3 Ways I Manage My Inattentive ADHD (ADD) in A Tech-Driven Society
I’ve been pretty open in the past about being diagnosed with inattentive ADD (I’m not hyperactive, therefore I really don’t like to use the term “ADHD”) in late 2019. It’s been almost two years since I first learned about this disorder and that I’m someone who is affected by it. Learning this about my brain has resulted in mixed emotions but overall I’m grateful to know a little more about what makes me tick. Everyone is unique and I’m glad to know more about how my brain functions. I think we could all benefit from better understanding how our brains work and how technology impacts us in different ways.
My Productivity Looks Different Than Yours
Still, I have to be organized and I have to find ways to focus. I’ve found a few tactics for “helping my brain” and it recently occurred to me that there might be someone else out there in the same shoes I found myself in not long ago. I want to also take a second to say that this has been a tough journey for me. I really thought this “disorder” was something that needed to be “fixed” because, uh hello, the whole name “inattentive [attention deficit disorder]” all sounds like a bunch of ugly, unpleasant words that require correction. I’ve talked to multiple therapists and worked with them to implement changes and they never stuck for long. It took letting go of the negative medical terms and just examining my day-to-day life asking “How do I want this to look?” and “What challenges get in the way of my success?” in order to roll up my sleeves and reverse engineer my approach to projects and tasks. I had to own it. I credit that breakthrough to some chats with my fantastic holistic health coach, Liz. And that was after several months of seeing multiple therapists that certainly laid the groundwork for this mindset shift! (Oh and that’s a whole other part of this journey - how my physical health impacts my mental health! Another post for another day… I digress!)
Inattentive ADHD is More Common in Women but Often Undetected
Inattentive ADD goes undiagnosed in many adult females. In general, ADHD is something many people think of as affecting children and specifically the “H” (hyperactivity). Inattentive is different and that’s why I prefer not to call it ADHD. It just creates confusion to anyone less familiar with the concept. I found so much about what creates an environment in which I will thrive, was provided in the traditional school setting: lots of structure, clear expectations and clear deadlines. There was less of that in college and even less in the workplace. And I think that’s why so many people, women especially, don’t even know to question what’s going on in their world until later in life. I’m no mental health professional, so this is all my opinion but it’s very interesting and I think important to share here on my personal blog! Read more about inattentive ADD here. And here’s a blog post from a woman that details what it’s like as well!
So how do I “help my brain” and make changes in my relationship with technology? Here are three ways I’m finding really help me focus, complete tasks and achieve goals.
Changing the notification settings on the majority of my phone and watch apps.
For some people, notifications are amazing - they alert you of things you might want to know about and you can access their apps only when a notification warrants your attention. For me, it has the opposite effect. Often times, actually pulling my attention away from the task at hand to suck me back into a trance of mindless scrolling. And much to my despise, I’m finding many apps have begun to push notifications for things that have nothing to do with your account, things they think you’ll find interesting… because ultimately they just want you to spend more time on their app, making them more money. That really grinds my gears! I realize this is all part of many app companies’ business model and I don’t mean to be a hater, but we could all use a wake up call when it comes to whether most tech companies have our best interest at heart - spoiler alert, they sadly don’t. And you probably think I’m crazy but I even turned off most notifications on my Apple watch! What’s the point in wearing a smart watch, you ask? Yeah, I continue to ask myself the same and a lot of times I debate ditching it altogether and maybe selling it. But I do like that it reminds me to get up each hour, to take a breath, tracks my movement and exercise and helps when I’m busy but need to answer an important phone call. I found that I really didn’t need app notifications on my watch at all and text message notifications could also be eliminated - those could wait until I CHOSE to check my phone. I thought the whole point of text messaging was to decrease interrupting phone calls by sending a message that could be checked at the recipient’s convenience?? (I realize culturally this has kind of changed to be the quickest way to get a response from someone - also not cool in my opinion… can you tell I’m a bit of an old soul??)
Temporarily putting my phone in a different room.
Sometimes you just have to remove the issue altogether. I’ve tried this when under major deadlines and it always helps. Recently, I left my phone across the room and began my morning devotional. It hit me the first time I went to grab my phone - while in the middle of my time with the Lord - how ridiculous it was that the second I felt myself confused by the scripture or just drifting into la la land, that I felt the need to check my phone… for what?? What was so important it couldn’t wait a few minutes while I studied the word? Or was it that I had trained my brain that when things got challenging or for one iota of a second I got BORED, that my phone would fill the gap? Yikes! But I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess that you too, whether you have inattentive ADHD or not, have done the same. That’s a huge distraction for all of us. But I think as a person with ADD it is SUPER IMPORTANT that I stop and recognize the need to take back control of my mind, specifically my attention during day-to-day tasks.
Going back to pen and paper - keeping a paper planner.
My husband is so great with technology. He loves to access anything from anywhere via his phone. So it makes sense he loves his calendar online. He has a fancy list and task managing app that we share lists and notes on and it’s great. But after many and I do mean MANY attempts to implement a fully online calendar, list and task manager life, I’ve come to terms with the fact that it’s just not for me! Actually it took a therapist getting through to me that just because I do something different doesn’t mean it's less functional. She highly encouraged me to ditch electronic planner life altogether, or when possible, to go back to pen and paper. Writing things down has always helped me. It’s the only way I remembered things from lectures in college. And it helps me remember when things are due, appointments, etc. Physically writing on paper helps me organize my thoughts and sort through ideas. Recognizing that this is something that works really really well for me is so encouraging and I’m now embracing that tactic because I own the fact that it’s the best method for me! P.S. I am LOVING my Golden Coil planner! This is the first year I’ve used Golden Coil and I’m thoroughly impressed, with the quality, the available features and the TOTAL CUSTOMIZATION! Worth every penny!
Taking Back Control of Your Mind
As I continue to make these “tweaks” for a better day (I don’t like saying for productivity because we're not hamsters trying to make our wheels spin faster, we are children of God) I’m getting more comfortable with “owning” my unique brain. It’s less of a “be like all the normal hamsters” mindset and more of a “what can I change about my day to better serve the Lord with intention and a gracious heart?” mindset. And that’s given me a lot of grace too. Long before I found out about my inattentive ADD, I loved reading, listening, studying to books, podcasts, articles, etc. that discussed our relationship with technology. I think all too often we mindlessly accept new things because we buy the stories of how they’ll improve our lives. But it’s kind of like we continue to hand over the keys to our car or the credit card in our wallet without much thought. Because life will be better, we say! But it’s okay to say no to things. We can utilize tech without it puppeteering us. We just have to take back the keys and the credit cards to our lives! We get to decide. Here’s your encouragement to be the gatekeeper of your mind and to embrace your unique brain! :)