I came to a startling realization this morning while getting ready to start my day. I plan my day around various contingencies because I know that if I don’t feel like doing a task, nothing will stop me from not doing it. It’s like I live in fear of myself like I’m some sort of moody army general and I have to work around my own impulsiveness. I take adderall and that helps me to focus but most of my adhd problems are things that I’m not sure medicine will help. Has anyone successfully gotten at least a little handle on their productivity? How did you do it?
I’ll also explain what made me come to this realization. I had the thought, “thank God I’ve been in mood to be frugal recently, I’m scared of when that feeling goes away and I start spending money on stupid shit again” So yeah, impulsivity is a problem 😅
You take Adderall so I assume you have been diagnosed by a psychiatrist/neurologist, and other possible causes for uncontrollable behavior have been ruled out (e.g. manic episodes)?
Other than that, what helped me most was actually sitting down with a psychologist for some good old cognitive behavioral therapy to better understand my responses to the world around me and learn strategies and tools to help me navigate my daily live :)
What I’ve learned during my now 16 years of adulthood living with ADD: stay the fuck away from most productivity hacks you find online. They’re not for you, they’re for neurotypicals and will most likely make you feel like a useless piece of shit when they will inevitably fail to work.
You have an executive function disorder, so the first thing that goes out the window when you’re not at your 100% best is routines and plans (you know the stuff others can cling to and keep doing automatically even when everything else in their lives comes crashing down).
Sorry, that last part was a bit of a ramble 😅
You’re absolutely right, I’ve learned to stay away from productivity hacks online! I was working with a counselor which helped, but as most things go, it’s hard to keep up with appointments. I’m a business owner and have two kids so I get busy and overwhelmed and self-care tends to take a hit.