So this is, uh, a completely separate topic from the whole teenager situation. I'm content just reading everyone else's discussion about it and not contributing to it.
But I found out about a month ago that I have ADHD, so I've naturally been researching everything to do with it. I found this book, and it's a little bit blowing my mind how much harder I've been making getting my place under control. Reading that and then looking at CC'S insta... Imagine how pretty the Tableaux could look if she followed the rule of "inventory must be less than storage"
Very much agree. This kid isn’t “FuckingStupid,” she has some form of ADHD.
Honestly, even if the parent/child choose not to go the medication route (a good choice), it’s so helpful to have the diagnosis to get rid of the guilt and shame. Just knowing that “focusing” is going to be a primary challenge, even though most people can do it without trying, is a huge help. Having the freedom to accept that the “easy stuff” isn’t going to be easy is life changing in a good way.
I would not have wanted to be medicated, but if someone had taught me in middle school how to use something like Getting Things Done, I think it would have been a huge help to me in College and my early professional years. I do OK now, but I wish I’d spent my teens developing reasonable planning habits, none of that “put the date the huge project is due into your planner on that date!” bullshit that helps nobody.
Second big change: make sure the physical environment is geared toward an ADHDer. This book is a fucking godsend: https://www.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128. Seriously, it is just the best. Rule number one: ease of stowage trumps ease of retrieval. Bear that one thing in mind when organizing and planning physical spaces, and 70% of the frustrations of day-to-day life with ADHD just go away.
I think the next change, to the “ADHD” diagnosis will be to add the slash into the acronym (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder for AD/HD) because hyperactivity is not always present. The next change will be getting rid of that last D, because it’s not a disorder so much as a difference that those who have it need to take into account.
I’m honestly not sure if we aren’t in our own way more suited to life in Consumer Culture and Attention Economy land. At least we feel the pain and anxiety right away rather than “powering through it” and bottling it up.
I’ve learnt some Spencerian from Michael Sull, but he has a book that is specifically for American Cursive:
The Art of Cursive Penmanship: A Personal Handwriting Program for Adults https://www.amazon.com/dp/1510730524/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_WAQC5RPT21SZ521SDM50?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1 which might be a good resource.
Medication is the most effective tool for treating ADHD, for sure, but it's not the only thing you can do. Make sure you eat and drink enough through the day and get plenty of sleep. Figure out what coping mechanisms and lifestyle interventions work for you. Russell Barkley has written books full of evidence-based tools you can use: Taking Charge of ADHD (for parents) and Taking Charge of Adult ADHD (for adults with ADHD). You might find both of them useful. Organizing Solutions for People With ADHD might also be helpful.
While it’s ADHD specific, the tips can apply generally to everyone as well: Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD. It’s about organizing your physical space, time and task management, and more.
I'm part of a group making fruit and veg for a Harvest Swap. As we're going to be making quite a few, we have a book we use which can be found here - I'm not sure where our copy came from, but this is the same book!
Most of the patterns are great, but I struggled a bit with the instructions for the leaves on this one, so I just freehanded it!
Yarn is just a chunky with a 6mm hook.
I don't do well in clutter because it overwhelms me so I honestly throw away as much as I can possibly get away with and embrace minimalism. The less stuff you have the less there is to clean. Having fewer clothes forces you to do laundry more, for example, but have 15 pairs of pants makes it pretty easy to ignore laundry. I found this book to be amazingly helpful. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1592335128/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_iHaTFbDW68WRC
In adition to the podcast idea there is a book by Susan Pinsky called Organizing solutions for ADHD, its pretty good
I've been looking it up online! It's amazing how similar this one turned out!
The pattern for the middle is from this book but I freehanded the leaves because I couldn't really understand the written instructions and I find it easier to wing it sometimes!
I'll definitely share my giant one once it's done!
Thanks! The pattern is from this book, but I did struggle with the written instructions for the leaves so I freehanded those.
I highly suggest this book for the organization side. It works through specific rooms and common problems in an easily digestible way. It also espouses the "do what works for you, not what you think should work for you but doesn't" point of view which is SO valuable for us.
Puckcancer.org This is an organization created and ran by my close friend... His mother died from cancer and this organization raises money for group that helped her see another christmas. I go to every event they have, and every year he makes a speech that literally brings me to tears.
this made me smile. I know you might see it as pandering but any time i see a contest or post like this it makes me happy. Not only for the 5 dollar donation but also because i get to see everyones favorite charity and see all the good in the world instead of all the bad.
if i win can I please please please have this https://www.amazon.com/dp/1484780361/?coliid=I2SEFQX7XR0UFA&colid=K215TFQFYI4C&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it
My girlfriend has been super stressed and i asked her what i could put on amazon for her and she wanted this!
Check out a workbook like this.
But for an easy exercise to get started, practice your loops and lines. The foundation of beautiful handwriting is consistency, and this will help standardize the width and slant of your letters.
Pattern from this book (“snow crystal”): https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Balls-Knit-Decorations-Centerpieces/dp/1570769591/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=55+christmas+balls+to+knit&qid=1602012842&sprefix=55+chri&sr=8-3
Yarn is simply soft and ice cream cotton blend (again, lol). I think I might make a couple in Elsa colors ☺️.
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I think this it. My copy was from a library and had a different cover.
I this this book is totally worth it:
Organizing Solutions for People With ADHD https://www.amazon.com/dp/1592335128?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
The section on email/digital info is totally out of date now, but I’ve implemented several other things and the philosophy the author uses really changed my perspective. Like a few others have posted, it’s important to find solutions that work for you and your brain, which is their philosophy. I remember reading about how you could just have a basket for socks and toss them all in without making pairs and… mind blown. I do that now, it’s great.
I have heard excellent things about "Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD" from people struggling with undiagnosed or untreated ADHD
I haven't read it yet because I keep forgetting about it but I literally just bought it for kindle for 3CAD.
https://www.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128
I also use an app called Tody to make a list of chores that will auto-generate the next time a chore is due after I check it odd. Setting it up was tedious but when I actually use it, it helps a LOT.
Also check out the app Brili — there's one for adults with more cleaning oriented routines pre-built that you can just modify to your needs, but I use the original one for-kids to keep me doing routines. I am working on making it a habit to use my Brili "coming home" routine each day, which includes a custom task of "Do everything in the Tody app for today".
If you're struggling with household division of labour, Tody can sync two devices and then track who does what chore how often, so you can see if the perception of one person doing everything is accurate or not.
Based on your other comments, it sounds like you might just need to get a workbook and take the time to practice a specific style. The current American handwriting is just "American Cursive" Michael Sull has a workbook on Amazon called "The Art of Cursive Penmanship" but you could also go with the Palmer Method, which would be what your grandparents or great-grandparents learned depending on your age. There's a link to Palmer in the About/Free, Useful Resources section of this sub.
Mine was abysmal and I took a little bit of time each day to work through a set of 5 Spencerian copybooks I got off of Amazon and it made a huge difference. There are a ton of free printable resources for it though.
Pick a style and spend 10-20 minutes most days practicing. It takes some time to get going, but once you start noticing improvement the payoff is big.
Do you mean scientific literature? Or just written materials?
I found the first 3 or so chapters from the book linked below EXTREMELY helpful. But then I got distracted and never finished the book. Whoops. Now I’m not sure where it is…
https://www.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128
Tablescapes are Bugsy's "thing" -- see "The Art of Tablescaping with the Queen of Theme".
Heavy eye roll. But hey, I'm just jealous I didn't figure out how to capitalize on spreading tchotchkes about a dinner table.
Your house looks perfectly fine, just a little cluttered. You don’t need to be so hard on yourself. Here’s some tips that help me.
When bringing in groceries I immediately take them out of their bags. The bag obscured the items for me and my brain forgets about them. By removing the items I am able to account for what I have and where it needs to go.
I’m not sure how old your kids are but try to get them to help. Make it a game if you can. Time them to see how fast they can put their toys away.
Set a 15 min timer and work on a chore you’ve been putting off. If you feel motivated to continue after the timer then do it! If you don’t then you’ve at least made progress.
Check out the book Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD by Susan Pinsky. A lot of storage and organization solutions are pretty but not convenient. Focus on easy access over aesthetics.
And last but not least set longer time frames to get tasks done and forgive yourself when a task doesn’t get done. I struggle with this myself.
Best of luck to you dear.
Hey! Here it is! Thanks for asking, apparently I totally forgot the name! https://smile.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=2MQDZAG6PG184&dchild=1&keywords=organization+for+adhd+adults&qid=1633624204&sprefix=organization+for+ADH&sr=8-3
This booked helped me!
Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD, 2nd Edition-Revised and Updated: Tips and Tools to Help You Take Charge of Your Life and Get Organized https://www.amazon.com/dp/1592335128/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_AE7QBQYS3937G4GQVS68
This is a really good book on handwriting for adults.
Gosh I can relate with this so much . Literally this is so story of my life doing well being organized for a while and then slipping. I typically have to go on a long drive or exercise to focus enough on regrouping and getting organized again . Once I get back home i write out my goals for getting back on track. ( I know it will be only as long as I can stay on track it is exhausting ) I recently read this book called Organizing Solutions for people with ADHD and it is pretty amazing . The lady is a professional organizer for people with ADHD ( and also has a daughter with ADHD ) and it have never heard someone break down the ADHD organizational problem better than this author . ( Susan Pinsky )
https://www.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128
I really liked Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD.
Also the KonMari method helped me a lot, especially the 'tidying by category', so no 'clean your room' but 'we're going to put all the clothes away and after we'll do the toys'.
Great job! I also have ADHD, and the book Organizing Solutions For People With ADHD is a lifesaver. It makes things way easier, and has a bunch of tips for pretty much every section of your house you could think of. I'd highly recommend taking a look!
Good book: Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD
This book changed my life - Organizing for Adhd. I've literally adopted so many strategies. And then putting baskets where you would ordinarily dump things is amazing.
https://www.amazon.com/Organizing-Solutions-People-Revised-Updated/dp/1592335128