5 Strategies to Cope with ADHD/ADD Symptoms
Are you restless, having difficulty paying attention or too impulsive? These might be symptoms that indicate that a person has attention-deficit disorder or hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD). Usually, the symptoms are evident in childhood, but many people are left undiagnosed until adulthood. Additionally, our ever fast paced culture of smartphones has also contributed to an increase in adult diagnosis. Don’t even get me started on social media’s impact on our attention spans…
ADD/ADHD can present struggles in all areas of life. Engaging in psychotherapy and medication management is optimal for managing the symptoms of ADHD, there are life strategies that should be used to reduce distress. Please always remember that your attitude matters so if you are in a poor mood this may be more challenging and seek out support with mood and substance use in addition.
Here are my top 5 self-help tips for coping with ADHD/ADD symptoms:
Use a calendar app with alerts or alarms
Non-negotiable. And you have to listen to the alarms/reminders at certain times of your day. With adult ADHD, you may tend to be forgetful, procrastinate, and get overwhelmed. Allowing assistance by switching to digital organizational apps (i.e. phone calendars, automatic payments or reminders, and any other tracking system that works for your needs) allows the brain to focus on what really matters. With automatic reminders, you can easily keep track of your schedule with consistency and structure.
2. Prioritize lists
Similar to the reminders, you might get stuck in trying to do too much or being unable to start at all due to lack of prioritization. The easiest way to gain momentum is to prioritize lists that require the most time and attention from you (i.e work tasks, home tasks, goal tasks). Taking time in the morning or before bed to write out the things that need to get done for the following day allows the brain to settle and focus.
The “in the moment” prompt that helps me is to remind myself that everything will not get done today and that is PERFECT. We will have more to do tomorrow which is how it must be. Break your tasks down by listing them down and prioritize using project manager apps or simple to-do apps. You cannot focus all your time on a lower priority item so it makes it easier to prioritize what really matters with time. Which brings us to our most important steps…
3. Enforcing Firm Boundaries
If something is out of sight, someone with ADHD might easily forget it. Therefore having visual timers, reminders, scripts, prompts that allows for these to be honored/respected by others. Blocking off your work and personal calendar to allow downtime is also non-negotiable. Taking photos or images of the important things that you need to remember and adding them to your notes may help you stay on track. Allowing others to be disappointed or let down with your boundaries leads us to our hardest step…
4. Learn to say “NO” to others
All the lovely individuals I know that suffer from ADHD/ADD often struggle with this. Impulsiveness can lead you to agree to too many tasks or events but this may leave you feeling overtired and leading to burnout. Make sure to check your tasks and schedule first before committing to something new and learn to say “NO” when you can’t accommodate. Remember that you are doing this for your sanity and not to please people. Have the courage to be disliked which is sometimes especially hard for people who suffer from rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD).
5. Practice mindfulness
This may be challenging due to the hyperactivity symptom but starting gradually will only help your mind calm itself. Mindfulness is not just meditation, mindful consumption of the food and water you consume is also essential. Research shows that if you eat or consume 500-1000 mg omega -3 supplements will have beneficial effects on ADHD symptoms.
Deep breathing multiple times per day is a great practice. Walking in the sunshine, planting your feet on the grass/sand/dirt, unplugging from phones/social media, and doing exercises or meditations that calm your mind and boost your mood is profound. You can slowly increase your meditation time once you get comfortable in a flow or process that works for you and you’ll see that you’re able to maintain focus better than ever before.
If you find yourself struggling with any of these strategies, feel free to reach out. I can help map out plans that will suit your specific needs. I offer psychotherapy sessions either in the office, via video or as a “walk & talk” sessions in San Diego, California. You may find more about it here. Let’s connect!
