How To Improve Your ADHD Life

Modified information from a booklet by Dr. David Sachar, International Psychotherapy Institute, ©2012 and shared with his permission

Memory Issues

Post a list on the exit door—read each item and pat yourself that you have it with you.

Have a tray by the exit door for possessions you need when going out—keys, wallet, etc and another tray in your bedroom, for use when going to bed, for items you use when in the house, e.g. glasses, phone, watch. 

When leaving a room, don’t go yet—stop and look around.   Do you see anything you can carry somewhere else?  Do you need to clear off the kitchen table? How about putting dirty clothes in the laundry hamper? 

Never assume you're going to remember something. Before dealing with an interruption, write yourself a 2-3 word reminder that you will see when the interruption is over. After your memory is jogged and the task is finished, discard the note and leave the notepad accessible for the next time there is an interruption.

Organization

Make a list of your tasks.  Then you don’t have to worry about them. Look at the list, choose something and then just do it.

Transfer each item on your list to a schedule.  If you don’t do something on the day it’s scheduled, no problem; just transfer it to another day. Nothing gets forgotten and everything ultimately gets done.

If an item is too vague to schedule, ignore scheduling it. Don’t worry.  Put them on your list but don’t schedule them.

Capture every task in writing before you forget it. If you remember your to-do jobs when in bed or the car, use your phone to record your ideas.  Later, transfer these ideas to your list. Of course, you need to remember to transfer which can be a challenge.

Getting Started

No matter how big or how small the job is, the hardest part is getting started. Making a commitment to begin can be intimidating, but once you’ve started, the worst is often over.

Complete a small chunk of the job so you’ve accomplished something.  More often than not, after you break the ice, you realize it’s not a big glacier after all.  Taking your first whack probably initiates a continuing stream of ice chips, and you will complete more than you expected. Come back anytime to whack off even more. 

If you have a job that can’t be chipped away, an unscheduled “time gap” in your day is ideal for completing one of the big pieces. Mastering the gap filling technique helps us to overcome our “all-or-nothing” thinking, that is common but damaging for people with ADHD.

Overcoming Distractions

There is a reason they call it “attention deficit.” We are easily distracted and solving this problem requires a conscious effort. 

Remember, in any given moment, you are in charge of what you choose to do or not do.

Stick with your program.  If you are tempted to stray —and of course you will be—exert your authority and say (out loud if necessary), “I’m in charge and I order me to stick with my program.” When you are tempted to wander off course, realize it is the siren song of ADHD luring you away.  It’s your impulsiveness that lures you off track, not your reasoning. Let your awareness and reasoning rule. 

Losing track of time 

 A distorted perception of time is a hallmark of ADHD. It means (a) things take longer than we think they will and (b) we are often late for appointments.  Here are some solutions:

Double your estimated time to do a job.

Lower your expectations. We don’t work as fast as we imagine.  We don’t do things as easily, effortlessly, or efficiently as we wish or think we should.

An alarm clock is an indispensable survival tool. You may think,” I can’t possibly forget to leave in ten minutes for a haircut.” But believe me, you’ll forget. Set an alarm clock. The important phone call you promised to make at 2 PM?  You’ll forget it. Set the darn alarm clock!

In thinking about the time to do something, we often don’t include the preparation time. Here’s how to correct this.

(a) establish the time for departure, or whatever it is we have to do; (b) estimate the time to get ready; (c) double your estimate and then (d) set the darn alarm clock for when you should start your preparations.

Completing the big jobs

We all have big jobs we want to complete, but the little jobs get in the way.

Learn to leapfrog! Just leapfrog over everything on the list and do the big job first!  The little tasks are going to get done sooner or later (as long as they stay on the list) but the big important task is never going to get done if it isn’t leapfrogged, at least some of the time.

Managing paperwork

Your desktop is a tarmac, not a hanger.   Papers and other items are to only touch down briefly on your desk, then take off again for their final destination.

The incoming item is a non-stop flight. It goes straight into its final resting place, a file, as soon as it arrives.  Touch each item for filing only once. There is no stopover on your desktop.

Have separate trays for items with different time priorities. If you cannot touch an item only once en route to its final destination, then put it into a tray depending upon when you have to act upon it: Tray #1: deal with today. Tray #2: deal with soon but not today. Tray #3: deal with sooner or later but not by a particular date. Now everything is in files or in one of three trays and your desk is tidy. Isn’t that nice?

Subdivide Tray #2 according to deadline dates. Notebook dividers with tabs are handy for separating items according to date; so are manila folders and accordion files. Of course, not every item comes with a specific date for completion. That’s when being in charge is key. You set the date. The items in Tray #3 are ripe for leapfrogging. Take a look every so often at Tray #3 and leapfrog anything you need to complete over everything else. That’s the beauty of being in charge.

Overwhelm

Give every disturbing feeling a name. Ask yourself what’s the worst that can possibly happen. Remember, if you get angry with yourself, don’t take it out on anyone else. If nothing is working for you, lower your expectations. Take a few deep breaths.  Step away and take a break.  Do a few exercises, take a walk, have a nutritious snack.  Return to the task we renewed enthusiasm.