Hi! So I'm new here. I'd maybe start with some context: I am not officially diagnosed with ADHD (yet?) since I haven't been able to afford it. I depended on a free consultation given by my university, and even then they didn't have the capability to medically diagnose me. However, I have related to ADHD symptoms for at least 4 years now and thought that maybe I could gain some insight from all of you.
For my whole life years I have been struggling with a short attention span, I am very easy to get bored. However, my family never thought of it as a problem since I performed exceptionally in my academic life. Then, since I entered university, I have been facing difficulty in starting a task, but I noticed a pattern: it is only a task that I am anxious about. What frustrates me most is the fact that I cannot do some tasks except it is few hours before the deadline, even though I am fully aware of the fact that I am procrastinating it. I kept thinking "the deadline is near, I can start doing it now" but it is impossible for me to start for no reason. I often stare at my laptop for hours doing nothing (or small, mundane, not even entertaining things) trying to start on my assignments.
I wonder if this is something that the community have to face every day, and maybe if you guys have any tricks to face it? I kind of desperately need it. Thank you so much!!
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Google Adrenaline Response Cycle to understand this common issue many of us with ADHD face.
A podcast that explains this well:
Translating ADHD, “ADHD and the Adrenaline Response Cycle“ November 19, 2019
personally, I often use exercise to achieve focus or clear my head and prepare for a challenging task that requires sustained effort and multiple steps.
The symptoms you describe sound like ADD. Procrastination has been with me all my life. In school I would try to gather all the information I could if it was a paper and organize it. Then when the deadline was near I would make myself sit down, get rid of all distractions that I could, close my door and start writing, that made it less overwhelming.I would plan for this in my schedule. And I told myself I could do it this way. It usually worked. For tests I would make sure I had all the information I needed, look over the material several days ahead and in the end I would cram, make sure I got enough sleep the night before and wake up early to cram some more. Remembering things would only work if I did it the night before and early am. Not the best way to do things but it seemed to work for me. I also never put myself down for all my challenges. Back then there was no awareness of ADD. I was just wierd.
If you can get a diagnosis, then most universities have a program for the disabled. I was able to tape all my classes, was given extra time for assignments and taking tests, copy someone else's notes if I needed. A lot of people with ADD are smarter than normal which helps. Keep trying new ways to do things and you will find out what helps and what doesn't. If you go to AmenMD, there is a lot of information and help for free.
For me it is. I have a problem with all that you you mentioned-easily distracted, bored (or find something extremely boring), unable to do something until that last minute (and then it’s not a big deal-but before the last minute, it seemed and felt like an overwhelming project ). All symptoms of ADHD. Check out ‘Delivered from Distraction’ by Drs Hallowell and Ratey. There’s also their 1st book ‘Driven from Distraction’ but ‘Delivered’ book was better for me. From what I’ve noticed, most ADHD people have plenty of intelligence. You’ll find people here with advanced degrees. I wasn’t diagnosed till my late 40’s and I’ve always had a problem of,,, putting it all together? That’s the best way I can describe it. Keep looking into this. If you do have ADHD, Rx could help you in several ways. Also, for me, either the Rx by itself, or the additional benefits from where the Rx has helped me manage my life in general-the results have been an improvement in the quality of my life. Best of luck to you.
Medical treatment has been a life changer. If you can't or don't want, the suggestion to exercise before you sit at your laptop might work too but only if you can get yourself to exercise... The suggestion to start with small tasks like gathering information is also great because it gets you in the mood, your brain starts working, you build your interest. Also, look up Dr David Burns YouTube podcast on procrastination: it is an amazing method. Try to test it on one assignment, and keep us posted...
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