What Time Is It???

The other day I was talking to a fellow ADHDer, and we noticed that we have something in common:  neither of us have a good grasp of time (time? what's that?). We found that we both can never judge how much time it takes us to get ready for something, and so we are frequently late because we don't know when we should start getting ready.

I got thinking about this, and started wondering about it. Are people with ADHD always late because they're always procrastinating? Or is the root of the problem simply that they can't tell time? I dug up my copy of Adventures in Fast Forward:  Life, Love, and Work for the ADD Adult by Kathleen G. Nadeau and found the section on time management. This is what I found under "chronic lateness":

I'm not random...

So I saw this photo on firstcovers.com, and thought this was a perfect description for all of us ADHDers. We aren't random, we just think too fast for the normal brain!!

Lines and Circles

I'm starting to think that people with ADHD think in circles. Seriously. I know it sounds weird, but hear me out. I've noticed that when my ADHD is acting up, I have a hard time doing the things I set out to do. For example, I get on the computer with the intention of checking my email and then doing my homework, and then maybe some writing after that. So I get on to check my email. The first email is an advertisement from the bookstore. I see some books on it that I'm interested in, so I get on the internet to check out the bookstore's website. While I'm looking to see what these books are about and how much they cost, I realize that I haven't updated my goodreads yet (yes, I'm that much of a bookworm). So I get onto goodreads.com to do just that. But halfway through I realize that I haven't rated and shelved some of the books I've already added. So I start doing that. Then I see a book on there that I realized I haven't read the sequel to yet, and really want to. So I log on to the library's website to put it on hold. Only when I get there, I realize that I have a hold at the library that I haven't picked up yet. As well as a few others I've forgotten to put on hold. As I go to do that, I wonder why the library hadn't notified me of my hold yet, so I go to check my email to see if they had emailed me. And I realize that I haven't finished checking my email yet, so I go to the next email....

Excuse My Dust

Just so you know, I'm kind of playing around with site design. I really want to make this site my own, so I'm working on making it look beautimous (and yes, I spelled that wrong on purpose). So don't mind me. Besides, I have ADHD. I like variety. So don't be surprised if I've changed things around a month from now. Or if the background changes every six weeks or so. Because that's the way I am (my desktop wallpaper changes irregularly). If you don't like it, deal with it. Not that you could really do anything about it...

Anyways, sorry about the mess!

Disabled? Me?

I was thinking about the name of ADHD. It stands for "Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder," right? So, what I want to know is, is a disorder a disability? When I was first diagnosed, a few years ago, I met with the Disability Services at my school, and they were able to get me a note to get accommodations. Not that I really need accommodations; I just need people who understand what's going on and can give me a little wiggle room when meds and stuff get in the way. So, apparently, by law or something, ADHD is considered is disability. So...yay? Ugh? How am I supposed to feel about this?

The Medication Problem

How do you know what is the best medication for you? From my experience, it's trial and error. And let me tell you, when it comes to medication, trial and error is not fun. It's been a few weeks since my doc took me off of Strattera (R) (which was working pretty well, now that I think of it) and put me on a stimulant. And, well, the stimulant helps, but not enough.

So what I want to know is, how do you know how much is enough? How do you determine how much you should depend on medication, and how much you should take into your own hands? I've noticed that ever since I switched to the stimulant, it hasn't done much for my sleeping schedule problems. And on top of my body wanting to sleep from 3 in the morning to 11 in the morning, when I do try to go to sleep, even if I'm dead tired, I still have trouble falling asleep. What's with that?

Oh, yeah, and I've noticed I've been clenching my teeth a lot ever since I started this particular stimulant. Is that bad? I don't know. I've been chewing a lot of gum lately to try and stop it, though. Sigh. I guess time will tell whether this is the right med for me or not. Or it won't. Hopefully not the latter.

You don't fully appreciate something until you've lost it

I never realized how much I depend on my medication until my doctor took me off of it. I had noticed that my medication was losing its effectiveness, so my doctor decided to gradually take me off it before we tried a new one. The result? The past three weeks have been a Mess. With a capital M. Who knew that I would turn nocturnal, take three hours to get a simple task done, sprout wings and grow fangs (okay, so not the last two)?

But seriously. I was a mess. And the frustrating thing about it was that the harder I tried to control things, the faster they spun out of control. I recall one night when I was trying to get myself ready for bed. I kept getting so distracted, it took me THREE HOURS. Not kidding. The ironic thing about it is the thing that distracted me was my reference book on ADHD (It's called Understanding Women with ADHD, edited by Kathleen Nadeau. Great book. You should check it out). What's with that? My ADHD distracts me from the task at hand because I'm trying to understand my ADHD. Ah, the ironies of life.