Enya Martins Eye-Opening Self-Discovery After Diagnosis

Enya Martin has been mining her childhood growing up in Clondalkin for her new show Acting The Divil.

She’s about to hit Vicar Street on March 6 where she’ll be talking about how growing up without much made her determined to make something of herself.

And since she last brought a show out there has been a surprising development in her life.

‘There is an element of my childhood in the show, so that’s why it’s called Acting The Divil because usually people say that to kids.

‘I go back to my school days and growing up and then there’s also the element of how much my life has changed since I’ve been doing my dream job, doing comedy, pursuing it.

‘It’s the contrast between life back then versus life now.’

Enya says she savours every moment of her success but is still driven to achieve goals that she has.

‘I grew up with the bare minimum,’ she says. ‘There were clothes on my back and food on the table, and I went to school, but didn’t get the big extravagant holidays like my other friends did to Orlando or New York. I think Mosney was the extent of it then.

‘I didn’t really know any different and my parents did their best for me but seeing your friends getting a car when they were 17 or 18 and getting brought to Spain I would have been a bit jealous and kind of envious.

‘But I did have that attitude that one day it’s going to come to me and one day I am going to have this.’

That day for Enya has arrived, really.

‘I’m living the dream,’ she says. ‘I know it’s as cliched as it sounds but being able to travel to Australia to do shows after something that started with one video on Facebook is amazing.’

Enya had studied marketing at college and had done a few internships when her comedy career as Giz A Laugh online had begun to take off.

She was delighted because at that stage she felt she wanted to work for herself as she couldn’t take direction off anyone else.

And recently she found out there was a reason for this.

‘I recently found out I had ADHD and that’s why I can’t take direction from anyone,’ she says. ‘It’s like a monkey banging a tambourine inside my head.’

She got tested for ADHD after seeing other people online talking about being diagnosed with the condition.

‘I thought it sounded like me,’ she says. ‘I procrastinate. I can’t take instruction. I have a very, very bad memory as well, I forget a lot of things.

‘There was a list of symptoms that were registering with me so I went to get tested because I could always walk around just assuming I had it, but then at least when you know for certain, you’re a lot kinder to yourself.

‘When I was in college I’d be leaving assignments until the day before they were due in and I’d be trying to get them done and somehow I’d manage to do 2,000 word essays in the space of six hours. I used to think “Is everybody like this? Do they procrastinate like this?”

‘But ADHD is the explanation as to why I did it. So you’re a lot kinder to yourself once you know why you act the way you do.’

Enya did try medication but found that it wasn’t the right thing for her.

‘I’m more of a holistic approach person and I found that the medication was actually making me more anxious. I felt like I was after drinking three cans of Red Bull, so I didn’t think it was good.’

Instead Enya has developed a system to help herself with procrastination.

‘Usually what I do now is wake up every day, make a list of things I have to do and then tick them off one by one.

‘It doesn’t seem as overwhelming then, because when you’re procrastinating, you see really small jobs as this massive mountain to climb, but when you break it down, you actually tell yourself it’s not that big of a deal, so that’s the way I have to live my life now.’

But there are plus sides too.

‘They do say people with ADHD are very creative. A lot of entrepreneurs have ADHD, and I did always want to work for myself, so I do think it definitely contributes to my creative streak and the mind that I have and the comic timing and my wit. So I don’t see it as a weakness. I definitely see it as a superpower.’

At school Enya had never considered a career in comedy.

‘I never thought of it,’ she says. ‘I didn’t think it was an option and I didn’t say it was something I wanted to be because I never watched stand up. I grew up watching a lot of sitcoms and stuff, but that was about the extent of it. I just thought I had to do a nine to five like everyone else. But when the videos started to take off I was able to say OK, I don’t think this is for me.’

Enya still works on both her videos and her stand up which she says can be a juggle.

‘It’s hard coming up with material for, for two of those platforms, stage and stand-up, but you manage, and I find that sometimes I can expand on my older videos for my stand up.

‘I take material from them - you know the way the attention span is so small on the internet nowadays you have to grab people’s attention with 10 seconds - so I am able to expand on them for two or three minutes on stage.’

And when it comes to stand up she has a new way of working too.

‘I find that accountability is really important for me,’ she says. ‘I have a call with another comic Mike Morgan every week when I’m writing a new show, and we just fire ideas at each other and build on that as two heads are better than one.

‘I used to shy away from reaching out to other people because I didn’t want to be giving other people credit for your jokes, but I think it is a collaborative process. With my videos, fair enough, I can get by with them by myself, but I think when you’re writing an hour’s worth of material, you need someone else in the mix to say where you should tweak things. It’s very similar to when you’re having a laugh with your friends and you just keep adding bits onto the joke and that’s exactly what it’s like.’

There is one thing about comedy and standup in that it isn’t the kind of job where you can simply call in sick.

‘Sometimes I do wish I had a nine-to-five because you could have a family member who is sick or something but you can’t cancel because 300 people have paid to come and see you. You have to show up and the show must go on.’

Her family - including her mum Kathleen who often appears in her videos - have yet to see her new show.

‘I just make light of how we grew up in a working class area and people laugh because they can relate to it,’ she says.

‘My mother is obviously a staple on my Giz A Laugh page as well. Everyone loves her, so people can envision her when I’m talking about her on stage. Vicar Street might be her first time to see the new show and the same with the rest of my family as well. It’s great when you have them in the audience. It’s like a comfort blanket.’

Enya hopes to crack some more overseas spots this year and there are rumours of shows in Britain in the pipeline.

And she is also writing a TV show of her own.

‘We are pitching it to broadcasters now so watch this space,’ she says.

‘When you see people getting opportunities that you’re still waiting for, it can be tough.

‘But I do have an attitude that what’s meant for you won’t pass you and your time is coming - just wait patiently. There’s a reason why it’s not happened yet and the right doors will open when you’re ready to walk through them. I know I am destined for big things, and it’s just about being patient.’

Enya Martin’s Acting The Divil is at Vicar Street on March 6, see ticketmaster.ie