The Double Agent of ADHD

The very first thing a lot of people learn about ADHD, even if they remain fixed on fiction of “just boys with ants in their pants”, is the short attention span. This is of course more complex than even the name Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder suggests, but the simple fact that there are very few and specific things someone with ADHD can easily focus their long-term attention on is very real and very impactful. It can be our saving grace or, much more often, our downfall.

The word “routine”, noun, means ‘a sequence of actions regularly followed; a fixed program’. In other words a bunch of things, sometimes that you have to do, repeated over and over again. When applied to ADHD, this can trigger multiple symptoms, such as difficulty with transition, resistance to repetition, simple boredom, memory problems, time blindness, difficulty with decision making, difficulty creating and maintaining structure for oneself, and the idea that creative people must live in chaos or betray their artistic soul. The idea of embracing something so downright painful is incredibly hard for the ADHD brain to comprehend.

To me, as a person with lifelong ADHD, routine seemed to be something that happened to other people. I didn’t even have school to give my life structure until I started training as an ADHD coach. After my diagnosis, I began slowly scooping my life into a more comfortable and workable shape. Many things began to emerge that stood the test of time as being very helpful to me. But when I tried to get every one of them done in a day, I would get distracted between each item, and a list I assumed would take others less than an hour took me half or three quarters of the day.

Over years I tried to tweak, alter, and change things until I now have what I proudly call a morning and evening “routine”. It is a list of things that all, in one way or another, form the foundation of my life. They allow me to accomplish everything from maintaining friendships, to housework, to the two businesses I run, to assisting family in times of crisis and celebrating with them in times of joy. I cannot overstate how essential they are to me.

An excellent example is something that happened just this week. Even though I’ve been working on myself and my life since my diagnosis almost 8 years ago, a real, solid, regularly followed routine is a relatively new thing, at least in its current, and historically most useful, iteration. I woke up feeling very low and because, for ADHD, emotion is reality, it was very hard for me to imagine that anything could help lift me. I knew, however, that my morning routine was very beneficial to me, so I started it.

Throughout the process, which takes me between an hour and 90 minutes, I realized my mood turned completely around. I felt content, happy, even energetic. I attribute this to the comforting nature of the familiar flow of tasks, the knowledge that I was accomplishing something important, and the soothing transition ritual and dopamine creation strategy I have in place.

In order to circumvent the list of symptoms of ADHD I’ve listed above that interfere with my ability to accomplish daily routines, I have four major ‘fierce systems’ in place:

The first is headphones playing something I really like (Netflix, YouTube, music, or podcast) to keep my interest focused, allow for easier transition between tasks, and production of low-level dopamine. The second is an agreement I’ve come to with my family that if they see me with both headphones in my ears, they are to refrain from talking to me so I don’t become distracted from my routine. The third is a stopwatch I use for recording how long the routine takes me every morning. This is like a game, or a race against myself, seeing how efficient I can be, and helps produce more dopamine. The final system is, of course, that each routine (every day of the week has slightly different tasks) is recorded as a list in a phone reminder.

This is what I have to do in order to keep my life running smoothly, with the double agent that is routine, in an ADHD brain. When I imagine how other people, who have brains untroubled by these things, glide smoothly through their lives, without a second or even first thought to structure, routine, or dopamine, I have to admit to feeling jealous. That being said, I have proven to myself that I can overcome challenges of neurobiology and work with the very nature of who I am. All, I might add, without the benefit of medication or coffee. That is something of which I am very proud.

What role does routine play in your life?

App Spotlight: Remindr

A lot of people with ADHD find conventional organizational systems unhelpful at best. This circumstance isn’t helped by the judgement we feel when we reject these systems. After all, ‘everyone else’ has no problem with it.

The best system I’ve found is to simply accept that we are different, that when it comes to a lot of things, we have to make our own systems. Sometimes this includes a few layers. For example, my memory requires three layers: I use Alarmed for most things, the proprietary Apple alarm app for other things, and for another few, I use Remindr.

Remindr has an Apple-only app (sorry Android users), but it is primarily a web-based service, so anyone can use it. You enter a message for yourself into the online dashboard, select the date, time, frequency of repeat, and mode of delivery. It will text message, email, and/or send you an automated call.

In addition to nuts and bolts reminders, I decided to put Remindr to a more whimsical use. I combed the internet for positive affirmations and entered one for every day of the month. Some days the words were exactly what I needed to hear. It’s like encouragement from me to me.

What layers does your organizational system have?

App Spotlight: Alarmed by Yoctoville

I've told a lot of people about the reminder and timer app Alarmed. I've been using it every single day for almost two years and I can't imagine life without it.

A handful of years ago I learned that ADHD individuals have terrible memories. The advice to counteract this was if you ever find yourself thinking "Oh I'll remember that..." don't, under any circumstances, trust it. Always, always, always, write it down.

I took this advice to heart and began using the proprietary Apple reminders app 'Reminders'. It worked well. I began doing things, such as chores, more consistently, and I had a reliable place to record any requests made of me. It even made planning my wedding smoother.

The only drawback of the app (for my needs) was the set time intervals. Daily, weekly, every two weeks, monthly, and yearly.* I needed more flexibility.

I went looking for an app that would better meet my needs. A few pages into the search results (there are a lot of reminder apps out there) I found Alarmed, now called Alarmed ~ Reminders + Timers by Yoctoville. I downloaded it for free and began a road test.

It was a game changer and I cannot honestly say whether I would have continued using a reminder app if not for this program. Not only did it provide the flexibility in time intervals I needed, but it has a slew of other features that have come in incredibly handy.

One such ingenious aspect is the NagMe! feature. You can set the reminder to sound off repeatedly, until you interact with the app. This has proved invaluable for medication, public transport, and many other things.

Alarmed has recently received a complete overhaul for iOS 9. My iPhone 4S can't handle the newest software so I am sadly ignorant of all the new features. I'm certain however that the app continues to deliver nothing but the best.

I have only ever had one very minor glitch on this app, and that was from a time when I had kept the app open continuously for months on end. I now close it once a week and have not had any more trouble. I store an enormous amount of data in the app, and yet it does not crash and the reminders are never corrupted or incorrect or fail to activate.

From my experience, the app is user friendly. I am, however, aware that 'user friendly' is a very subjective term. The app includes a comprehensive operations manual, along with a FAQ page. The DayMinder feature is a bit complex, but incredibly useful once you get to know it.

The app is free to download, and offers a few additional features and sounds for an in-app purchase. In my opinion, the features are completely worth it, especially to support an individual attempting to live their dream of self-sustaining through ingenuity.

Unfortunately, the app is not available for Android.

The one complaint I had about this app was the lack of lists, and it looks like in the iOS 9 update that has been fixed. Also, the app now has categories you can apply to your reminders.

So, all in all, a truly amazing app for this ADHD brain. If you suffer from a poor memory, like me, this app might be just what you need.

*Footnote: Apple has since updated the app in, iOS 9, to include custom repeat intervals.