Living With ADHD: Strategies To Make ADHD More Manageable

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) can be very mentally draining to live with. Often, people who have ADHD tend to experience challenges when performing day-to-day tasks that can make even the most seemingly simple ones feel complicated.

While this can be frustrating, it is important to take a moment and relax. There are lifestyle changes that can be made to make tasks with ADHD more manageable.

Ways to make ADHD more manageable

Here are some tips to help with day-to-day life if you struggle with ADHD.

1. Narrate what you do in your head

Self narration can be a big help even for the smallest tasks. When narrating, you’re less likely to deviate from what you should be doing. Narrating acts as a constant reminder of what needs to be done.

The other benefit of narration is it can help eliminate small mistakes that people with ADHD often overlook because they couldn’t fully focus on the small details. For example, when pressing a soap dispenser, someone with ADHD might lose focus and press too often thereby taking too much soap. When narrating, say to yourself “I am now pressing the soap dispenser.” This is a way of focusing the mind at the task at hand and (ideally) dispensing the right amount of soap.

You don’t have to go into too much detail, just a basic narration in your mind. A simple explanation of what you’re doing and/or what you should be doing can be enough to help make life’s responsibilities more manageable.

2. Have a to-do list

Forgetting things that need to be done or purchased is common amongst people with ADHD. Even something that seems obvious or important might get overlooked. For that reason, try having a to-do list and a shopping list where you write things as they come up. Write this list in a notes app on your phone to make it easier to add and take items away. Then, make a habit of checking your list constantly. You might even want to set a reminder, but just making a habit of checking your list should be enough.

No matter how seemingly silly, write it down. It’s better to have it written down and remember it than not write it and forget to do it. As soon as some responsibility arises or if you discover that you need something, add it to your list. Don’t leave adding something to the list for later because that kind of defeats the purpose of having it. In the end you might just forget to write it.

3. Have a schedule

Schedules are great for minimizing the risk of overlooking something that should be done. Schedules also help prevent procrastination as long they are properly planned and adhered to. Use schedules to plan your day, week and even month. Align it with your to-do list.

When planning a schedule, make accommodations for breaks and the possibility of things not going according to plan. Always allocate slightly more time than you think you need and make sure you are honest with yourself about how long you think something will take.

4. Set alarms and reminders

Alarms and reminders compliment schedules and to-do lists quite nicely. They help jog the memory and keep us aware of what time it is. People with ADHD might easily lose track of their day. Alarms can help provide a bit of a nudge or reminder of what the time is so it becomes harder to simply lose awareness of the time of day.

5. Sleep enough

ADHD can already take a toll on focus so adding a lack of sleep to that is just preparation for disaster. Sleep helps raise focus levels and keeps people well-rested which helps improve their ability to perform day-to-day tasks. Sleep and mental awareness are correlated so losing sleep is something that people with ADHD often can’t afford to do. Sleep comfortably for 7.5-8 hours every night.

6. Build patience slowly

Many of life’s tasks require patience, which is something that a lot of people with ADHD struggle with. While it’d be nice to wake up one day and suddenly be able to stay focused on a boring task for hours, the reality is patience will often need to be built up gradually for those who lack it.

Patience is an important life skill so for people with ADHD it’s paramount that they find ways to develop this if it is a problematic area. What can be done to build patience is slowly exposing yourself to controlled situations which require patience. Controlled here means it’s something you can easily get out of and it’s not high stakes. Maybe a puzzle or a video game that feels tedious, for example. Whatever you do, make sure it helps build your tolerance. Gradually make your activities lengthier in duration and more “boring.”

7. Take breaks

Taking breaks can make responsibilities feel more manageable, even for people without ADHD. Attention spans usually have limits and taking a break helps refresh the attention span so it can go for another long haul. After that, take another break and so on. This is a great way to recharge.

Don’t forget to take breaks frequently but do remember that these can become a slippery slope. Breaks shouldn’t start happening too often or for too long. The idea here is to take some time to reset and start again, not finding a way to avoid work. Make sure you adhere to your break and work times.