ADHD By Design
I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.
– Douglas Adams
It seems since COVID, ADHD in adults has become more visible. It's no surprise as people were forced to live and work under the same roof, which can become a mess, literally!
How is it that people who have been in their careers for 10, 20, or 30 years are all of a sudden struggling with symptoms and challenges of anxiety, staying on task, being distracted, and experiencing that afternoon fatigue?
I'm going to be transparent here I was one of those people who one day felt their life had become pure chaos. My paint brushes were found on my work desk…forks from the kitchen were found in the bathroom sink… and for the love of God, I couldn't seem to make it down the road without forgetting something. I seriously thought I might be in the early stages of dementia. Seriously, I was so frustrated and agitated.
I needed to take control of my life. So one day I went out to my shed and grabbed one of those gigantic paper leaf bags. I brought it back into the house starting to clean out each room. There was just too much stuff. I felt the only way to declutter my mind was to declutter my house. And when I finished, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted.
This got me thinking…how can decluttering my environment allow me the bandwidth to think clearly and not feel overwhelmed. I need to understand this, so I met with my therapist who diagnosed me with ADHD.
What?? I’m 50-something, how is it I had come this far in my life and not known I was ADHD? I was 25-plus years into my profession and completed a few degrees.
As I started to reflect on my years of schooling and career, there were similarities in accountability, structure, and time management.
Without knowing I had designed my life to keep me focused and on task. The financial investment of school held me accountable. Work deadlines provided structure, but more importantly, working against the clock as a first responder fueled my dopamine tank.
To be successful at my work I developed systems to keep me organized and these systems were and continue to be always evolving.
In my personal life, my home is another area I have unknowingly designed around my ADHD. I have glass cabinets, no dressers, and everything is in open view to see. Do you know why? Because if I put it it is put away in a drawer it is gone forever until one day I decide to open those drawers out of curiosity and surprise iit will feel like my birthday!
Did I mention time management? Well, there isn’t a room in my house that doesn’t have a clock. My interest in clocks started years ago. It is what keeps me on time and on task!
People with ADHD design systems that work for them. No two people are the same and that goes for people with ADHD too. ADHD looks different for everyone. What works for me might not work for you. Take the time to reflect as to what has worked well in your life and what has not.
Additudemag.com