system.

Then repeat next month.

Little by little, those small changes can make a huge difference in your financial confidence.

If you'd like personalized help identifying your biggest spending leak, check out my free Borrow My Brain session. Together, we'll solve one money challenge in just 15 minutes so you can create a budget that actually works for your ADHD brain.

Looking for support and accountability with your finances? The Alliance Coaching Membership is now enrolling!

Full Transcript

Where did all my money go? So it's looking at your bank account and going, ⁓ my gosh, where did all my money go? You pay your bills, but you didn't buy a new couch, you didn't book a vacation, yet somehow your money disappears. And if you have ADHD, there is a good chance you don't have a spending problem, but you have spending leaks.

So today we're gonna talk about what that looks like, what to do, how to identify him, and a plan to move forward. So if you're like me, it is one of those things that out of sight, out of mind. I remember growing up, my mom would say that and it would drive me bananas. And now it makes so much sense because if I don't see something, it's as a it's as if it doesn't exist.

That's why having a money system set up so that you can look over things and it's not tracking every single purchase, but it is reviewing things to make sure that your spending lines up with what matters most to you and your family.

I will share some of the most common ADHD spending leaks, why they're so hard to notice, a special budget audit that you can do in 15 minutes or less, and then how to stop those leaks without feeling deprived.

First off, we gotta start with defining what is a spending leak in the first place. So it's not a huge financial disaster. It's a small amount of money that escapes your your ⁓ your bank account on a repeated basis. So sometimes it could be things like subscriptions, it could be convenience purchases, could be late fees. Maybe you buy stuff you already have. Maybe it's unused memberships or grocery waste. That's another one too.

Most people assume that budgeting problems come from big purchases, right? So usually it's a death by a thousand paper cuts. It's rarely the thousand dollar mistake. It's twenty twenty dollar decisions that you forgot about.

Why are ADHD brains more vulnerable to this type of budgeting challenge?

Many spending leaks are actually symptoms of the eight of ADHD challenges itself. So first off, time blindness. One of my personal favorites for getting a free trial, right? Do you sign up for a free trial for something and then boom, we have no idea if it's been seven days or seven weeks, right? Or maybe you miss the cancellation deadline because you're like, you know what? I I remember that. So maybe you remember the purchase but you don't remember the cancellation deadline. Or it's those annual subscriptions that renew right so sometimes time blindness can be a thing how about object permanence so you buy duplicates because you forgot that you've already owned something I've done that maybe you rebuy pantry items or other household supplies that you that you thought you didn't have but because you weren't didn't ⁓ have a little inventory of them you bought them again.

Maybe it's impulse spending. So that dopamine spend, the Amazon scroll, target runs, that kind of stuff. Or maybe it's an executive function overload. So you are ordering takeout because meal planning just feels impossible. Or paying a convenience fee to avoid doing something that's very overwhelming to you. So what I want you to hear me say, this isn't about being risk irresponsible. It's about building systems that support your brain and support your financial goals.

Next, we're going to talk about is a 15-minute spending leak audit just so that you can do and look over some easy places that some spending leaks can pop in. So we want I want you to take out your bank statement or your credit card statement, check out Venmo, PayPal, maybe your Apple Pay, and look over the last 30 days. What expenses on there did you completely forget about?

Then I want you to, if you want to print that out or write it down, highlight those repeated transactions. So look for stuff like streaming services, maybe apps, memberships, software, monthly subscriptions, and then ask yourself the question: would I sign up for this again? That's going to be a big indicator on if you should continue with that or not. The third step is to identify convenience spending. So maybe it is those drive-through meals or delivery fees for something. Maybe it's rushed shipping or a last-minute purchase.

And ask yourself the question, what problem am I trying to solve? This will usually help uncover that there is a system breakdown. And we'll talk about that a little a little bit more in a minute. So the next one is also to look for emotional spending. Now this one's a big one.

Because all of those things can can fall into place, but emotional spending will ask ask yourself, was I stressed? Was I tired? Was I bored? Was I trying to reward myself? And this isn't about guilt. This is about creating some awareness and so that we can how figure out how to support you and your brain the best. So this next part we're going to fix this we're going to fix the system and not the symptom.

Because most spending leaks are just clues. So for example, if you get frequent takeout, let's create a meal plan. Because that just means we need to figure out something that's going to support you and your family better. Another another example is if you make duplicate purchases of things. Alright, so maybe a little inventory system of what you have on hand is going to be necessary. How about forgotten subscriptions? So it is let's figure out a monthly review routine so that you can check on those and you can cancel them before they reoccur and slowly drain your bank account.

Some ADHD friendly solutions are looking over your subscriptions once a month. Maybe it's a weekly meal plan, spending alerts on your phone. I know I have those set up for my bank account so I can see that stuff and address it immediately if I need to. maybe you set a wish list waiting period for yourself and you put a note in your phone that says, all right, at this date and time, if I still want these things, I'm gonna purchase them. That's a great one.

Simplified budget categories. And so making sure that your budget is set up for what matters with your goals, but also what works for your brain. Remember, the goal here is not more willpower. It is to create fewer opportunities for money to slip through the cracks.

Spending leaks are just those recurring little money drains. It's like the you know, air in your tire, you just got a little, a little nail in it and a little bit's coming out. Or right now we're right in the thick of summer and so maybe your swimming pool has just a little tiny hole in it, right? So water is still going to get out. So that's why we want to plug those leaks so that you can continue to enjoy your swimming pool and the money that you've earned.

ADHD brains are especially vulnerable to these types of little things because sometimes you know what if it's small we're not gonna notice it so awareness is going to be shame every day and so just creating some awareness over the things that you've ⁓ the things that you've spent in the last 30 days and see do those align with what matters most to you and your family and then most of those leaks point to a system that just needs some support.

Which one of these things is causing the most leaks and let's put some effort into creating a system that supports you and your brain. So the challenge for you in this episode is to just spend 15 minutes this week and look over your last 30 days transactions. Maybe it's finding a subscription maybe it's finding a convenience expense that you use often or a habit that you can improve and just find one of those things that you can improve on and create a system because this isn't about fixing everything at once.

We will want to we want to catch that low-hanging fruit and so figuring out what that one thing is that's causing the biggest leak, and then let's create a system around that. So if you need help with this, I would love to. Right now, I'm doing borrow my brain sessions. It's a free 15-minute session with me, and it's recorded, it might be shared on the podcast here, but it is an opportunity for you to pick my brain. We will figure out ⁓ supports for one of these systems that this is an area that you need extra help in, but it's a 15

Minute session where we're going to solve a specific problem that you have with your finances. So you can find all the details in the show notes to book that. And I will see you in the next episode.