For many, life now revolves around working from home, home-schooling our children, or coping with the monotony of being at home all day and the pressures and anxiety that can bring. Read our COVID-19 Guide for ADHD Adults here.

For some of us, we also have the added challenge of being required to self-isolate within our own homes, either alone or away from our families to protect them from contracting the virus. Read the HSE guides as to when you should self-isolate here and how to self-isolate here.

So if you are waiting on a test result or if you have received that dreaded positive result but are finding it tough to stay away from everyone, here at ADHD Ireland we wanted to help adults with ADHD to cope with a few tips to help you keep safe and motivated during this difficult time.

1. Protect your mental health

The uncertainty of the situation at the moment, and the fear of what a positive test result can mean for you and your family, can cause undue anxiety and stress – particularly for adults with ADHD, 40% of whom also have comorbid anxiety disorder. It’s important to avoid getting overwhelmed by the situation and to allow yourself to keep control of what you read, hear or see, particularly on social media when you are feeling isolated. Keeping a realistic perspective of the situation based on facts is the advice from the HSE. You can read up-to-date factual information on coronavirus in Ireland here .

2. Surviving Self-Isolation

According to the HSE, self-isolation – or we prefer “physical-isolation” means staying indoors and completely avoiding any physical contact with other people. You need to do this if you have symptoms of coronavirus or a confirmed diagnosis. This is to stop other people from getting it. The advice from the HSE is very clear; you need to stay physically away from others (even within your own home, where possible). It’s OK for friends, family or delivery drivers to drop off food or supplies. Make sure you’re not in the same room as them, when they do. For more information on how to stay safe and healthy, please refer to the HSE website here.

3. Create a routine and stick with it

The key to alleviating anxiety around this new situation, is to try and structure your day. If you are feeling well:

• try to wake up at the same time each day and go to bed at the same time each night; keeping your body in a healthy routine helps to make you feel more in control.
• Shower and dress yourself as if you are going to meet somebody, rather than lounging around in pyjamas and then feeling down and lethargic at the end of your day.
• Eat your meals at regular times and clean up after yourself so that you can feel positive and energetic about your home environment.
• Take what help you need if you are feeling unwell and you have support from family or friends. It is possible for people to drop your meals at your door or to do your shopping for you, even while keeping their distance.

4. Incorporate regular exercise

The physical benefits of daily exercise are well documented, but did you know that exercise boosts your mind and mood as well? Physical activity releases proteins that improve brain function and this is particularly good for those with ADHD. It also promotes more restful, restorative sleep. Exercise isn’t just good for your body; it alleviates anxiety and depression, too. If you are self-isolating due to the risk of exposure to Covid-19 but feeling well yourself, a brisk 15/20-minute walk or a good stretch in the back garden will help make you feel more alert and more focused. There are also lots of apps that can be downloaded free of charge and will give you simple, easy to do at home exercises or why not try the Operation Transformation basic exercises to get you started?

5. Relax!

We are all in danger of feeling guilty for not working and studying as usual, and for allowing ourselves to sit down and watch day-time TV! Well, since we are all in this together, why not just… relax! This isn’t going to last forever, and we need to remember that our number one job is to stay safe and protect those in our society who are most vulnerable. Take a break. Particularly if you are self-isolating within a home that you share with family. Don’t worry about stepping away from the hustle and bustle of family life. This is the best choice to protect your family. Stay in a separate room, just sit back and allow yourself to indulge in your favourite TV show or a good book. Enjoy a cuppa and just relax and take care of your health. This time will pass and we will be back to our busy lives before we know it!

6. Stay connected to others

You want to be a good citizen and follow the guidelines of social distancing, especially if self-isolating, but you are starting to find the isolation really difficult? We are social beings and we need human contact to keep us going. There are so many ways with modern technology that you can reach out to friends and family and keep in touch. FaceTime, WhatsApp video calls and Skype are all really great for putting you face to face with those you love and miss, but don’t forget a simple phone call or even send a letter! We are all in this together, so let’s get each other through it, even if it is from a distance.

7. Give yourself a little calm

As adults with ADHD, it can be challenging for us to sit still, stay home and self-isolate. Instead of thinking of this as being “trapped”, why not take some time out of the day to read a book or try meditation. Allow our minds some calmness and quiet. Usually we find ourselves too busy to settle down and read or to try something new like meditation which has proven benefits for those with ADHD. Did you know that meditation actually helps with mental health and strengthening immunity? It is also ideal if you are spending time alone because it is most effective in a quiet, empty space. Download a good app, such as the Headspace app, set a time each day to do it, and get started!

8. Try a new hobby

If you are self-isolating but feeling well and finding the hours dragging while you are alone, this is the perfect time to busy yourself with something new. Is there a hobby you’ve always fancied trying but never had the time? Or do you have a stash of materials in your attic/garage that you’ve had for years and won’t throw away because you plan to get to it “someday”? Well now is your chance. Take this time to enjoy spending time doing something new or learning a new skill, which will give you a great sense of satisfaction. It is one of the upsides of this very tragic circumstance; we have been given something we all claim not to have enough of: time.

For more information please visit the HSE website dedicated section on coronavirus or contact us at ADHD Ireland.

Endorsed by the ADHD in Adults National Clinical Programme.

31st March 2020

If you have ADHD and suddenly find yourself working from home or temporarily out of work due to business closures, what can you do to fill your day and keep yourself occupied?

Here are some tips for maintaining focus, setting boundaries, avoiding unproductive hyperfocus, and getting the most out of your day.

1. Keep your usual routine

Sticking to your usual getting up and going to bed time will help your body keep in a routine. Getting dressed – even putting on your shoes – can help switch your mind into work-mode and can help you to feel more productive with your day.

2. Take your medication

Even though you are not going out to work every day now, you should still take your medication every day because ADHD medication works best when taken consistently.

3. Get some fresh air and exercise

The science is clear: Exercise promotes focus in the ADHD brain. Make sure to get out and get some fresh air and exercise every day. Your normal commute may involve walking some of the way, or even going out to get a sandwich at lunchtime. Take advantage of working from home by getting a walk at lunchtime or going out to the back garden.

4. Set up your workspace

If you’re working from home now, set up a dedicated space for your work station – whether it’s at the kitchen table or in your bedroom – whatever works for you. This will help you to focus and not get distracted by other things when you are in “work mode”. You may find yourself floundering with a lack of structure and colleagues. Try scheduling a regular call with your supervisor or someone working with you on a project daily to help keep your work focus intact.

5. Avoid home distractions

Try to avoid getting caught up in household jobs while you are supposed to be focusing on your work. You need to grab a pen, walk into the kitchen, and suddenly a snack sounds good and those dishes need washed and what’s that stuff on the counter… and you’ve been in the kitchen now for an hour instead of working.

6. Take regular breaks

It can really help the flow of your day if you add some structure to it. Map out in advance what times you are going to take breaks and try and stick to those times. It will help you to stay focused and avoid distractions.

7. Be aware of the time

Adults with ADHD don’t generally see time, but you can feel it. You might get hyperfocused on something you are working on and then work through your usual lunch break. Your body will start to tell you it’s hungry and you won’t be productive any more. Set timers on your phone, if that helps and stop at dedicated times to give your body the break it needs, or to give your workflow the switch up it needs from one project to another.

8. Be alert for Hyperfocus

Hyperfocus is a common — but confusing — symptom of ADHD. It is the ability to zero in intensely on an interesting project or activity for hours at a time. Be alert for it because it can cause you to lose hours of your day if you get caught up with one specific thing.

9. Clock off at your normal time

Don’t forget to have boundaries between work and personal time, it can be easy for things to get blurred when working from home. So, if you normally leave work at 5.30, turn your laptop off at that time instead.

10. Spend time with (from a safe distance of course!) family and friends

Our mental health can suffer if we don’t keep our social interactions up throughout the day. It is very important to chat to people and keep yourself socially connected to society. If you share your home with family or housemates then you have some people to chat to and share social interactions with, but if you live alone and are starting to feel isolated from this social distancing, make time to Skype, FaceTime or simply phone a friend!

Most importantly, try not to get too obsessive about the news and social media surrounding COVID-19 coronavirus. It can become all-consuming, meaning that it is easy to get sucked in and spend too much time listening to discussion around it and reading up about it – some of which you see might even not be true! This can build up and cause anxiety and fear which will not help your ADHD.

For more information please visit www.adhdireland.ie or

visit https://www2.hse.ie/wellbeing/mental-health/minding-your-mental-health-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak.html

Endorsed by the ADHD in Adults National Clinical Programme.

Why Deadlines Pounce and Long-Term Plans Never Happen

Good time management requires you to make long-term goals and look into the future to figure out who you are, and who you want to be. Unfortunately, none of those things come easily to those with ADHD. Learn why ADHD makes planning for retirement (or even planning your next meal) difficult, and what you can do to overcome your natural present-focused mentality.

The second hand on your internal clock fell off. The minute hand ticks too softly. And the hour hand sticks from time to time. As a result, planning more than a week (even a day) in advance sometimes feels hopeless, and pointless. Some tasks drag on forever while others suck you in to a time warp. And deadlines almost never arrive without drama, stress, and extensions.

Like so many other skills, time management exists on a spectrum. At one end is Tim Ferriss with his “4-Hour Workweek;” at the other end are those of us with ADHD.

Good time management boils down to this: Effectively using the present moment to bring about a better future. Most worthwhile goals and projects require sustained effort over time in exchange for a positive long-term impact on our lives. The secret to smart time management is learning to manage behaviors and choices in the present moment with long-term goals and ambitions always in mind.

When your internal clock is almost never synced with reality, this is difficult. That’s where these external tools and motivational strategies come in. Read on to learn why ADHD makes time management difficult, and what people with ADHD can do to overcome their inherent challenges and create a better future.

How Does ADHD Affect Time Management?

According to Russell Barkley, Ph.D., time management is “the ultimate — yet nearly invisible — disability afflicting those with ADHD.” Why? The ADHD brain is inherently unable to anticipate and plan for the future, which typically manifests in two ways: people with ADHD often have a very short “time horizon,” and they engage in what’s called “temporal discounting.”

To understand a time horizon, imagine you’re standing on the edge of the sea and you can’t see a ship that’s many miles in the distance — at least not at first. But as the ship approaches the shore, it eventually crosses the horizon and enters your field of vision then details of the ship come into focus. A person with strong vision sees the ship earlier than does someone with poor vision — in other words, their “horizon” is much longer.

Similarly, a time horizon measures how close in time an event must be for a person to “see” it and feel motivated to take action. Students with a long time horizon may start working on a project the day it’s assigned and work steadily toward its approaching deadline. Those with a short time horizon, on the other hand, might not “feel” the deadline approaching until it’s nearly upon them. In extreme cases, some students don’t see a thing until the deadline has already passed.

Time horizons are correlated to age. Young children see just a day or two into the future, while adults are capable of looking ahead several weeks, months, or years at a time. People with ADHD, however, often have abnormally short time horizons — a phenomenon Barkley calls “future myopia.” It’s difficult for them to plan for the future because they don’t see the future as clearly as do their peers.

Another phenomenon that disrupts our ability to plan for the future is “temporal discounting.” This is an economics term that reflects this truth: the further into the future a reward or punishment is, the less attention we pay to it in the present moment. If you were offered $100 to shovel a snowy driveway, you might jump at the chance if payment were immediate. But if payment was delayed 3 months, the reward suddenly becomes a lot less attractive — making it much less likely that you’ll agree to do all that shoveling today.

Because everyone — not just those with ADHD — feels the present more strongly, it’s difficult to do challenging things now that won’t have an immediate positive impact. Temporal discounting explains why slimming down, for example, is hard for a lot of people; it’s difficult to find the motivation to eat right and exercise when the positive effects take time to appear.

People with ADHD engage in more temporal discounting than do those without ADHD — which means they tend to choose the option with more immediate payoff. Becoming fit and healthy might be more satisfying in the long run, but watching TV and eating ice cream is much more satisfying now — the reward in the moment takes precedence over the punishment or negative effect that comes later.

Time Management Workarounds

How can people with ADHD counteract this today-focused mentality? Here are a few strategies:

1. Externalise time. When your internal clock is unreliable, you need to lean heavily on external ones. Old-fashioned analog clocks — not digital clocks — are useful for this purpose; the moving hands physically represent the passage of time; the numbers of a digital clock can be too abstract. Another great tool is the Time Timer; it shows the remaining time as an ever-shrinking red slice on the clock’s face.

Some individuals externalise time by setting up systems that remind them of it constantly. That might mean setting alarms, utilising phone reminders, or scheduling to-do list items directly into a calendar. Designating specific times for specific regular tasks also helps to ensure they get done regularly.

2. Maximise motivation. To harness (and maintain) motivation before it’s too late, visualise a future where time is managed well, and compare it to an alternative reality. For example, a college student with a paper due Friday should ask how it will feel to pull an all-nighter at the library while all of his friends go out to parties.

To practice visualisation effectively, first acknowledge the common lies we tell ourselves to justify poor time management. Examples include: “I have plenty of time,” “I don’t really have to do that now,” or “I work best under pressure.” Confronting those lies, examining them, and admitting when they’re untrue, is critical to developing better time management over the long-term.

3. Eliminate distractions. A hallmark symptom of ADHD is distractibility, which can override even the strongest time management strategies. Since it’s easier to avoid distraction than it is to recover from it, set up your work environment to eliminate distractions and manage the temptation to get off task. This means different things to different people, but some commonly used techniques include: blocking tempting websites on your computer (using online tools like SelfControl or Freedom), putting your phone on Do Not Disturb, or facing your desk toward the wall so you’re not tempted to look out the window.

4. Don’t catastrophise. Sometimes people put off tasks or long-term goals because they imagine the endeavour is bigger, more complicated, and more difficult than it is in reality. But waiting until the last minute because the project seems too hard — or avoiding it altogether because it involves too much risk — tends to become a self-fulfilling prophecy; the longer you procrastinate or avoid something, the more difficult (or unlikely) the project or goal becomes.

People who catastrophise tasks in their minds can benefit by simply forcing themselves to get started. Challenge yourself to complete just five minutes of a scary project before taking a break. If you still don’t feel productive after five minutes, it’s okay to stop. But in most cases, those five minutes of work will make it clear that the project wasn’t as difficult as you imagined. Plus, five minutes of work now means five fewer minutes of work later.

5. Identify feelings. Often, people put off doing a task because it makes them uncomfortable, but they’re not actually sure why. In some cases, the project seems boring or pointless, so apathy is to blame. Others might worry about failure — causing them to procrastinate as a way of putting off the anxiety they feel. Apathy and anxiety require different solutions, and it’s impossible to know which solution to try until you identify the root cause of your procrastination.

No single time-management strategy will work 100 percent of the time. It’s important to identify a collection of strategies that each works some of the time, mixing and match them to adapt to new goals and challenges as they arise.

From ADDitudemag.com,

7th February 2020

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