Structured Success

"If you have ADHD reduce distractions." Yeah, that works… to a point.

But sometimes removing stimulation actually makes it harder to focus, not easier. Understimulation is a major risk for ADHD'ers and can just as big of a barrier as distraction can be

Increased awareness of ADHD, Autism, and neurodiversity is objectively a good thing, but that's only the first step. We also need normalization.

Normalization of different ways of thinking. Normalization of divergent learning styles. Normalization of accommodations and treatment

"If you have ADHD reduce distractions." Yeah, that works… to a point.

But sometimes removing stimulation actually makes it harder to focus, not easier. Understimulation is a major risk for ADHD'ers and can just as big of a barrier as distraction can be

No one talks about how being diagnosed ADHD and/or autistic makes you realize that your parents have been rawdogging their neurodivergences like it's an olympic sport

Them: You're gifted. Here's a bunch of extra math and science work to keep you entertained.

Me: Woohoo~ This totally makes up for my struggles with social relationships, task initiation, and time management. Thanks

Small talk in a neurotypical world: "Hi, how are you?" "Good, and you?" "Good"

Small talk in an autistic world: "Hey~ Did you know that many dinosaurs had feathers!? Look at this cute little guy!!"

A major accommodation that autistic and ADHD people can give themselves is reducing the number of decisions we need to make.

This could look like is automating decisions, relying on random chance, or drafting standard operating procedures for ourselves, such routines or checklists

You gotta love the way us autistic folks get 'I have an endless amount of information on this topic and a deep desire to tell everyone about it' AND 'processing too much information at the same time shuts me down' at the freaking same time

Good coping strategies for ADHD, autism, or many other neurodivergent conditions are never about pretending our struggles don't exist.

Having good coping strategies requires us to acknowledge our struggles as normal aspects of our lives

Because routines offer a sense of safety, predictability, and reward for many autistic people, they can be an incredibly important way of coping with stress, anxiety, and unexpected changes

Please just let us have our little routines. Thank you ❤️

For any neurodivergent condition, the goal cannot be cure, escape, or preventing it impacting our lives.

The goal must be to accept it as a part of us, and to take it into account when we're setting our goals, working towards them, or celebrating our progress and success along the way

Whether it's a meltdown, panic attack, burnout, or overload, there are usually signs that we're struggling long before we end up in crisis.

The issue is seeing these signs, and actually trusting yourself enough to stop when you see them. That's what helps us avoid crisis

Decision paralysis can actually be a major contributor to impulsivity for ADHD'ers.

A lot of energy and stress can build up behind this decision when we get stuck on a decions, and this can suddenly give way to a big, bold, or exciting move, smashing through paralysis with the power of impulsivity

For ADHD'ers, future plans often need a sense of urgency to to feel real to us. This sets us up for an all-or-nothing approach to events, where we feel we have to do everything right this moment or it will never happen.

This tricks us into so many unsustainable behaviours, it's not even funny

Complete Rando: How lazy do you have to be to not climb those couple stairs?

Wheelchair user: …
Stroke survivor: …
Person with vertigo: …
Person with nacrolepsy: …
Person with MS: ...

Tell me why people accusing others of being lazy or stupid like this is an entire genre of TikTok content

Habits are triggered by environmental cues, either internal or external.

Willpower, especially for ADHD'ers, isn't a sustainable cue!

To give our habits the best chance to stick, we need to use cues that are consistent, sustainable, and relevant to us or we don't stand a chance

Being autistic and/or ADHD can MASSIVELY impact our decision making.

This is because decision making is a core executive function, requiring energy, concentration, working memory, and cognitive processing.

Having barriers to any of these makes decision making much more taxing. Guess who has barriers for all of them?

Me, doing the things that I need to survive:

My ADHD: This is boring.
You're BBBOOORRRRIINNNNGGG

Having a flaky working memory, as ADHD'ers do, means we NEED to do something to externalize that.

This could be the much maligned advice to "write it down," but it could be visual cues in our environment, or practising memory techniques.

However, you also have to be willing to forget things sometimes.

If we don't purge tasks/notes from our memory systems, it's going to eventually become overwhelming. This is true whether that system is writing things down, visual cues, or "I'll remember it"

Getting started with tasks is such an internal process.

We can look like we're just sitting around doing nothing, but internally we can fighting an almighty fight to get the ball rolling.

This is real, actual, hard internal work, not being lazy. I promise you

ADHD struggles with memory can make it really hard for us to remember our accomplishments.

It can feel big headed to take the time to note them down, make them visible, or remind ourselves of them, but it's actually necessary to get the sense of reward that encourages us to continue with our goals

ADHD struggles with memory can make it really hard for us to remember our accomplishments.

It can feel big headed to take the time to note them down, make them visible, or remind ourselves of them, but it's actually necessary to get the sense of reward that encourages us to continue with our goals

I don't love seeing neurodivergent conditions as a tool or superpower, even one I need to learn how to wield. It makes me feel like it's something outside of me, an addition to my base me-ness.

That's not how I experience neurodivergence. For me, it's a part of me; at the very core of what makes me, me

Many autistic people experience heightened perception of sensory input AND increased sensitivity.

This means we may notice sensations before other people do, AND small changes in the intensity of sensations may be more noticeable to us than they are for allistic people

Ethical, community-led research with neurodivergent communities benefits everyone.

For example, learning about how sensory overload or language processing work for autistic folks can tell us so much about how these systems work for everyone

The ADHD experience of being entirely and completely sure that you have more than enough time to do the thing... right up until panic sets in and you realize you most definitely do not