ADHD

Noise canceling headphones and white/background noise or music. Rather than true "white noise" I prefer deeper stuff like cosmic or other low wavelength noise.

Being accountable to someone. Also my least favorite ADHD lifehack.

Look at your life. Sit there and think about the things that bother you. Now, think about just how many of those things that you actually have the power to change. Do those things, and don’t worry about the others. Life goes on.

It’s much easier said than done, I know, but I’ve found just not worrying about big things helps me focus on what matters to my life. Lexapro helps.

If you really like doing something such as watching a new episode of your series on YouTube, but hate something else like exercising, combine the two. Only watch that series, while exercising. Then you'll start looking forward to the exercise because you get to watch your series.

Don't punish yourself for not succeding in something, punish yourself for not putting the effort

For me, it's also putting something into my calendar (specific time) or to-do list (no specific deadline -- this is mostly for shopping and a second one for ideas). After that, if I think of something I try to do it right then if I can complete it or make measurable progress against it to avoid procrastination. Finally, physically putting things in places I can't ignore so I don't forget them (or a post-it in place, but that's more risky).

Set an alarm for an hour and a half before you wake up. Pop the Vyvanse then go back to sleep. Makes it so much easier to get out of bed once the meds start hitting.

Everything goes in the calendar. Especially regular but infrequent things like birthdays. I set reminders a few days to a week before so I have time to adjust plans / buy presents or whatever.

If I'm having trouble motivating myself to do something, I commit to doing a bare minimum amount. For example going to the gym if I'm feeling unmotivated I might commit to just doing one exercise. Dishes maybe I'll just wash one plate / pan. Once I've used that to get over the initial hurdle I'll usually be able to ride the wave and complete everything.

• Alarms and timers for everything.

• Custom sounds for phone to be 10dB higher than normal, to ensure I hear them and don't just block it out as noise.

• Putting things that need taking care of later somewhere visible, like my laundry directly in front of my bedroom door so I have to do something with it just to open the door.

• Having autism, too, so the ADHD problems just naturally balance out.

If you feel like you're struggling to accomplish a task, take a moment to think about your stimulation level. Are you understimulated or overstimulated? Sometimes just acknowledging it is enough, everyone has their own techniques.

For example, if I'm trying to work and I'm understimulated, I might throw on some metal music or something like that. If I'm overstimulated, probably means I should sit in a dark room for 5 or 10 minutes until I feel better before trying to do anything.

If you're trying to do thing A but your brain can't stop thinking about thing B, take out a notebook and write down all your current thoughts on thing B. Trust yourself that when you get back to it, you will be right where you left off. Then do thing A.

For example, trying to work on a paper but you can't stop thinking about the season finale of your favorite show you just watched.

Doesn't always work but helps a lot.

Lists. My notes app puts in work. I make lists for everything. I set alarms for everything. I write things down while I'm thinking about them because I will forget. I ask for things in writing because I will misremember what was said. I have a white board stuck to my fridge so that I can write down when we're out of something or running low. Oh. And basketball nets over the hamper.

Myself, my wife and all 3 kids have adhd. Shared Google calendars are mandatory.

Does methylphenidate count as a life hack?

If I think of something I need, I usually just order it on Amazon prime right then, that way I don't forget latter and accidentally run out of garbage bags or something.

So empty….