u/ParticularWindoww

Hello fellow ADHDer!

I know we all have a million brain tricks, but I’d like to share one today that has helped me a TON, more than any app I’ve ever tried. Will it help you? I dunno! Our brains are all such strange individual creatures…but I did want to share in case it CAN help anyone else.

The trick: The Three Things List

Most of us probably have a million lists going throughout the day. That’s great! Keep those! But the three things list is the GET SHIT DONE list.

Take three things off those million other lists. Or one thing and break it down into steps. Or two or three things that you break down into steps that will become more 3 things as you work through your tasks.

These should be relatively simple, things you can look and go ‘ok I can do that.’ Break it down as far as you need to, but here’s the key - ONLY EVER HAVE THREE THINGS ON THERE AT A TIME THAT YOU’RE WORKING ON. Don’t be tempted to break everything down and list out a bunch of sets of three. Just one set at a time.

The keys to this list are:

1. Keeps you from overwhelming yourself. You can basically ignore the million other lists while you’re completing your tasks (trust me they’ll still be there when you’re done…)
2. Tiny bursts of dopamine: cross out one thing, and you’re 1/3 of the way to finishing a set! Cross them all off - ONE FULL SET DONE GO YOU!!
3. Big dopamine hit when you knock out a bunch of ‘3 things’ and looking back on it feels like big accomplishments

My personal method/rules (obviously we’re all different - find what works for you!)

-Every time I finish a set, I box it off and give myself a sticker. You’d be amazed at the dopamine you get when you look at all your completion stickers -The stuff I really don’t want to do or that gives me major anxiety gets broken down into the smallest steps I can manage, and mixed in with other things -Sometimes I set little rewards for myself, I.e. 5 stickers = buy a new book

So for me, I’m terrible at communication, even at work. Gives me major anxiety. But there’s bigger stuff that doesn’t bother me. So a wfh day set of 3 things to start my day might look like:

-turn on laptop -open outlook -put away clean dishes

Then when those are crossed out, I might follow up with:

-wash dirty dishes -respond to X important email that requires immediate response -open all other emails that require response

Followed by:

-Respond to first opened email -Respond to second opened email -brush teeth

And so on. Mixing in things that are easier for me to accomplish with things that I find more difficult.

Plus, stickers. I really really recommend the stickers. Turns out, there’s a reason your first grade teacher put them on your papers haha. Find some stickers that bring you joy or make you laugh and don’t be afraid to use them! And you can add fun stuff to your list too to make the really annoying stuff easier to get through 😁

Hello fellow ADHD ladies!

I know we all have a million brain tricks, but I’d like to share one today that has helped me a TON, more than any app I’ve ever tried. Will it help you? I dunno! Our brains are all such strange individual creatures…but I did want to share in case it CAN help anyone else.

The trick: The Three Things List

Most of us probably have a million lists going throughout the day. That’s great! Keep those! But the three things list is the GET SHIT DONE list.

Take three things off those million other lists. Or one thing and break it down into steps. Or two or three things that you break down into steps that will become more 3 things as you work through your tasks.

These should be relatively simple, things you can look and go ‘ok I can do that.’ Break it down as far as you need to, but here’s the key - ONLY EVER HAVE THREE THINGS ON THERE AT A TIME THAT YOU’RE WORKING ON. Don’t be tempted to break everything down and list out a bunch of sets of three. Just one set at a time.

The keys to this list are:

1. Keeps you from overwhelming yourself. You can basically ignore the million other lists while you’re completing your tasks (trust me they’ll still be there when you’re done…)
2. Tiny bursts of dopamine: cross out one thing, and you’re 1/3 of the way to finishing a set! Cross them all off - ONE FULL SET DONE GO YOU!!
3. Big dopamine hit when you knock out a bunch of ‘3 things’ and looking back on it feels like big accomplishments

My personal method/rules (obviously we’re all different - find what works for you!)

-Every time I finish a set, I box it off and give myself a sticker. You’d be amazed at the dopamine you get when you look at all your completion stickers -The stuff I really don’t want to do or that gives me major anxiety gets broken down into the smallest steps I can manage, and mixed in with other things -Sometimes I set little rewards for myself, I.e. 5 stickers = buy a new book

So for me, I’m terrible at communication, even at work. Gives me major anxiety. But there’s bigger stuff that doesn’t bother me. So a wfh day set of 3 things to start my day might look like:

-turn on laptop -open outlook -put away clean dishes

Then when those are crossed out, I might follow up with:

-wash dirty dishes -respond to X important email that requires immediate response -open all other emails that require response

Followed by:

-Respond to first opened email -Respond to second opened email -brush teeth

And so on. Mixing in things that are easier for me to accomplish with things that I find more difficult.

Plus, stickers. I really really recommend the stickers. Turns out, there’s a reason your first grade teacher put them on your papers haha. Find some stickers that bring you joy or make you laugh and don’t be afraid to use them! And you can add fun stuff to your list too to make the really annoying stuff easier to get through 😁

Cleaning a messy room/house can be extremely overwhelming. Not only do I have a comorbidity of AuDHD but I also grew up with a hoarder for a mother. I never really learned cleaning skills from my mom. My ADHD made it hard to put things away. My autism made me get extremely overwhelmed to the point of breakdown.

So when I started therapy for both of these, my therapist came over to my house and taught me how to clean with these tips.

1. do not put something down unless it is in its spot. Take the extra time to walk away and put it where it’s supposed to go. If you put it down just anywhere, it is a death sentence.
2. take a lot of breaks. This is called the on/off method. Find a point of completion (you can make your own rules). Take however much time you spent working on that task and use the same amount for your break. Whether it be tv, video games, or even playing with the stuff you found. For example, if you spend 30 minutes on the task, spend 30 minutes off the task. Make sure you have regular and frequent breaks. You need to be stimulated.
3. categorize your things in an easy way and make that your only task. For example, I always start with dishes. Find all the dishes. Put them in the sink. You do not need to do the dishes right away. You can do them another day. Then I find all the trash I can see and throw it away. Already, your room will start to look cleaner. Next, do clothes. Put them in the hamper. You do not have to do laundry right away. You can do it another day. Then I pick items by color. I usually start with red. I pick up everything that is red and put it away where it is supposed to go. Then orange. Then yellow. Etc.
4. clean with the supplies you have available. If you are out of glass cleaner, write it down in your notes app but do not go out and get it. You can use it next time when you have it. Leaving the house to get cleaning supplies is a stimulating but avoidant activity. You’ll waste your drive to clean by going to the store.
5. One “baseline task” per day Make bed, wash 1 dish, read 1 page. (Anchor Activities which i have to do daily no matter what) This rebuilt the reward system from the bottom up. None of this fixed everything instantly… but after 10–14 days, I started feeling tiny sparks again. Like my brain was slowly coming back online.

Cleaning a messy room/house can be extremely overwhelming. Not only do I have a comorbidity of AuDHD but I also grew up with a hoarder for a mother. I never really learned cleaning skills from my mom. My ADHD made it hard to put things away. My autism made me get extremely overwhelmed to the point of breakdown.

So when I started therapy for both of these, my therapist came over to my house and taught me how to clean with these tips.

1. do not put something down unless it is in its spot. Take the extra time to walk away and put it where it’s supposed to go. If you put it down just anywhere, it is a death sentence.
2. take a lot of breaks. This is called the on/off method. Find a point of completion (you can make your own rules). Take however much time you spent working on that task and use the same amount for your break. Whether it be tv, video games, or even playing with the stuff you found. For example, if you spend 30 minutes on the task, spend 30 minutes off the task. Make sure you have regular and frequent breaks. You need to be stimulated.
3. categorize your things in an easy way and make that your only task. For example, I always start with dishes. Find all the dishes. Put them in the sink. You do not need to do the dishes right away. You can do them another day. Then I find all the trash I can see and throw it away. Already, your room will start to look cleaner. Next, do clothes. Put them in the hamper. You do not have to do laundry right away. You can do it another day. Then I pick items by color. I usually start with red. I pick up everything that is red and put it away where it is supposed to go. Then orange. Then yellow. Etc.
4. clean with the supplies you have available. If you are out of glass cleaner, write it down in your notes app but do not go out and get it. You can use it next time when you have it. Leaving the house to get cleaning supplies is a stimulating but avoidant activity. You’ll waste your drive to clean by going to the store.
5. One “baseline task” per day Make bed, wash 1 dish, read 1 page. (Anchor Activities which i have to do daily no matter what. I use Soothfy App to build these alongside novelty Activities. ) This rebuilt the reward system from the bottom up. None of this fixed everything instantly… but after 10–14 days, I started feeling tiny sparks again. Like my brain was slowly coming back online.

Cleaning a messy room/house can be extremely overwhelming. Not only do I have a comorbidity of AuDHD but I also grew up with a hoarder for a mother. I never really learned cleaning skills from my mom. My ADHD made it hard to put things away. My autism made me get extremely overwhelmed to the point of breakdown.

So when I started therapy for both of these, my therapist came over to my house and taught me how to clean with these tips.

1. do not put something down unless it is in its spot. Take the extra time to walk away and put it where it’s supposed to go. If you put it down just anywhere, it is a death sentence.
2. take a lot of breaks. This is called the on/off method. Find a point of completion (you can make your own rules). Take however much time you spent working on that task and use the same amount for your break. Whether it be tv, video games, or even playing with the stuff you found. For example, if you spend 30 minutes on the task, spend 30 minutes off the task. Make sure you have regular and frequent breaks. You need to be stimulated.
3. categorize your things in an easy way and make that your only task. For example, I always start with dishes. Find all the dishes. Put them in the sink. You do not need to do the dishes right away. You can do them another day. Then I find all the trash I can see and throw it away. Already, your room will start to look cleaner. Next, do clothes. Put them in the hamper. You do not have to do laundry right away. You can do it another day. Then I pick items by color. I usually start with red. I pick up everything that is red and put it away where it is supposed to go. Then orange. Then yellow. Etc.
4. clean with the supplies you have available. If you are out of glass cleaner, write it down in your notes app but do not go out and get it. You can use it next time when you have it. Leaving the house to get cleaning supplies is a stimulating but avoidant activity. You’ll waste your drive to clean by going to the store.
5. One “baseline task” per day Make bed, wash 1 dish, read 1 page. (Anchor Activities which i have to do daily no matter what) This rebuilt the reward system from the bottom up. None of this fixed everything instantly… but after 10–14 days, I started feeling tiny sparks again. Like my brain was slowly coming back online.

Cleaning a messy room/house can be extremely overwhelming. Not only do I have a comorbidity of AuDHD but I also grew up with a hoarder for a mother. I never really learned cleaning skills from my mom. My ADHD made it hard to put things away. My autism made me get extremely overwhelmed to the point of breakdown.

So when I started therapy for both of these, my therapist came over to my house and taught me how to clean with these tips.

1. do not put something down unless it is in its spot. Take the extra time to walk away and put it where it’s supposed to go. If you put it down just anywhere, it is a death sentence.
2. take a lot of breaks. This is called the on/off method. Find a point of completion (you can make your own rules). Take however much time you spent working on that task and use the same amount for your break. Whether it be tv, video games, or even playing with the stuff you found. For example, if you spend 30 minutes on the task, spend 30 minutes off the task. Make sure you have regular and frequent breaks. You need to be stimulated.
3. categorize your things in an easy way and make that your only task. For example, I always start with dishes. Find all the dishes. Put them in the sink. You do not need to do the dishes right away. You can do them another day. Then I find all the trash I can see and throw it away. Already, your room will start to look cleaner. Next, do clothes. Put them in the hamper. You do not have to do laundry right away. You can do it another day. Then I pick items by color. I usually start with red. I pick up everything that is red and put it away where it is supposed to go. Then orange. Then yellow. Etc.
4. clean with the supplies you have available. If you are out of glass cleaner, write it down in your notes app but do not go out and get it. You can use it next time when you have it. Leaving the house to get cleaning supplies is a stimulating but avoidant activity. You’ll waste your drive to clean by going to the store.

Cleaning a messy room/house can be extremely overwhelming. Not only do I have a comorbidity of AuDHD but I also grew up with a hoarder for a mother. I never really learned cleaning skills from my mom. My ADHD made it hard to put things away. My autism made me get extremely overwhelmed to the point of breakdown.

So when I started therapy for both of these, my therapist came over to my house and taught me how to clean with these tips.

1. do not put something down unless it is in its spot. Take the extra time to walk away and put it where it’s supposed to go. If you put it down just anywhere, it is a death sentence.
2. take a lot of breaks. This is called the on/off method. Find a point of completion (you can make your own rules). Take however much time you spent working on that task and use the same amount for your break. Whether it be tv, video games, or even playing with the stuff you found. For example, if you spend 30 minutes on the task, spend 30 minutes off the task. Make sure you have regular and frequent breaks. You need to be stimulated.
3. categorize your things in an easy way and make that your only task. For example, I always start with dishes. Find all the dishes. Put them in the sink. You do not need to do the dishes right away. You can do them another day. Then I find all the trash I can see and throw it away. Already, your room will start to look cleaner. Next, do clothes. Put them in the hamper. You do not have to do laundry right away. You can do it another day. Then I pick items by color. I usually start with red. I pick up everything that is red and put it away where it is supposed to go. Then orange. Then yellow. Etc.
4. clean with the supplies you have available. If you are out of glass cleaner, write it down in your notes app but do not go out and get it. You can use it next time when you have it. Leaving the house to get cleaning supplies is a stimulating but avoidant activity. You’ll waste your drive to clean by going to the store.

I've been in a huge ADHD rut and I want to try some drastic measures. Would love to hear some of your best/favourite ADHD tips that made a difference in your life!
Mine  I mainly use this expression on myself for getting dressed in the morning when I end up trying on 5 different outfits. It's an attempt to stop myself from tossing clothes on the dresser/floor with the thought "I'll put it back it later" (we all know we wont) and then when "later" arrives, it ends up being an unmanageable pile that I know I will do everything in my power to avoid.

So I was late diagnosed, at 43. Figured it out because I have PMDD and the overlap is huge, which I learned at random while getting my son evaluated (that's when I was told it's generally inherited). This past year or two has been a fun ride of figuring out that all my idiosyncrasies and personality traits seem to be related to ADHD. I'm not hyperactive and I did great in school so I never expected it. Here is my list, tell me what yours is!
- Twenty thoughts and impulses at the same time, racing, racing
- Hyperfocus - I'm amazing at research and become an "expert" on a topic, then have no interest in it
- Buying the best tools for a new hobby or sport and then doing it three times
- Leaving my coffee in a random spot until cold
- Mental fatigue and burnout (was diagnosed with burnout at 24! Keeps coming back)
- Walking into walls and doors
- Rejection sensitivity
- Reading the vibe of a room like a friggin' magician
- Amazing judge of character, I don't understand how other people can miss that
- Reading between the lines, I hear what people are *actually* trying to say to each other
- Again with the hyperfocus. I am LOST in a good book. Gone to the world.
- Hyper flexible joints
- Very sensitive to sounds, textures, smells...
- Inability to focus during sex (mind is in 20 places) and easily over stimulated
- I like to water my plants or cleaning the kitchen while having difficult discussions, to focus better
- The times I walked out on long winded business meetings
- All the times I quit high paying jobs after 2 years because I was bored
- I can be a wizard in the kitchen if alone or listening to music. If anyone talks to me, I burn it all
- I interrupt people with unrelated things, and then jump back to what they were saying
- Pattern recognition, great at analysis of complex data sets
- I over share (and then feel terrible about it, because: rejection sensitive)
- I'm super social and have lots of group but never feel like I belong to them

What about you guys, what did you think was just a personality trait and then found out was common with ADHD?