It's not easy to describe but here goes. If I'm doing something for someone (the dishes, cooking a meal, tidying up, decorating a Xmas tree) and they don't know I'm doing it, then I hear them approaching (keys in the front door, the sound of someone getting out of bed upstairs) and I get a huge panicky feeling because if they discover me before I've finished it and they:

1 - Thank me 2 - Don't approve of what I've done 3 - Try to help me 4 - Change what I'm trying to do like "Oh thanks but there's a better table cloth in the cupboard. Here lemme get it" 5 - Try to correct what I'm doing

I will lose all motivation and feel immediately depressed cos I missed the big dopamine hit of going "Tadaaa".

I wonder if there's a term for that situation?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.blahaj.zone/post/38200871

Transport for London is exploring how it can make journeys easier for passengers who find the city’s transport system overwhelming — by trialling a calm, quiet space for neurodivergent customers inside one of its busiest stations.

It'd creat natural triggers for when to pay attention and when its safe to fuck around.

BABUMBUM "OH shit something serious is happening I should prolly pay attention."

Doodotadootadoo "Well no serious shit is going to happen with that kind of up beat shit playing oh look a butterfly..."

I used to use tDCS, transcranial direct current stimulation, for depression*. It worked surprisingly well, I was more 'stable' and got myself out more, slept better, had amazing vivid dreams; then again most of these are typical placebo effects of any antidepressant changes for me, that fade in a few months. And I kept failing to stick to evening routines.

Now, there's some evidence that tDCS may help with some ADHD symptoms. So since I got a personal device anyway, I figured why not try it. I need to get some replacement leads and electrodes since there are some contact issues atm, and look up montages to try, but while waiting...

Has anyone else tried tDCS for ADHD, or depression while having ADHD? What were the results or lack thereof for you? Which montage, current, duration, time of day, and weekly schedule did you use?

*my psychiatrist was already considering it, the wait times were long and the duration limited, so I got my own device and used it under professional guidance and supervision

Like -- Just for an example -- I want to play every video game, so I end up not playing none and instead just fucking around online with stuff that doesn't require initiative. The only override I've found is involving other people, I always make time for an RPG session with my friends or for hanging out and such. But I have trouble starting stuff for myself.

What do?

After cluttering up the top of my drawer for 6 months I got inspired to put it away with a bunch of other things. Except it’s gone. Sigh.

So i was brushing one of my cats a couple days ago, and i didn't put it back where it normally goes. It's now lost forever. I literally cannot find it. I have looked everywhere.

I ALWAYS put things back when i use them. Everything has a specific spot it goes. When I go off script and put it somewhere else other than the specific spot it goes, it's just... gone. Never to be seen again.

Don't you love ADHD? NOT

#JustADHDThings.

Hi, I wanted to share Cake Timer here as it might be helpful.

It’s a focus timer I made for studying. In it's core its a circle that represents 24 hours (noon is at the bottom). At midnight the circle is completed and a new cicle starts growing. Logging work sessions create green arcs, so by the end of the day you get a “cake diagram” of your activity. To me its very powerful psichologically, since it visualizes time always running, and when you are not focused the time is clearly wasted.

Features: session tags, daily/weekly/monthly stats, streaks, and a simple to-do list. All data is stored locally in your browser. It's Open source I started it 6 years ago (during the COVID lockdown) and have been improving it ever since.

Website: https://jakobkreft.github.io/CakeTimer

Thanks for your feedback!

Does anyone actually find video games boring and a waste of time? And by extension gamification of anything is not a motivating drive? Every ADHD advice usually centres around some form of gamified strategy but to me this is flawed. How do you manage dopamine without it being gamified?

It’s very rare that I can find myself engaging with any video games these days and it’s usually down to a few reasons:

• The gameplay is something that I recognise the mechanics of and feel like I’m playing something I’ve already played and once I recognise it there’s little reason to continue. Completion or challenge of the game is not a motivating factor to stick with it.

• I have so many things that I need to be doing that I can’t even do and anything not on the list and video gaming is a waste of that time that could be going to literally anything else.

• Narratives in games are… not that interesting. I usually find the balance between interactivity and story always off and any gameplay is either boring or the narrative is boring so one is always cancelling the other out, so “engaging” with a story is cumbersome and at that point I may as well watch a passive form of media.

• Online multiplayer is rarely fun as I have little time to invest in being any good at a game to the level I can enjoy it. Usually the enjoyment comes from making other people’s lives miserable by beating them.

Oh and forget about achievements, they are just a bunch of todo items that I can’t process at all as they are either micro indicators of progress in the game and useless eg. You do literally nothing aside from play the game as intended and you get some achievement. Or it’s some ridiculous set of tasks that I get task paralysis by which in the end there’s zero reward for accomplishing so why bother.

What the fuck? I had a serious allergic reaction to ritalin (hives and throat closing up)

And now Im afraid that any amphetamine will kill me 🥲

Atomoxetine it is 💪

I’m in kind of a weird situation. I’m past my 40’s, and a close younger relative of mine got diagnosed with ADHD and I was talking with their psych and she said “uh it’s pretty clear you have this too., and you’ve been masking.”

So I was already seeing a psychiatrist, for anxiety, paying out of pocket because I didn’t want people in my profession or the health insurance company to know.

I told my own psych about the ADHD idea and she started prescribing stimulant meds to see if it helps.

It’s been amazing. My anxiety has practically melted away and just everything has gotten better for me.

Should I get diagnosed officially now?

On one hand I like the privacy.

On the other hand, my current psychiatrist might retire soon, and also if I have to change jobs, I think I’m required to list any pre-existing conditions.

I’d really like to hear other people’s experiences either way.

Hey y'all!

I'm trying to add more tools to my arsenal to just quiet down and ground myself, and make it easier to start and stay in meditation.

I find that Andean pan flute and such has really helped me in the past, but I can't find any good albums/playlist or songs anymore. Leo Rojas has some nice tunes, but also some way too active ones.

An example of something that really makes me melt is the beginning of this instrumental:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ijw86VcE4f8

Just waves, no unnecessary stuff at the side with a different tempo or volume, etc.

But this thread isn't just about me! Please feel free to share what music helps you to ground, relax and find calm. I'm sure it can be useful for other folx browsing. :)

Thank you!

I was diagnosed 20 years ago. I joined this forum and was astonished when I saw a post entitled "what kind of earplugs do you have?" I thought "wait, you all have ear plugs too?" My point is that when I was diagnosed, we didn't know all these things about ADHD (auditory sensitivities, etc). I used to flip shit and get angry immediately when I heard leaf blowers. Certain sounds would send me over the edge when I was younger. I am also finding out about a correlation between ADHD and rejection dysphoria. What book can I read to find out what else I don't know that's been discovered since 2005?

Also, I'm female, so I'm probably missing info about that too.

Experts weigh in on the phenomenon of 'task paralysis' and why it's so prevalent among people with ADHD.

I'm trying to learn more about the feeling that I'm not doing something right and that my priorities are wrong because I'm not considering the full picture.

It feels like I have something I need to do, but I don't know what it is, but it's gonna bite me in the ass when I realize it.

Do you all have any techniques or ways of thinking that help you evaluate where you actually stand in terms of doing all the things you need to do?

How do you go through your life and re-priorotize?

How do you feel confident in thinking I don't have to do anything right now? I can just rest or do what I want?