Would setting alarms help with ADHD and household organisation?

[adhdexecutivefunction]

Would alarms work for adhd problems?

I find myself so easily overwhelmed but with racing thoughts and a house full
of half done jobs. I was thinking do I set alarms for say 30 mins to do one thing at a time?

I need to declutter too and I don’t know where to start.

I seem to use all my organisation skills 6-830 am getting dc to school then it feels like the day is wasted in terms of admin and housework etc .unless I need to go to an appt for dc or collect them early it’s just me wasting time. Is there anything else that would help ?

I find them useful so I don't lose time! I also break down jobs into smaller chunks so they're less overwhelming. You could do stuff like give yourself ten minutes to fill one bag of stuff to take to the charity shop or tip, then put the bag by the front door.

Have a look at body doubling apps too,I find it easier to do with if someone else is doing stuff too.

I put things in my calendar for everything and set alarms to remind me the day before and then the morning of. School things when the monthly calendar comes through, everything goes in. Stuff for work.

I set an alarm for Friday evening to put all school/work clothes in the wash then set my alarm for when it's due to finish to hang it up or put it in the drier. Put it in my calendar with alarm to iron it all.

I make lists of all the things in the house I need to do and score them off, I've really had to teach myself when I'm doing something not to go oh il just take that pile of washing down and then when I do that oh il just clean the fridge etc. Making the lists helps me focus and once I've done it, I delete it off the list. I also find playing music in earphones really helps me focus on what I'm doing as it stops the noise in my brain. Lists for food shopping as well and I delete each thing when I've put it in the trolley. Each day I do a list of what I'm doing that day in order of when.

Micro managing the shit out of my life seems to really help me. My sister also has adhd and my daughter and they can't or won't do calendar reminders, alarms or lists and their lives are chaotic and they feel really overwhelmed and anxious.

Yes. It does. And I have alarms that the kids know about
and checking night before for items etc

I’m going to try it I just think I need time dividers for set tasks otherwise my mind is just wandering off. I get so exhausted and stressed getting dc up and ready for school I think I use so much energy in that time and the day is just me trying to recover but with no schedule I’m just getting nothing done

I can relate. Alarms help but rather than half an hour I would do 10 or 15 mins at a time.

I like this for a house reset. It's only surface level but if you start with the this on a Monday (skipping any irrelevant bits - I don't do the laundry) it gives you a good base without taking up the whole week. I tend to follow it roughly, split into 10/15 min chunks.
https://moneysavingmom.com/whip-your-house-into-shape-in-2-hours-plus-a-free-downloadable-checklist/

Repetition helps me, it helps the work take up less space in my brain. It might annoy you, in which case maybe gamify it.

I keep seeing chores charts but I've never really got the weekly/monthly thing to work. We definitely don't do bedrooms weekly, or anything like!

I found them to be no better than someone poking me and telling me to do something to be honest.

The Organised Mum has tracks you play while you do something - eg 20 mins on the kitchen. I find a voice in my ear is helpful!

I was going to recommend the organised method (she's now dropped the mum part). She has various 'bootcamps' for sorting out a chaotic backlog as well as ongoing routines.

Also the TOM Rocks guided sessions where she talks to you to keep you on track. Or listen to an interesting podcast while cleaning or decluttering to make it less boring.

But alarms is my latest strategy to try and get things done. I've put all the things I need to get done as routine tasks in my google calendar and linked it to my Fitbit so it vibrates and tells me to do X, Y, Z. Too early to tell whether it's working but it feels like it could.

You should also build in breaks and nice things for you (eg go for a walk, read etc) to do for you which will help avoid overwhelm or the feeling that all you do is boring stuff.