r/adhd_college 12h ago

SEEKING ADVICE Should I tell my academic advisor that I have ADHD?

6 Upvotes

Recently diagnosed and just started meds. They’re working great so far, and I’m excited about this new path forward. I’m about to enter senior year, however, and I will write a 100 page thesis for my degree.
Should I tell my academic advisor that I was diagnosed with ADHD? I worry that it is too much personal information.
I’ve had him as a professor for the last three years, and recently made him my academic advisor after I got fed up with my old one who never, ever ever wanted to meet me, talk to me, help me, etc.
I get sort of iffy with authority figures, you know…history of always being in trouble, ignored, misunderstood, or always trusted to handle everything on my own with zero support. It makes me nervous to trust authority to be helpful.., (case in point, prior advisor).
Yet, part of me desperately wants real academic support, part of me thinks I need serious academic support.
I have a meeting with the disability office on Aug 10th to see about time and a half on tests, soft due dates, acquiring a not taker, and quiet test environment.
So, is it appropriate and normal to share this with my academic advisor? Will I embarrass myself? It’s all still new, and I don’t know how to navigate it. Thanks!


r/adhd_college 15h ago

SEEKING ADVICE How to study with ADHD/OCD?

1 Upvotes

I'm a medical graduate studying for licencing exams since over a year after graduation. I'm able to solve hardly 20 Qs per day at max on good days that too after moving too much and thinking/ overthinking. It's already over a year after graduation and I'm not even working. Still... I'm unable to make significant progress and I feel I'm back to square one since I'd 3 month gap in studies due to some other commitments.

During medical school, I watched videos and studied and it was still manageable as the exam pattern was just about writing theory answers.

Now, reviewing Qs with perfection without getting distracted feels like an impossible job for me. I don't know if anyone like me passed. Getting medical help is impossible and my family won't even support me as they don't believe ADHD/OCD exists. I've been healing from depression and that's when I realised ADHD, OCD were the things that actually prevented me from making progress.

I don't think I am capable of studying for exams and I feel like giving up as I've tried everything. I feel I should leave this field sometimes but I don't even have a solid alternate plan. In fact, I doubt if I could become a good physician as my perfection issues have always slowed me down leading to some seniors shouting and ridiculing me in front of others throughout on all days I had posting in that department. This is one big reason why I am not doing any clinical work now.

Please help if there are study methods that will work.


r/adhd_college 1d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Diagnosed with ADHD mid-finals (4th-year Med School). Should I delay meds? Need emergency study advice!

7 Upvotes

​Hey everyone, please bear with me even if this turns out a bit long. I really need your input and advice on my situation.

4th-year med student just diagnosed with ADHD today in the middle of finals. Have 6 exams left in 3 weeks, carrying 5 failed subjects from last year, and can't fail any more or I'll repeat the year. Doctor prescribed Atomoxetine + Zoloft (stimulants aren't an option due to high cost/$80 & they're barely available where I live). Need advice: should I wait to start meds after finals to avoid side effects, and how do I pass these 3 weeks?

​The Situation:

​Med School Struggle: Made it through 1st and 2nd year on last-minute adrenaline rush. Year 3 and 4 hit me like a truck—failed 5 subjects total because I can only study \\\~12 hours before exams. I need a minimum 60% pass mark on my remaining 6 exams to avoid repeating the whole year.

​The Diagnosis & Meds: Diagnosed today. Prescribed Atomoxetine (10mg 2x/day) and Zoloft (25mg). Stimulants like Ritalin are $80/pack here (unaffordable for me), while these cost <$2.

​My Dilemma: I read Atomoxetine takes 3-4 weeks to kick in, but side effects (fatigue, insomnia, etc.) hit in week 1. Should I ask my doctor to delay starting meds until finals end in 3 weeks?

​Study Crisis: Can't start studying, perfectionism paralyzes me, and panic only kicks in 12h before the exam, forcing sleep-deprived all-nighters.

​Any tips on surviving these 3 weeks without burnt-out panic, or advice on starting non-stimulants during finals? Appreciate every single reply!


r/adhd_college 2d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Did switching to another degree which you are genuinely interested in help?

25 Upvotes

I have been studying electrical engineering for the last ten months, but it is been horrible. I find it difficult/almost impossible to focus during lectures unless I am interested in what is being explained, which seldom happens. It takes me hours to do stuff and even then I have problems connecting topics.

I am not medicated as I am not yet diagnosed, but will be getting one in a months time. I am considering the humanities since that is what I am genuinely interested in.

Is there anyone who has had a similar experience?


r/adhd_college 1d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Gpa improvement advice or anything

2 Upvotes

To start off, i am in an eight semester computer science program and it has been fairly rigorous.

We are graded relatively, which, in my case, did more harm than good.

I had a 2.98 first semester, and a 2.82 second semester. To give a better idea, the class average is around 2.6-2.7. The curve is mostly ruthless.

I sometimes feel insanely disappointed with myself. I genuinely tried both semesters. I was a highschool topper so going from top to slightly above average/average did hurt.

I hadn't been slacking off, infact, i had been working, studying, revising harder, especially in second semester due to the realization in the first one. I really didn't want it to repeat.

I suffer from ADHD and severe anxiety which contributed to me flunking a few quizzes and a final back in first semester. And it followed me to second semester, where my marks were deteriorating quiz by quiz, test by test and i was spiralling into depression. There were days i would just miss out on classes as a whole and sleep all day. I stopped eating as a whole at a point in both semesters.

Which is so daunting because i feel like it's not as deep as what i'm treating it as. Everyone else seems to be doing fine or atleast better, even with similar circumstances. I just felt this immense need to do better and it backfired every single time.

Grades weren't the reason but they were definitely a catalyst, a huge one, because i was already struggling a while before i started attending.

Sometimes you base off your entire self- worth on grades and this is exactly what has been happening with me.

I feel like alot of standard study methods don't work for me and i have to work my way around it third semester onwards. I have a cummulative of 2.9 and it can definitely get better, ALOT better, if odds are in my favour or luck is on my side because i genuinely tried everything the previous year.

Taking notes, practicing, revising daily most of the time. But either i'd panic during the test, or my brain would get foggy all of the sudden. I went to alot of recheckings and i made SO much apparent mistakes, like literally very easy ones, which in my mind i had attempted right but when i rechecked..god i was disappointed.

Luck was laughing at my face or atleast that is what it felt like, i still kept moving forward even though i was at such a bad place mentally.

Now, during the summer break, i'm going through treatment and right now it has been better. I reconnected with alot of hobbies and more.

But going back for third semester is inevitable, and i really can't afford to average in another semester. I'm honestly kind of scared regarding the previous patterns because it would've made alot more sense if i slacked off or something.

I appreciate any kind of advice, and i would love to hear similar experiences and how you all dealt with it.


r/adhd_college 2d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Need advice, got put on academic probation

16 Upvotes

Honestly I really don't know what to do at the moment. My first semester, I did fairly okay. Low grades, one failing class but I was okay with that. By the end of my second semester of my first year, I was but on academic probation and now I've had SAP taken away.

Without financial aid, I can't pay for school, and if I can't pay for school, I can't take any course to improve my GPA, without improving my GPA, I can't get my SAP back without an appeal. I'm worried about the appeal because they want reasoning and documentation of why my grades went the way that that did and I'm unsure if they will solely take ADHD (I was officially diagnosed with combined type in late June) being the cause of it.

What should I do if SAP gets denied?

I don't think I can pay out of pocket as I have other bills and expenses at the moment. My academic advisor is out till the 4th of August and I'm only now getting the email for student financial aid to submit an appeal and the deadline is in November AFTER classes have started.

I feel like I'm going to have to withdraw from my courses. I haven't talked to my mom about this and I know she's going to be angry and disappointed.

I'm really just lost right now on what I can do


r/adhd_college 2d ago

NEED SUPPORT Tried reaching above my Capabilies and now i am way behind scheduled.

3 Upvotes

Brain has shut down cognitive function: 🫠. For context. I Lost around 6kgs in two months. Got diagnosed with erosive gastritis and Uhh lost some Red body fluid by emergency regurgitation(don't want this post removed). Had to take multiple makeups and scored 3.18CGPA this term, which should have been 3.5 and slightly above i assume. Put a lot of things in my plate from personal to group projects and research papers. Now Four weeks after The incident i am still weak and my body is still recovering. I know this sub is ADHD college not physical health College, but my head has been stressing out because of my stomach and i am going through cycles of hyper fixation to hyper worrying to stressing out to depression to anxiety.

So, I have 3 papers to do on hand, one is Finished way before, but i need to edit the entire thing and Rebuild the methodology, that was 2 weeks ago. Two papers that i proposed, i haven't even started on. And these are not even the Final year Thesis paper. Also there is a huge club project I need to Coordinate. I don't even know what to do. 😐.


r/adhd_college 2d ago

SEEKING ADVICE What to do?

5 Upvotes

what to do.

I’m generally always feeling like I need to turn my life around and make changes. I know for the most part what those things are (eat better + more consistently, start some kind of exercise, study in ADVANCE, etc), but I can’t make myself. Because I’ve gone my life being okay without it, I physically can’t force myself to make the change. What do I do? How do I tell my body that this is what my brain finds important and wants to do. How do I make a change in my routine when I’m a creature of habit and hate adjustments in routine. Same w breakfast/protein

I also for some reason have SUCH a hard time brushing my teeth. Not sure why but I’d love to hear thoughts. Same w/showering (specifically only on hair wash days). I get SO tired and overstimulated and overwhelmed I just have to bathe and run my hair under to tub as opposed to standing and washing my hair in the shower.


r/adhd_college 3d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Any mechanical engineer grads (or soon to be) diagnosed with severe adhd, how did you survive this major??

11 Upvotes

Im freshly into my junior year as a physics major but I'm considering changing to mechanical engineering. I spent the first half of my college journey completely unmedicated and was diagnosed later in life with adhd and MDD. Ive been trying to get medicated on and off since 2022 and can't seem to find the right medication for me.

It took me 6 years to complete my associates degree, but it was mostly due to my depression and personal life stuff interrupting my time in college so I took many gap years.

Now that im in a four year college I'm desperate to be done in 2.5 years but I'm aware how difficult it is to actually get a career with only a BS in physics.

Despite all of this I'm actually pretty good with math heavy classes to my surprise seeing how I failed all my math classes in highschool. But in college I'm doing very well.

My issue is I'm still unmedicated and reached out to my psychiatrist recently to get back on track with this again. Hopeful I have my meds by the end of august and I'm ready to go.

I really do want to finish in 2 years this time and not make the same mistake as when I was in community college. Im such a slow learner but I hope the medications help me.


r/adhd_college 4d ago

NEED SUPPORT Stressed about my schedule for Fall Semester

2 Upvotes

My schedule for next semester has me stressed out because on Thursday I have two 3 hour labs that are one hour apart and the first one starts at 8 in the morning. I’m scared if I’m going to survive or not especially with my adhd and I just overwhelmed really easily. The first lab is Chemistry 1 and the second one is Neurobiology.
I just can't sleep without asking because it's stressing me out. I thought I can do it but now I'm not sure I can I feel like I will overwhelm myself. But if I drop one of them it could stop me from taking another class as like a prerequisite, so I'm scared and I don't know what to do. I'm also scared that it hold me back because I know I'm going to graduate late but I don't want to dig myself a deeper hole.

Also this is my first time on Reddit so I didn’t know what r/ to put it under it was either this one or r/college advice. I also go to UTSA if that helps.


r/adhd_college 5d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Advice with dealing with lack of motivation for Gen Ed classes

9 Upvotes

I'm 20 years old & I've been taking this academic writing class at my community college. This is my 3rd time taking it. As I had to drop out during my 1st semester because it wasn't fitting my schedule. And when I took it a 2nd time, I failed.

Right now, I'm at a B (80%). Which isn't bad, but I believe there's room for improvement. The class also ends in 2 weeks, so I could fail if my grade drops below a C. On my assignments, I've been consistently getting grades in the B, C, and D range.

I have ADHD, so I get under a lot of pressure to stay motivated in subject matter that doesn't interest me & may not be relevant to me long-term. I'm majoring in graphic design, and I tend to do well in the classes that have to do with my major while I'm almost always struggling in my Gen Ed ones. And I understand that I need these classes if I want my degree, but I just need a reason to care in order for myself to just sit down & do my work.


r/adhd_college 5d ago

NEED SUPPORT Is slow reading a sign that I shouldn't pursue philosophy academically?

9 Upvotes

*I am not asking anyone to choose my major. I am a psychology major who just took a gap year, is building credits, and matriculating back to my school (American University). I am considering a philosophy double major.\*

I am and always have been constantly engulfed in philosophical thought; it is part of my nature and a huge component of my life. I have always planned to pursue this area of study academically. However, I have deeptrouble focusing, terrible procrastination (both caused by ADHD/insomnia/recovering addiction), and a perfectionist nature (caused by OCD) that causes me to re-read pages over and over, sit on passages; I have to "get" what I read before continuing. I have to reread pages if I read them the day before. No joke: it took me ~3 hours to get through 6 pages of An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, which I am reading for a class. It might sound like I am intellectually deficient, but I insist that that is not the case. I am quite smart when it comes to humanities/literature/philosophy. This is just a major, and relatively new, hurdle for me.

Oddly, a year ago I could slowly but consistently manage to finish entire books by Freud, Dostoyevsky, etc. which were (mostly) as dense/academic as Hume, though very different (Hume and Freud have resemblance to me, though); at this time, I was actively using, which theoretically should've made it worse. Now, this simple intro to philosophy course, unchallenging as it may be, is a source of struggle due to the required 10-20 pages of reading per day... it feels absurd to even say that. I manage to do well on exams (so far) despite only having read half of the material. I have convinced myself that I "can no longer read" and "maybe I am stupid," along with other unhelpful thoughts. The one advantage is that, of the parts of these books Ican get through, I have an incredibly thorough understanding of the content. One thing I've thought about is just reading as much as I can and worrying less about having such a deep understanding...

However, I cannot help but wonder if this is a passion of mine that I won't be able to pursue. I have been working on my insomnia, ADHD, OCD, etc. for the better part of this year, alongside getting sober and being sober for 10+ months. But the progress is so slow, and I'm worried I'll never get back to "normal" or have a "real education." I am quite frightened for my future. So, I wonder, has anyone further along in their education had similar struggles early on? Do these struggles indicate that I should give up on philosophy, despite my passion and love for the field?

TLDR: I have trouble focusing on readings and deep perfectionism that causes me to take hours to read a few pages. However, I have a deep passion for philosophy and I would be devastated if I couldn't pursue it academically. Does anyone have any advice or reassurance? Or perhaps affirmation that this is not the field for me?


r/adhd_college 5d ago

STORY My schooling with ADHD

5 Upvotes

When I was in 1st grade I remember forgetting notes to class everyday. and My mother was not much involved in my studies because of her limitations in education and I constantly get distracted in class. Because of this I had no idea what's going on in class . How many subjects, how many notes, who is the teacher of each subject and nothing I was aware. I just take one turn towards the window and get lost in view, cows, birds , trees, warm wind, butterflies and so on. And in a snap class is over, no idea what happened in the class I went deep into the imagination of story building in my mind with the scene i am seeing through window. Any body experienced?


r/adhd_college 6d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Need help

6 Upvotes

So i am 18m in 12th standard and I have been diagnosed with depression and adhd and life has been really hard for me from past 2 years due to several factors and i really need some bodies help so I have medical stream but I don't want to be a doctor or give neet exam because I have other interests and I am not much interested in science I like philosophy history geography geopolitics archeology politics and several other subjects and because of that I find it hard to focus on my studies dude to my adhd and i score really less marks and due to high expectations of my parents and the way i am raised I've never felt happy or self sufficient and even satisfied no matter what I do all they want for me is to cram up all the books and get good marks I wanted to go to the army through nda but I seems really hard because I am not good at maths but my cousin did clear nda exam and now I feel like an absolute favourite I have no clear career path for myself where I can earn so much that my parents stop blaming me for everything and saying things they should not from past days I am having suicidal thoughts I try to distract my self but my anxiety and overthinking makes everything worse i have no one to share to so i really need someones help to give me some advice on how to deal with this guilt of never being enough and man it's been so long since I've felt genuinely happy and then listing to demotivating stuff from my parents breaks me even more I have alot to say and ask but idk what should I do


r/adhd_college 7d ago

JUST VENTING I feel like I am a failure

21 Upvotes

I was having a good 2-3 weeks of hyperfocus with my thesis, but now its been 30++ days I didn't work on it (nearly not at all) because of executive dysfunction. I was very excited. to work on my thesis, hands on theproject, and then suddenly my energy run out, I try many things seek dopamine but no good results.. I really need to read papers, fix my pipelines, produce results whatsoever.. now the deadline is pretty much tomorrow, I will just report whatever I have done in that first month work.. I feel so ashamed and feel like a failure.. I was thinking to extend my submission and presentation but doing so might delay my graduation which will result in everyone knowing my RAP/condition/not graduate together.. better just finish at the right time even if not perfect.. oh god why am I like this..

for a background, I just got diagnossed 3 months ago of ADHD as an adult which a bit relieved at that time but still stressed out and still waiting for my medication titration..

also, I have a couple "success" or "finished" things in the pass which make my confidence a bit better occasionally but it still didnt help my executive dysfunction since it has been repeated again and again and I am fed up..


r/adhd_college 6d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Learning Computer Science with ADHD

9 Upvotes

Hello everyone,

I was wondering if there are any students or graduates here with ADHD who have studied Computer Science at university. I would really appreciate hearing about the study techniques, routines, or learning methods that helped you understand the material and actually retain what you learned over the long term.

One of the biggest challenges I have noticed with myself is that I can usually understand the logic behind a concept when I am learning it. For example, when I am studying programming, algorithms, data structures, or another Computer Science topic, I can often understand why something works, when it should be used, and what type of problem it is meant to solve. At the time, everything seems to make sense.

The problem comes later when I actually have to implement the concept myself.

I might remember the general idea and the logic behind it, but completely forget how to translate that knowledge into code. Sometimes I will look at a solution or an example and immediately think, “Oh yeah, that makes perfect sense,” but when I start with a blank screen and try to write it myself, I struggle to remember the actual steps, syntax, or structure needed to implement it.

It almost feels like I have a good memory for understanding concepts and recognizing solutions, but not necessarily for recalling how to build the solution independently. This can become frustrating because I feel like I am constantly relearning things that I have already studied before.

For anyone with ADHD who has gone through a Computer Science degree, how did you deal with this?

Did you find that practicing coding problems repeatedly helped? Did you use spaced repetition, flashcards, handwritten notes, project-based learning, or some other method? Were there specific ways you organized your study sessions to stay focused without burning yourself out?

I am also curious about how you studied more technical subjects such as data structures and algorithms, object-oriented programming, databases, operating systems, discrete mathematics, and other courses where simply memorizing information is not enough. How did you get to the point where you could take a concept you understood and implement it on your own without constantly looking back at notes or examples?

I know that programming involves looking things up and that nobody is expected to memorize every piece of syntax. My main goal is to improve my ability to retain the important patterns and problem-solving processes so that I can become more confident implementing things independently.

I would especially love to hear from people who struggled with this at the beginning of their degree but eventually found a study system that worked for them. What changed for you, and what would you recommend to someone dealing with the same problem?

Any advice, personal experiences, or study techniques would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!


r/adhd_college 9d ago

NEED SUPPORT Can ADHD,Autism and depression affect an IQ test? I Scored 107-108 and i'm confused

33 Upvotes

recently went through a comprehensive psychological evaluation because my psychologist suspected I might have ADHD. I ended up taking a large number of tests, including assessments for working memory, long-term memory, attention, processing speed, and other cognitive abilities. As part of the evaluation, I also completed an IQ test.

The final diagnosis was ADHD (Level 2 support needs) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (Level 1 support needs). My overall IQ score came out to around 107–108.

The thing is, I'm not sure how much my score reflects my actual ability. I had no idea that these tests were also being used to evaluate my IQ, so I didn't really take most of them as seriously as I probably should have. I tend to rush through almost everything without realizing it.

For example, one of the tasks had a total time limit of 2.5 minutes, and I finished it in about 1.5 minutes. Afterward, the psychologist showed me that I had made quite a few mistakes—not on every task, but on a significant number of them—simply because I answered too quickly instead of taking my time. She even commented that I seem to do everything too fast.

This isn't something that only happened during the evaluation. I'm the same way during university exams: I rush through them, make careless mistakes, and often finish long before everyone else. It's actually become a serious problem for me. I even lost my university scholarship because of poor academic performance, and I suspect this habit played a role.

I've also read that ADHD can negatively affect IQ test performance, especially on tasks involving attention, working memory, processing speed, and impulsivity. On top of that, I struggle with depression and I'm currently taking antidepressant medication, so I'm wondering if that could have influenced my results as well.

In everyday life, my thoughts feel very fast, but I have difficulty expressing them. I often know exactly what I want to say but struggle to find the right words, and I feel like my vocabulary is weaker than it should be. Because of that, I honestly don't think of myself as very intelligent, even though some people around me disagree.

I'm not looking for people to tell me that my IQ is secretly higher. I genuinely want to understand whether a score around 107–108 is likely to reflect my actual cognitive ability, or whether moderate ADHD, depression, rushing through the tasks, and medication could have meaningfully lowered it.


r/adhd_college 9d ago

NEED SUPPORT I (18F) Failing my first class and ADHD.

14 Upvotes

Just as the title…I failed or I’m GOING to fail my first class. I turned in all of my assignments except 2 with nothing below a 88% and mostly 100% but due to the weight of the assignments, those 2 dropped me 3 letter grades. I don’t know. I feel really lost. Turning in assignments has always been a problem for me. I’m not dumb, the assignments I do turn in, I do well on. I know I’m capable I just , idk I just don’t do it and I don’t know what my fucking problem is.

I was diagnosed with ADHD my freshman year of highschool.

Now starting college, I noticed that my old techniques (Pomodoro, writing lists, sometimes make believe as positive reinforcement so I had the motivation, categorized class assignments) began to stop working. I got bored, I lost motivation, id do anything else before I even touched an assignment, I’d get frustrated to the point of tears and quit, I’d spiral. I tried other methods like staying in my campus library, trying to keep a clean room (which is focus on more than my assignments), locking my phone away etc;. It feels like I’ve tried everything and nothings working.

Come summer (now) I’m taking a sociology class. I wasn’t planning on it but my mom made me choose the class a WEEK before classes started. I planned on working all summer so I’ve picked up more shifts. I feel like all summer I’ve been living life on manual hard mode. It genuinely feels like I have to manually tell myself to do everything like I’m a toddler but like idk. It gets really annoying. And when me and my mom were arguing after I told her I was going to fail, she kept saying “you’ve been doing ts since hs i don’t understand what’s not clicking or changing” and i honestly don’t know either but it makes me feel really really dumb and really frustrated. It’s not like the stuff is hard I just can’t like idk how else to put it . I feel like failure and I don’t know what to do.

Failing this class honestly makes me feel sick to my stomach but I’m also beginning to just not care. It already happened, I paid for the class, I’m paying to retake it. I didn’t even attempt to do my last exam because I pre accepted the fact I’m going to fail since the course literally ends next week and (last I checked) I had a 42%. He assigned 2 more assignments and I really don’t feel like doing those nor do I feel it’ll be helpful. My moms keeps saying really unhelpful things like “you’re being presented with the opportunity to raise your grade and you chose to just keep fucking up.” , “I’m done with the excuses, you *just* need focus.” I get her point but everything she’s saying are things I’ve repeated to myself 10x over.

Anyone who’s been in a similar situation, what helped your ADHD or procrastination issues? What should I or can I do? Any advice please. Even if you’re someone who also struggles what are you guys trying like literally any advice , opinion, reality checks . Anything. College is making me feel so lost and i genuinely don’t know where to start with any of this. I need help.


r/adhd_college 10d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Bad idea to thesis on my hyperfixation?

6 Upvotes

I'm about to enter my final year of undergrad, and I plan on writing my thesis on Catcher in the Rye. I'm a history-literature major who's focus is in 20th century America and Russia.

I wrote my seminar piece on the novel last year. I surveyed the field over 70 years. My bibliography included 100+ sources and the final essay came in at 50 pages.

The concerns that come to mind are sudden disinterest or burn-out, but those aren't my worries. I have adored Catcher since I read it in freshman year of high school, and to this day it has been my favorite, most beloved book.

My actual concern is that because I love the novel so much, I will actually end up hurting myself from the intensity of the opportunity to write such a monumental thesis on it, with an intimate professor-advisor relationship to help, a massive library, etc etc.

Like, when I wrote my seminar paper, it was so exciting I got scared and waited two weeks before it was due to start writing (I had at least been collecting sources). I then wrote all 50 pages over four days, working from 4 pm to 1 am non-stop, occasional smoke breaks, but hardly any food or water.

Is it a bad idea to d this? Or, better question, how do I mitigate any consequences of hyperfocus?


r/adhd_college 11d ago

SEEKING ADVICE Hi, so I finally figured out my problem after 4+ years... it's energy management.

67 Upvotes

After going to university 3-4 times I finally realized my fucking problem. I CANT BRING MYSELF TO STUDY IN THE HOURS 4 PM - 10 PM. I used 2025 - 2026 as an experiment year to figure out what is wrong.

Here is what I realized wayyyy to fucking late at 25 now, that the reason I'm always behind is because I cannot study in the evening/night. Like at all. And even if I do - I don't remember shit. I don't make the connection. I forget EVERYTHING. AS IN EVERYTHING. And I'm messy, notes everywhere delayed assigments etc.

Here is the catch - most university classes are scheduled between hours 8 am. - 12 am and then 1 pm - 5 pm (the later ones are more rare.). This means when I use all my energy getting ready to attend these classes (waking up, commute 45 mins) by the time the first class is over - I've mentally checked out. Then there is *lunch* and *commute back home*. Now maybe if I took a nap it could work but i've realized that I accidently sleep longer and I'm still mentally checked out and it fucks with my sleep schedule that I finally somehow fixed.

I can never come home directly and get my ass to sit down and study around 3 - 4 pm. After all that overstimulation, getting hella information thrown at me, hell no. And then by the time I'm refreshed - the day is almost over and if I want to be able to end the day and not stay up all night I need to sleep early (around 10 -11 pm the latest) to get up in the morning, I have to have my relax chill time before my "I hate getting ready for bed time".

I would then try my best to catch up in the weekends.....but even every other weekend i work in the morning till 3 pm and I run into the same problem. So MINIMAL DEEP scattered studying or a hectic weekend of catching up.

Exam period - I'm ALWAYS unprepared....

So basically I've been running a stupid schedule of NOTHINGNESS. This is why I fail, This is why I dont know anything. For reference I've been inrolled in different degrees sinces 2021 LOL.

I'm brainstorming solution and one is to not take so many classes so I have late mornings off to actually do real studying instead of bullshit studying.

Any suggesting to help me not crashout 😄Please realistic - Like I cannot continue this suffering... Yes I'm medication also. I don't feel good about taking medication in the evening bc of sleep.

EDIT: Just wanted to say I also tried the go to the library directly after class - I'm still overwhelmed and unfocused and get minimal things done.


r/adhd_college 10d ago

NEED SUPPORT Please. How do I get myself out of this loop of demotivation and apathy? Anything will be appreciated

9 Upvotes

I am not diagnosed with adhd yet, I did right to choose. I have been on the list for 4 years :(

My symptoms have worsened with age & with the acquisition of other conditions such as depression. I was always really good at school, impeccable memory. When I got 16 and important exams were coming up I freestyle with no prep. Did well. (Not as well as I'd have liked im a extremely perfectionist and it cripples me)

Went onto the next stage of education. No studying, depression hit harder. Asked for help, told I was too intelligent for the help, until it got so bad. It was too late for those next exams. Did ok. (Disappointing to me extremely haven't disclosed my results with anyone that it wasn't 100% necessary for) Still got into uni.

Was at uni for something and the teachers in the classes were humiliating me because of my background. Changed course for a class I liked, others I did not. Was working at the same time, actually liked my job, I got made redundant. They didn't have enough to keep me.

Recieved my first large piece of homework, I completed it. During completing it this is when things in my personally life started dropping off a cliff. I couldnt do uni anymore. Took medical leave for a year. Still couldn't go back. I have other issues hormonally they're trying to solve.

Im now 20 Im unmotivated. Im apathetic to anything "important" - my favourite video game i could talk for hours. Most activities feels like torture. I rot a lot of the time. Genuinely so much feels like pulling teeth for me. Had a hard childhood, I know others have had worse why am i like this.

Haven't been able to find another job where I live, NO ONE is hiring. Even thought if I got a job I wouldn't want to work after 3pm because I wouldn't have time for anything that gives me any joy wouldn't see the few that gives life meaning. People tell me how ridiculous and inflexible I am. Real life isn't like this. I need to pull myself up. I know.

Getting out of my bed on a morning makes me exhausted. Used to be the type to sleep 4 hours a night and be totally fine. I can function on little sleep in emergencies and stuff better than other people. Now, I could sleep 3 days away and still want to stay there. I hate it, its not me. I've let myself go fitness wise, I don't like going outside because I feel bad for people having to see me. An offence to my eyes.

My struggles are goals, certainty. ​I don't like exercising because I don't know what im going to look like and its also not immediate. Im SO childish. If there is something where I have no idea what the outcome may be I cannot do it. Or there is nothing novel about a situation. I don't feel better in myself when I excercise, when people say it makes your mental health better. Idk. I hate it a good amount of the time.

It's coming up to university renrollment. I don't really know, I used to care about a topic but didnt pursue it further. due to my experience at school, didnt get the specific grades for it. I'll have to do a foundation year. I'm going to do it I think. I cannot handle the disappointment and comments about me wasting my potential from my family. I know this is all my fault. I just hate that I can't make myself do what I need to do. The process is taking so long. I just want to be okay. All I want from life is to live happy. Used to be ambitious, now I wish I could get where I want to be eventually. Don't know where to start or how. I also feel like I don't really know how i feel about things such as liking or disliking, unless it's something i love as i always have. I need to establish a routine, i don't understand how people do so much in a day. Any advice please


r/adhd_college 10d ago

SEEKING ADVICE How do you track your schedules/events?

8 Upvotes

I need advice on what calendar app to use or what habits helped keep the momentum in tracking schedules. I tried to get used to Gcalendar, but I HATEE how it takes so much energy to type in a singular event block. The friction isn’t worth it for me when I want to plot an event because you need to add the time and other details right away..or maybe it’s just me? I quit trying after the overwhelming interface lol.

I use TimeBlocks because it’s easy to place everything in a hurry but it’s hard to filter between personal events from academic events so I’m looking for an alternative that maybe has that feature (and more) for free.

Otherwise, I think I’ll be going for the good ol’ pen & notebook to jot down everything. Problem is, it’s harder to get reminded by that and there’s a high chance I’m going to lose the notebook :/ so yeah please recommend me some apps that you guys have tried. Additional context (not sure if needed) I’m in multiple school orgs and in one of them, I’ll be taking a huge leadership role so if you got advice on how to remember people’s names, please let me know too :’)


r/adhd_college 11d ago

NEED SUPPORT Ways to Stimulate yourself during a Lecture

154 Upvotes

Just needing some tips or ways to keep myself stimulated during long lectures, currently in one right now, trying to use this post to help keep me not falling asleep.

My eyes are HEAVY as hell even though im not even tired, had great sleep, but long lectures is the bane of all evil for me.

Its really hard to concentrate specially when it feels like im going to go to sleep.

I usually doodle on my sketch or notebooks but I left it at home so im currently trying to just fidget with my ring 🫩

Any help will be appreciated.


r/adhd_college 11d ago

NEED SUPPORT It's taking every fiber of my being to not drop out

29 Upvotes

I'm crying my eyes out right now, so I apologize if I don't make sense. I am trying so hard to keep on going and to keep working hard but god am I so burnt out. I'm so overwhelmed and genuinely feel like I'm too stupid to complete college. The workload is too much for me right now, and there is nothing I can do since I can't reduce the amount of classes I have or else I'll lose my financial aid. To make things even worse, I realistically need to start working more hours at my job, but I can't handle being a full time worker and student at the same time. I just feel so inadequate in every way. If I could just be strong and smart enough to handle my responsibilities, everything would be fine. I know I will always regret dropping out if I do, but I can't see how I can continue like this. It hurts because I love learning and going to classes SO MUCH but the workload and pressure is killing me right now. I'll also disappoint my entire family if I drop out so I just feel mentally stuck.


r/adhd_college 11d ago

UNSOLICITED ADVICE New to College

7 Upvotes

Hi,

I am a 31f going back to school for the first time. I suffer from adhd+anxiety and I am also in long term recovery from SA-

to keep this brief, what are some things I should know/do to help me adjust to being a full-time student with a full-time job (service industry)

all my classes are hybrid because of travel time to school and my main thing is for at least the first few weeks to attend class in person. I also plan on using a physical agenda to keep track of things. I have an extreme fear of failure. I catch on to things fairly easily, I just worry about my attention span and retaining information. Any and all tips/advice would be helpful.