Leveling up with ADHD?

Just don't expect your leveling up to look like that of a neurotypical person. Celebrate every win, every effort counts, no matter how small. Also, remember that NTs talk about their achievements quite differently, they assume everyone knows that they're not actually crushing it every single day. Us neurodivergents tend to take stuff more literally and have a much higher internal bar for what we consider a success. We weigh our accomplishments against all the days we've not been productive so we think it doesn't “count”. Others will go to the gym once a month and casually say “yeah I work out”. Lol. Obviously, ADHD makes it objectively harder to get things done, and they might take you longer, but also keep in mind that “normal” people also cut quite a few corners but that's just expected and baked into society so nobody notices. They also don't hyperfocus so sometimes we achieve things in a week that takes others two months haha. Lean into your strengths and what YOU do best.

Looks like you’ve already gotten some great advice here. I just wanted to add a few small things that helped me a lot:

• Bought a gorgeous agenda & I use it religiously. It was probably $30 but it's money well spent because I always carry it with me & it keeps me from double booking myself.

• Also, I color code everything consistently. I bought a pack of erasable colored pens (frixon brand, I think?). Again, around $30, I've had them for years.

• This may be unpopular…but medication has been a godsend for me. I truly think if I had been diagnosed younger, I wouldn’t have struggled like I did. I had NO idea that I had racing thoughts until I told the psych how much easier it is to follow my own thoughts and how much calmer I feel now. I thought my racing thoughts were just the normal speed of thoughts lol.

There will be a LOT of setbacks, but don't be too hard on yourself or you will loose it completely.

You will be more vulnerable to limerence and rejection will hurt even more. Just know that and take it from there.

oh yes, and take your time before you jump into a new relationship. I know time feels a little bit different for us and that we hate to wait, but take the extra time when you need it.

It's tough. Making checklists, planning 2 weeks ahead (using a planner) using colour, highlighters...The online magazine ADDitude has great tips.

Consistency is the part that takes the biggest hit when it comes to ADHD. My big tip would be to study the science of productivity. Keep at it. Undergo several trials and errors. But don't give up. You will have several misses, but several things will stick as well. Just, increases the number of attempts. That's all.

Im screenshotting this for later! Especially the part about organization. It's simultaneously my kryptonite but helps so much when I can pull it off 🫠