I have just made a list, at DH's suggestion, of all of the things I need to do urgently or should have done already. It has 31 items on it. 31 things I am carrying around, worrying about, putting off, that are weighing me down.
That doesn't count the little acronym I made for myself - SWEFT. It stands for the following:
Shower - did you shower today or yesterday? If not, do it.
Work - when are you next working and do you need to do anything to prepare for that? If so plan when you will do it.
Exercise - did you exercise in the last 2 days, if not, do it.
Food - have you eaten in the last 6 hours? If not, eat.
Teeth - have you brushed your teeth in the last 12 hours? If not, do them.
Typically when I remember this acronym, all of them are required. Which means it's too overwhelming.
This is just the basics. I haven't included in my 29 things stuff that I would like to do, stuff that needs doing but not yet, or things that I maybe want to find out more about before I decide whether to do.
I can't remember to do anything, because when I get something new to remember, it just gets lost in the list of the other 30~ things I should have done yesterday. I don't have the time or capacity to plan anything fun or even just relax because I'm stressing about all of this. I can't focus on any one piece of info so when I try to think about anything I have to do (e.g. if I was trying to make a plan of action) I think "well I have nothing to do" because all of it at once is too much.
DH was really shocked at the SWEFT thing and said maybe I should speak to a doctor about not being able to remember that basic stuff. I haven't shown him my list of things I'm overdue doing, for the same reason I don't tell anybody these things - partly I forget that other people don't have giant, not even to-do lists but should-have-already-done lists (ie, I assume it's so normal it's not worth commenting on) and then when I remember it's not normal, it's just embarrassing.
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Mental health
Does this sound like there is something wrong with me?
BertieBotts · 19/08/2014 18:27
Well done making your calls. I am beyond hopeless at organising time and getting things done - I don't so much forget as procrastinate, but if you procrastinate things build up and get so confusing that you forget.
I know this is a tiny thing, but if you don't like to use a hairdryer, could you sleep with your hair wrapped in a dry/warm towel. If you use a different towel to get excess water out and let it dry for 20 mins as you get ready for bed or watch tv, then you can put another towel round. Also, can you shower without washing your hair? How long is your hair - you could dry it without any 'styling', even just a minute or two drying, which might leave it looking a bit dodgy, but you could then plait it overnight which should calm it down and give it some waves.
Sorry to obsess about the hair 
.
My hair's really short! Purposefully so as to be low maintenance 
It dries in about 20 minutes. I don't like sleeping with a huge towel wrapped around my head and I don't like the feeling of a wet pillow. In the past I've put a towel on my pillow but it feels rough and I don't want to do it every night.
I don't know much about dyspraxia but I thought that was to do with fine motor control, tying shoelaces, things like that. I don't have a problem of ability to brush my teeth, shower, make food etc, it's just that I either put it off (procrastinator extroadinaire here) or forget totally about it, in both cases until it's really impossible to put off any longer. I've gone without eating for days at a time before, not to lose weight (I need to put on weight if anything) but just because I am constantly baffled by the notion that it might be mealtime again and I don't seem to have a very good awareness of time in the long sense. For example DH mentioned that DS needed a haircut and would I take him and I was confused because I was sure it had only been a couple of weeks when it had actually been 6 or 8 weeks. But the other way around, too, the other day I was sure my period must be due but then I looked at my period tracking app and it had only been about a week and a half 
Hair styling isn't really an issue because I don't know how to style my hair anyway, I've never been able to make it do what I want it to do so I just give it a brush and I think it looks alright. It's the feeling of it being wet either in bed or outside when it's cold that I don't like. In the house it's no problem at all and I never dry it if I'm just hanging around at home.
20 mins with a hairdryer or air-drying? If the latter surely you blow it dry in no time, or blast it for a minute and then sit up for 5-10 minutes before bed. I know simple solutions aren't really the answer though. I really identify with a lot of what you say, including the mealtimes thing. I wouldn't go without eating but the appropriate time to organise and cook an actual meal passes me by and I might just decide it is too late. I have a very poor sense of time passed also. I tend to delay things until there is no option to delay any longer, or until it is too late and they can't be done. What is it all about?
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