Has anyone naturally adopted tools and coping with disorganisation or messiness?

[daverussell]

Sorry if this is similar to my previous post...

I'm awaiting a formal assessment for ADHD. In a previous post, I stated that I was tidy and organised, which ive always found confusing amongst many symptoms screaming "ADHD."

Despite years and years thinking "I must have ADHD or something", then as quickly dismissing it, my organisation and routine, rules out ADHD, surely", However, having given this some thought, I do often lose or forget things having just put them down, objects or thoughts. It been a long running joke between me and my better half that we/I can't go anywhere without me having to go back in the house because I've forgotten something.

Maybe my organisation isn't bring organised. Rather it's a coping mechanism that I've adopted. I actually struggle to keep my list organised and still have a hard time keeping on top of it and slow getting it done, or I don't start the task at all and let it slip.

What are your experiences?

[Slmndrs]

I think most of us who get a later in life diagnosis developed many coping skills/self-accommodations along the way.

Then one day our life gets to a point that’s beyond our ability to cope and then we hopefully are able to get the diagnosis, and help.

For a while, with the help of the Flylady system, I managed to be pretty tidy. That comes in waves. But I very early on had to develop a system for my house keys.

[daverussell in reply to Slmndrs]

Looks great. I like the zone cleaning idea. I do kinda try to do this system in general. Monday is usually my clean the house day, but I do need to force a daily routine.

I have everything on a to do list at work (called a Kanban board) using an app called Trello. I have separate one for personal tasks.

So, hopefully I just need those small adjustments. I was as much worried that my coping mechanisms where unhealthy as i wasn't addressing the problem, albeit unknown to me I had a problem or that it is a problem. That still needs addressing although i don't know how long I need to wait for a referral.

Thank you

[emiL1234]

Make anything that takes 2 minutes or less right when you think about it. Make the moves you will make where you are going while you are still at home : Gonna go have a coffee with your friend? Imagine you are at the cashier, and you have to pay. Practice moves like an actor. Say your lines out loud if you have to. Have a door lock that will not lock without your key. Whenever you come back home, spend 10 minutes placing stuff before doing anything else. Your ten minutes right now is worth 20 minutes later.

Keep the stuff that goes together together in a backpack. When you go to the pool, you have all your pool stuff. You go to work? You have all your workstuff.

Do not go to the groceries with a plan of what you want to cook. Some stuff will be out on the shelves and you don't know plan B. Shop for meals you want to eat in 2 or 3 days, so you have other occasions to pick up what you forgot later. ( I make lists when I go to the groceries and even if it's written, I forget) Your girlfriend can shop for tonight's dinner, you can shop for stuff you will want in the next few days. Or go together.

Leave beside the door stuff you have to NOT forget in the next 3 days.

Call people at 5 PM when they are stuck in the traffic/ kindergarten and fill their voicemail with instructions, stuff, answers you owe them. You don't have to type of fucking text it and they can listen to it one more time. You are liberated. 9 AM is good as well, cause they just arrived at the office and cannot answer/chat.

Does all of it sounds ridiculous? I don't know, I have nobody to tell me or watch me doing.

[Adivina]

it makes a lot of sense to me that you might have developed your tidiness habit as a mechanism to cope with undiagnosed ADD. I find the same, that I have become a lot tidier over the years because it helps me not get distracted as easily or lose things as much.

what I would say is that if you have coping mechanisms that manage your symptoms well, then you're doing great and don't really need an official diagnosis. It's where youre struggling in life and where the symptoms aren't being well managed, that a diagnosis and meds could help. IMO

[Poppy234]

Yes I think this is possible. Living alone in a flat I was quite of top of things and kept the place tidy. The problems came with family and things and a house full of stuff I find hard to throw away. My daughter finds starting tidying incredibly difficult and lives in chaos until she starts to tidy and then continues to the end once she starts and then lives in complete tidiness for a while. Have a look at ADHD spectrum on Additude, it explains subgroups and how we may differ but not falling into all the subgroups.