Hello

[7embers]

Hello, my name is Amber. I am 24 years old. I was diagnosed with ADHD in January 2017, my sophomore year of college. I don't have anyone around me who understands what I am going through and anyone who is able to provide the necessary support I need. I was wondering if anyone had any tips or tricks on staying organized and making a home ADHD friendly.

[STEM_Dad]

Welcome, Amber.

I don't have any tips or tricks. For me, medication has been the most beneficial change I've made. The next best things I've done was getting counseling/therapy when I need it, and practicing mindfulness meditation and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques when I'm feeling overwhelmed.

I was diagnosed a year and a half ago at age 45. My life has been too hectic since then due to job changes and relationship issues (oh, and all the changes to life brought on by the COVID pandemic). I expect my life to quiet down for a while, and I'll finally have some time to dedicate to improving myself, my habits. I plan to build daily habits (use a Bullet Journal, exercise, reading, Bible reading, writing), and weekly routines (meal planning, cleaning schedule). I'll try to remember to post on the CHADD Adult ADHD forum about my progress once I do get started on this grand plan of mine.

There are some good sources of information out there. You can search these forums, and others. Another one I know of is at forums.howtoadhd.com/

Look on YouTube (my favorite is the HowToADHD channel, by Jessica McCabe, which is where I learned about that other forum from). There's a lot of ADHD videos on YouTube, some helpful (like "ADHD reWired"), some informative (like anything with Dr. Russell Barkley or Dr. Edward "Ned" Hallowell), but some not very helpful (like anything that says ADHD isn't real, because it definitely is real).

There are also podcasts, like "ADHD reWired" and "ADHD Essentials", and many others.

There are a number of good books, like:

* "Driven to Distraction" by Dr. Hallowell and Dr. John Ratey

* "The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success" by Peg Dawson, EdD, and Richard Guare, PhD - [this was the first ADHD book that I bought, which has a lot of practical information, but instead of telling you to follow a specific plan, it guides you to create your own based on your unique set of strengths]

There's also direct help available from psychologists, psychiatrists, therapists, counselors, ADHD coaches, and other professionals.

[PastelPink20]

Hi Amber! My name is Tiffany and I’m 22.

I am waiting on getting testing to get diagnosed. I might relate to your story a bit in how since I did well in school younger...

But in high school, everything got worse. I got diagnosed with Anxiety and Depression and got on a bunch of different meds and therapy. I still have the same issues and I’m in college. It’s really really hard right now.

So, I haven’t figured it out. I just relate to so many of the stories I keep hearing women share in their struggles and wonder if I’ve been misdiagnosed.

I think understanding why your brain works differently and how it does so you can know how to cope better is such a gift.

I definitely agree with STEM_Dad on the YouTube channel, How To ADHD, youtube.com/c/HowtoADHD. She has a lot of videos explaining certain symptoms or giving tips on how to do things differently so it works better. She has a house tour video that helped me stay slightly more organized: youtu.be/posZhu_YIl0(Not working as expected?)

Overall, to me, there’s seem to be more about there now with #adhdinwomen on YouTube and especially TikTok or wherever else online.

It definitely seems like 2 parts, 1 medication help stabilize focus. Then, 2, making those routines or systems into habits? I don’t have either currently but, getting to be a part of the online community has made me feel understood and that this can be manageable.

Wish you the best!

[shnamb]

Hello,

I am 29 and got diagnosed a month ago.

First things first, meds made the most difference. It helped me actually find mental energy and motivation to implement all these other techniques. Without meds it becomes an endless knowledge base of one more thing where you know what to do, but cannot. At least that is how it was for me.

Once on meds, some of the things that helped me:

1) Getting vitamin D levels checked, finding out I was deficient and taking supplements. This seems irrelevant but getting a health checkup is always a good first step, lots of deficiencies cause further energy issues.

2) This app called routinery, that helped me build a morning and night routine and identify my time blindness, because when I put things into it, I was more aware that I can't cram 10 different life goals from 6-10 PM. And very aware that if something new has to go in, something else has to go out. ( This only worked for things outside of work, it may not help with school work as it is harder to have one standard routine for that).

3) Sleep. I started focusing on better quality of sleep. I have an apple watch and a sleep tracking app called auto sleep. I use blue light blocking glasses in the evening, use 10-15 min of light therapy in the morning, I go on a walk/run before or after dinner, read a little before bed and use an eye massager(renpho). All of these together helps me sleep better, and that means I have more energy for my day.

3.5) This point is an afterthought. Sleep, morning routine, evening routine etc are all part of your self care. Give time to self care coz you need to replenish your energy. If you are having a tough time with things like exercise , focus on building a habit first and then slowly focus on results. My only exercise is going on a walk.

4) I meal prep on Saturdays, so that is one big chunk of daily activity that I no longer have to do. Saying yes to something means saying no to something else, so try to find out things you do in your day that takes up big chunks of your time and see if you can free up more time for yourself.

5) Tech addiction: What helped me most was removing social media apps from my phone altogether, go cold turkey, and turn my phone black and white. The lack of color removes a lot of the stimulation you get from your phone and makes it a lot less engaging while keeping all of the functionality. It feels poetically sad to do this, the color literally gone from life and all that, but it's very effective. I do this just for my phone and not all screens.

Also this chrome extension that erases social media feeds while keeping everything else accessible.

6) I have a planner book where I write down my appointments, challenges faced every week, oversight, whats helping etc.

This one: tinyurl.com/5zkun7c2

I also have lots of stickers, colorful erasable pens, etc to make sort of turn it into an art project and that keeps me into it cuz I love art.

7) Fidgets, I have a fidget ring called conqueRING that sort of helps me during long boring meetings.

8) Ppl say pomodoro techniques help them, but I am still struggling with finding that level of discipline.

9) I have magnetic stick on erasable lists stuck in bathroom and kitchen to put down the list of chores I want to do in that room/area. If it takes longer to write on the list than to actually do it, just do it.

10) Someone already mentioned the ADHD rewired podcast, it has this idea of energy management. Just like how you manage time, you manage your energy levels as well and don't plan your day assuming you will always function at your peak energy levels. And when you take breaks, ensure your breaks replenish your energy and not drain it. So phones and tech devices are out. Eat a healthy snack, step into your balcony and get some sun, or do something that works for you the re energize you and not drain you further.

11) I bought a bunch of shelves, drawers etc to organize my desk and remove all clutter away from it. I gave on being able to "arrange things neatly". Instead I have lots of little shelves/bins/drawers for each category of something, and I throw stuff into it. De clutter and purge regularly and get rid of things you don't need out of your sight.

12) Pill box for medications

13) If you have money, consider spending on things that may save time. Like a roomba. The truth of life is that money makes everything easier, including having ADHD. I grew up poor and it took me a long time to accept that this is real, it is not okay for this to be real, but it is how the world is for now.

14) Keep reading books/watching youtube videos/podcasts and keep trying out new things/techniques/strategies. Brute force through this because what works for everyone is different. Sometimes it's the technique itself, sometimes it's the way you look at it. Like I could have had a planner all my life, but I hated the idea. But looking at it as an art project made me more excited about it.

It is important to mention that, for two past two years until December my life was a mess, I worked from 8 am to 12 am and got nothing done, my manager was disappointed in me and thought I was shitty and proved it to me with data. I was tired, depressed and just getting through the motions and doing the bare minimum and completely crashed and burned.

I took a month off to figure shit out, and now I joined back work. I still mostly hate my job, and getting out requires me to study for 5-6 months for interviews because I am a programmer and I am still struggling to get that studying done, which at this point really NEEDS to be my biggest priority. So in spite of everything, life can still be a little messy. But all the self care is helping me find that time a little more than before, and be happier day to day.

The journey is going be slow, but as long as you are taking steps in the right direction, you will make progress. Have patience.

[shnamb]

Also I am not sure if I am allowed to post this here, but this article is a collection of many peoples experiences.

reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/...

[Gettingittogether]

And get to a great therapist if you can. The benefit of a therapist is that ADHD makes it really hard to manage the basics of life, makes it hard to think clearly about life. So it's hard for ADHD people to sometimes accumulate wisdom based on experience.

A therapist can help with acceptance, help with esteem, help with people skills of interacting with others. Help with seeing possibilities.