2y ago

For those unmedicated, how do you manage?

Adderall 2 days in a row now makes me paranoid, and I've never really been able to get a doc to prescribe vyvance or anything else, and frankly at this point, I'm afraid to do stimulants. Strattera made me feel weird.

Has meditation helped? cutting sugar, more exercise? keto? nofap? I'm really battling trying to focus on one task, then realizing I want to do 100 other tasks, so I start the research into all of them, thinking I'll do them all, one at a time, and 1000 browser tabs later (not an exaggeration 32gigs of ram can manage that), I realize I'll get none done.

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how do you manage?
I don't!
- Right?!
  I can usually down about 4 energy drinks between breakfast and lunch and that kinda works, but that cannot be healthy. lol
  
  I used to do that, but burnt out long ago. trying to back off the caffeine completely now, I think it's actually been making it much worse

Very rigid routines and coping mechanisms. For your tab problem, I use OneTab to collapse and save them all into a searchable list for later.
So the key for me has been "offloading" and "outsourcing" is what I call them. Memory tasks I offload to my phone like reminders, obsessive calendaring, note taking, and to do lists. I automate as much as possible when it comes to systems designed to make me get on task. Basically, if executive function is a limited resource (it is if you have ADHD) the less decision making you have to do, the better. Pre-make decisions and go from a script or playbook. That's my calendar and notes.
- I started using an app that let's me make as many timers as i want fo anything i want and it's been amazing! I have timers for tasks i need to remember in 3 years lol
  
  Which app?

I stopped taking Adderall about 8 years ago and have been managing my symptoms with a mix of lifestyle changes and coping mechanisms that I learned in therapy. Some days it's enough, some days it's still difficult.
Overall, being stable and well-balanced in my lifestyle makes the biggest difference to me. Sleeping 8 hours a day, showering every morning, having nutritious and regular meals, drinking lots of water, balancing work/home/exercise time all help. Maintaining healthy relationships and emotional well-being are really important too. I don't drink or do any drugs because I find they make my ADHD worse even days afterwards.
Basically, I try to put myself in the best position to succeed every day. Showing up rested, fed, on good terms with everyone, not stressing, make a huge difference.
But finally, these work FOR ME. You need to find your own balance and find the things that make you feel good. And you may still need medication - these only go so far. Don't feel like something is wrong with you if my tips don't do it for you.
- having nutritious and regular meals
  This part is hard for me. I am never hungry even I wake up, and I literally can't force myself to eat. I'm get sick. I have a LOT of food issues, though.
  
  I've opted for complete foods like Huel powder (comparable to Soylent) as it takes the stress out of eating for me. For some reason, drinking my calories is a lot easier plus it's simple to just carry around some powder and mix it with water on the go when I feel hungry but too overwhelmed to find food.

Caffeine is a stimulant. I find that after a cup of coffee I'm OK for about 4 hours. I try to schedule my focus time during the first half of the day, and then allow the second half to be research time.
While I'm working, I tend to have a list of three things I want to work on. If thing.1 stalls, I can open thing.2 and then thing.3. I can't do more, or I'll forget to go back to thing.1. If all three things stall, I grab a bit of dopamine via a video game or SM and then go back to thing.x where thing.importance is max.
I also have a couple of backup tasks in case I can't work on the big three. There's always documentation and expense reports.
- Caffeine was how I self-medicated before getting diagnosed. Better than most self-medicated options.

Poorly. I manage poorly. Its a constant struggle to not even complete all the tasks I need to. I tried to get medication but was told that I don't "meet diagnostic requirements", because I didn't start really having issues until age 12 or so.
That said, I'm in therapy to find strategies to improve managing my symptoms. Maybe look into therapy with ADHD specialists.
- I was recently diagnosed as an adult. I tried for a few years to explain my difficulties to my primary doc, but was always told to try x,y,z organizational app. She was great and listened to me for everything else. Oh well. I decided I'd try getting a diagnosis from a LPC. After finding one that I clicked with, he told me that since we had had many sessions treating my depression, he felt the professional ethics would be murky for him to test me for ADHD (he wouldn't be independent as he has knowledge of many of my issues). This was despite me telling him on day 1 that I'm here to get tested for ADHD and to do something about my depression. Oh well. A few more false starts with other providers happened. Then my husband encouraged me to try again in a new city, but I got there and got the diagnosis. Yay!
  I decided I wanted to pursue medication via telehealth (the Done! marketing campaign got to me). But Done is a membership, and reading about the 15 minute follow up visits turned me off. That lead me to Klarity where you pay a reasonable price per visit and no monthly membership fee on top. Here's where I bang my head on the desk...Klarity had me basically retest for ADHD. I did not have an option to send them my 3rd party diagnosis report and skip their own test. But their test is very straightforward and uncomplicated. If I had known about Klarity before my other testing, I could have saved months of following up with my scatter-brained psychiatrist and money.
  Anyhow, if you want to give meds another shot, look into Klarity. After the initial screen they will give you a list of family nurse practitioners to choose from who can do the prescribing. And you can get your Rx filled at your local pharmacy or at your insurance's mail-order service.
  My difficulty has been in finding a therapist that can help me with ongoing coping strategies. I can't find anyone who specializes in ADHD in my area. They mention ADHD as an "also treats..." but it's not their primary specialty. I've built up a number of coping strategies myself since I've tackled 40+ years of life before diagnosis, but some aren't exactly healthy or sustainable. I was hoping for some a-ha! moments. But it seems that forums like this are where I find those kind of tips - from people going through it.
  tl;dr > try Klarity for meds if you've been turned down by old-fashioned doctors.
  
  I actually have had some luck with my therapist setting up a referral for me to try meds, but if that doesn't pan out, I'll look into Klarity.
  If you live in the Washington/Oregon area, I have a recommendation for therapy groups to look at as well.

Motorcycles, I come from a big motorcycle family and frankly the whole racing thing masked every single symptom, for my mom and dad too. Having some difficulty at this point in my life right now, three young kids and a stressful job, hard to go blow off steam, so as soon as I am able will use the stimulants.
You think a decade of pizza delivery, near death most nights being my most happy and calm would have raised flags earlier in my life no? lol

I am managing and kind of not managing really. Recently quit smoking and vaping and went off coffee so my brain has been a bit frazzled. But it's getting back to normal.
Biggest help is working longer hours but fewer days and having my shift segmented so that I get downtime between busy hours. I do three days a week and on a workday don't pressure myself to do any housework. On my days off I'll catch up on sleep and housework.
I also have a diagnosis for autism so to me it seems like I can manage some symptoms of my ADHD easier thanks to ASD. But I also then seek a simple life and don't do anything much besides work and looking after my dog and my partner. I'll go out when I'm on holiday.

Freshman year(HS) I managed by being slightly less bad than everyone around me (special ed) and in my mainstream it was a passion and even then I struggled. Outside of school I don’t manage and am anxious and depressed but survive.

I try to immerse myself in projects. I couldn't find any medication that worked for me so I just make do.

meditation and a 20 minute yoga routine (from the classic book “yoga self-taught” by andre van lysbeth).

If you have access to other doctors, don't be afraid to shop around to find one that works with you on finding a good medication. As I understand it, it can be trial and error to find the best fit which may be a financial issue as well. I get that in the US especially, it can be challenging, it is worth it though when you consider how much of a positive impact this could potentially have on your life.

obviously ymmv but what i do is set reminders immediately every time i have a new task that has to be done and also have a fairly consistent routine i keep myself to: sleep at least 7 hours, walk dog, drink coffee / eat breakfast, go for a run, shower, make a list of the work that has to be done for the day (no commute because i’m remote), and then chug another shot or two of coffee and blast through it while i’m caffeinated and amped up with endorphins. the run + coffee really gives me the focus i need.
i also just try to be patient with myself. if i’m having a slow day and not cranking out as much work, i don’t self-flagellate the way i used to when i was younger, i shrug it off and maybe go for a walk and try again tomorrow.

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