Does anyone know how to deal with ADHD?

Tons of people have told me I have it, including my mother, but I’m not sure if I do.
I do have problems with staying on task, even if I’m cleaning the house. One minute I’ll be vacuuming, and I’ll finish half the house, then I do dishes, start folding laundry, then finally get back to finishing vacuuming.
When it comes to school work, I’ll start say.. a psychology essay, ten minutes later I’ll be studying communications, then reading for english. It’s hard to stay on task.. However..
If you’re having issues sticking to one thing, or even completing it, do it in small portions. Start it.. do something else.. then keep working on it.. do something else. I know how boring/monotonous it can get.. Just allot a certain amount of time for it, say 15 minute periods each half hour. It tends to help when I do that.

Right now I’m fluthering/doing research/playing games :/

There are many different way to deal with ADD. One very important step is to make sure that you have been properly diagnosed with ADD and it is not some other type of medical problem that should be treated.

The next step is to join a support group or forum with other people who have the same issues and talk over the different approaches. You can pick and choose what works best for you.

Are you sure that is ADHD and not just ADD? If you are hyper a lot then it is ADHD instead of ADD. I had ADHD when I was a child and It really hurt my childhood. Fortunately I was put on a prescription and eventually it went away after several years. If you can’t get a prescription or just don’t want to there are a few tricks to help. Whenever you start to get hyper or jumpy, count to ten. It actually helps. Take a few deep breaths too. Whenever you are about to start anything (work,long term activity etc) visualise finishing and completing it. Or break it into small chunks so you are not working for a long period of time. I dont know how to help you with conversations though. Just find someone who is interesting to talk to I suppose. Anyways I hope you found this useful and good luck!

If there are a lot of things that I need to do I’ll make a checklist so that when I finish something I can check it off and feel good about myself. Also I think I have ADHD but I’m not so sure. Worms.

I’m pretty sure I have ADD, the way I cope with it is…ooh something shiny!...

You could work with a therapist to condition yourself. There are exercises that you can do to strengthen your concentration skills. Then there are drugs, which I would try to avoid if possible.

Wanna ride bikes?

Have you been diagnosed officially? I have a terribly low penchant for concentration, I find I operate best with a certain level of sleep deprivation.

@ubersiren‘s GA! says it all. This is exactly what the school’s in my area do with kids that are diagnosed. You need therapy to help teach your brain how to break tasks into small projects.

My son has to use medications as well as behavioral skills to deal with his, but that isn’t the way for everyone. I had a friend in college who dealt with his by doing his classwork for half an hour and then running a mile. He got his work done and he was in terrific shape.

I had an ADHD co-worker who made a list first thing ever morning of all the tasks she needed to do in a day, broken into approximately 15 minute chunks. She then wandered up and down the list all day, checking off each task as she finished it. As a result she got more work done than anyone else.

My SIL is very ADD and basically just wanders from task to task all day. She doesn’t get everything done, but she tends to get the most important things taken care of. Her son, who is ADHD to the max, works as a waiter because his short attention span and need to keep moving lends itself well to providing fast service.

See if you can try the list-making method.

@Darwin The 15 minute chucks help SO much!

I know someone who has had wonderful luck with the medication Welbutrin. It has aided their concentration, and even stopped repetitive negative thinking. He says it changed his life.

This person is an adult. What medication you need should be determined by working with a professional.

There are ways to deal with it without being on meds. I have been on two different kinds for this, and more than anything it made other things a bit harder for me.

I am severely ADHD. Support groups and forums are a load of crap.

The first thing you need to do is realize everyone has problems and yours is that you have trouble concentrating. People have been doing much more, with much less, for much longer, than us and with the same problems. Monks memorize libraries. Scholars learned seven, eight, and twelve languages. And some of them had concentration issues.

Suck it up and don’t be a whiner about it.

Second, make lists. Lots of lists. Write everything down immediately, keeping the lists with you, and update them constantly. Look at the list and assess how much time you have left to do things, and take pride in eliminating things off the list.

Third, find a place with good distractions. That is, a place where the distractions are brief, like a coffee house where you can chit chat briefly then get back to your work. It’s easier than home, where you will go off on hour-long tangents.

Fourth, reread #1. It’s not an excuse. It’s not even an explanation. It’s who you are, and no one cares, so learn to work with it.

Sincerely, with love, from one ADHD kid to another.

@erniefernandez Now thats what i call keeping it real, thank you

If you have ADHD ( which you should check with a doctor to make sure you do!) you have the option of meds or no meds, my students who have ADHD say that it makes a big difference for them. As an observer I do notice that the medication can effect their personality and can make them feel tired.

I would say @erniefernandez its true no whinning! the world does not care if you have concentration issues, special needs or ambulatory issues ( which most of my students have) you have to figure out what regimen works best for you.

In the words of my school principal. Go wage war with your brain! it is in the way of your sucuess! Win against your concentration issues and find a path that works be it exercise, meds, diet, lists or distractions

I’m ADHD and use concerta. It has helped soooo much. I’ve had ADHD since I was like in 2 grade (i’m now in 11th). It has helped my concentrate sooooo much. Talk to your doctor, if you have been diagnosed as ADHD, about concerta.

You might like @laureth’s take on this. She included some great links that helped me deal with my ADHD. No worries brother, you have a gift!