349
Ill start soon
(lemmy.dbzer0.com)
Have you tried just starting?
Non-adhd people are like "just tell yourself you're gonna do it for five minutes, then it's easy to start." No, the getting started at all is the hardest part. It doesn't matter if it feels like a huge task or one i could complete entirely in 30 seconds. The getting started at all is often the seemingly impossible part. Depending on the task, once i get started at all then i often can keep doing it for many hours.
Non-adhd people don't understand what "executive dysfunction" means. It's precisely the directing of my actions that's dysfunctional. Once I've started i often can keep going because then i no longer have to direct myself to do the task, in fact now i would have to direct myself to STOP doing the task, which is also executive function.
That all-too familiar feeling where even when I think something could be a quick 5-minute task, I decide there will be more convenient times for me to do it later and keep pushing it off.
That's how "order a new electric toothbrush" takes 1 month to complete. Wake up, brush teeth, remember the motor on this thing sucks now, decide I'll order a new one when I sit down after breakfast. Finish breakfast, worried about being late for work, decide I'll do it when I get to work. Get to work, get ambushed by coworkers and tasks, decide to do it during break. Break rolls around, feel like the last thing I want to do is waste limited free time on something as menial as ordering a toothbrush, decide to do it when I get home. Get home, collapse in a tired heap, decide we'll try again tomorrow. Repeat.
That all-too familiar feeling where even when I think something could be a quick 5-minute task, I decide there will be more convenient times for me to do it later and keep pushing it off.
Dishes. Fucking dishes.
"Oh, the dishwasher is clean and there's only two plates in the sink. I'll get to it tonight"
2 days later, after dishes have piled up and the dishwasher is still full of clean dishes
"....Fuck."
wave of motivation: unload dishwasher, load dirty dishes, start dishwasher, handwash things that shouldn't go in the dishwasher, feel good afterwards
later that day
"Oh, the dishwasher is clean and there's only two plates in the sink. I'll get to it tonight"
Rinse and repeat ad-nauseam.
This is me, but with the laundry. "Where are all my pants? Oooh yeah, they're still in the dryer. I gotta empty it, but I have to get ready for work now. I'll just take out the pants I need and get to the rest later."
You're singing my song. feelsbadman.jpg
“just tell yourself you’re gonna do it for five minutes, then it’s easy to start.”
Five minutes later, the task is completely forgotten. But don't worry, I'll remember it - when I'm driving to work the next day and won't be back home until 9 hours later (at which point I'll have completely forgotten it again.)
Non-adhd people are like "just tell yourself you're gonna do it for five minutes, then it's easy to start." No
This should be the first thing we say when explaining ADHD
This should be featured in the sidebar of this community
I honestly don’t know if it’s ADHD or something else; my ability to start a task is directly inversely proportional to how much external pressure and visibility is associated with it.
I'll get right on that after I've started
For me, it actually started working a couple of years ago. E. g. cleaning the apartment feels overwhelming, but when I ask myself "What CAN you do?" - "I can put ONE piece of garbage into the bin." it works.
But I understand that different things work for different people. For my child, this method does not work as well, for others not at all.
Literally me, the very moment I clicked on this.
Me and suicide atm
Wanna talk about it?
Nah I just wanna die
The what ?
Idk if I actually have ADHD, but what works for me now is breaking the task down and start with the easiest thing. That usually get me going
I got off Zoloft and it got a million times easier to start stuff. Unless it’s chores. My major problem is finishing or following through.
Oh, interesting... Can you tell me more about your experience with Zoloft (and having ADHD)?
Not OP, but if you're curious about other medication effects, I found an interesting, beneficial side effect to my Lexapro. Without it, I easily get songs (and sometimes phrases) stuck in my head. It can get to the point where I can't concentrate on writing, because my brain won't stop repeating the same line(s).
But with my meds, such things don't loop in my head as much. Even if something catchy attempts to cling onto my brain, I can more easily extinguish the thought and move on. It breaks up anxiety loops and obnoxious earworms with the same force, which is an absolute game-changer for me.
I was really sad because my dad was slowly rotting away so I got on zoloft. I completely stopped being creative and I am constantly making things or thinking about making stuff. I got off Zoloft and my motivation came right back.
Thanks for sharing ❤️
Forgot what I was going to get started on and now I'm anxious about it
I'm currently here
Me at my desk this morning until I realized I forgot my focalin
It can take literal hours for me to find out what is the actual first step to do something.
Me, getting started: Eh I don't feel like it right now, I'll do it tomorrow
this post was submitted on 22 Jul 2025
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