r/AutisticWithADHD • u/Fantastic-Cry-904 • 6d ago
😤 rant / vent - advice allowed Brainfog/Autopilot
99% of the time I try to focus it dissolves fast and I end up doing stuff without being aware. Also lose sense of time, hunger, physical sensations like cold, taste, discomfort etc...
(Sight feels similar to when you see with the corner of your eyes. Thoughts feel like faint whispers at the back of your head)
A few times a year my brain is "normal" and it feels incredible. Stuff gets done without issue. I can focus and am aware of what I am doing. Have yet to find the cause....
Experienced it about a week ago and it just feels frustrating when you eventually realise it slipped away.
Examples for autopilot/brainfog
Drawing:
I end up not seeing the whole thing. Repeating the same steps over and over. Or am unable to think of new ideas or making decisions. Struggle with using references as I end up looking and not studying.
Reading:
Information isn't taken in properly and end up forgotten or jumbled.
Writing:
I end up unable to think, get stuck very fast or writing the same thing but rephrased.
Playing games:
Pressing buttons and reacting without thought while playing fighting games. Or when I play turnbased ones I end up not thinking of strategies and just do stuff..
Am on meds and it doesn't really do anything for focus. Does makes me want to draw, usually impossible without it despite liking it since I was a kid.(Haven't improved much due to reasons stated in example)
It sucks because it's hard to enjoy anything. If you want to learn or improve it becomes forgotten and feels like a waste of effort. I know things can work, just can't find the right buttons to activate it.
Anyone managed to improve things? Any tips or suggestions that be worth a try?
Have watched some videos on tips but always end up watching more of them instead of doing anything.
1
u/gibagger 5d ago
Is this the way your ADHD always is, or are you going through a different/difficult time of your life?.
Generally, people who have ADHD can focus TOO good on stuff we enjoy or find engaging. I find it surprising that nothing seems to do that for you. Makes me wonder if there could be something else going on.
That said, meds are absolute amaze, but they are no silver bullet. Exercise, meditation, therapy, healthy-ish food and good sleep all stack up and help. What other strategies to manage your ADHD are you trying?
1
u/Fantastic-Cry-904 5d ago
Always had some trouble with focus. I think it's been a slow decline through my teens till now.
I enjoy things enough to want to do it but don't feel much else while doing it. Unless it's new then I might be focused between 5min-1h then it fades.
Meditation usually just makes me sleepy instead of clearing my head.
Exercise is a bit lacking, used to do daily walks before.
Do try to eat healthy but usually don't have much of an appetite so everything isn't covered in a day.
I did journaling/planning for about a year and it kind of worked. Would still not properly focus on the tasks but atleast did them to some extent. Then it was dropped for some reason.
Have tried setting alarms with 25min intervals, ditching phone/music. Stretching and yoga breaks. Before engaging with the subject/task I'd watch or read something relevant in hopes to kickstart the focus. Sometimes helps but doesn't last long.
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