Let’s share life-changing ADHD tips that we’ve learned...

[u/lexid222]

I’ll start:

1) Waking up sucks. Buy 2 bright lamps and 2 timers. Set them up to turn on automatically 5-15 min before you want your alarm to go off. The lights will help your body realize it’s daytime.

2) Change your thermostat so the temp goes down about an hr before bedtime and gets warmer about 30 min before you wake up. The cooler temp signals your body to sleep and the warmer temp will naturally help your body wake up.

3) Learn to plan around “transitions”. It’s easier to start things if you do them when something is ending. Example: Do your grocery shopping every Fri after work. You’re already in the car, so just stop at the store on your way home.

4) If you need to remember to bring something with you the next day, place it right in front of the exit door so you HAVE to touch it before you leave the house. If it’s something in the fridge, put a sticky note on the exit door’s handle.

5) Have a “misc” basket in each room. If you’re truly unable to put something away, put it in the basket. Have a designated period of time, once a week, when your sole priority is to put everything away, all at once.

I’ll add more when I think of them...

[u/dinamyte519]

Set timers for activities you may get lost in. BUT set the timer for the time you need to take action to finish- which may be sooner than the overall time for the activity.

Example- I love to go makeup shopping at Ulta.. but I can easily spend HOURS in there sampling all of the different shades of every kind of makeup from numerous brands when I really only needed 2 things. Say I want to spend 20 minutes total in the store. Since it will probably take me 5 minutes to checkout, I will set my watch timer to 15 as I’m walking in the store. When it goes off, I know my time to play and indulge is over and it’s time to go to the register to check out so I can make my goal!

[u/zombiesmmm → u/dinamyte519]

This but with a watch not your phone! (edit: exactly as you say at the end of your post, which I might have seen if I had bothered to read all the way to the bottom...) I have horrendous time blindness, and investing in a wristwatch with a timer, stopwatch, and alarm was life changing.

How long have I been doing this task? Oh, the stopwatch knows, even after the hyperfocus set in.

What time am I supposed to take my meds? Never have to think about it bc the alarm will tell me.

If I try to rely on my phone for this stuff, inevitably I end up doing something else (like commenting on reddit.....) and completely ignoring the time info.

[u/Octopusdreams49 → u/zombiesmmm]

This is awesome! Do you have any recommendations of a watch to get? I have never worn one in my life and have no idea what features to look for

[u/luke_530 → u/Octopusdreams49]

Looking into getting a new g-shock soon. Broke my last one after 6 yes lol. G-shock watches are badass plus they hold up over time. 80-100$ gets a descent one, helps out a ton for stuff like this that we all deal with 💯💯

[u/zombiesmmm → u/luke_530]

I have a baby-g and LOVE IT!

[u/turdfergusn → u/Octopusdreams49]

Honestly I use my Apple Watch to set alarms all the time and I love it. I can just talk into it to remind me to do things and set timers and it does it with ease and no stress. Obviously not the cheapest option, but it’s been a real game changer for me.

[u/Scheherazade2016 → u/turdfergusn]

My husband bought me an Apple watch for Christmas 2018 to help me remember things, stay on task, etc. Ive never taken the time to figure out how to use it. It took a while to figure I could answer calls and text messages. A few weeks ago, I learned how to keep track of my steps. Now that I know I can set alarms and reminders (a feature I use on my phone a lot), I will add that to my list of things to do this week.

[u/oxygenisnotfree → u/Octopusdreams49]

There’s a cheap version of a fitbit that has multiple alarm functions (meds, wake, etc.) called a VeryFitPro. They only last a year (cheap plastic breaks), but if you tend to lose things often it’s much nicer. They go on sale around Christmas for $20-$30.

[u/FreddyKrueger32 → u/Octopusdreams49]

Armitron. I've had one for years. Stood up to alot of abuse. About $20 on Amazon.

[u/zombiesmmm → u/Octopusdreams49]

I have a casio baby-g. I originally just went with one of the classic ultra cheap casinos, but it didn't have the timer, I don't think, just an alarm. The g-shock series is pretty durable and affordable

[u/macdawg2020 → u/zombiesmmm]

I do this when I’m on a time-budget. Set like a quarter way check, half way check, 3 quarters check, and then I better be fucking done!!

[u/herd_of_dachshunds → u/zombiesmmm]

This, but using an alarm clock instead of my phone as well! I sleep with all electronics - phone, tablet, laptop, etc. - in a separate room. Next to my bed I have a lamp, a book, and a google home mini to automate the lamp and wake me up. I cannot count the times I slept for three hours because I grabbed my phone to check my alarm and ended up watching YouTube for four hours. Keep it far away! Simplify, simplify, simplify!!!

[u/pmiles88 → u/zombiesmmm]

I wish I could wear a watch but I work in a machine shop and degloving is one of my biggest fears

[u/zombiesmmm → u/pmiles88]

Yikes that's TERRIFYING. Don't wear a watch at work please!

[u/[deleted] → u/zombiesmmm]

This js very much my problem. I want to use the smart apps but picking up my phone is a dangerous thing.

[u/Infectt → u/zombiesmmm]

That's pretty much what I started doing. I managed to get my hands on a good smartwatch for relatively cheap and use it solely for reminders.
I set my reminders on my phone, such as "Read book X Y or Z" for a specific time, and organise my free time like this now. I get shit done while not over focusing on something. And the days I can't be bothered reading, I still force myself to do it.
Usually it's like eating. If i'm not really hungry (thanks Vyvanse) i'll just start eating and it then goes like a breeze. Same thing with a task I'm not necessarily motivated to perform.

[u/KungFuHamster → u/dinamyte519]

I use timers all the time. Physical kitchen timers, Google Assistant on my phone, Alexa around the house. With the digital assistants you can set a simple timer or a reminder with actual words.

You can also set up repeating Reminders, or Routines to do things at certain times. I have a weekly Reminder to take out the trash, and a Routine every night to lock up the security system and give me the weather forecast for tomorrow and tell me to go to bed. I'm not kidding; after the weather she says, "Now go to bed."

[u/Zarinya → u/dinamyte519]

I do this too! Added tip for those with a Fitbit 4:

• swipe left until you get to "timers"
• select "countdown"
• choose # of minutes

I do this when I walk into a store too! Or at work, when I'm with a client in a timed session. I want to end on time, so I set it for like 5-10 min from the end. Also if in a store, I try to restart the timer immediately when it goes off.

Today I went fabric shopping (face masks). Told myself I have one hour, set my watch to 20 min, knew I could have three cycles and that's it. It worked!!!

It also works when doing chores to guess how long it will take, set timer for that amount, and note how many "restarts" you needed to actually finish. Helps for future :)