Living With ADHD is Overwhelming.
Understanding the way your brain processes information is the first step toward unlocking its potential. Self-awareness can transform frustration into empowerment, helping you build a life that works with your brain, not against it.
How Your ADHD Brain Works
ADHD is about how your brain processes information and manages tasks. Understanding it isn’t about laziness, or lack of willpower, means you can learn to work with your brain, not against it. One key difference is the way your brain manages dopamine, the ‘reward chemical’. The ADHD brain tends to be a bit stingy with dopamine, so you may find yourself gravitating toward high-excitement activities, having trouble staying focused on tasks that don’t provide immediate rewards, and only getting absorbed in things that really interest you.
Your Brain Thrives on Interest Rather Than Importance
The ADHD brain struggles with mundane tasks, even if they’re important, because ADHD brains are driven by interest, novelty, and urgency. So if you want to keep motivated, try making tasks more engaging. Turning them into games, adding a sense of healthy competition, or pairing them with something enjoyable.
Executive Function Challenges
Executive functions include planning, prioritising, and time management, and these can feel overwhelming because these skills rely on your brain’s prefrontal cortex, which works a bit differently with ADHD. It’s a bit like having a really enthusiastic, but disorganised, personal assistant. This affects things like:
- Time management: Your internal clock may run on its own ADHD Time. You may feel you have all the time in the world, or none at all.
- Working memory: Information might slip away from you more easily, like trying to hold onto slippery eel.
- Task initiation: Starting tasks can feel like trying to push a car that’s in neutral uphill – possible, but requiring more effort than it seems to take others.
Using tools, including planners, visual timers, and step-by-step breakdowns can help make these tasks more manageable.
Emotions Can Be Intense
ADHD isn’t just about focus, it’s also about feelings. Emotional regulation can be harder with ADHD, so you may find your reactions are stronger ,or last longer, than other’s. Practices like mindfulness, therapy, and journalling can help with processing emotions in a healthy way.
Is Hyper-focus Helpful or a Challenge?
Distractions are common for everyone, but you may find yourself taking deep dives into anything you’re interested in. This is hyper-focus and can be really useful sometimes, but as you probably already know, cause problems when it leads to neglecting other important things. Setting alarms or having accountability partners — also called body doubling — can help you manage hyper-focus more effectively.
You’re Not Alone
Learning to understand and accept your ADHD brain can be really empowering. Understanding how your brain works means you can start creating systems that work for you, not against you. The important thing to remember is that ADHD brains can be just as creative, energetic, and full of potential as anyone else’s. With the right strategies and support, you can find ways of reaching your goals and aspirations just like anyone else.
If this resonates with you, try exploring ways to work with your ADHD, rather than against it. Your brain may operate differently, but different can be just as powerful.
Want more help or support? Visit Resources for worksheets, workbooks and links to helpful information specifically for the ADHD brain. Or book a coaching or therapy session.
