Tips for dealing with adhd

Hello, I was recently diagnosed with ADHD (which, looking back, definitely explains a lot), and I just wanted to know if there were any tips to help deal with some of the symptoms, like how to not get distracted or zone out as often. I just started doing cognitive-behavioral therapy, and was just prescribed an ADHD medication (I’m pretty sure it’s Adderall). Thank you!

[MTA-]

There are a number of tips people could give, but I'm telling you, none will me as effective as medication. I can't giveyou any tips on how not to zone out, because the only thingi have found that works is medication.

Having said that, make all visual elements as simple and uncluttered as possible. Ever done that thing where you can't find something, even though you're looking right at it? I find that happens when your field of vision is cluttered; I.e. you can't find something on the table in front of you, because there are a lot of other things on the table. So keep surfaces tidy.

If you're writing, and you make a mistake, don't cross it out, start again on another page. If I have a list of things to do, and the list is all messy with things crossed out, I'll miss things.

Maybe those tips are a bit bunk for you... everyone's symptoms are different. So observe the mistakes you make, and base strategies on that. For instance, I noticed I tend to not notice when things ho wrong, because I tend to assume that things are the way they are on purpose, so even if something looks wrong, I ignore it. So now I mention it any time anything looks wrong.

When you're diagnosed, things like the mistakes you make suddenly make sense, so use that.

[Hidden]

Personally I've tried to "follow the dopamine" as much as I can. This means at any moment I follow whatever my brain is most interested in at the moment: working on homework and suddenly remembered I intended to cook and now can't stop thinking about the cooking? leave the homework and go cook. Suddenly saw the trash and wanted to throw out? just do it! It takes a lot less energy to follow my brain's thoughts than to force myself to block those out and do the thing I felt I am *supposed to* be doing.

Also allow yourself to fidget! Do it at environments where it feels ok like when you are by yourself. And just listen to what your brain / body needs. For example: I cannot listen to a single school lecture nowadays if I don't have some kind of fidgeting toy with me or even a pen I can play with, I sketch while listening and write my notes interwoven with the sketches, I write down everything I hear from the lecturer just to process it, also not looking at the person who's speaking and just staring at my desk or something else personally helps me feel more focused.

[FoxInTheForest]

I am trying to learn things that help me and feel I am only beginning at this. First I will tell you the sources on YouTube I have been learning from so you can go watch their videos and then I will try to share things that are working for me that may or may not have been learned through those channels

Videos by Dr. Russell Barkley

Videos from How to ADHD

Videos and Articles from ADDitude Magazine (YouTube and their website)

Podcasts from ADHDrewired.com

I use my phone as my brain but it also is my biggest distraction and time waster. So I have focus mode turned on on my phone and it restricts access to the apps I tell it to restrict. However, you can turn it off or take breaks, so it still takes willpower to obey your own rule of not using those apps. But seeing the app grayed out and unavailable is a great reminder. Also if you try to click the icon, it tells you focus mode is on and gives you the option to use the app for 5mins.

I use Microsoft To-do for my to-do list. I like having it digital so I can easily change the order of tasks like I couldn't do on paper. Also, I always have my phone with me. I carry it around like I wouldn't do a paper list. But some people find paper works better for them (or a marker board) because it can't distract them like the phone can

I am trying out using an Eisenhower Matrix to learn how to prioritize my tasks. There are videos online about this and the one from How to ADHD got me started on it. It's called the Matrix.

The app I am trying is called Priority Matrix and I've only used it a day but it was really helpful for me.

I have good brain days and bad brain days. Mostly it's due to fluctuating hormones, but some days I just don't know why I can't think and always feel like I'm searching for something and anxious and highly distractible and I lose my phone constantly.

On days like that, I find it really hard to do the dishes, for instance, because it is a mindless task. I with start getting distracted because my brain is incredibly bored, or it is a good chance for my brain to ruminate if I am in a bad place with my mood because of my hormones.

I use mindfulness techniques (psychologically speaking, not religiously in association with Buddhism, because I am a Christian.) Mindfulness is where you focus on just the task you're doing and how it feels to your five senses. It is really helped me to clear out that rumination.

But also since watching the How to ADHD videos and learning how important dopamine is in all of this, I learned that when I'm really struggling like that, it's good for me to put on some music while I work because it satisfies my brain's dopamine craving, giving me that stimulation making the task fun instead of boring. And then I feel like I'm functioning at a good level again. Also drinking something I like, like a flavored carbonated water or herbal tea, is another good dopamine add-on for me.

Those are the things that have been helping me the most lately. Sorry if I'm not remembering everything that I've been changing. But most of what I'm doing was because I have been learning from speeches and podcasts and YouTube videos, so please do check out those people I mentioned!