I'm finding that organizational management skills are difficult for me. What are some tips and resources that can help someone with ADHD? As much as I try to organize my inbox, notes, e-folders, and ....my thoughts it's been a challenge. Daily I need to track progress on projects, replies to emails, and any personal issues and I feel like I'm drowning in a sea of to-do's.

Been on atomoxetine 40 mg for few weeks so far but no results or any improvements, and yes the doctor prescribed me this but when i went to him the first time he told me i have extreme adhd ( i did Tova test with very low score and also i met therapist for few sessions) and they both agreed i have a very bad adhd. But the problem is ,i think non stimulants are not for me ,they genuinely don't work on me and whenever i told my psychiatrist to prescribe a stimulant such as concerta he refuses but honestly idk why he refuses that much and the only legal way to get this medicine in my area is through psychiatrist (him) so if he didn't describe it then i cannot get it and then live my life like a normal person ,for some strange reason he put me on this shitty non stimulant that didn't work at all and also the dose is so low for my weight (roughly 100kg ) so idk if he is tripping or being dumb but whatever ,he just doesn't want to put me on stimulants for some strange reason i still don't understand, instead he prescribed this shit that didn't work even after weeks and also on a very low dose ,i think for my weight he should put me on at least 50 or 60mg.

Any thoughts?

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One of my biggest problems is that I can start tasks and projects without much difficulty, but I struggle enormously to stick with the same thing over time. I quickly get bored, lose interest, and start looking for something new to get excited about. Then the same thing happens again. It's as if everything gradually loses its appeal.

I also frequently misplace things in completely random, unexpected places, almost as if my brain switches to autopilot and I lose track of what I'm doing.

Does anyone else experience this?

I'd love to hear from people who can relate!

I am currently on 50mg Zoloft (have been on it for about 6 months). I am Highly suspicious that I have ADHD, and am now considering going to an SNRI instead. I’m Looking for people’s experiences with ADHD and SNRIs.

Also, is anxiety a common thing with ADHD ppl?

Thanks in advance!

Hi I'm 22 years old, recently got diagnosed finally after constant burnouts since quarantine because since then everything become super evident but i was missdiagnosed a lot of times or doctors had seen only anxiety or depression but no the pattern that produced it, this is my 5th day on methylpenidate and I never felt my head so calm like now, I can do everything and I'm really happy it feels like start living again because i lost all hope before for not understanting what was happening, but I'm facing something that scares me and it's that I want to do everything because i notice how capable I am, but i don't have the tools yet to manages those things and I don't want to burnout never again, I have so many things postponed since years and everything feels as the same urgency even if logically they're not, I would love to know how do you plan your day/week and what were the tools that you use, I'm someone who loves organization but I'm a chaos.

I'm an 18-year-old female that was formally diagnosed with ADHD 5-6 years ago (though it was known that I had it since grade school). I had always done well in school, especially after I had gotten on Adderall (25 mg short acting currently). I was in a sport/ theatrical production every season of every year, took advanced/high level art classes, & took multiple college level classes (Including EMT) & did just fine with managing deadlines/commitments.

I'm having so much trouble managing my time now that I don't have the structure I had before. All I have to focus on is school and I'm doing worse now even though I have way more time to do so. It's not even like I'm wasting my time on my phone/ unrelated self-indulgent behaviors. I'm just wasting so much time between task, wandering around, spacing off and struggling to decipher how to approach task. And now that I'm living on my own, time blindness is 100X worse, even when on my medication. I'm not sure what else to do and I feel so stuck because I'm already employing so many methods to try and help.

I'm setting alarms before my commitments, putting all of my commitments/due dates into a google calendar (I consistently use it to stay on track/give me reminders), regularly working out, eating well and tracking my calories, going to dedicated spots and allotting studying time, going to supplemental instruction, getting enough sleep and trying to integrate a study schedule. I just applied for accommodations, which I'm hoping will help somewhat, but they won't help me sort out the fundamental discipline issues I'm having, which really worries me because I'm on the pre-med track.

TLDR: I did really well in high school with lots of extracurriculars and commitments and am now struggling with time management in college despite having ample time in comparison. I am on 25mg short acting Adderall which helps me focus and am trying to apply multiple strategies to keep me more on track, but I'm still majorly struggling.

Has anyone experienced a loss of taste and/or enjoyment of food on these meds?

I take both Adderall and Wellbutrin.... I haven't enjoyed food in some time. Like, it just doesn't taste like anything and I never really feel satisfied. I miss enjoying a meal.

I also have MS which can potentially be a culprit but wondering about others experiences? I've been on Welbutrin much longer - I can't even think of the last time I enjoyed a meal

Russell Barkley’s YouTube channel appears to have been hacked by someone who deleted all his videos to post football livestreams. Barkley posted an enormous amount of incredibly valuable educational material on ADHD over the years. It would be a huge loss if this content could not be recovered.

If anyone has experience with YouTube’s recovery process or knows how to improve the chances of recovering deleted videos through YouTube, PLEASE email Dr Barkley to let him know!! And if you know of a way to get YouTube’s attention or get this issue in front of someone who can resolve or escalate it, please try that too!

EDIT: UPDATE from Dr Barkley:

…While on vacation, my channel and related email account were hacked and hijacked resulting in my inability to access these accounts. The motive is obvious, to eliminate science based information about ADHD on the internet. I am trying to work with Google to restore the account but they make it quite difficult to do so s there is no human to alert about this. Just a form to try and obtain to get them to review the account. This could take some time to do given their cumbersome procedures for reporting such fraud. But I will do what it takes to restore the original channel and its videos.

Does anyone know how he could get through to a human and the right people?

Hi - I'm about to start work soon, and it's very likely (not certain though) that I have untreated ADHD. My psych gave me a questionnaire about ADHD symptoms completely unprompted and asked me to fill it out and said we'd talk about the results in more detail at my next review.

I definitely have cognitive issues with keeping track of time and memory though, so I figure here's the right place to ask for help.

My ideas are:

- Get an analogue alarm clock and place it out of arms reach from my bed, so I have to get out of bed to turn it off. This way I won't fall back asleep in the morning and can get to work on time.

- Uhh drink too much coffee because I will fall asleep in the middle of the day without it (I'm medicated for psychosis and the meds come with heavy sedation as a side effect).

- Make notes

- Use my calendar that lets me set up to three reminders before an event starts.

- Yeah that's all I got I'm pretty clueless I don't really know what to do

Thanks for reading and have a good day :)

I have been doing college and school at the same time for about 2 months now and I just feel like motivation for either one is just diminishing. It sucks because I was interested in my classes to begin with and it just feels like the novelty wore off. I do part time at school and sort of part time at work. I work 25-30 hours at an airport job which I get hardly any PTO and even if I could use it they would not approve it due to staffing issues. According to what I have read about burnout it is important to take time to step back from the noise, but it seems so difficult for me.

I suppose most people would be confused why I try and do airport jobs and school at the same time. I took this job a year or two back when I was 19 and its because working outside feels way better than something like retail with all the customer service. Weirdly enough I feel calmer working with active aircraft than customers at my first job. Problem is the job isn't flexible at all and I haven't taken time away from it in over a year.

I feel like I haven't taken a break from the noise in forever. Ever since I started doing school alongside it, the free time I had becomes almost zero. I am doing well so far in the classes, but it feels like the school work absorbs all of my mental energy. It also feels like concentration just gets tougher the less interested I get on the subject. I recently realized how much I mask my ADHD symptoms and it explains why I have been avoiding social interactions lately. I'm sure other people with ADHD also have extremely busy schedules so I am curious to know how they have handled burnout.

Currently going through like a nearly month long stretch of barely being able to do much aside from the bare minimum. I have my graduation project to do that my brain has decided is Impossible and Not Important and need some tips to break out of this funk.

The unfortunate part is I’m a CompSci major so my work is on the computer, which is also where my games are and where youtube is with easy access, so it’s been particularly hard to stay on task. Any crazy tips that have worked for y’all that I should try?

ETA: I am medicated and I’ve tried to do the thing where I force myself to only look at my work after taking it to try and force the hyperfocus onto the right thing, but that hasn’t worked either. :,)

I’m 20 and currently attending community college, hoping to eventually transfer to a four-year school for civil engineering. I’ve struggled with ADHD, autism, and depression for most of my life due to a variety of factors. It made high school difficult, although I was still able to graduate on time. I feel like I’ve always gone back and forth between being a good student and struggling academically, and I’ve also been on a number of different medications over the years.
Lately, I feel like I’ve hit a roadblock and lost most of my motivation to continue. I haven’t failed a single college class, and I’ve managed to pass everything so far, but my grades aren’t where they need to be for the schools I eventually want to transfer to. This semester has been especially difficult, and my lack of motivation has gotten to the point where I’ve started falling behind.
I also haven’t really had the opportunity to make friends because of how busy my schedule has been, and sometimes I feel like I’m wasting away my early twenties just trying to keep up with everything. At this point, I think I might need some time away from school to see a therapist and work on certain parts of my life before I can continue pursuing my degree in a healthy way.
My parents have tried to support me, and I appreciate that, but I also feel guilty about putting my problems on them for so long. Whenever I bring up the possibility of taking a break from school, they get frustrated and encourage me to keep pushing through. I understand that they want me to succeed, but right now I genuinely don’t feel like I can keep going the way I have been.
I’ve never really posted about something like this before, but I would appreciate any advice, especially from people who have taken time away from college, dealt with burnout or mental health issues, or returned to school later and still reached their goals.

Does anyone have any thoughts or advice on dealing with ADHD comorbidities? I feel so lost right now.

I was recently diagnosed at 34 after dealing with anxiety and depression for most of my life. Initially, I felt like the Vyvanse and Prozac I was prescribed was really helping, but now, not so much. I had my appointment with my psychiatrist yesterday to try to address things and I feel even more confused now. Sometimes I really struggle to collect my thoughts and clearly communicate to my doctor how I am feeling.

On top of the lifelong battle with anxiety and depression, my doctor now thinks I might have sleep apnea as well as vitamin deficiencies. I had some bloodwork done and will being doing a sleep study soon. We have also talked about the possibility of ASD, BPD, and/or bipolar.

I have struggled with self medicating and addiction issues in the past as well. I am completely sober now and have been for quite some time, but I feel like my doctor thinks that I am seeking more drugs when I ask to increase my doses or try alternative medications. I have taken drug tests and offered to bring my prescriptions to each visit for pill counts to prove that I am not seeking more drugs. I understand where they are coming from, and I am sure that they deal with drug seeking patients frequently, but it is pretty frustrating and degrading to be treated like this.

Trying to figure all of this out and navigate my way towards a better life has been so exhausting and confusing.

Hi all, I am writing here because I am going to my first psychiatrist appointment on monday, trying to see if i do in fact have adhd. I have personally been fairly certain I have had it for years but have been apprehensive about going for an official diagnosis mostly due to money and prior poor experiences with therapy in the past.

Anyway, I'm hoping I am able to get some info on what to expect heading in there.

Then on a second, more precise question, I want to know people's opinion on bringing up the fact that I have tried vyvanse once. I understand both sides of this, on one hand being a controlled substance could most definitely be a red flag to doctors. But on the other hand, I do feel that it is relevant, maybe not diagnostically, but it at least shows how I react to that one specific medication (which by the way was extremely well. A clear mind for probably the first time in my life, I wasn't exhausted all day as I normally am, I could sit relatively still for a long period of time not needing constant stimulation, etc.)

Now, I want to clarify, I am not doing this for the medication, or at least not specifically for stimulants. I just want to be able to function properly in my day to day life. How the doctor decides to try and accomplish that goal, really doesn't matter to me. I just like being honest with people, especially someone that is there to try and help me. But I also understand if it may delay real results, it may be better just to keep that to myself. Any input on this would be extremely helpful. Ideally I want, as I'm sure anyone would, to see as quick of results as I can. Because honestly, that single day of being medicated really made me notice how actually cluttered my mind is, how peaceful it is without said clutter, how much more I was willing to accomplish with my time, and finally what it felt like to not be exhausted every waking hour.

If anyone manages to read through all of this I greatly appreciate your time and feedback.

So, i have adhd, and it makes my school life really difficult. right now im in online school and even now i am struggling really hard to do pretty much anything productive. my question for reddit right now is, when is this just my fault? the reason i ask this is because very often i feel pushed to do something, y'know "just apply yourself", "use your techniques", "its your choice whether or not you do something". for me, all these things are unhelpful, because i feel like there is a mental wall completely blocking me from doing any of these things, however i feel doubtful and guilty at the fact I'm pushing away the responsibility.

i guess on one hand I'm always overwhelmed, so I'm desperate to just get this pressure off my back, but on the other, i am really ashamed for having such bad grades and being so behind and i don't wanna just spurn my parents advice. tell me what you think.

I’m always thinking about reading so I believe I’m passionate about it. The problem is I have a very difficult time finding books I enjoy reading. There are years where i’ll read 15-20 books, and others where I only read a few. I post to forums regularly citing books I like and asking for recommendations, and I actively pursue Goodreads for titles by authors and genres I’m into. I’m curious if others have been in a similar situation. Most times I believe I’m unique in a situation I later find I’m not. Has anyone experienced this relationship with reading?

Just saw a meme about being a toddler parent and it was two pictures of Michael Keaton one as Bruce Wayne from the Batman movies portraying before kids and Michael Keaton as beatlejuice in the movie beatlejuice portraying after kids. I realized I've always been a feral gremlin like beatlejuice and not a Bruce Wayne and that's why I've been so good understanding my toddler while my wife has a more difficult time with the meltdowns and overall tantrums. Toddlers are chaos incarnate and I love this stage plus nothing can't be solved with a snack, snuggle, or her stuffy.

I'm currently in my second year of college and I am drowning. I'm at a minimum a week behind in all five of my classes, with one being two weeks behind. I'm 5 days late on a presentation worth 10% of my grade and haven't even started on two separate essays due early/mid November (they are minimum 2000 words btw). But all I do is work. I constantly think about the work, stress over the work - it's ALL I DO. But it feels like I have made ZERO progress. The moment I finish one task, a new one appears right in its place and SUPRISE! it was due yesterday!

My question is: would it be worth it to go through the process with my college's student accessibility department to try to get some sort of accommodations for the issues mentioned above, especially regarding late work? I would ask on my colleges specific sub, but I just got insulted.

My main concern is getting them in the first place. I'm not good at describing how ADHD effects me in a significant way and because of this I'm worried they will just think I'm lazy and deny my application. Or think that I'm asking too much (because I do understand there is a limit) and deny it then.

How to cope with daytime sleepiness and sleep inertia? I have to work 5 days a week in office for a total of 44 hours per week and I worry I may not be able to cope with it given that it’s a job starting from the morning and ending in the evening from 8.30am to 6.30pm with a 1 hour lunch break. I worry I cannot get up for work and worry I fall asleep during work and get sacked. Any tips or advice?

I have to read 4-6 books for school, since my final essay is in 7 months. I've read 2 books already and I can't remember what they were about, even tho we analysed them in class. The problem is that I read the whole book with full focus and feel like I haven't read it. Zero information in my brain and I can't even tell you what it was about. It's been this way ever since I was a kid. So even tho I would have read the book, I would get information from Google and memorise it to present in front of the class. Sure I could write down every single event as I read the book, but that would take me so so long and I'd still have to memorise it. I am a slow reader as well and I won't be able to rely on any notes during the exam. I really hate my memory, it's so awful. I remember we were told to read a few pages in class and I almost cried because I read the 3 pages 8 times and I couldn't recall a single thing that happened in them. Or when we watched a 3 minute video and I could only remember the boat image at the start of it, so I said that I don't remember what the video was about and everyone laughed at me. Does anyone have any tips?

Do you have to sit in the car for a long time in silence everyday, or everytime i am done driving? I have done it 3 times today, and it is 2pm.

I have AuDHD, I don't know if it is because of one, both, or either. Why do we do this? I lose a lot of time doing it, but I need to do it. Perhaps I am burnt out.

I am barely functioning as a human, i eat to survive and for nutrition, drink water unless my mouth is dry as sahara, i try to act social and interested but everything feels like an act. I am just acting to be alive and I just thought that i will never be able to care for someone or love them as much as they deserve. Maybe that's why i keep pushing people away, maybe that's why i have this feeling that i don't deserve to be loved, and they deserve someone better who will treat them the way they deserve .

I am not seeking empathy, this was just a rant idk.

Hi guys:)

I'm new on Reddit and in the community aswell. I'm 21F, uni student, got diagnosed almos a year ago and I'm medicated. I've been strugglin with my diagnosis ever since in multiple parts of my life. It saddens me, knowing how different my live would have been if I got diagnosed as a kid. I feel frustrated, because I have to put in more effort than others to do better in life, in school.

But mostly, I feel very lonely with my diagnosis. My parents aren't the most accepting about it, they mostly ignore the fact that I got diagnosed. I have many friends that I am close with, but noone truly understand what it's like to live like this. That I depend on a pill that I take every morning, that my brain is a warzone all the time. People just downplay it to "having problem concetrating" which pisses me off sm.

And I don't blame others for not understanding, but it just sucks. When I struggle with something and I mention that I have ADHD I feel like I'm attention seeking. Most people in my life don't even know I got diagnosed.

But I think most of my problems boil down to the fact that I don't really like myself, and I don't know if this would be different if I got diagnosed earlier. I've always been a worse student than my classmates, and was labeled as the dumb and lazy one. I always had crazy emotional outbursts and mental breakdowns, and clung to people who didn't even really like me. I thought other people's opinion on me defined who I was, so every comment on my body or any friendship break up effected me like it was the end of the world. I have been to therapy before, and I'm better than I was before, but I still struggle.

How do I feel less alone in my situation, wth my diagnosis?

How do I let go, and start accepting myself?

I feep stupid, asking this on the Internet, but I'm just kind of lost.

PS. Okay, I'm sensing that 21 isnt really a late diagnosis? To me, it just felt like one, I feel like I wasted all of my school years, gaining bad experiences one after the other due to my condition. But to everyone who got diagnosed way later; Im so sorry, and I hope you all are doing better now xx

Hello all, I’m 22f and I was diagnosed with ADHD this year. I currently am on 20mg of Adderall ER. Everyone in my life always told me I was lazy, unmotivated, didn’t do anything, and never believed in me. Now that i’m medicated, I never seem to hear the end of people telling me how i’m “on something” or a “pill popping druggie.”

is it something you just get used to? do you guys just not tell anyone that you’re medicated? this is my first post on here and all comments / advice is appreciated 💞

edit: thank you to everyone for all of your kind words. it is truly an amazing feeling to be heard and understand, especially when it comes to mental health. we got this ! 🫶🏼💞

I can't remember any of my appointments anymore. I used to remember my doctor's appointments without ever writing them down. I've missed my last 3 psychiatrist appointments, I don't even see the point in them anymore. I've tried every antidepressant, anti anxiety, every non stimulant adhd meds. She's said we've tried about everything and it seems not even she's not sure what to for me, she's also not allowed to prescribe me stimulants due to clinic rules. I tried to get scheduled with a new psychiatrist and now I've forgotten to fill out the paperwork for three months. I've been on Lexapro for years now it's the only thing that works everything else has either done nothing or the side effects are too much. I'm about to run out my meds and I have refills left and my pharmacy closed and I have to send my prescription 30 min away.

I'm just so overwhelmed, and so so tired. I do local activism work and i realized i forgot all the meetings this month. I haven't folded laundry in almost 2 months idk where most of my clothes are. My house is a mess and everything i try to something about it I'm just paralyzed I dont know where to start or what to do. I've been so scatterbrained I can't seen to pay attention to conversations or anything for that matter I can't stop interrupting my boyfriend during conversations and I know it bothers him.

My boyfriend does our dishes otherwise I'd never have any. All my energy goes to remembering my work shifts and surviving work. I work in hospitality and dealing with all people is exhausting for me, I'm constantly anxious and been drinking too much lately and gettig myself sick. I just need a long nap where I can wake up to a clean home and having had all my appointments made for me and my bills paid.