Every day life with adult ADHD

[AdversePossession]

I was inspired (probably not the best word) to start this thread this evening, after some points were raised about areas such as masking and the struggles of various parts of everyday life.

Please feel able to post here for support, advice, to vent, ask questions and share stuff. I hope it may be useful to someone else.

Today I have felt overwhelmed with not getting anything done, taking my medication, and obsessing over something I know is not going to help me long term (nothing shocking, just need to not go too much into it!).

Well here goes. I should be sleeping but I’m stuck to mumsnet.
i know I should be sleeping, it is late.
but I’ve got that hyper focus.

happens a lot. I went for a morning walk intending to be gone from 8-9am. I take a wrong turn (thanks ADHD) and ended up at 10am realising nothing looked right and when I looked at maps, I then saw I’d walked 2hrs away from home and it would be at least another 2hr walk to get home. This is very rural no public transport and no taxis at all. So while I smashed my fitness goal by closing my loop 3x, I was shattered, got home ate a piece of bread with a cup of tea and then fell asleep until 3pm.

So got only a bit of work done from 3-6pm.

now I’m sabotaging tomorrow but I can’t stop, if I put my pad down I will just lie here sleepless.

Thank you for posting here! I am on something of a hyperfocus too here- and definitely so many things by now should have done.

Did you have lots of thoughts whirling in your mind as you walked? I keep thinking I need to walk more when the weather is good as I know it helps me. I am doing too much doomscrolling/rabbit hole down a topic at the moment. Also, the to do list trip ups!

Perhaps we can set ourselves 3 things - e.g something by tomorrow, something by end of week, something by end of month. That helps me sometimes!

yy. Well it had rained and I was thinking of the farmers harvesting, there were frogs on the road and I rescued a couple from being run over (easy as only two cars went by in total) there was an elderly female dog too that appeared and walked with me some of the way and I was distracted petting her and chatting. She peeled off at a house (her home I think) then the clouds started to clear and I was watching the eagles start their circling to look for their breakfast and I hoped the frogs had found cover. I was also checking the creeks and irrigation to see how much the water level had changed from the rain. I was also seeing that some trees have started to brown and some leaves had fallen so started to think about summer being over. There was also a couple of butterflies chasing each other and three hills I saw while on a ridge that looked like they had human made mounds in the top and I thought I must go there they look like Iron Age fortifications or maybe medieval lookout points. Then I passed a standing stone where one side was black and I had to go up to it and spent a few minutes trying to determine if there had been a shepherd with a campfire…

so for me, constant stream of consciousness

“Perhaps we can set ourselves 3 things - e.g something by tomorrow, something by end of week, something by end of month. That helps me sometimes!”

tbh can’t do that now. Maybe tomorrow…😆

Hi, I don’t have ADHD but my husband does. I have ASD, and initially in our relationship this kind of caused issues because I did not understand why I was disorganised and he didn’t understand why I was incapable of going with the flow. One thing that’s really really helped us is we have a shared calendar app called Time Tree (that’s the one we like best but there’s others). The calendar is called “check this before you ask Cat” (that’s me). As soon as he knows he’s doing something he puts it on there, then at the end of the day he checks he’s put it on. I put things on there as well and he gets a notification. He has the app on the bottom bit of his screen next to text messages so he got in the habit of checking it often.

I don’t know if you guys would find it helpful, but we really do. There’s loads of good features and the free version is great, you can pay but the free one has all you need. We got it before DCs and initially used it for dates and putting our shift work schedules on - but we still use it. You need to get into the habit of checking it, which I understand is harder for people with ADHD. Well, DH finds it helpful anyway and I enjoy it because I get to colour code stuff!!

Morning. Thanks for starting this.

Am newly diagnosed but known for many years. Haven't discussed meds yet.

I have massive trouble with keeping on top of basic things and create lists for everything to try and be organised.

Thank you so much for the Timetree app recommendation, just set it up with my partner. I’ve been meaning to do this for a while but of course never got round to it. I struggle as I really need organised planning and structure, but then also really need some spontaneity too (only very much on my own terms though haha)

I use the Finch app.

It's s much more 'childlike' but I like that, dressing up my bird and doing goals etc

But it really helps me with things like taking medication

I use finch after my dd2 recommended it, still early days yet but it seems good.

Ive been diagnosed for 11 years but unable to take meds due a very annoying heart condition. I have SVT and a congenital problem with the way my heart electrics work. So there’s that.

im not going to lie I am struggling massively at the moment with motivation and organisation, just literally laid on my bed frozen for 2 days (although I have made dinner for the teens)

I’ll be ok next week probably. I’ve so much to do

Also forgot to say @AdversePossession i sometimes really find habit stacking helps with doing things like taking medication, have you tried this?

my two goals for the week is signing back up to the gym for my MH and today it is getting washing done that I’ve been putting off for about week and half. Anyone else got any?

Today I was told by my GP that I need increased dose of methylphenidate and a referral to support services to prevent me from becoming an evil overlord. Fairly pleased