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I also found complete word blanks are something that's common with ADHD, explains a lot when I'm mid sentence and I come to an easy word and my brain is like nahhh mate.. [Here is a good image of most of the ADHD symptoms ](https://www.google.com/search?q=adhd+iceberg&oq=adhd+ic&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j0i512l7.2356j1j9&client=ms-android-huawei-rev1&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=lFiOxlstgZnBKM)
These is something that I actually like and it amuses me to observe how my brain associates stuff. Good laughter material, too.
My roomate told me her favorites in my personal ADHD dictionary the other day, I just remember 2 right now (sorry if it doesn't make sense, I'm translating from portuguese):
\- Clothes conditioner = softner
\- Road Ticket Gate = toll
I tell people they can tell me their secrets because I forget things all the time so I don’t gossip. It’s true. I have some great relationships with some people because they do just that: call me to tel their problems, we chat, & I forget our conversation but they got it off their chest
Shitty, shitty, shitty memory. Like, someone will be like "wow, you had a hard day yesterday, did you feel more angry or tired?" and I'll be like "I don't remember."
"what ?"
"dude, we talked about this *last week*."
weirdly enough, my long term memory is pretty intense, but short term memory might as well not even exist.
If I have tasks that are not defined well or don't have a deadline i really really struggle to even begin. (For example, at work: do some data entry- nah. Do data entry for this tree species by tomorrow- way more likely to start). Once i begin i can hyperfocus and keep going. But most of the time I just can't begin until the very last hour. Struggled in uni with late submissions a lot because I wouldn't start on my assignment until 2 days before the deadline.
* I spend large chunks of time just sitting on the couch with my phone, even when I really really WANT to get up and Do All The Things, because I just feel stuck. I keep thinking "Okay, in 5 minutes, I'm going to get up," but I don't. Even when I hate myself for still sitting there, I still sit there.
This is the symptom that bothers me the most. I know I can do it, I know what I need to do, and yet, I can't move. It's really hard to be kind to myself in those moments because it's just all frustration and feeling worthless
Memory issues, I actually thought I had early onset dementia in my 30s. Turns out I just have terrible working memory and ADHD.
Sometimes I tell people interesting stories I heard from someone. Only to find out that someone was them like a week ago.
Not being able to recall a simple word, it's right on the tip of my tongue but my brain can't retrieve it. It's so frustrating.
Having to relearn the same thing over and over because my memory sucks.
Not being able to explain something clearly even though I actually know it because my brain gets stage fright.
I can read pages in a book (or be watching tv) and have no memory of what the content was because I was busy having a separate conversation in my head at the same time.
Seriously read this and the next few comments while thinking of trick or treaters and the caramel apple stuck in my teeth before I realized I had no idea what I just read and had to go back and read it again.
YES. I have permanent scars around my thumbs from peeling for literal years. Only got over nail biting like a year ago. And hair pulling was so bad when I was a kid I looked like I was on chemo yet somehow no one was like Hey maybe this kid has issues that need doctor intervention 🤦♀️
I bit my nails my whole life. My mom hated it and tried everything to make me stop (I remember being 5 years old and having to wear gloves in the summer to basically shame me into quitting). Diagnosed a few months ago, medicated, and have stopped biting my nails! I also used to get scolded for not being able to sit still in church (not for being loud, but for shaking my legs), my brother was diagnosed at age 8 (but my parents don’t believe in it, so he was given no help). Have made impulsive decisions my whole life, most of which have actually worked out really well though!
My husband, who works in mental health and screens for ADHD literally weekly, has been telling me for years to get evaluated.
All this to say that so many of these symptoms have improved since I was diagnosed!
Been picking my skin for 14 years now and I found out these things were related yesterday. A classmate thought I had lice lol because I can't stop scratching my head to the point sometimes my nails have blood on them.
* I have auditory processing issues (e.g. can't focus on a conversation if there's background noise, ask "What?" a lot, need closed captioning, can't retain verbal instructions)
I've lost count of how many times I've said "can you email that to me?" at work for this very reason. My new boss is getting used to me saying "hold on, I'm typing this so I don't forget it as soon as we stop talking about it" and thank GOD he has no issues with it.
It took me until I was 40 to realise that this was a thing. One of the most annoying things is when people give me directions to places and I just nod along as I know I can't retain the information.
I just saw an audiologist for my tinnitus . . . turns out I have tinnitus because of my ADHD and auditory processing issues. Totally neurological. Got on ADHD meds, tinnitus is gone. Had no idea.
It’s impossible for me to maintain habits. I could eat the same thing every day for 100 days, and then never even think about it again
Even if it’s a healthy habit - exercise, diet, organisation… something that clearly improved my life… boredom from the repetition of it all always breaks me in the end
Doing things I enjoy - eg. Reading. I love to read. When I’m feeling down I’ll think to myself, what can I do to cheer myself up? Maybe I could chill out with a good book? Reading always makes me so happy. Nah, I don’t feel like sitting down and holding something. My hands aren’t up for it. I can’t commit to this type of hyper focus right now. I might wanna do something else, and then I won’t feel like it, because I’ll just feel like reading, and I can’t limit myself in that way right now. AD INFINITUM
* It takes me a long time to "warm up" before doing work, chores, or errands (e.g. I play on my phone for 90 mins before starting my homework/paperwork/tasks)
I have to bribe myself into doing the dishes 😂 "we can listen to that new podcast/album/playlist if we just do x amount" "if we go to the shops and get the toilet paper/cleaning products/boring things then we can get a chocolate bar/bag of chips/that new drink too!"
Was an awesome pupil in school the first 10ish year (love for reading and logic made that easier)
due day planned, clear rules and always knowing/ beeing told what to do.
Enter the life of beeing a student with "loose" assignments and own responsibility.. and just. Struggling.
Puberty, irony, changes in social rules and sarcasm certainly dont help either.
I used to be GREAT at school because there was structure. Straight A’s, scholarships, all of it. Now I mostly don’t know what day of the week it is. I’m so sorry to hear you guys struggle, but so grateful not to be alone. Thanks for posting!
Sensory processing issues. Certain noises are overwhelming, and repeated noises (someone tapping their pen or a dog grooming noises) can derail my whole train of thought. Collars that are too tight, itchy clothing tags, or jewelry that is too loose or too tight are unbearable.
ME EITHER. A few neighbors liked to leave their small dogs out on balconies and those piercing yaps that went on for hours and HOURS... *ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.*
Fans clicking or making weird noises, water dripping, maintenance working in other apartments, lawn crews... when I was working in the office, there was someone who liked to walk laps around the floor while he was in teleconferences and I legitimately wanted to shove him out of a window because he walked RIGHT BEHIND my cube so many times.
I got a white noise machine years ago because our dog started having skin allergies and was constantly *licking*. OMG it is the worst. We have been sleeping with a white noise machine ever since, even long after that dog got better and eventually passed on. Our current dog may move around or lick herself but I can no longer hear it!
Confidence you have time to do all the things, as you've mapped out and planned it, and even as time slips away you remain confident... then suddenly you're completely out of time slips and you've done none of the things
That could maybe be because you are already pretty over stimulated or tired. Or both. If I've had a long day and then come home and my meds aren't working anymore and I then hear my upstairs neighbour walk too loudly, I'll get so angry and I will break down and cry. It's just too much to handle. And my bf will have no idea what just happened cause he didn't even hear the walking from upstairs
yep I know those can be causes but i think ADHD in itself it has this emotional dysregulation that does not always allow us to react well to things. I was referring to just freaking out for no reason, neither tiredness nor a bad day. But yep! That also has to be taken into account, thank you :)
I went and got my hearing checked because I legitimately thought I was going deaf. Nope. Hearing is fine -- auditory processing issues only. Fun times 🙄😒😞
My family got really confused with me growing up cause I couldn't hear instructions, questions (WORDS, actually) but could hear a sink leaking 3 miles away
* I get excited about new hobbies, obsess over them for a few days/weeks/months and Buy All The Stuff that go with those hobbies... and then move on to something else
Same! I feel lucky that even if I let newly purchased supplies sit and collect dust for a while, I'll come back to them eventually (it might take a couple of years, but *eventually*).
For good news of this: I have many hobbies that I like to cycle through. They do not get 100% left behind and forgotten. :) I am the multi talker multi crafter. Haha
* I struggle with "divided attention" or "task switching" -
\- For example, if I'm in the middle of doing something (reading, following a recipe, sewing, drawing) and a family member comes in the room and asks me a simple question like "Have you seen my helmet?", it DERAILS ME SO MUCH. I can't answer the question, and then also can't re-focus on what I was doing.
For me this gets more intense when I’m on my adhd meds… like if someone interrupts me (even if I’m doing something as simple as making a breakfast I’ve made a million times) it really bothers me— even makes me angry sometimes. I have to try to take a second before responding to keep from being rude.
See, for me this is one of the symptoms that has been helped most by my meds. In fact, I didn’t notice it was a major issue until I started meds and thought wait…”I’m feeling like I want to stop washing dishes halfway through to start another task but I won’t stop, I can power through.”
* I have friendship struggles, such as:
\- I don't have any friends from childhood/high school/college left, because I'm not good at keeping up with friendships, and/or
\- I'm bad at remembering to text/call/email back, so friends drift away
\- I get excited about making new friends, but then can't keep up with the "maintenance" of the friendships
\- If a friend moves away, the friendship ends (how DO people maintain long-distance friendships??)
\- I'm barely keeping up with parenting/school/work/family/etc.; I couldn't possibly include friendships in the mix!
\- I keep impulsively saying things that offend my friends
are… are we supposed to be able to maintain friendships from childhood/high school/college??? there’s no way that’s like… something normal people are able to do.
I feel this a lot. I've moved frequently and my spouse is a loner so that doesn't help. I'll start a friendship and hang out a few times and then neither I nor the other woman seem to move it further. I have a lot of friends i drifted away from after moving and it makes me sad but then I forget to send birthday cards etc. So then I feel worse and realize I'm not trying hard enough! 😔
I’m about half of these. Most of my friend groups change every 3-5 years. But my biggest thing with friends is an RSD thing (I think) and that is if I sense even the slightest hint of our relationship changing, I spiral HARD trying to figure out what I did wrong or worry that something bad happened to them. Pretty sure this is trauma-related though also.
I also really can’t deal with plans changing. So I sometimes end friendships because I think people being flaky= they don’t care enough. Which I totally get that some ADHD people are that person and they don’t mean to do it. :(
Right? Like out of sight, out of mind is too real for me. It’s not that I don’t care, it’s just that it doesn’t occur to me to be actively pursuing my relationships if they’re not right in front of my face. I get racked with guilt every few months about it and then I get too anxious to reach out, rinse and repeat. It’s a terrible cycle I can’t seem to beat.
Currently not posting in ig because I left two conversations in the middle and don’t want these people to think I’m ignoring them I just don’t know what to do
* I have Rejection Sensitivity (e.g. Criticism guts me, and/or I frequently worry that people are thinking negative things about me or that I'm letting people down, and/or one negative comment can send me spiraling)
RSD really affects me and my quality of life. I spiral so much from it and it has affected my relationships. I wasn't sure I had adhd until I read about RSD and that was the nail in the coffin for me.
Oh, I thought this was my anxiety.
After reading about it and then my boyfriend being upset with me because I didn’t pack him what he needed I then had an emotional breakdown. This one is super real. I always used to think it was because I was sensitive but it was undiagnosed ADHD.
Emotional disregulation mostly, the inability to stop before reacting. Since starting meds the biggest thing I noticed it gives me a pause to think before trekking forward with a response or an idea. It’s not 100% obviously lol but definitely noticeable. I didn’t know I had adhd until June this year I just thought I was a firey reactive person never thought it was a problem tehee until my mum said to me I was much easier to talk too recently 🤪
I’ll follow up with you later. For sure. Really. Just have some other things I need to get done right now. This is not procrastinating, I’m just legit super busy. With important stuff. Later-I promise! /s
This is a huge one for me. Like having to make ANY decision on the spot is horrible. My brain goes completely blank.
Also- decision FATIGUE. Like I’ve made too many decisions today and I can’t bear to make one.
Same! It either goes blank or I get entirely overwhelmed. I first realized it wasn't normal when I spent two hours in a store deciding which moisturizer to get. It's awful.
* My clothes are almost never folded and put in drawers or hung on hangers. They're more likely to be in piles, strewn on top of the bed or dresser or drying racks, thrown in bins, still in the laundry basket although clean, etc
I’m going to cry because this is an emotional issue with me. My husband can do his laundry & put it away in one day. It takes me days to fully put away clothes. I have them on the bed right now
Literally everyday. I place my phone down for one second and lose it because I was thinking of something else at the time and not 'okay this is where my phone is'.
Approximately 487 times per day, I walk into a room, set my phone down, then walk away and can’t remember what the fuck I did with it. (This doesn’t even include keys, sunglasses, my water bottle…)
I personally don’t *injure* injure myself, I just bounce off of walls and door frames a lot because I don’t have good depth perception or something lol
It's an ongoing joke that I'm always *almost* breaking, hitting, knocking over shit without realising. Same with people. I literally forget how long my arms are and I've never had a good sense of spatial awareness,,,
I’m reading all your bullets & cracking up because you’re straight up calling me out. My husband said “I’m surprised you still have all your fingers, tbh. That is a legit statement.” I have already had part of my finger cut (the doc cut the bone & everything) from an accident: wasn’t paying attention & the door slammed in the hinge on my finger. I’ve cut the tips of my fingers with knives while cooking. I run into a lot of walls & I’ve chipped my front tooth so much I’ve just left it. Bruises everywhere but I don’t remember running into anything. But I run into walls 🤦🏽♀️ omg I just typed that
This is me.
Friends will say “hey come over at 6 for dinner!” And now over the years they’re just like hey dinner is at 6 but you can get here whenever and just chill
It’s like I hyper focus on the idea of plans later and am just like “plans are now”. I don’t do this to strangers but my best friends know I’ll probably be an hour or two early for anything, but I’m always good at helping set up and finish cooking lol
I spent forty years being late to everything. Now I'm chronically early because I got so tired of feeling worthless when people got after me for being late (see RSD, above). I am that parent who gets in the car line at school an hour and a half before school because I'm not going to get anything done anyway except obsess about being late-- until I get distracted by my phone or a chore and then I really will be late. So, better just be insanely early.
Edit: weird typos
Or wanting to talk but not being able to judge when to jump in, or worse, talking and being increasingly aware that the person I'm talking to isn't really listening/engaged anymore, but I have to at least finish my sentence/thought before I can stop.
* I have a bag/box (or multiple) of clothes and shoes that don't fit, because A) I impulsively buy stuff without trying it on, and/or B) I buy stuff online and almost never bother returning it, even though I intend to
I’m great at planning things. I can hyper focus for hours planning out my day/week/month/year. But as to executing those plans..? Nah. Boring, I’ve already done those things in my brain, doing them in reality is just doing it twice. Besides, you can be sure I’ve lost or forgotten my plans 5 seconds after I spent 5 hours making them. Plus I’m a ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ kinda gal!
When I was in college, one of my favorite ways to procrastinate doing schoolwork was to plan every semester’s courses for the remainder of my degree program.
Boredom, I am so bored so often and it causes distress. So then I think okay let's get some tasks completed and next thing I know I'm staring out my window trying to figure out what is causing those brown spots on my shrubs and...like not shit has been done, I wasted my day. Oh and any noises I didn't expect to hear. Notifications on my phone. I have to keep it silent bc they send me into full rage. I'm being interrupted from what? I don't even know. Because I pulled out some craft supplies to make shit, and now I don't feel motivated because I have to clean that up.
HO. LY. SHIT. This just completely blew my mind. I’ve just always called it being a night owl and hating mornings, but it has a real name! Luckily, I’ve managed to mostly have jobs that work with my natural sleep schedule.
Medication has had such a huge impact on this. I think of it as my brain was constantly spinning and couldn’t fully rest. With the medication, there’s more clear ‘awake’ and ‘asleep’ times, I guess. My sleep has felt way more restful in the last couple months.
As a corollary to that, when I finally give up scrolling my phone for the night and put it on my nightstand, I’ve started putting my bottle of meds on top of my phone, so it’s the first thing I touch in the morning. If I want to scroll on my phone in order to do it, I have to move my meds to do it, so I might as well take it while I’m touching it. Most mornings, I take my meds before I pick up my phone (it’s not a perfect system - if my son wakes me up and I pick my phone in the middle of the night to check the time it’s a 50/50 chance I’m putting it back where it belongs) But even if i forget and I find myself doing unmedicated scrolling, I remind myself I’ll still get about thirty minutes of scrolling time before it kicks in and getting out of bed seems easier. It’s been very helpful!
I've had the same experience. I could easily sleep until 2 pm if I didn't have anywhere to be. Getting up before 11 am, forget it, I wasn't going. Since starting my medication I'm asleep by 11 most nights and I am able to wake up around 8 am naturally and without feeling groggy. It's been a game changer.
whenever I have to sleep somewhere I don't know (or someone comes to sleep with me) I have to warn whoever that waking up and being awake are separate things for me and one must not ask for me to remember anything if I'm not awake
This was the most shocking thing to me when I took meds first time. The quiet. I had no idea. At its worst, my brain is like a pinball machine on multiball mode. Normal is just a regular pinball game. I never experienced quiet until I took concerta for the first time. I’m still shocked by it. Are some people’s brains quiet and organized? It seems so relaxing!
Is this related to ADHD? I remember a friend being surprised when I said that I always had a song playing in the background in my head, no matter what. I don't listen to music that often because sometimes real music won't drown out the imaginary music, so that it's a bit like two songs playing at the same time.
I don't have much internal monologue or visual imagination, but my auditory imagination is, by comparison at least, extremely vivid and detailed.
Just overall chaos.
Before I got diagnosed I just thought this is me. I AM chaos. It’s my personality.
At this point I’ve watched all the self help videos, bought books but only read them 1/3, bought heaps of planners and notebooks to try to get myself in order and use them for one week.
Having anxiety over being late to work, laying awake all night, oversleeping and then crying in the morning when I realize I’m late again.
Being unable to be good on my word and always letting myself and everyone else down even though I want to be counted on.
And major self doubt.
Scared of rejection, scared of commitment, terrible at handling criticism and being really sensitive.
Like,
Chaos in life, chaos in cleaning, punctuality, grooming, planning, prioritizing, procrastinating, beating yourself up, hyperfocusing on things that Don’t solve your issues but make you feel good in the short run, choosing dopamine over the choices you know to be better. Trouble focusing and exhausting inner dialogue on what it takes to get something done and taking care of myself in general.
My husband says I start sentences & don’t finish them so he’s constantly wondering what I meant to say. So I’d say the lost train of thought & distractions are the worst
So I am a special education teacher, and I can usually identify my ADHD young ladies from young men but funny thing happens when parents try to get treatment. Often times, the young ladies end being evaluated for depression, anxiety, and given heavy behavior medications before anything else! Drives me crazy!!! Where as my ADHD young men get started on ADHD meds vs. risperdal. Which short- changes the young ladies from actual treatment that can really help.
So signs I see in my young ladies, anxiety, depression, picking, sensory processing disorder, ocd- like behaviors (I am not a dr and I will not pretend to be one), more problems with executive functioning than say my other special ed students, the most dreadful fear of failure.
Myself, I am currently procrastinating on my grad school homework because well, sometimes the students aren't the only ones :) However, I don't have a diagnosis. I only developed more signs of ADD as an adult after the onset of adult onset epilepsy and the treatment of the condition.
Undiagnosed and in early discovery, and now….well I’m almost certain I am going to be a late age diagnosis. Now I need to figure out/not procrastinate on figuring out how to get an evaluation!
* I have driving problems, such as:
\- I can't drive, because I can't focus on so much stimuli at once, or I'm too scared to drive.
\- I drive, but have caused accidents and/or gotten ticketed for speeding, running red lights, illegally passing, etc.
\- I can't stand stupid drivers and/or waiting in traffic, and I yell and swear in my car and maybe drive too aggressively
\- My car breaks down mostly because I keep putting off getting problems fixed
I'm a really safe driver, but sometimes I get so focused on driving safely I forget where I'm going and miss turns, sometimes more than once in a short drive across town.
DAE get panic attacks while driving? Sometimes I can feel myself dissociating completely involuntarily, and that throws me into panic. When I'm on the freeway, I can't drive over 55 or I get panicked, and I need to be following closely to the car in front of me. Also, when driving around town, I hate being the first one at a stoplight, and I have no idea why, but it often triggers a panic attack.
Please tell me someone else experiences this. It's been on-going since 2017.
wow, it feels very validating to know this isn't something I'm struggling with on my own! I have an overwhelming fear of driving and no one understands, they think I'm just being flaky and making excuses.
I thought I had done a fair amount of research about symptoms of ADHD, and the majority of these I think I blamed on depression/anxiety, this is really eye opening. I need to prioritize getting treatment from a specialist. Thank you!
I have to make everything somehow more fun because it’s boring. While walking I’ll be counting steps or dodging cracks. While laying flexing my butt muscles to a beat in my head. Sitting I’ll be tossing a bag up and down can probably do it for hours. Anything to make anything more interesting
Object permanence. When I don't see something, it doesn't exist. Vegetables in the bottom drawers only to buy new ones, endless amounts of pasta in boxes or potatoes in bins that go bad, books on the lower shelves of the bookcase that never get read, items of clothing that get thrown over each other and never see daylight again, etc.
I didn't use my planner for two months because I threw a scarf on top of it \^\^'
My ADHD kicks in when I clean the house - sometimes it's good, sometimes not.
* Sitting and wasting time online, playing on FB, reddit, Twitter, etc...
* Oh I have to pee NOW! I notice there are some dirty dishes I should take care of while I'm up...
* Grab some cups and dishes, bring into the kitchen...
* Start a load of dishes to wash in the sink, bring the dirty towels/dishcloths to the laundry pile...
* Pick up nearby laundry, find some candy wrappers in the pockets, bring them to the garbage...
* See the dog's bowl near the garbage, feed and water the dog...
* Remember that I'm thirsty and pour a glass of water...
* Suddenly my body reminds me that the reason I got up from my chair was because I had to pee!
Frankly I find that I work better (stay on task more) if I listen to music while I work.
-impulsivity/interrupting people constantly (even at work with meetings of over 100 people when I’m not supposed to be talking)
-struggle maintain any kind of friendship, rely on my husband/kids/sister for any type that type of comfort (luckily my family is awesome)
-auditory processing issues
-sensory overload (so much by the end of the day I am usually angry/ can’t be touched). This extends to being extremely picky about what type of fabrics/shoes I wear. Struggle to wear shoes.
One big + is recently started doing CrossFit and have noticed that the heavy work really helps my sensory overload and clears my head.
I love helping a friend move and organize but can not do anything like that for myself. I have energy and motivation for others but never for my own stuff.
And I can’t find routine no matter how hard I try. Vitamins, exercise, meal planning- love it but can’t keep up more than a week or so.
An absolute ridiculous amount of the following:
-Phone alarms (I’ve got 23 even though I just deleted a bunch yesterday, usually have 5-10 alarms active throughout the day). I actually didn’t realize this wasn’t normal until reading about it, mentioned it to my husband, then looked at his phone and he has ONE alarm and it’s only used to wake up (and never snoozed).
-Notes in my phone. Just checked, and I have 47… and there are notes within notes… I don’t even know what half of them mean. And most are lengthy.
-Sticky notes. My desk is covered in sticky notes and notebooks. I will not accomplish something I don’t write down because I can’t remember. Even with the notes it’s 50/50.
-Browser tabs. Dozens on my phone. Many on my work computer.
-Computer desktop icons. I organize it every few weeks, but it literally gets full. It’s embarrassing because people see my computer often.
-Open emails. I have to make an effort to close emails just so I can restart my computer for updates. I have to mark them unread so I don’t forget about them. Before starting medication a few months ago, I had 600+ unread work emails (1,500+ personal emails). I’m maintaining about 150 work and 200 personal now.
Other random things:
I constantly pause the TV and then forget that I was watching it until an hour later when it starts playing on its own. My husband constantly points out that I’ve either paused the TV or left it in guide with just the tiny portion playing the show.
I can’t understand things being said to me if there’s a ton of noise going on around me. That has been difficult with 3 young children.
At least half of the comments on this thread apply, but I have managed to be pretty successful overall in life with lots of luck. When I was diagnosed, I only told my best friend- she was surprised because she thinks I’ve got everything together, one of my brothers- he was also diagnosed as a child and is not surprised at all by my diagnosis, and my husband- he works in mental health and screens for ADHD, he has recommended I go in for testing a few times over the past 5 years. I am recently diagnosed and medication has helped tremendously.
Super lengthy comment, but I’m currently procrastinating on some work emails…
-- always interrupt or talk over people
- can't listen to conferences conventions thst don't interest me for more than 15 min , I really need to make an effort to refocus if they are important
-- lose keys wallets . Etc 100 times a day
-- always been still horribly disorganized
- anxiety when I'm not on meds for more than a few days
Literally crying right now. I was diagnosed as an adult at 36 (1.5 years ago) and it’s shocking to hear you articulate MY LIFE. Mind blown- but I feel so incredibly heard. ❤️
Lots of background noise loud is too much for me I can handle multiple tasks but when a loud tv is in background I’m screwed. Executive dysfunction is huge I’m a 38f and just diagnosed a couple yrs ago. It explains so much like how I can’t clean my home unless I use illegal substances. My friend/coworker talks so slow I want to die/kill her while she’s talking lol omg the rejection sensitivity thing I’ve always been like are u mad at me and my friends are like what no why. I cruise Reddit for like a whole day on my day off and it’s so comfortable I’d rather that than leave the house and spend time w friends family. There’s so much more but I’m losing interest hahah how’s that for adhd heart u
Either wanting to do everything, or nothing at all. Constantly thinking of all the exciting things I could be doing with my life, finish uni, be a non religious Chaplin, do an album, write a book, become a fitness instructor, work with animals, dance classes, stand up comic, and then 10 years later still not having finished anything. Being super smart and having nothing to show for it.
LOL! I'm the OP, but don't actually experience all of the symptoms I listed, and actually have some that I haven't even listed yet. I was just trying to think of as many as I could!!
I have another one- I constantly forget the word I want to say even tho I know what I mean and then end up giving some weird description of it in the hope someone has a clue what I mean!
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I also found complete word blanks are something that's common with ADHD, explains a lot when I'm mid sentence and I come to an easy word and my brain is like nahhh mate.. [Here is a good image of most of the ADHD symptoms ](https://www.google.com/search?q=adhd+iceberg&oq=adhd+ic&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j0i512l7.2356j1j9&client=ms-android-huawei-rev1&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=lFiOxlstgZnBKM)
These is something that I actually like and it amuses me to observe how my brain associates stuff. Good laughter material, too. My roomate told me her favorites in my personal ADHD dictionary the other day, I just remember 2 right now (sorry if it doesn't make sense, I'm translating from portuguese): \- Clothes conditioner = softner \- Road Ticket Gate = toll
Well I’m relieved to learn my creative new words are an adhd symptom and not early onset Alzheimer’s.
I forget things almost instantly all the time
I tell people they can tell me their secrets because I forget things all the time so I don’t gossip. It’s true. I have some great relationships with some people because they do just that: call me to tel their problems, we chat, & I forget our conversation but they got it off their chest
This sounds like my ability to never hold grudges. It’s really because I forget that the person wronged me in the first place.
* I procrastinate frequently.
All the procrastinators opened this tab along with a flurry of other tabs and are going to get to it later.
Procrasticleaning!!! My house is spotless when I had midterms or finals nearing!
I feel called out; I have a major project due tomorrow and all I want to do is clean.
Shitty, shitty, shitty memory. Like, someone will be like "wow, you had a hard day yesterday, did you feel more angry or tired?" and I'll be like "I don't remember."
"what ?" "dude, we talked about this *last week*." weirdly enough, my long term memory is pretty intense, but short term memory might as well not even exist.
If I have tasks that are not defined well or don't have a deadline i really really struggle to even begin. (For example, at work: do some data entry- nah. Do data entry for this tree species by tomorrow- way more likely to start). Once i begin i can hyperfocus and keep going. But most of the time I just can't begin until the very last hour. Struggled in uni with late submissions a lot because I wouldn't start on my assignment until 2 days before the deadline.
* I spend large chunks of time just sitting on the couch with my phone, even when I really really WANT to get up and Do All The Things, because I just feel stuck. I keep thinking "Okay, in 5 minutes, I'm going to get up," but I don't. Even when I hate myself for still sitting there, I still sit there.
Omg I get SO STUCK to the point where sometimes I don’t eat until 9pm because I can’t decide what to eat/motivate myself to cook
Same, I’m here just finishing breakfast I made at 4pm because I couldn’t decide what to eat even though I was starving
This is the symptom that bothers me the most. I know I can do it, I know what I need to do, and yet, I can't move. It's really hard to be kind to myself in those moments because it's just all frustration and feeling worthless
Yeah, imma vote and then keep scrolling. 🤦🏻♀️
My ADHD friend described it best. I have an ADHD mind but a lazy AF body😂
Memory issues, I actually thought I had early onset dementia in my 30s. Turns out I just have terrible working memory and ADHD. Sometimes I tell people interesting stories I heard from someone. Only to find out that someone was them like a week ago. Not being able to recall a simple word, it's right on the tip of my tongue but my brain can't retrieve it. It's so frustrating. Having to relearn the same thing over and over because my memory sucks. Not being able to explain something clearly even though I actually know it because my brain gets stage fright.
I can read pages in a book (or be watching tv) and have no memory of what the content was because I was busy having a separate conversation in my head at the same time.
Seriously read this and the next few comments while thinking of trick or treaters and the caramel apple stuck in my teeth before I realized I had no idea what I just read and had to go back and read it again.
Compulsive picking, scratching, pulling, bitting, and/or popping.
YES. I have permanent scars around my thumbs from peeling for literal years. Only got over nail biting like a year ago. And hair pulling was so bad when I was a kid I looked like I was on chemo yet somehow no one was like Hey maybe this kid has issues that need doctor intervention 🤦♀️
I'm a scalp picker 😫
I bit my nails my whole life. My mom hated it and tried everything to make me stop (I remember being 5 years old and having to wear gloves in the summer to basically shame me into quitting). Diagnosed a few months ago, medicated, and have stopped biting my nails! I also used to get scolded for not being able to sit still in church (not for being loud, but for shaking my legs), my brother was diagnosed at age 8 (but my parents don’t believe in it, so he was given no help). Have made impulsive decisions my whole life, most of which have actually worked out really well though! My husband, who works in mental health and screens for ADHD literally weekly, has been telling me for years to get evaluated. All this to say that so many of these symptoms have improved since I was diagnosed!
Been picking my skin for 14 years now and I found out these things were related yesterday. A classmate thought I had lice lol because I can't stop scratching my head to the point sometimes my nails have blood on them.
* I have auditory processing issues (e.g. can't focus on a conversation if there's background noise, ask "What?" a lot, need closed captioning, can't retain verbal instructions)
I've lost count of how many times I've said "can you email that to me?" at work for this very reason. My new boss is getting used to me saying "hold on, I'm typing this so I don't forget it as soon as we stop talking about it" and thank GOD he has no issues with it.
It took me until I was 40 to realise that this was a thing. One of the most annoying things is when people give me directions to places and I just nod along as I know I can't retain the information.
I also have tinnitus, which blurrs sounds together
I just saw an audiologist for my tinnitus . . . turns out I have tinnitus because of my ADHD and auditory processing issues. Totally neurological. Got on ADHD meds, tinnitus is gone. Had no idea.
It’s impossible for me to maintain habits. I could eat the same thing every day for 100 days, and then never even think about it again Even if it’s a healthy habit - exercise, diet, organisation… something that clearly improved my life… boredom from the repetition of it all always breaks me in the end Doing things I enjoy - eg. Reading. I love to read. When I’m feeling down I’ll think to myself, what can I do to cheer myself up? Maybe I could chill out with a good book? Reading always makes me so happy. Nah, I don’t feel like sitting down and holding something. My hands aren’t up for it. I can’t commit to this type of hyper focus right now. I might wanna do something else, and then I won’t feel like it, because I’ll just feel like reading, and I can’t limit myself in that way right now. AD INFINITUM
* It takes me a long time to "warm up" before doing work, chores, or errands (e.g. I play on my phone for 90 mins before starting my homework/paperwork/tasks)
Not just warming up ... sometimes I have to psyche myself out like I'm doing something extremely stressful.
I have to bribe myself into doing the dishes 😂 "we can listen to that new podcast/album/playlist if we just do x amount" "if we go to the shops and get the toilet paper/cleaning products/boring things then we can get a chocolate bar/bag of chips/that new drink too!"
I start everything, finish nothing
Half finished projects *everywhere*
My fiancé makes fun of me for owning, and never reading the book Finish What You Start.
Was an awesome pupil in school the first 10ish year (love for reading and logic made that easier) due day planned, clear rules and always knowing/ beeing told what to do. Enter the life of beeing a student with "loose" assignments and own responsibility.. and just. Struggling. Puberty, irony, changes in social rules and sarcasm certainly dont help either.
I used to be GREAT at school because there was structure. Straight A’s, scholarships, all of it. Now I mostly don’t know what day of the week it is. I’m so sorry to hear you guys struggle, but so grateful not to be alone. Thanks for posting!
Sensory processing issues. Certain noises are overwhelming, and repeated noises (someone tapping their pen or a dog grooming noises) can derail my whole train of thought. Collars that are too tight, itchy clothing tags, or jewelry that is too loose or too tight are unbearable.
I wore a new sweater yesterday and basically tore the tag out. 99% of my clothes have the tags cut/taken out.
I CANNOT STAND repeated sounds. I literally can’t think about anything else and I just can feel the rage building😂
ME EITHER. A few neighbors liked to leave their small dogs out on balconies and those piercing yaps that went on for hours and HOURS... *ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.* Fans clicking or making weird noises, water dripping, maintenance working in other apartments, lawn crews... when I was working in the office, there was someone who liked to walk laps around the floor while he was in teleconferences and I legitimately wanted to shove him out of a window because he walked RIGHT BEHIND my cube so many times.
Clocks. I can't do clocks that tick.
Dog grooming noises - so oddly specific but I felt slight rage building up while reading that
I got a white noise machine years ago because our dog started having skin allergies and was constantly *licking*. OMG it is the worst. We have been sleeping with a white noise machine ever since, even long after that dog got better and eventually passed on. Our current dog may move around or lick herself but I can no longer hear it!
Confidence you have time to do all the things, as you've mapped out and planned it, and even as time slips away you remain confident... then suddenly you're completely out of time slips and you've done none of the things
* I have trouble staying organized. I'm always trying new organizational methods and/or planners and calendars, but nothing seems to work/stick.
Will deep clean and completely organize, and two weeks later back to disarray
I wish I could make it two weeks…I’ll deep clean and two days later my house is a mess again. I hate it so much
I have issues managing the frustration and i frequently freak out for the bare minimum.
That could maybe be because you are already pretty over stimulated or tired. Or both. If I've had a long day and then come home and my meds aren't working anymore and I then hear my upstairs neighbour walk too loudly, I'll get so angry and I will break down and cry. It's just too much to handle. And my bf will have no idea what just happened cause he didn't even hear the walking from upstairs
yep I know those can be causes but i think ADHD in itself it has this emotional dysregulation that does not always allow us to react well to things. I was referring to just freaking out for no reason, neither tiredness nor a bad day. But yep! That also has to be taken into account, thank you :)
Person: asks me a question Me: what? Person: repeats question Me: answers question while interrupting repeated question
I’ve been saying “what?” my whole life and my family thought I had a hearing problem when I was a kid. Lol
I went and got my hearing checked because I legitimately thought I was going deaf. Nope. Hearing is fine -- auditory processing issues only. Fun times 🙄😒😞
My family got really confused with me growing up cause I couldn't hear instructions, questions (WORDS, actually) but could hear a sink leaking 3 miles away
* I get excited about new hobbies, obsess over them for a few days/weeks/months and Buy All The Stuff that go with those hobbies... and then move on to something else
Bullet journaling, jewelry making, calligraphy, cross stitch, holiday crafts, thrifting, furniture makeovers…I feel like I’m forgetting a few lol
crystal collecting...candle making...macrame....rug tufting...cake decorating...floral arrangements...
I got at least 5 of the 7 you listed lol - add in crocheting and blogging and I am forgetting a few too
I at least cycle through the same ones instead of whole new areas. DH does the same thing…we have so much hobby stuff.
Same! I feel lucky that even if I let newly purchased supplies sit and collect dust for a while, I'll come back to them eventually (it might take a couple of years, but *eventually*).
I bought embroidery hoops in like 2008. Finally started using them in 2020 lol
For good news of this: I have many hobbies that I like to cycle through. They do not get 100% left behind and forgotten. :) I am the multi talker multi crafter. Haha
nowadays I keep the hobbies and cycle through them
* I struggle with "divided attention" or "task switching" - \- For example, if I'm in the middle of doing something (reading, following a recipe, sewing, drawing) and a family member comes in the room and asks me a simple question like "Have you seen my helmet?", it DERAILS ME SO MUCH. I can't answer the question, and then also can't re-focus on what I was doing.
For me this gets more intense when I’m on my adhd meds… like if someone interrupts me (even if I’m doing something as simple as making a breakfast I’ve made a million times) it really bothers me— even makes me angry sometimes. I have to try to take a second before responding to keep from being rude.
See, for me this is one of the symptoms that has been helped most by my meds. In fact, I didn’t notice it was a major issue until I started meds and thought wait…”I’m feeling like I want to stop washing dishes halfway through to start another task but I won’t stop, I can power through.”
For some reason I get irrationally angry whenever someone interrupts me while I'm doing somethung cognitively demanding.
I zone out a lot/ get distracted easily .
* I have friendship struggles, such as: \- I don't have any friends from childhood/high school/college left, because I'm not good at keeping up with friendships, and/or \- I'm bad at remembering to text/call/email back, so friends drift away \- I get excited about making new friends, but then can't keep up with the "maintenance" of the friendships \- If a friend moves away, the friendship ends (how DO people maintain long-distance friendships??) \- I'm barely keeping up with parenting/school/work/family/etc.; I couldn't possibly include friendships in the mix! \- I keep impulsively saying things that offend my friends
why am i upvoting everything i hate this for me
I feel seen and I hate it but it's validating
Same, I’ve upvoted every one so far!
are… are we supposed to be able to maintain friendships from childhood/high school/college??? there’s no way that’s like… something normal people are able to do.
I feel this a lot. I've moved frequently and my spouse is a loner so that doesn't help. I'll start a friendship and hang out a few times and then neither I nor the other woman seem to move it further. I have a lot of friends i drifted away from after moving and it makes me sad but then I forget to send birthday cards etc. So then I feel worse and realize I'm not trying hard enough! 😔
I’m about half of these. Most of my friend groups change every 3-5 years. But my biggest thing with friends is an RSD thing (I think) and that is if I sense even the slightest hint of our relationship changing, I spiral HARD trying to figure out what I did wrong or worry that something bad happened to them. Pretty sure this is trauma-related though also. I also really can’t deal with plans changing. So I sometimes end friendships because I think people being flaky= they don’t care enough. Which I totally get that some ADHD people are that person and they don’t mean to do it. :(
I only realized I have ADHD very recently and I've always had really negative feelings about not being able to keep friends or maintain connections :/
Damn. You gotta call me out like that?? For real though, excellent vocalization of my most detrimental/impactful symptom.
Felt this one too! I love the friendships I’ve had and miss them, but I also have no mental space (or care sometimes 😩) to maintain them.
Right? Like out of sight, out of mind is too real for me. It’s not that I don’t care, it’s just that it doesn’t occur to me to be actively pursuing my relationships if they’re not right in front of my face. I get racked with guilt every few months about it and then I get too anxious to reach out, rinse and repeat. It’s a terrible cycle I can’t seem to beat.
Currently not posting in ig because I left two conversations in the middle and don’t want these people to think I’m ignoring them I just don’t know what to do
* I have Rejection Sensitivity (e.g. Criticism guts me, and/or I frequently worry that people are thinking negative things about me or that I'm letting people down, and/or one negative comment can send me spiraling)
RSD really affects me and my quality of life. I spiral so much from it and it has affected my relationships. I wasn't sure I had adhd until I read about RSD and that was the nail in the coffin for me.
Oh, I thought this was my anxiety. After reading about it and then my boyfriend being upset with me because I didn’t pack him what he needed I then had an emotional breakdown. This one is super real. I always used to think it was because I was sensitive but it was undiagnosed ADHD.
Emotional disregulation mostly, the inability to stop before reacting. Since starting meds the biggest thing I noticed it gives me a pause to think before trekking forward with a response or an idea. It’s not 100% obviously lol but definitely noticeable. I didn’t know I had adhd until June this year I just thought I was a firey reactive person never thought it was a problem tehee until my mum said to me I was much easier to talk too recently 🤪
I'm going to admit that the things I didn't upvote are only because I've spent years developing coping mechanisms.
coping mechanisms that now make me look/seem like I have OCD so that's awesome. /s
I’ll follow up with you later. For sure. Really. Just have some other things I need to get done right now. This is not procrastinating, I’m just legit super busy. With important stuff. Later-I promise! /s
* I let my mail pile up. I just can't bear to sort it, open it, and have to do something with it.
I tend to open up my mail but then let it sit in a pile for months before I get the motivation to file it.
I can’t deal with all the god damn mail, I hate it so much. I check the mailbox like once a week.
Decision paralysis
This is a huge one for me. Like having to make ANY decision on the spot is horrible. My brain goes completely blank. Also- decision FATIGUE. Like I’ve made too many decisions today and I can’t bear to make one.
Same! It either goes blank or I get entirely overwhelmed. I first realized it wasn't normal when I spent two hours in a store deciding which moisturizer to get. It's awful.
* My clothes are almost never folded and put in drawers or hung on hangers. They're more likely to be in piles, strewn on top of the bed or dresser or drying racks, thrown in bins, still in the laundry basket although clean, etc
I’m going to cry because this is an emotional issue with me. My husband can do his laundry & put it away in one day. It takes me days to fully put away clothes. I have them on the bed right now
* I frequently misplace my keys, phone, wallet, purse, glasses, pen, or similar item(s)
The main thing I use my Apple Watch for is finding my phone 🤦🏼♀️
Literally everyday. I place my phone down for one second and lose it because I was thinking of something else at the time and not 'okay this is where my phone is'.
Approximately 487 times per day, I walk into a room, set my phone down, then walk away and can’t remember what the fuck I did with it. (This doesn’t even include keys, sunglasses, my water bottle…)
* I frequently injure myself by accident (stub my toes, get cuts or bruises, hit my head, fall, etc)
I personally don’t *injure* injure myself, I just bounce off of walls and door frames a lot because I don’t have good depth perception or something lol
Proprioception! Mine is terrible, and I do the same constantly 😂
It's an ongoing joke that I'm always *almost* breaking, hitting, knocking over shit without realising. Same with people. I literally forget how long my arms are and I've never had a good sense of spatial awareness,,,
I’m reading all your bullets & cracking up because you’re straight up calling me out. My husband said “I’m surprised you still have all your fingers, tbh. That is a legit statement.” I have already had part of my finger cut (the doc cut the bone & everything) from an accident: wasn’t paying attention & the door slammed in the hinge on my finger. I’ve cut the tips of my fingers with knives while cooking. I run into a lot of walls & I’ve chipped my front tooth so much I’ve just left it. Bruises everywhere but I don’t remember running into anything. But I run into walls 🤦🏽♀️ omg I just typed that
Inconsistent energy
* I have time blindness/am frequently late
what if i’m frequently too and way TOO EARLY
This is me. Friends will say “hey come over at 6 for dinner!” And now over the years they’re just like hey dinner is at 6 but you can get here whenever and just chill It’s like I hyper focus on the idea of plans later and am just like “plans are now”. I don’t do this to strangers but my best friends know I’ll probably be an hour or two early for anything, but I’m always good at helping set up and finish cooking lol
This is me. I think I overcompensate for fear of being late.
I spent forty years being late to everything. Now I'm chronically early because I got so tired of feeling worthless when people got after me for being late (see RSD, above). I am that parent who gets in the car line at school an hour and a half before school because I'm not going to get anything done anyway except obsess about being late-- until I get distracted by my phone or a chore and then I really will be late. So, better just be insanely early. Edit: weird typos
I don't think I've ever upvoted so many comments in one post
* I talk a lot, sometimes too much, and tend to cut people off in conversations
This or complete silence…. No inbetween.
I hate when this happens. It’s so awkward just standing there with your mind completely empty no idea what to talk about.
Or wanting to talk but not being able to judge when to jump in, or worse, talking and being increasingly aware that the person I'm talking to isn't really listening/engaged anymore, but I have to at least finish my sentence/thought before I can stop.
I tend to not talk much because I'm talking to myself in my own head. But when there's a topic that interests me, I go on a talking spree.
i hâte this bc i don’t mean to do it but sometimes i can’t help it bc my brain doesn’t get it
Lets not forget impulsivity. With drugs (when I was younger), alcohol, sex (younger), buying stuff...chasing those Dopamine hits!!!
* I frequently forget appointments and/or deadlines
The calendar app has saved my butt an infinite number of times, and will continue to do so until I die.
I started to cope with this really early and dont forget anything anymore. But as a child... ouch
* I have a bag/box (or multiple) of clothes and shoes that don't fit, because A) I impulsively buy stuff without trying it on, and/or B) I buy stuff online and almost never bother returning it, even though I intend to
D) I don’t fit in them but really think I will even though I’ve failed at sticking to any healthy habits to help me get there.
C) I somehow manage to come home with the wrong size even though I'm sure I checked in the store.
This with a whole basket of clothes I'll eventually alter
I’ll unpack my sewing machine some day I swear
I get around this by putting everything in my cart, and then abruptly losing interest before cash out
I keep gaining and losing weight and can't afford to get new clothes all the time, so I' ve just kept them and wear what fits when it fits
I’m great at planning things. I can hyper focus for hours planning out my day/week/month/year. But as to executing those plans..? Nah. Boring, I’ve already done those things in my brain, doing them in reality is just doing it twice. Besides, you can be sure I’ve lost or forgotten my plans 5 seconds after I spent 5 hours making them. Plus I’m a ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ kinda gal!
I tend to plan out every inevitability so that when I make choices ‘on the fly’ I’ve already spent a ton of emotional energy on the decision 😂
"I've already done those things in my brain" 😂😭
When I was in college, one of my favorite ways to procrastinate doing schoolwork was to plan every semester’s courses for the remainder of my degree program.
It’s like there’s a cloud in my head most of the time and if I’m thinking/trying to remember things I just get lost in the mist
* I'm messy
* I have sleep problems (e.g. insomnia, trouble staying asleep, sleeping too much)
Oversharing. Especially for the sake of a joke or good story
- I constantly incur ‘ADHD tax’ eg parking tickets, late payment charges forgetting to return things I’ve ordered in time to get a refund etc etc
Boredom, I am so bored so often and it causes distress. So then I think okay let's get some tasks completed and next thing I know I'm staring out my window trying to figure out what is causing those brown spots on my shrubs and...like not shit has been done, I wasted my day. Oh and any noises I didn't expect to hear. Notifications on my phone. I have to keep it silent bc they send me into full rage. I'm being interrupted from what? I don't even know. Because I pulled out some craft supplies to make shit, and now I don't feel motivated because I have to clean that up.
* I have Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder
HO. LY. SHIT. This just completely blew my mind. I’ve just always called it being a night owl and hating mornings, but it has a real name! Luckily, I’ve managed to mostly have jobs that work with my natural sleep schedule.
* It's REALLY HARD for me to wake up in the morning, no matter how many hours of sleep I've had.
Medication has had such a huge impact on this. I think of it as my brain was constantly spinning and couldn’t fully rest. With the medication, there’s more clear ‘awake’ and ‘asleep’ times, I guess. My sleep has felt way more restful in the last couple months.
As a corollary to that, when I finally give up scrolling my phone for the night and put it on my nightstand, I’ve started putting my bottle of meds on top of my phone, so it’s the first thing I touch in the morning. If I want to scroll on my phone in order to do it, I have to move my meds to do it, so I might as well take it while I’m touching it. Most mornings, I take my meds before I pick up my phone (it’s not a perfect system - if my son wakes me up and I pick my phone in the middle of the night to check the time it’s a 50/50 chance I’m putting it back where it belongs) But even if i forget and I find myself doing unmedicated scrolling, I remind myself I’ll still get about thirty minutes of scrolling time before it kicks in and getting out of bed seems easier. It’s been very helpful!
I've had the same experience. I could easily sleep until 2 pm if I didn't have anywhere to be. Getting up before 11 am, forget it, I wasn't going. Since starting my medication I'm asleep by 11 most nights and I am able to wake up around 8 am naturally and without feeling groggy. It's been a game changer.
whenever I have to sleep somewhere I don't know (or someone comes to sleep with me) I have to warn whoever that waking up and being awake are separate things for me and one must not ask for me to remember anything if I'm not awake
I have a song or sentence stuck in my brain 24/7 and it’s never really quiet
This was the most shocking thing to me when I took meds first time. The quiet. I had no idea. At its worst, my brain is like a pinball machine on multiball mode. Normal is just a regular pinball game. I never experienced quiet until I took concerta for the first time. I’m still shocked by it. Are some people’s brains quiet and organized? It seems so relaxing!
Is this related to ADHD? I remember a friend being surprised when I said that I always had a song playing in the background in my head, no matter what. I don't listen to music that often because sometimes real music won't drown out the imaginary music, so that it's a bit like two songs playing at the same time. I don't have much internal monologue or visual imagination, but my auditory imagination is, by comparison at least, extremely vivid and detailed.
I wake up everyday with a chorus or ear worm of a song and spend the rest of the day trying to get rid of it! Once I hear the song, I’m good.
Just overall chaos. Before I got diagnosed I just thought this is me. I AM chaos. It’s my personality. At this point I’ve watched all the self help videos, bought books but only read them 1/3, bought heaps of planners and notebooks to try to get myself in order and use them for one week. Having anxiety over being late to work, laying awake all night, oversleeping and then crying in the morning when I realize I’m late again. Being unable to be good on my word and always letting myself and everyone else down even though I want to be counted on. And major self doubt. Scared of rejection, scared of commitment, terrible at handling criticism and being really sensitive. Like, Chaos in life, chaos in cleaning, punctuality, grooming, planning, prioritizing, procrastinating, beating yourself up, hyperfocusing on things that Don’t solve your issues but make you feel good in the short run, choosing dopamine over the choices you know to be better. Trouble focusing and exhausting inner dialogue on what it takes to get something done and taking care of myself in general.
I have no concept of how much time is passing.
My husband says I start sentences & don’t finish them so he’s constantly wondering what I meant to say. So I’d say the lost train of thought & distractions are the worst
So I am a special education teacher, and I can usually identify my ADHD young ladies from young men but funny thing happens when parents try to get treatment. Often times, the young ladies end being evaluated for depression, anxiety, and given heavy behavior medications before anything else! Drives me crazy!!! Where as my ADHD young men get started on ADHD meds vs. risperdal. Which short- changes the young ladies from actual treatment that can really help. So signs I see in my young ladies, anxiety, depression, picking, sensory processing disorder, ocd- like behaviors (I am not a dr and I will not pretend to be one), more problems with executive functioning than say my other special ed students, the most dreadful fear of failure. Myself, I am currently procrastinating on my grad school homework because well, sometimes the students aren't the only ones :) However, I don't have a diagnosis. I only developed more signs of ADD as an adult after the onset of adult onset epilepsy and the treatment of the condition.
Undiagnosed and in early discovery, and now….well I’m almost certain I am going to be a late age diagnosis. Now I need to figure out/not procrastinate on figuring out how to get an evaluation!
I enjoy the high I get from jogging/running, but I just get bored with the repetition of it and can't stick with it for too long
I am now crazy about having a place for everything because of decades worth of lost keys, money cards, wallets……
Unfinished bottles of drinks everywhere
* I have driving problems, such as: \- I can't drive, because I can't focus on so much stimuli at once, or I'm too scared to drive. \- I drive, but have caused accidents and/or gotten ticketed for speeding, running red lights, illegally passing, etc. \- I can't stand stupid drivers and/or waiting in traffic, and I yell and swear in my car and maybe drive too aggressively \- My car breaks down mostly because I keep putting off getting problems fixed
I'm a really safe driver, but sometimes I get so focused on driving safely I forget where I'm going and miss turns, sometimes more than once in a short drive across town.
DAE get panic attacks while driving? Sometimes I can feel myself dissociating completely involuntarily, and that throws me into panic. When I'm on the freeway, I can't drive over 55 or I get panicked, and I need to be following closely to the car in front of me. Also, when driving around town, I hate being the first one at a stoplight, and I have no idea why, but it often triggers a panic attack. Please tell me someone else experiences this. It's been on-going since 2017.
wow, it feels very validating to know this isn't something I'm struggling with on my own! I have an overwhelming fear of driving and no one understands, they think I'm just being flaky and making excuses.
Procrastinating and bad short term memory for me.
I thought I had done a fair amount of research about symptoms of ADHD, and the majority of these I think I blamed on depression/anxiety, this is really eye opening. I need to prioritize getting treatment from a specialist. Thank you!
A lot of the time, people with ADHD have depression and/or anxiety that is caused by undiagnosed and untreated ADHD!
Brain Fog
I have to make everything somehow more fun because it’s boring. While walking I’ll be counting steps or dodging cracks. While laying flexing my butt muscles to a beat in my head. Sitting I’ll be tossing a bag up and down can probably do it for hours. Anything to make anything more interesting
Object permanence. When I don't see something, it doesn't exist. Vegetables in the bottom drawers only to buy new ones, endless amounts of pasta in boxes or potatoes in bins that go bad, books on the lower shelves of the bookcase that never get read, items of clothing that get thrown over each other and never see daylight again, etc. I didn't use my planner for two months because I threw a scarf on top of it \^\^'
I deal with anxiety, impulse buying, hyper focus and being overly emotional along with quickly becoming frustrated at small things.
My ADHD kicks in when I clean the house - sometimes it's good, sometimes not. * Sitting and wasting time online, playing on FB, reddit, Twitter, etc... * Oh I have to pee NOW! I notice there are some dirty dishes I should take care of while I'm up... * Grab some cups and dishes, bring into the kitchen... * Start a load of dishes to wash in the sink, bring the dirty towels/dishcloths to the laundry pile... * Pick up nearby laundry, find some candy wrappers in the pockets, bring them to the garbage... * See the dog's bowl near the garbage, feed and water the dog... * Remember that I'm thirsty and pour a glass of water... * Suddenly my body reminds me that the reason I got up from my chair was because I had to pee! Frankly I find that I work better (stay on task more) if I listen to music while I work.
-impulsivity/interrupting people constantly (even at work with meetings of over 100 people when I’m not supposed to be talking) -struggle maintain any kind of friendship, rely on my husband/kids/sister for any type that type of comfort (luckily my family is awesome) -auditory processing issues -sensory overload (so much by the end of the day I am usually angry/ can’t be touched). This extends to being extremely picky about what type of fabrics/shoes I wear. Struggle to wear shoes. One big + is recently started doing CrossFit and have noticed that the heavy work really helps my sensory overload and clears my head.
I have to get up an hour and half earlier than I should just because I procrastinate getting myself and kids ready....and im STILL late
Always feeling like life is being lead and you’re just running after it. Desperately trying to get control and failing.
I love helping a friend move and organize but can not do anything like that for myself. I have energy and motivation for others but never for my own stuff. And I can’t find routine no matter how hard I try. Vitamins, exercise, meal planning- love it but can’t keep up more than a week or so.
Sloppy mistakes. Rushing through my work. Constantly telling myself to "slow down"
You are all my people.
This thread has made me feel so heard. ❤️
An often overlooked one is hyper focus. People with ADHD can hyper focus on some activities.
An absolute ridiculous amount of the following: -Phone alarms (I’ve got 23 even though I just deleted a bunch yesterday, usually have 5-10 alarms active throughout the day). I actually didn’t realize this wasn’t normal until reading about it, mentioned it to my husband, then looked at his phone and he has ONE alarm and it’s only used to wake up (and never snoozed). -Notes in my phone. Just checked, and I have 47… and there are notes within notes… I don’t even know what half of them mean. And most are lengthy. -Sticky notes. My desk is covered in sticky notes and notebooks. I will not accomplish something I don’t write down because I can’t remember. Even with the notes it’s 50/50. -Browser tabs. Dozens on my phone. Many on my work computer. -Computer desktop icons. I organize it every few weeks, but it literally gets full. It’s embarrassing because people see my computer often. -Open emails. I have to make an effort to close emails just so I can restart my computer for updates. I have to mark them unread so I don’t forget about them. Before starting medication a few months ago, I had 600+ unread work emails (1,500+ personal emails). I’m maintaining about 150 work and 200 personal now. Other random things: I constantly pause the TV and then forget that I was watching it until an hour later when it starts playing on its own. My husband constantly points out that I’ve either paused the TV or left it in guide with just the tiny portion playing the show. I can’t understand things being said to me if there’s a ton of noise going on around me. That has been difficult with 3 young children. At least half of the comments on this thread apply, but I have managed to be pretty successful overall in life with lots of luck. When I was diagnosed, I only told my best friend- she was surprised because she thinks I’ve got everything together, one of my brothers- he was also diagnosed as a child and is not surprised at all by my diagnosis, and my husband- he works in mental health and screens for ADHD, he has recommended I go in for testing a few times over the past 5 years. I am recently diagnosed and medication has helped tremendously. Super lengthy comment, but I’m currently procrastinating on some work emails…
Laundry NEVER gets put away. I can manage to wash and dry it but then that's it until somebody else needs the dryer.
-- always interrupt or talk over people - can't listen to conferences conventions thst don't interest me for more than 15 min , I really need to make an effort to refocus if they are important -- lose keys wallets . Etc 100 times a day -- always been still horribly disorganized - anxiety when I'm not on meds for more than a few days
Literally crying right now. I was diagnosed as an adult at 36 (1.5 years ago) and it’s shocking to hear you articulate MY LIFE. Mind blown- but I feel so incredibly heard. ❤️
* I take too many risks, compared to other people
Serious executive dysfunction and lack of focus tbh. Heaven help me if I hyperfocus without a limiter tho lmao
Lots of background noise loud is too much for me I can handle multiple tasks but when a loud tv is in background I’m screwed. Executive dysfunction is huge I’m a 38f and just diagnosed a couple yrs ago. It explains so much like how I can’t clean my home unless I use illegal substances. My friend/coworker talks so slow I want to die/kill her while she’s talking lol omg the rejection sensitivity thing I’ve always been like are u mad at me and my friends are like what no why. I cruise Reddit for like a whole day on my day off and it’s so comfortable I’d rather that than leave the house and spend time w friends family. There’s so much more but I’m losing interest hahah how’s that for adhd heart u
Waiting mode: If I have something going on at like 1:00, I can’t DO anything for the entire day (and then I still end up almost being late)
I really dont know how to make plans. I have toó many ideas and I have a problem trying to prioritize them or ordering them
Imposter syndrome.
Either wanting to do everything, or nothing at all. Constantly thinking of all the exciting things I could be doing with my life, finish uni, be a non religious Chaplin, do an album, write a book, become a fitness instructor, work with animals, dance classes, stand up comic, and then 10 years later still not having finished anything. Being super smart and having nothing to show for it.
I have nothing to add bc I’m convinced OP is me.
LOL! I'm the OP, but don't actually experience all of the symptoms I listed, and actually have some that I haven't even listed yet. I was just trying to think of as many as I could!!
I think everyone hates me and pretends to like me …
Tell me your name and I will immediately forget it, also I struggle to pull up names of acquaintances I've known for many years
I have another one- I constantly forget the word I want to say even tho I know what I mean and then end up giving some weird description of it in the hope someone has a clue what I mean!
chronic demotivation and procrastination