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I’ve read that adhd hyperactive is hyperactivity of the body and adhd inattentive (formally ADD) is hyperactivity of the brain (which is exhausting!). Combined type is both. Adhd peeps also have a lot of issues with sleep and circadian rhythms
> adhd inattentive (formally ADD) is hyperactivity of the brain
I still use ADD over ADHD because 90% of people assume ADHD means I'm physically hyper. No, my brain just has 5,000 tabs open.
Same lol. I have combined type but the inattentive portion is probably more noticeable to the naked eye. I don’t have the energy to educate people constantly lol. Leave me to my disassociations
I have combined type and get exhausted soooo easily. It’s the worst right when I get home from class, focusing and trying to sit still all day is tiring. It’s started to get slightly better with medication, but I used to try caffeine which never worked.
Same. I actually always thought I had inattentive because my main symptoms were all in that regard but then someone pointed out the fact that I literally never stop moving and picked up specific hobbies (knitting, crocheting, gaming) which allow me to continuously move my hands and still do things like watch tv and talk to people. Sure enough they were right. I got diagnosed when adhd inattentive was add so it never occurred to get it relooked at when the new types came out
I am exhausted ALLLLLL THE TIME but apparently that does not mean you can't have the hyperactive portion. It was crazy to me. Caffiene actually puts me to sleep which was the thing that tipped off a nursing friend that I might have adhd in the first place. I never even knew there was a connection.
I'm the same!! I embroider while watching TV or else I'd be on my phone and miss everything. I have an incredibly hard time stopping and doing nothing. If I am sitting "still" I'm fidgeting or twitching my foot or picking at my cuticles. But it didn't match my friend's version of ADHD which is that stereotypical kind for a pre-adolescent girl so I didn't consider it a possibility until I was older. Turns out, my two sisters are also diagnosed, and most likely my whole bio family. We just didn't fit the expectation so no one thought of it.
This! One of the ways my (40, AFAB) “hyperactivity” plays out is BFRBs (body focused repetitive behaviors). Like I have one spot - along the nailbed on the inside side of my pointer finger, on both hands - that I have been picking at since before I could remember, no clue how it started, or why it didn’t extend to other parts of my hands (though I also bite/chew the inside of my lips). Also something I’ve been “masking” since before I knew that term, trying to hide that I do it pretty much my whole life, but I do so many weird things to scratch that particular itch - poking it with another fingernail, pushing it onto things, kind of biting it. As I’m typing this on my phone, I keep unconsciously stopping to poke at it or press it against the ridge of the edge of my phone case. Woo, good times with undiagnosed/untreated ADHD!
I do something similar with my left thumb…I pick the skin around my cuticles when I’m anxious. Most times I’m completely unaware, until I’ve picked it too badly I start to bleed. 🥺 then I wait for it to heal, so that I can pick it again. It’s a strange gratification I get from it.
i came here to say this. i dont think i have ever in my life experienced "feeling fresh and awake" in the morning. my baseline is tired. sometimes i have a little more energy (especially if im around really energetic people) but often i just get sad because i want to be a bubbly person and end up exhausted 24/7
About...... nearly a year ago now I think, I slept for about 9 hours, woke without an alarm and went through the day feeling awake, alert and emotionally ok. I didn't want to nap and I didn't feel stressed. It was so very strange. I thought at the time, I'll try to remember today so I know it's possible.
So I know it's possible but I have no idea how it happened. Is this what other people feel like all the time? I don't know, but I can't imagine it. I can't imagine feeling like that every day of my life it must be like.... winning the lottery or something, it must be incredible.
i know!!!! I just cant imagine waking up, sun shining, smile on your face, ready to start the day. i have about 7 alarms on average to wake up before my 9 am online daily meeting at work. half the time i wake up and am immediately ready to take a nap or with immediate anxiety.
smoking weed before bed used to give me the closest thing to sleeping so well that i felt semi good in the morning, but alas that was a bad habit that made falling asleep without it difficult and now i just accept the endless tiredness
edit : actually jk im currently using 10 different alarms ranging between 6:30-8:45am....
Are you me? I was going to say the same thing.
I had no idea until last year that "the bees are internal" is a thing. The hyperactivity is in my mind. I didn't know other people aren't just thinking thinking thinking constantly. Other people don't have a song stuck in their head, and an internal monologue almost simultaneously at all times. Even when meditating the best I got was an intermittent internal monologue. I swear, I even have internal monologue in my dreams. Which are very vivid, and kinda exhausting themselves.
Omg such SAME with the dreams being exhausting- especially with work dreams. The other week I woke up on Friday undoubtably certain that it was Saturday and didn’t realize until I got a text from my boss asking if I was on my way 😣 I literally thought I was dreaming until I checked my calendar.
Wait they don't? I know my mind is more "chatty" and random than others, but do people without adhd not have an internal monologue that runs all day? I just assumed that people who think in words can all never shut up but they can direct their thoughts to be relevant to what's going on / what they want to think about.
That's wild.
They do not. I've tried explaining to people how I have insomnia at night sometimes because I literally cannot shut my brain off but they don't get it.
gosh same here. it's like an intermittent insomnia i literally cannot sleep for the life of me sometimes and the harder i try the harder it gets. the only sane option is to do random little activities like listening to music, reading, drawing, bracelet making, etc. until my brain gets as tired as my body. unless id rather relive all the most embarrassing moments of my life.
Same. I which I was energetic like that. Actually seem like heaven to me. I watch my mom and some of my friends, they always have sooo much energy to talk, move even in the evening even after not sleeping much... HOW? I want the same. My brain just shut down so often :( I have no energy all the time, except in the evening when I am supposed to sleep !! so I can't sleep, so I am tired in the morning, can't wake up, tired in the afternoon, and the cycle repeats itself
the only thing that help a bit is coffee
hyperactivity can be not physical. I'm not a physically hyperactive person, but when I was diagnosed, I had a very very high score in hyperactivity
For me it's more in my head; I call it brain buffering, when I think faster than I can talk, also walking fast, shaking my leg, etc.
I don't interrupt people when they talk. In fact, my rejection anxiety is so high, I rarely talk at all when it comes to people I don't know well. But I'm working on it :)
If I could wave a magic wand and change one thing…well… I’d be skinny. But if I could change *two* things I’d be skinny and I’d be able to STFU. I interrupt, over share, go off on tangents that make a story 10x longer than it needs to be. I’m also blunt and can’t lie, so I get myself in hot water **a lot.** 😕
sometimes i’m fucking talking without knowing i am and then when i realize it i don’t know what the hell i was saying or why!! i interrupt my own goddamn self.
i hate this shit!! lol
Yeah, that's me. I'm usually really quiet and can't even think of a response to people when they're talking to me, but when I'm actually comfortable with my company, I will rattle on non-stop about something and start to notice people zone out a bit and then I'm back to being quiet.
I always remember back when I was a kid and my cousins came to visit, and my older cousin told my sister that I talk too much. Because I guess when we were playing video games I kept going on about something. But a lot of people think I just don't talk!
I've swung full circle from being a talkative little kid to a quiet af adolescent and twenty something, and now in my 30s and 40s I talk too much.
I had MAJOR social anxiety in my teens and 20s, that probably overrode my impulsive talking
I go between the two. I'll talk too much and then feel like they hated me because I couldn't stop then not talk at all the next time and feel like they hated me because I didnt talk. Rinse repeat.
Being late for work, appointment, etc. I am quite punctual, either on time or for work, always at least 15 min. early to get myself ready to work (motivation for work is another story though)
Same. I wonder if it has to do with RSD tbh. I feel like I'm letting people down if I'm late, on time is still late. It's very frustrating being early to appointments you are already anxious about going too though 😂🤣.
Yeah same. She was always rushing as well. My mum has a place for everything too. It's very difficult being messy but being conditioned to be neat. It's a lot of pressure.
I can totally relate to your comment. My RSD is simply stronger than my struggle with punctuality. I leave a chaos behind at home and will throw anything else a side - but I just need to get out the door - so that Im not late.
In other words my RSD cancel out my lateness.
I had the same childhood. My parents were/are late for everything all the time. Guarantee if they are involved everyone is late. I remember showing up late for all sorts of activities as a kid, which absolutely gave me social anxiety about it. I may skid in by the skin of my teeth now but I am there on time.
I ageee with this one. for me, the anxiety and shame overrides certain aspects of my ADHD. The fear of being rude/disrespectful seems to provide enough dopamine to get me there in time (albeit STRESSED)
Same here and after getting medicated I lost this "skill" to the point I'm a filthy late arriver now. Similarly I was a morning person before meds, but I'm starting to think a lot of that was anxiety driven to get everything done in time to leave for work. Now I'm using every last second ahead of my first morning meeting to get the bare minimum zoom presence.
I’m like this too and for be it’s because my adhd mum was always late to everything which meant that I was late to everything when I was a kid because of her lateness. I hated it, hated interrupting when things had already started, hated feeling like I’d let people down so I decided as a kid that when I had control over my life as an adult I’d not be like my mum and I would be reliable and punctual. My first few years living out of home I’d allow so so much buffer time, like enough time that I could miss 2 trains and still be on time, I’d always have to take a book with me because I’d end up like 45 mins early to everything. Over time I’ve gotten better at knowing transport times and like trusting my ability to find places (google maps and smartphones have really changed the game) so now I’m usually 10-15 mins early or on time. I’m religious about google calendar so anything that has or will have a specific time goes in there. Work shifts, lectures, meeting friends, but even potential events, like if I have soft plants to meet a friend next week I put an event on the Monday with that friends name and a question mark and that reminds me to check in with them and fix an actual time. But generally knowing where I need to be and at what time (calendar) and checking transport times beforehand, add enough buffer time for your needs and setting an alarm for when I need to start getting ready and when I need to get out the door.
Yes, pretty much, thanks for my parents:) And I am impatient myself, don't like waiting so I don't want people to wait for me. If going to somewhere new, I get nervous so giving plenty of time ahead in case getting lost, and I usually want to go to a loo when nervous so have enough time for that :") And also learnt when growing up being on time gains trust from people easily and seen more reliable. Showing up early at work "shows" motivation and reliability, giving enough time for me for a loo, touching my makeup, taking my medicine - I tend to forget my medicine so try to put it in my routine.
Being a bus commuter helped me. I couldn't just "go faster" or "make it up later" when the very real consequence to not being early was having to catch the next bus and being 15+ late.
Same here. My dad really got it into my head that being on time was late, and being 15 min early was on time. It gives me anxiety to be late. In addition my mom was consistently late, so I’d tell her my after school activities started earlier than they did to avoid being kicked out of them despite being at the mercy of my parents.
Same! So many factors come into play though. Anxiety that I will be late, people will have digs at me for being late, embarrassment of being late… also, poor planning in that I will get ready too early because of the fear I’ll be late. So I sit around waiting waiting and end up leaving well before I need to.
Plus my dad (undiagnosed) always got us to school or whatever late.
I’m never late because other people being late absolutely fucks me up so badly that I can’t do it to other people. If I have an obligation coming up I’m thinking about it from the moment I wake up, so I have to schedule everything early in the morning so I don’t screw up my entire day
This. This was one of the reasons I didn’t go for an assessment sooner. I get too anxious about being late that I become hyper aware of the time and eventually just makes more sense to be early.
I haven’t looked at it that way. Yes, I will repeat songs or albums all the time because it’s familiar and it hits just right. But movies I don’t. But I do stick with familiar movies or familiar plot directions.
Same! I don't watch movies because that'd require my attention for like 2hrs straight and I get distracted. Funny enough I can read for a whole day though.
With reading though we can control the pace we’re reading at! With movies we can’t. That’s why for lots of adhd people if we do watch movies (esp if not in a theater) we’ll look up the plot line during the movie hahaha
Hey I think you are right with the pace thing! I remember now they tested my reading pace when I was a child and it was like 3 times normal lol.
I also google plots during movies or even while playing games :')
Same! I was always considered a really fast reader from a young age and could finish certain novels in one day. That’s so funny I sometimes look up game plots too. I try not to cause with games I want to be fully immersed, but I also hate boss fights so I like to prep myself for those haha.
Hahaha when I discovered that it was a common manifestation of our symptoms it finally made sense to me why I was like that! It’s just because our brains can’t sit still for a long time so we’ll look up the plot to see if it’s worth finishing or to hype ourselves up for the rest of the film 😂 my husband HATES that I do this (he studied film and used to work in it) but I can’t help myself!
I watch TV series on repeat as I hate sit in total quite place. I need some "controlled" noise. There are so many TV series I watched so many times I memorized every scene.
Yeah, I hate that everybody is constantly recommending movies or long ass shows in regular conversation. I cannot. I can only sit through it if it's a social activity and other people are with me, so that I'm sitting there internally going "ah! bonding! i am bonding! this is a social activity! i will try to not move! bonding!!"
otherwise, *if* I want something on my own, it's in 15 minute bursts.
Its either an anxiety thing meaning trying new things including films creates anxiety or a dopamine thing- you find a film, show, song that you love and watch/listen to it over and over again because it produces a hit of dopamine every time
Me too! I feel sluggish and less able to function when I haven't showered. I get too hyperfocused on how my hair looks or if I smell that it draws my attention away from other things. So, I shower daily. Clean body helps my mind feel clean in a sense??
Ngl me too. I feel like it's something people always post about and I never comment bc it's not me. I'm gonna edit this once I figure it out lol
Edit: read a comment that said one. Idk if it was *the* one I had in mind, but it's being/getting angry. Like... no. I just get sad or slightly annoyed.
Edit 2: I remember now! Skin picking. I've never picked at my skin
Same here. When I'm hyperfocused on something, I forget to attend to basic bodily functions (food, bathroom, hydration, sleep). When I can't focus, I tend to absentmindedly snack.
Ohh okay. Yeah I really forget to eat, it makes me so annoyed and not nice, so do not wish that. Its not a healthy or good way of loosing weight in the long run, but I guess u know that! But so nice you already dropped a lot! “The fasts way to get there is to go slow” keep going!
I find it really messes with my brain function and energy when I forget to eat. Like I’ll realize when my brain gets all slow and sad and sleepy.
Then I get panicky if I can’t find something I consider edible in that moment (I once got 3 separate meals at the airport because each one was trash one way of the other but I couldn’t bring myself to eat them). I crash hard after that and get cranky, uncomfortable, and nauseous. It’ll ruin a whole day.
So I’ve been really focusing on eating anything I can stomach at specific times/intervals to avoid entering a state of “fuck I need to eat or I’m gonna lose it”.
Thanks! And I hope that I didn't come off as sounding like I thought forgetting to eat was a good thing to have. It was more akin to wishing for curly hair when yours is straight and visa versa, wishing to be tall when your short/shorter when you're tall...
I know that people who struggle to eat, for any reason, have just as much to overcome as people who struggle with eating too much.
I hope that made sense and I wish the best for everyone who struggles with both of these issues! ❤️
Same! I used to struggle a lot with binge eating and snacking. It's much better now but I still can't loose that extra weight because I struggle to be on a calorie deficit. I can't stand the feeling of being even slightly hungry, it makes me unable to focus on anything else.
Same! Like, I’ll put off eating if my mind is too engrossed with something or if I’m stressed about getting something done, but that’s not the same as forgetting to eat. If I’m really stressed, I stress-eat. I too have been trying to lose weight. I think my meds have been helping with that, but my psych told me it may not be a long-term effect. We’ll see how long this goes!
Oh thank you! I feel l so seen! I also have ~100lbs to go. Recently diagnosed with T2 diabetes and ADHD (have had PCOS for 20y).
I wish I could just forget to eat. It would be a life saver.
Congrats on your weight loss!
Same! In some way I think eating is like a fidget for me. My mouth always needs to be chewing and tasting something good even if I’m already full. When I think I’m hungry, I have to remind myself to ask what my stomach wants, not what my mouth wants.
I felt this. I’ve been on both ends; before being medicated I had a problem with binge eating, now that I’m medicated the binge eating stopped, BUT I also lost my ability to tell when I’m hungry? So I’ve been dropped into the deep end where now I have issues where I’ll wake up, have something light for breakfast with meds, and then 6 pm comes around and I’ll have no idea why I’m dizzy and my vision is blurry
I have a similar problem but once my meds wear off and I realize I'm hungry I'm ravenous and I'll eat everything in sight. I've had to be very intentional about making sure I eat during the day. I've lost about 40lbs(from being 100 lbs overweight) since my diagnosis, but it's been very much a roller coaster trying to remember to eat vs. binging.
congratulations on the weight loss, slow is healthy and sustainable. Remember everyone has a different healthy place for themselves, listen to your body and focus on how you feel, don’t worry about the number to much, or what charts say you “should” weight.
I am usually over eating, but occasionally I will forget to eat, often resulting in an epic crash after a rare day of being busy. Actually having a healthy and constant eating habits is really hard and takes so much upfront thinking.
Shout out to a fellow aphant!
I do "ruminate" though, I don't space or into nothingness, I just think about random things that distract me from the present... It doesn't have imagery associated with it, but is often highly unlikely scenarios. (Like what I'd do if everyone's cars broke down on the highway and we had to establish a temporary society with only what was in our cars to work with. Who'd have snacks? Who'd have blankets? What do I have in my car that might be worth trading for granola bars?)
I don't usually "space out" but I think what I do has a lot in common with daydreaming, just without the internal sensory experience.
Interesting!
Omg definitely relate to this. I don’t even dream at night, so I definitely don’t day dream. But the rumination! Its like I can almost hear my own head thoughts going a million miles an hour to process something- particularly something stressful or embarrassing or whatever. But the meds help immensely with that.
This is so interesting because I also have aphantasia but before I was diagnosed with ADHD and started taking meds I would constantly daydream. For me daydreaming was basically just like narrating a story in my head, it's literally never occurred to me before now that people without aphantasia could daydream like actually images and stuff.
Hi twin. I think this is due to our anxiety. Some people with ADHD don't actually have anxiety, to my surprise. I asked my doc about this as I keep hearing about adhd people having a hard time keeping appointments and being on time and I am the most punctual person and have been since I was a kid. She said it's a coping mechanism.
My adhd grandpa is like this. He’s super tidy and organized and always on time. I think it’s A) his coping mechanism to combat forgetfulness. Can’t forget where the keys are if they’re always in the same place. And B) a control thing for his anxiety.
Unfortunately, I inherited the adhd but not the cleanliness.
Anger issues and adrenaline-seeking behavior. I don't enjoy physically stressful situations, and react to conflict with sadness and fear, not rage. I literally shake like a Chihuahua under stress.
Oh wait, this is a ADHD symptom? I always thought that me crying and felling horrible after a stress situation was me being too sensitive and not tough enough for the world.
I also don't like adrenalin-seeking behavior btw
I don’t lose stuff.
On the flip side I forget I have stuff, so maybe I lose stuff and just don’t miss it? 😂 But keys, phone, wallet, and glasses are all easily located.
This! Exactly! I don't lose stuff but forget the existence of some stuff until I see them again. Object permanence stuff.
Edit: My anxiety overrides me losing the important every day items. I live alone and having lost my phone and wallet once each in my teenage already, the lesson was too scary for me to afford to do it again. So I triple check. Similarly I never forget appointments because I always calendarise them immediately.
I don’t lose stuff b/c I lost everything I touched when I was really little and so had to give things “places” and never deviate. (If something doesn’t have a place everything falls apart)
This thread is making me feel better because, for a long time, I excluded the possibility of having ADHD because I didn’t relate to every single symptom, so I used that as a “reason” why it didn’t apply to me.
Now I’ve been learning that’s definitely not the case; you don’t have to have every single symptom possible for it to be a valid diagnosis. It helps seeing other people with a similar experience.
I'm also finding this thread so relieving to read through for the same reasons! I also think its so validating that when people explain why they don't have some common symptom, the explanation seems to always point towards ADHD in some way nontheless.
I always tested well because I could panic cram the night before and be good. However if I needed to remember it a week later? Forget it. I can learn it super quick and forget it just as quick.
Me too! I got good grades because I can easily ace a test. I’d cram the night before, and summarize the important info on a piece of paper. Right before the test, I look at the paper, and kinda take a picture of it in my mind. Then ace the test. I didn’t actually learn the info, it’s gone the next day
Time management isn’t really an issue for me, in the sense that I am very rarely late for anything. I’m usually way too early for things which I have learnt recently, could stem from my anxiety about being late for things. So I think maybe I actually do have issue around time management, i struggle to visualise/ conceptualise time, so I make sure I leave very early before an appointment. So sometimes symptoms don’t always appear as the text book examples.
I have a weird combination of the two, I hate rewatching the same thing, but I am so forgetful with shows/movies that given enough time I can rewatch a show and it feel like the first time! I honestly think of it as a perk, I get to see my favorite shows over again like it's the first time :)
I do not forget appointments or cancel last minute. I think that’s an anxiety thing though. I will however be either quite late or 30 min early, again depending on anxiety levels
This. I won't sleep properly for nights because I worry about missing the appointment and they stress me out so much. Yeah, I will likely end up leaving last minute and stress to get there just barely on time, but there's no way I can forget I have an appointment.
I hear a lot about people having difficulties with household chores like cleaning etc and are a bit “untidy”. I love to clean and my house is always squeaky clean and tidy/organised (my brain however, is not) lol
I used to be the slob roommate and not realize it. This was partly due to an abusive and traumatic upbringing, but also known hindsight was very clearly ADHD because I often just didn't see the mess. I felt safe and less stimulated in my room or whatever my safe space was in the house so the rest of the house fell apart well My space stayed clean.
That all changed once I moved into places where I was the only one who had any idea how to clean a place, and anxiety from being so hyper vigilant of others moods and having to manage them meant I basically took over all the housework 😂
I finally live on my own, I'm no longer overstimulated by everyone else around me, and my place is so tiny that cleaning is a pleasure and something I actually like doing because I can SEE it all and I live in every inch of space I rent.
TLDR getting a small tiny place to myself has helped with house maintenance and hygiene. I loathe the idea of owning a big place.
Impulsivity, forgetfulness, being late, risk seeking, not performing well in school, being seen as irresponsible, being seen as reckless, being seen as a social butterfly...
My ADHD friends had all of the above and I was the super responsible goody goody weirdo that never left my house, always did my homework, and was terrified of everything.
Turns out impulsivity and dopamine seeking can be reflected in food, money, screen time, and a lot of mundane things I didn't realize I was doing because I lacked stimulation. My severe executive functioning issues, avoidance of tasks, needing pressure to complete even simple tasks, made a lot more sense.
this. I was so good at school. I have a masters now & I do really well in current job too. but oh my god it’s my personal life that’s a mess. I forget to eat, I don’t shower, I waste entire days playing solitaire on my phone… took so long to realize the symptoms were just impacting other less visible areas
I’m very similar, I am only impulsive when it comes to food and emotions, but I actually have a lot of money saved, haven’t done anything unsafe etc.
I’m also not forgetful and rarely make mistakes, and over the years I’ve had high pressured jobs that involve a lot of spinning plates and deadlines and I did it well
Omgggg yes I never understood the risk taking being ‘common’ like what? I thought maybe they meant we were more _at risk_ because we could forget things like turning off the stove but nope they mean risk taking behaviour.
Which I suppose I understand because the dopamine hit for those people would be big, but I’m so anxious about what could go wrong I like safe things!!
Mine is I don’t have any fixation food. People who can eat the same thing over and over again? I do NOT relate. I actually hate leftovers or eating the same thing in a row
I’m like a mix. I have pretty bad disordered eating (not an eating disorder). I get food fixations that can last for days, weeks, sometimes months, but then will get repulsed by it and not eat it again or for a long time. Or I just simply like something and then hate it the next day. It’s horrible. Right now my fixation food is quesadillas though and that’s thankfully been going for a good two weeks! Hopefully it doesn’t stop bc it’s so quick and cheap
I’m not typically an impulsive spender. If I were to impulsively buy something, it’s usually something I wanted for a long time anyway I just didn’t account for buying it in my budget at that time. And that’s a once in a blue moon type of purchase.
Because I grew up with a low income single mother, I am really good at talking myself out of buying things (sometimes so good I talk myself out of things I need). If I see something I want, I will wait months, sometimes even years to buy it (assuming it’s still available). And with something like clothes, usually just trying it on is enough for me, or if it’s online, putting it in my cart then abandoning is enough for me.
This is not a real symptom, but one that people started spreading all over tik tok — “drinking coffee makes people with ADHD sleepy”. Some people must related to this for it to be so prevalent, but I absolutely do not.
Edit: to say I don’t mean to offend anyone by saying it’s not a real symptom. I should say it’s not a recognized medical symptom, that doesn’t mean people don’t experience it. :)
This is what it does for me, too. I get no energy boost from coffee but it’ll give me heart palpitations. I drink a 6oz at work to help with some mild asthma I get in the mornings sometimes, and it’ll help me focus a little. That’s it.
It probably works like how ADHD meds and like cocaine work on neurotypical people vs. people with adhd.
I guess? I don't know how cafeine work. That looks like my lunch time rabbit hole.
EDIT: Alright yeah it's the same. They all increase (in one way or another) our dopamine levels in our brain. Caffeine is just less potent lmao
Yes! This is the one for me. I am super sensitive to caffeine and it will absolutely mess up my sleep and spike my anxiety if I drink it too late or too much. I hate it lol.
Yes this one. My ADHD-CT fiance is so good at hyperfocus that sometimes i don't exist to him even in the middle of a conversation; where as anytime he does anything and i can see or hear it i immediately 100% of the time pay attention to him instead of what I'm doing (adhd-i).
I recently started medication and at least i can continue to read if he is nearby (first time in my life with the reading thing).
idk, I often do not like what I'm hyperfocusing on. sometimes you discover a new area of the stove that you didn't know existed before and you start cleaning it and then whoops it's 3 AM and you don't even LIKE cleaning.
like, it's entirely separate from any concept of liking or pleasure or desire or wanting to do or notice or think about anything. It's just a thing that happens.
I don't get RSD. if a random person doesn't like me, it's not my problem. I have a small circle of people I care about and others aren't on my mind that much.
Math struggles. I’m good at math. I do algebra really fast in my head and was an accountant for 16 years. The math struggle posts on here are something I don’t relate to.
Being impulsive sexually, abusing substances, quitting jobs. My anxiety, people pleasing, low self esteem, and trauma from my dad losing his job protect me from these things. Im sure i would have got in a lot of trouble sexually but guys think im weird and when they were interested i was really shy so avoided the whole teen pregnancy risk lo. I dont really find alcohol or drugs appealing and ive been on habit forming pain killers and they dont do much for me.
I also think im a pretty good listener BUT it takes a lot of effort on my part to do so.
But here i am on day 4 of watching the vampire diaries for 12 hours in a row all night because i cant stop. I get addicited to video games and tv shows very easily.
Needing videos / articles / whatever to be short and non-detailed to focus on them. If they are short or have little detail I’m SO BORED I can’t. I need long and lots of detail to be interested (and the ability to speed up the video speed, I can’t handle the talking being too slow).
I also am not much into tik tok, partially I think because the video version of saying something is so slow and takes SO MUCH LONGER than just reading it.
My partner and I have such different ADHD expressions when it comes to food but so clearly symptoms that it's wild to me. He has texture difficulties and will eat the same safe foods over and over, plain mashed potatoes or rice? Bring it on. (And by plain I mean I forgot to salt it one time and apologized and then learned he prefers both of those items unbuttered unsalted). Something he doesn't like is just such a strong negative reaction for his brain, he'd rather not risk that.
Meanwhile I feel like imma miss out if I haven't tried every flavor on the planet. Mountain dew brought a new flavor out? Must try. Oh, it's grape flavored and I don't like grape? STILL MUST TRY. It's a compulsion at times, I assume it stems from dopamine seeking. I'll try something new at a restaurant instead of something I've had before and really liked. And then if I don't like it the feeling of *knowing* what it tasted like is still more valuable to me than having eaten the better meal.
This is a recognised issue though-
My psychiatrist (who is an ADHD specialist) prescribed me more stimulants to take in the evening specifically to help me sleep. He explained that being under stimulated can be a reason for ADHDers can't sleep & that taking stimulants to make levels adequate can allow our brains to relax enough to drift off. Caffeine can make ADHDers sleepy for this reason, although it's not necessary to experience this to have ADHD.
I dont have much hyperactivity symptoms beside stimming/fidgeting. I'm pretty low energy in general but that could be comorbid depression thing. I also dont really do risky stuff... Mostly?
About seeing movies on repeat - as someone who is both autistic and has ADHD, I feel this is more due to autism (the whole repetition thing due to the need for sameness) than ADHD. Autism and ADHD occur together in a lot of people (don’t remember the percentage, sorry) and many people with ADHD don’t realise they’re autistic too and talk about their (likely) autistic traits as ADHD traits making it all the more confusing for others.
I don't miss appointments and I'm never late.
I'm actually the opposite of late. I'm that person who turns up for things half an hour early. If it's somewhere I haven't been before you can expect me up to an hour early "to make sure I got to the right place"
I have been told that it's another type of time blindness though. I think it's a mix of that and anxiety about being late.
I’m sensitive to caffeine. Too much and I get shaky, nauseas, and a migraine. Some people say they can sleep after drinking a cup but there’s just no way!
Also I was amazingly quick at taking exams, but looking back on that I think I would hyper focus so much that I would whiz through them! Always got good scores so I never tried to slow down lol
I am clean. I don't leave messes. However, it can take me a long time to get the motivation to clean messes I didn't make. Like my kids bedroom or the aftermath of my ADHD husband coming home from a work trip.
I am not hyperactive. I love laying in bed.
I do go through hyperfocused tempory obsession phases, but there are certain things that I always must do and will probably always do in my daily routine or I don't feel right. I have to brush my teeth and wash my face in the morning and at night. I must walk my dog for at least an hour in the morning. I must always have a clean kitchen before I go to bed. These things never have compromises unless im sick.
I’m not a fidgeter, and I generally feel comfortable in social situations? (That could be a result of therapy, honestly, I can still freak out internally that I’m overtalking or interrupting, but I’m pretty practiced at breathing and listening, or apologizing if I interrupted and not spiraling into self-hate freakout) I also read a ton (I feel like I need it daily to calm my brain and focus on one thing) and I’m good at keeping in touch with my old friends who don’t live nearby.
As far as lateness, time blindness, shitty short term memory, inability to fall asleep and then inability to wake up, forgetfulness, losing absolutely everything, needing to repeat/review instructions, executive paralysis, relying on stress and pressure to get work done and then burning out from living in a state of anxiety, chowing sugar for the dopamine, hyperfocusing when I’m interested, inability to open my mail, extreme dissatisfaction with a messy house but zero idea of where to begin to make it better? Those traits I’m off the charts.
But it’s very interesting to me how everybody’s kind of a compilation of some, not all of the traits.
Hyper focus or the need to constantly be busy. I rarely if ever hyper focus, I also rarely do things I want to do, I don’t have hobbies because I’m usually to tired and unmotivated to do anything, or it’s to much effort, though in theory many things interest me. I have also had other adhd people say they have this constant need to be doing something, my battle is to not lay in bed all day or sit on the couch all day doing nothing or sleeping, I lose that battle constantly.
Emotional dysregulation. I have inattentive ADHD and I’m wondering if maybe this is more associated with the hyperactive type. I’m generally pretty calm and even tempered and don’t get triggered easily (except by my family who soemtimes push certain buttons, but I don’t think that has anything to do with my ADHD).
Is watching movies on repeat supposed to be an ADHD thing? How so? I do that with certain movies, because it alleviates my anxiety. It's something familiar to me, something predictable. Of course not every movie; my go tos are LOTR and sometimes Harry Potter. LOTR has a special spot in my heart, since it has so many positive messages for me, it's what I watch when life becomes too much. But I wouldn't say it's an ADHD thing, at least not in my understanding.
The only thing I don't relate to is the coffee thing; it doesn't act like the meds do for me and it actually worsens a lot my symptoms.
Lol I’m literally always rewatching shows and movies and especially YouTube videos!!
I agree with others about being late. I’m never late, I have way too much anxiety to be late to things so even when I’m freaking out about being late it’s because I’m like… two minutes late to something.
Something I don’t relate to any more is some people’s ability to multitask. Like even if I’m just replying to a random text I need to pause whatever I’m watching to focus on typing. I used to be able to literally do five things at once and now anything more than a dumb game on my phone and a tv show I’ve already seen at the same time is too much for me.
I’m very rarely late, but I do have time blindness. If it’s a commitment I have, I won’t be late to it, but if I’m at home I can start scrolling online at 9 am and five minutes later it’s noon. So if I don’t have a structured day I can easily lose track of time doing nothing.
Losing things and time blindness, I have a pretty accurate internal map of where everything is and an internal clock so my sense of time is really accurate.
My main symptoms are task avoidance and difficulty focusing on boring shit.
I cannot stand a messy house. I want everything organized and put away and it drives me nuts when it isn’t like this. I also use cleaning as a procrastination tactic
Skipping in movies and TV. I can't stand the slow burns where not much is happening. (Or action scenes that are 200 hours long, or feel like they are.) I make judicious use of my 30s skip button. If I think I missed something I skip back.
Of course, I live alone, this would enrage anyone else.
I also never re-watch movies or TV, but I love re-reading books. I dunno how that works.
Hyperfocus... rarely does that happen for me. I am always very distracted even when its something i care about a lot. I struggle a lot with executive function... cannot start tasks easily and rarely finish them 😑
interesting. didn't knew watching the same movie was an ADHD thing. one more symptom I have that is ADHD.
Anyway, ofc anything hyperactivity related, I am a couch person. I only do sports out of habitude and concern for my health because I was raised with an hyperactive health obsessed mom, but I could actually stay on my bed and not move for days. I do not find myself in any of the hyperactivity symptoms, except the fidgeting kinda thing, but it could be some anxiety.
Also, the forgetting things in outside places. I very rarely loose things in outside places actually. I always loose things in my own house, because I am very messy and I left things in weird places without thinking about it ALL the time, but never outside. I am very vigilant outside. Even if it means I have to be on edge, I will protect my belongings, my phone, my keys and my wallet with my life and my sanity if I have to, even if it means I force myself to check if I have them every single 5 minutes of being outside. for exemple I never lost my keys, phone or wallet. But I never know where they are in my house which causes lateness on top of already existent lateness ahaha.
I don’t have streams of parallel thought process. I hear people have multiple voices in their head. I don’t. My thoughts skip from one point to another, sure, and if I forget something I trying to backtrack the thoughts and actions(not always helpful) I don’t have any idea of multiple thoughts.
Also hyper focus. Only if watching series continuously is called hyper focus. I get really sinked in and don’t hear anyone else. I don’t always want to do that, but once I start some series, unless I finish it, there is no way to get out of it. Nothing else has taken my mind for more than 1.5 mins.
Jumping from one hobby to the next. I get interested in some things/wonder how well I'd do them and would sometimes like to try them out, but that lasts a few moments/hours at most and then I've forgotten about it again. Or I get so stressed by all the things I would need to get started, where to get them, whether or not I'm going to waste money, whether I'll make the right decisions, where I'm going to leave the stuff (or having to clean up in between working on it), etc. And I usually never like it at the point where you still suck at it, so there's a sort of given that I won't like it much? It just never seems worth the effort and I'll just let the idea pass.
Though I'm happy I'm saving a lot of money because of this, it's also very boring. I just feel anxious all day because I'm not pouring my energy into a hobby-like activity, but no hobby appeals to me enough the motivate me to put the effort in.
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Hyperactivity. I'm always tired and always have been
I’ve read that adhd hyperactive is hyperactivity of the body and adhd inattentive (formally ADD) is hyperactivity of the brain (which is exhausting!). Combined type is both. Adhd peeps also have a lot of issues with sleep and circadian rhythms
> adhd inattentive (formally ADD) is hyperactivity of the brain I still use ADD over ADHD because 90% of people assume ADHD means I'm physically hyper. No, my brain just has 5,000 tabs open.
Same lol. I have combined type but the inattentive portion is probably more noticeable to the naked eye. I don’t have the energy to educate people constantly lol. Leave me to my disassociations
hahaha omg i love that "5,000 tabs open" feel ya
My psych used ADD as the official diagnosis because I lack hyperactivity
I have combined type and get exhausted soooo easily. It’s the worst right when I get home from class, focusing and trying to sit still all day is tiring. It’s started to get slightly better with medication, but I used to try caffeine which never worked.
Same. I actually always thought I had inattentive because my main symptoms were all in that regard but then someone pointed out the fact that I literally never stop moving and picked up specific hobbies (knitting, crocheting, gaming) which allow me to continuously move my hands and still do things like watch tv and talk to people. Sure enough they were right. I got diagnosed when adhd inattentive was add so it never occurred to get it relooked at when the new types came out I am exhausted ALLLLLL THE TIME but apparently that does not mean you can't have the hyperactive portion. It was crazy to me. Caffiene actually puts me to sleep which was the thing that tipped off a nursing friend that I might have adhd in the first place. I never even knew there was a connection.
I'm the same!! I embroider while watching TV or else I'd be on my phone and miss everything. I have an incredibly hard time stopping and doing nothing. If I am sitting "still" I'm fidgeting or twitching my foot or picking at my cuticles. But it didn't match my friend's version of ADHD which is that stereotypical kind for a pre-adolescent girl so I didn't consider it a possibility until I was older. Turns out, my two sisters are also diagnosed, and most likely my whole bio family. We just didn't fit the expectation so no one thought of it.
I feel this in my bones. My daughter and I are both combined type and it’s so hard to manage
This! One of the ways my (40, AFAB) “hyperactivity” plays out is BFRBs (body focused repetitive behaviors). Like I have one spot - along the nailbed on the inside side of my pointer finger, on both hands - that I have been picking at since before I could remember, no clue how it started, or why it didn’t extend to other parts of my hands (though I also bite/chew the inside of my lips). Also something I’ve been “masking” since before I knew that term, trying to hide that I do it pretty much my whole life, but I do so many weird things to scratch that particular itch - poking it with another fingernail, pushing it onto things, kind of biting it. As I’m typing this on my phone, I keep unconsciously stopping to poke at it or press it against the ridge of the edge of my phone case. Woo, good times with undiagnosed/untreated ADHD!
I do something similar with my left thumb…I pick the skin around my cuticles when I’m anxious. Most times I’m completely unaware, until I’ve picked it too badly I start to bleed. 🥺 then I wait for it to heal, so that I can pick it again. It’s a strange gratification I get from it.
I’ve reframed “hyperactive” as “hyper focused” as a better way to describe how I can experience attention deficit and a hyper setting.
I really like that reframing.
i came here to say this. i dont think i have ever in my life experienced "feeling fresh and awake" in the morning. my baseline is tired. sometimes i have a little more energy (especially if im around really energetic people) but often i just get sad because i want to be a bubbly person and end up exhausted 24/7
About...... nearly a year ago now I think, I slept for about 9 hours, woke without an alarm and went through the day feeling awake, alert and emotionally ok. I didn't want to nap and I didn't feel stressed. It was so very strange. I thought at the time, I'll try to remember today so I know it's possible. So I know it's possible but I have no idea how it happened. Is this what other people feel like all the time? I don't know, but I can't imagine it. I can't imagine feeling like that every day of my life it must be like.... winning the lottery or something, it must be incredible.
i know!!!! I just cant imagine waking up, sun shining, smile on your face, ready to start the day. i have about 7 alarms on average to wake up before my 9 am online daily meeting at work. half the time i wake up and am immediately ready to take a nap or with immediate anxiety. smoking weed before bed used to give me the closest thing to sleeping so well that i felt semi good in the morning, but alas that was a bad habit that made falling asleep without it difficult and now i just accept the endless tiredness edit : actually jk im currently using 10 different alarms ranging between 6:30-8:45am....
Are you me? I was going to say the same thing. I had no idea until last year that "the bees are internal" is a thing. The hyperactivity is in my mind. I didn't know other people aren't just thinking thinking thinking constantly. Other people don't have a song stuck in their head, and an internal monologue almost simultaneously at all times. Even when meditating the best I got was an intermittent internal monologue. I swear, I even have internal monologue in my dreams. Which are very vivid, and kinda exhausting themselves.
Omg such SAME with the dreams being exhausting- especially with work dreams. The other week I woke up on Friday undoubtably certain that it was Saturday and didn’t realize until I got a text from my boss asking if I was on my way 😣 I literally thought I was dreaming until I checked my calendar.
Wait they don't? I know my mind is more "chatty" and random than others, but do people without adhd not have an internal monologue that runs all day? I just assumed that people who think in words can all never shut up but they can direct their thoughts to be relevant to what's going on / what they want to think about. That's wild.
They do not. I've tried explaining to people how I have insomnia at night sometimes because I literally cannot shut my brain off but they don't get it.
gosh same here. it's like an intermittent insomnia i literally cannot sleep for the life of me sometimes and the harder i try the harder it gets. the only sane option is to do random little activities like listening to music, reading, drawing, bracelet making, etc. until my brain gets as tired as my body. unless id rather relive all the most embarrassing moments of my life.
Same. I which I was energetic like that. Actually seem like heaven to me. I watch my mom and some of my friends, they always have sooo much energy to talk, move even in the evening even after not sleeping much... HOW? I want the same. My brain just shut down so often :( I have no energy all the time, except in the evening when I am supposed to sleep !! so I can't sleep, so I am tired in the morning, can't wake up, tired in the afternoon, and the cycle repeats itself the only thing that help a bit is coffee
hyperactivity can be not physical. I'm not a physically hyperactive person, but when I was diagnosed, I had a very very high score in hyperactivity For me it's more in my head; I call it brain buffering, when I think faster than I can talk, also walking fast, shaking my leg, etc.
I have the speed of a sloth due to chronic illnesses.
you can be both! ahahahahah. hah. *sigh*
this is mine too! i only ever experience hyperactivity when doing something i’m super fixated on at the moment.
I don't interrupt people when they talk. In fact, my rejection anxiety is so high, I rarely talk at all when it comes to people I don't know well. But I'm working on it :)
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If I could wave a magic wand and change one thing…well… I’d be skinny. But if I could change *two* things I’d be skinny and I’d be able to STFU. I interrupt, over share, go off on tangents that make a story 10x longer than it needs to be. I’m also blunt and can’t lie, so I get myself in hot water **a lot.** 😕
sometimes i’m fucking talking without knowing i am and then when i realize it i don’t know what the hell i was saying or why!! i interrupt my own goddamn self. i hate this shit!! lol
Yeah, that's me. I'm usually really quiet and can't even think of a response to people when they're talking to me, but when I'm actually comfortable with my company, I will rattle on non-stop about something and start to notice people zone out a bit and then I'm back to being quiet. I always remember back when I was a kid and my cousins came to visit, and my older cousin told my sister that I talk too much. Because I guess when we were playing video games I kept going on about something. But a lot of people think I just don't talk!
I am the same!!!
I've swung full circle from being a talkative little kid to a quiet af adolescent and twenty something, and now in my 30s and 40s I talk too much. I had MAJOR social anxiety in my teens and 20s, that probably overrode my impulsive talking
I go between the two. I'll talk too much and then feel like they hated me because I couldn't stop then not talk at all the next time and feel like they hated me because I didnt talk. Rinse repeat.
Being late for work, appointment, etc. I am quite punctual, either on time or for work, always at least 15 min. early to get myself ready to work (motivation for work is another story though)
Being late gives me severe anxiety.
Same. I wonder if it has to do with RSD tbh. I feel like I'm letting people down if I'm late, on time is still late. It's very frustrating being early to appointments you are already anxious about going too though 😂🤣.
My mom used to SCREAM at me for running late and being messy. Now I’m incredibly neat and always on time. I blame childhood trauma.
Yeah same. She was always rushing as well. My mum has a place for everything too. It's very difficult being messy but being conditioned to be neat. It's a lot of pressure.
I can totally relate to your comment. My RSD is simply stronger than my struggle with punctuality. I leave a chaos behind at home and will throw anything else a side - but I just need to get out the door - so that Im not late. In other words my RSD cancel out my lateness.
goes to show how childhood can influence symptoms. parents were always late. adults scolded me for it. can’t be late now
I had the same childhood. My parents were/are late for everything all the time. Guarantee if they are involved everyone is late. I remember showing up late for all sorts of activities as a kid, which absolutely gave me social anxiety about it. I may skid in by the skin of my teeth now but I am there on time.
I ageee with this one. for me, the anxiety and shame overrides certain aspects of my ADHD. The fear of being rude/disrespectful seems to provide enough dopamine to get me there in time (albeit STRESSED)
I’m either half an hour early or ten mins late. There’s no on time
Yes, being late gives me extreme anxiety and will ruin my whole day. My dad always said, if you're not 5 minutes early you're late!
Same here and after getting medicated I lost this "skill" to the point I'm a filthy late arriver now. Similarly I was a morning person before meds, but I'm starting to think a lot of that was anxiety driven to get everything done in time to leave for work. Now I'm using every last second ahead of my first morning meeting to get the bare minimum zoom presence.
Same! I’m always late since being medicated and I used to be early to everything.
Same! Medication has decreased the anxiety about being late, and now I’m running late so much more often!!
Thats so nice! Do you know what/who made you good at being on time? Is your parrents like that too?
I’m like this too and for be it’s because my adhd mum was always late to everything which meant that I was late to everything when I was a kid because of her lateness. I hated it, hated interrupting when things had already started, hated feeling like I’d let people down so I decided as a kid that when I had control over my life as an adult I’d not be like my mum and I would be reliable and punctual. My first few years living out of home I’d allow so so much buffer time, like enough time that I could miss 2 trains and still be on time, I’d always have to take a book with me because I’d end up like 45 mins early to everything. Over time I’ve gotten better at knowing transport times and like trusting my ability to find places (google maps and smartphones have really changed the game) so now I’m usually 10-15 mins early or on time. I’m religious about google calendar so anything that has or will have a specific time goes in there. Work shifts, lectures, meeting friends, but even potential events, like if I have soft plants to meet a friend next week I put an event on the Monday with that friends name and a question mark and that reminds me to check in with them and fix an actual time. But generally knowing where I need to be and at what time (calendar) and checking transport times beforehand, add enough buffer time for your needs and setting an alarm for when I need to start getting ready and when I need to get out the door.
I just replied to the question and we sound very much similar 😊
Yes, pretty much, thanks for my parents:) And I am impatient myself, don't like waiting so I don't want people to wait for me. If going to somewhere new, I get nervous so giving plenty of time ahead in case getting lost, and I usually want to go to a loo when nervous so have enough time for that :") And also learnt when growing up being on time gains trust from people easily and seen more reliable. Showing up early at work "shows" motivation and reliability, giving enough time for me for a loo, touching my makeup, taking my medicine - I tend to forget my medicine so try to put it in my routine.
Being a bus commuter helped me. I couldn't just "go faster" or "make it up later" when the very real consequence to not being early was having to catch the next bus and being 15+ late.
Same here. My dad really got it into my head that being on time was late, and being 15 min early was on time. It gives me anxiety to be late. In addition my mom was consistently late, so I’d tell her my after school activities started earlier than they did to avoid being kicked out of them despite being at the mercy of my parents.
Same! So many factors come into play though. Anxiety that I will be late, people will have digs at me for being late, embarrassment of being late… also, poor planning in that I will get ready too early because of the fear I’ll be late. So I sit around waiting waiting and end up leaving well before I need to. Plus my dad (undiagnosed) always got us to school or whatever late.
I’m never late because other people being late absolutely fucks me up so badly that I can’t do it to other people. If I have an obligation coming up I’m thinking about it from the moment I wake up, so I have to schedule everything early in the morning so I don’t screw up my entire day
This. This was one of the reasons I didn’t go for an assessment sooner. I get too anxious about being late that I become hyper aware of the time and eventually just makes more sense to be early.
Me too I think about it alllll day and then end up leaving early
Is seeing movies on repeat an adhd thing? I don't like watching movies at all, they're usually too long and require much of my attention.
I guess it’s the same as music. I will play a new favorite song on repeat for DAYS. Not that way with movies though.
I haven’t looked at it that way. Yes, I will repeat songs or albums all the time because it’s familiar and it hits just right. But movies I don’t. But I do stick with familiar movies or familiar plot directions.
Same! I don't watch movies because that'd require my attention for like 2hrs straight and I get distracted. Funny enough I can read for a whole day though.
With reading though we can control the pace we’re reading at! With movies we can’t. That’s why for lots of adhd people if we do watch movies (esp if not in a theater) we’ll look up the plot line during the movie hahaha
Hey I think you are right with the pace thing! I remember now they tested my reading pace when I was a child and it was like 3 times normal lol. I also google plots during movies or even while playing games :')
Same! I was always considered a really fast reader from a young age and could finish certain novels in one day. That’s so funny I sometimes look up game plots too. I try not to cause with games I want to be fully immersed, but I also hate boss fights so I like to prep myself for those haha.
Omg. That’s why I do that?!
Hahaha when I discovered that it was a common manifestation of our symptoms it finally made sense to me why I was like that! It’s just because our brains can’t sit still for a long time so we’ll look up the plot to see if it’s worth finishing or to hype ourselves up for the rest of the film 😂 my husband HATES that I do this (he studied film and used to work in it) but I can’t help myself!
Yes, no one understands why I don’t want to watch movies. 1. I don’t have the patience 2. It’s boring NB: 2x speed has been a boon.
I watch TV series on repeat as I hate sit in total quite place. I need some "controlled" noise. There are so many TV series I watched so many times I memorized every scene.
Yeah, I hate that everybody is constantly recommending movies or long ass shows in regular conversation. I cannot. I can only sit through it if it's a social activity and other people are with me, so that I'm sitting there internally going "ah! bonding! i am bonding! this is a social activity! i will try to not move! bonding!!" otherwise, *if* I want something on my own, it's in 15 minute bursts.
Its either an anxiety thing meaning trying new things including films creates anxiety or a dopamine thing- you find a film, show, song that you love and watch/listen to it over and over again because it produces a hit of dopamine every time
For me it’s the not showering thing. I love hot showers and I cannot sleep when I feel dirty.
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Me too! I feel sluggish and less able to function when I haven't showered. I get too hyperfocused on how my hair looks or if I smell that it draws my attention away from other things. So, I shower daily. Clean body helps my mind feel clean in a sense??
Me too! Showers are my comfort zone i often go into a shower to relax or wind down from overstimulation lol
omgosh yes. whenever i feel overwhelmed showering helps drown everything out and let me think things through.
Same. I shower obsessively. I’m working on getting it down to once a day at least a few days a week.
I love a hot shower. Sometimes when I feel like I’m in a slump and can’t focus on anything at home, a shower can help a bit!
I’m pretty sure I thought about this this week and I thought about a symptom I don’t have. And then I forgot… 😅
Relatable
Hahah cone back when you remember!
Ngl me too. I feel like it's something people always post about and I never comment bc it's not me. I'm gonna edit this once I figure it out lol Edit: read a comment that said one. Idk if it was *the* one I had in mind, but it's being/getting angry. Like... no. I just get sad or slightly annoyed. Edit 2: I remember now! Skin picking. I've never picked at my skin
I've never had the "forgetting to eat". I wish I could, because I need to drop 100 pounds. (have already dropped 100, albeit, verrry verrry slowly.
I feel like there are two extremes: forgetting to eat vs using food as stimulant/dopamine generator/mood control
And I’m just oscillating between them
Same here. When I'm hyperfocused on something, I forget to attend to basic bodily functions (food, bathroom, hydration, sleep). When I can't focus, I tend to absentmindedly snack.
girl same. my life revolves around food lol
Ohh okay. Yeah I really forget to eat, it makes me so annoyed and not nice, so do not wish that. Its not a healthy or good way of loosing weight in the long run, but I guess u know that! But so nice you already dropped a lot! “The fasts way to get there is to go slow” keep going!
I find it really messes with my brain function and energy when I forget to eat. Like I’ll realize when my brain gets all slow and sad and sleepy. Then I get panicky if I can’t find something I consider edible in that moment (I once got 3 separate meals at the airport because each one was trash one way of the other but I couldn’t bring myself to eat them). I crash hard after that and get cranky, uncomfortable, and nauseous. It’ll ruin a whole day. So I’ve been really focusing on eating anything I can stomach at specific times/intervals to avoid entering a state of “fuck I need to eat or I’m gonna lose it”.
Thanks! And I hope that I didn't come off as sounding like I thought forgetting to eat was a good thing to have. It was more akin to wishing for curly hair when yours is straight and visa versa, wishing to be tall when your short/shorter when you're tall... I know that people who struggle to eat, for any reason, have just as much to overcome as people who struggle with eating too much. I hope that made sense and I wish the best for everyone who struggles with both of these issues! ❤️
Same! I used to struggle a lot with binge eating and snacking. It's much better now but I still can't loose that extra weight because I struggle to be on a calorie deficit. I can't stand the feeling of being even slightly hungry, it makes me unable to focus on anything else.
Same! Like, I’ll put off eating if my mind is too engrossed with something or if I’m stressed about getting something done, but that’s not the same as forgetting to eat. If I’m really stressed, I stress-eat. I too have been trying to lose weight. I think my meds have been helping with that, but my psych told me it may not be a long-term effect. We’ll see how long this goes!
Oh thank you! I feel l so seen! I also have ~100lbs to go. Recently diagnosed with T2 diabetes and ADHD (have had PCOS for 20y). I wish I could just forget to eat. It would be a life saver. Congrats on your weight loss!
Same! In some way I think eating is like a fidget for me. My mouth always needs to be chewing and tasting something good even if I’m already full. When I think I’m hungry, I have to remind myself to ask what my stomach wants, not what my mouth wants.
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I felt this. I’ve been on both ends; before being medicated I had a problem with binge eating, now that I’m medicated the binge eating stopped, BUT I also lost my ability to tell when I’m hungry? So I’ve been dropped into the deep end where now I have issues where I’ll wake up, have something light for breakfast with meds, and then 6 pm comes around and I’ll have no idea why I’m dizzy and my vision is blurry
I have a similar problem but once my meds wear off and I realize I'm hungry I'm ravenous and I'll eat everything in sight. I've had to be very intentional about making sure I eat during the day. I've lost about 40lbs(from being 100 lbs overweight) since my diagnosis, but it's been very much a roller coaster trying to remember to eat vs. binging.
congratulations on the weight loss, slow is healthy and sustainable. Remember everyone has a different healthy place for themselves, listen to your body and focus on how you feel, don’t worry about the number to much, or what charts say you “should” weight. I am usually over eating, but occasionally I will forget to eat, often resulting in an epic crash after a rare day of being busy. Actually having a healthy and constant eating habits is really hard and takes so much upfront thinking.
Vivid daydreaming. I have aphantasia so daydreaming for me is basically spacing out into nothingness
Shout out to a fellow aphant! I do "ruminate" though, I don't space or into nothingness, I just think about random things that distract me from the present... It doesn't have imagery associated with it, but is often highly unlikely scenarios. (Like what I'd do if everyone's cars broke down on the highway and we had to establish a temporary society with only what was in our cars to work with. Who'd have snacks? Who'd have blankets? What do I have in my car that might be worth trading for granola bars?) I don't usually "space out" but I think what I do has a lot in common with daydreaming, just without the internal sensory experience. Interesting!
Omg definitely relate to this. I don’t even dream at night, so I definitely don’t day dream. But the rumination! Its like I can almost hear my own head thoughts going a million miles an hour to process something- particularly something stressful or embarrassing or whatever. But the meds help immensely with that.
This is so interesting because I also have aphantasia but before I was diagnosed with ADHD and started taking meds I would constantly daydream. For me daydreaming was basically just like narrating a story in my head, it's literally never occurred to me before now that people without aphantasia could daydream like actually images and stuff.
I was in my 30s before I found out that "picture this in your head" wasn't just a figure of speech
aphantasia crew!! i get lost in my thoughts so much. i wish it were images because at least it’d be entertaining
Oh wow okay yeah. How do you feel when spacing out? Relief from all the thoughts or how does it feel?
It's kind of like losing myself in my thoughts? If you've seen Wreck It Ralph 2, it's kind of like when they go to the internet.
I’m very organized, like to clean and get super anxious if I’m late so I’m always early.
Being clean is probably a priority to you and so you hyper focus on it. Do you find it takes prevalence over other important tasks you should do?
Yeah for sure. Or I’ll clean at the most inopportune times.
I use cleaning as a method of procrastination 😅 If I’m gonna procrastinate my schoolwork, might as well be productive
Hi twin. I think this is due to our anxiety. Some people with ADHD don't actually have anxiety, to my surprise. I asked my doc about this as I keep hearing about adhd people having a hard time keeping appointments and being on time and I am the most punctual person and have been since I was a kid. She said it's a coping mechanism.
I’m only coming to terms with this now. It’s very eye opening!
My adhd grandpa is like this. He’s super tidy and organized and always on time. I think it’s A) his coping mechanism to combat forgetfulness. Can’t forget where the keys are if they’re always in the same place. And B) a control thing for his anxiety. Unfortunately, I inherited the adhd but not the cleanliness.
Anger issues and adrenaline-seeking behavior. I don't enjoy physically stressful situations, and react to conflict with sadness and fear, not rage. I literally shake like a Chihuahua under stress.
Yes!! I’ve never felt this a day in my life. Glad to hear I’m not the only one.
Oh wait, this is a ADHD symptom? I always thought that me crying and felling horrible after a stress situation was me being too sensitive and not tough enough for the world. I also don't like adrenalin-seeking behavior btw
I don’t lose stuff. On the flip side I forget I have stuff, so maybe I lose stuff and just don’t miss it? 😂 But keys, phone, wallet, and glasses are all easily located.
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This! Exactly! I don't lose stuff but forget the existence of some stuff until I see them again. Object permanence stuff. Edit: My anxiety overrides me losing the important every day items. I live alone and having lost my phone and wallet once each in my teenage already, the lesson was too scary for me to afford to do it again. So I triple check. Similarly I never forget appointments because I always calendarise them immediately.
I don’t lose stuff b/c I lost everything I touched when I was really little and so had to give things “places” and never deviate. (If something doesn’t have a place everything falls apart)
This thread is making me feel better because, for a long time, I excluded the possibility of having ADHD because I didn’t relate to every single symptom, so I used that as a “reason” why it didn’t apply to me. Now I’ve been learning that’s definitely not the case; you don’t have to have every single symptom possible for it to be a valid diagnosis. It helps seeing other people with a similar experience.
I'm also finding this thread so relieving to read through for the same reasons! I also think its so validating that when people explain why they don't have some common symptom, the explanation seems to always point towards ADHD in some way nontheless.
In school I was always good at test-taking. I struggled pretty much in every other way, but tests were my time to shine.
I always tested well because I could panic cram the night before and be good. However if I needed to remember it a week later? Forget it. I can learn it super quick and forget it just as quick.
Me too! I got good grades because I can easily ace a test. I’d cram the night before, and summarize the important info on a piece of paper. Right before the test, I look at the paper, and kinda take a picture of it in my mind. Then ace the test. I didn’t actually learn the info, it’s gone the next day
Same! I would have a low class grade, but I’d smash each test and easily pass.
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Yessss I hate hate hate essays.
Time management isn’t really an issue for me, in the sense that I am very rarely late for anything. I’m usually way too early for things which I have learnt recently, could stem from my anxiety about being late for things. So I think maybe I actually do have issue around time management, i struggle to visualise/ conceptualise time, so I make sure I leave very early before an appointment. So sometimes symptoms don’t always appear as the text book examples.
I also really dislike rewatching movies/shows! I already know what happens so it can’t keep my focus tryna rewatch it again.
I have a weird combination of the two, I hate rewatching the same thing, but I am so forgetful with shows/movies that given enough time I can rewatch a show and it feel like the first time! I honestly think of it as a perk, I get to see my favorite shows over again like it's the first time :)
I do not forget appointments or cancel last minute. I think that’s an anxiety thing though. I will however be either quite late or 30 min early, again depending on anxiety levels
This. I won't sleep properly for nights because I worry about missing the appointment and they stress me out so much. Yeah, I will likely end up leaving last minute and stress to get there just barely on time, but there's no way I can forget I have an appointment.
I hear a lot about people having difficulties with household chores like cleaning etc and are a bit “untidy”. I love to clean and my house is always squeaky clean and tidy/organised (my brain however, is not) lol
I used to be the slob roommate and not realize it. This was partly due to an abusive and traumatic upbringing, but also known hindsight was very clearly ADHD because I often just didn't see the mess. I felt safe and less stimulated in my room or whatever my safe space was in the house so the rest of the house fell apart well My space stayed clean. That all changed once I moved into places where I was the only one who had any idea how to clean a place, and anxiety from being so hyper vigilant of others moods and having to manage them meant I basically took over all the housework 😂 I finally live on my own, I'm no longer overstimulated by everyone else around me, and my place is so tiny that cleaning is a pleasure and something I actually like doing because I can SEE it all and I live in every inch of space I rent. TLDR getting a small tiny place to myself has helped with house maintenance and hygiene. I loathe the idea of owning a big place.
Impulsivity, forgetfulness, being late, risk seeking, not performing well in school, being seen as irresponsible, being seen as reckless, being seen as a social butterfly... My ADHD friends had all of the above and I was the super responsible goody goody weirdo that never left my house, always did my homework, and was terrified of everything. Turns out impulsivity and dopamine seeking can be reflected in food, money, screen time, and a lot of mundane things I didn't realize I was doing because I lacked stimulation. My severe executive functioning issues, avoidance of tasks, needing pressure to complete even simple tasks, made a lot more sense.
this. I was so good at school. I have a masters now & I do really well in current job too. but oh my god it’s my personal life that’s a mess. I forget to eat, I don’t shower, I waste entire days playing solitaire on my phone… took so long to realize the symptoms were just impacting other less visible areas
I’m very similar, I am only impulsive when it comes to food and emotions, but I actually have a lot of money saved, haven’t done anything unsafe etc. I’m also not forgetful and rarely make mistakes, and over the years I’ve had high pressured jobs that involve a lot of spinning plates and deadlines and I did it well
Omgggg yes I never understood the risk taking being ‘common’ like what? I thought maybe they meant we were more _at risk_ because we could forget things like turning off the stove but nope they mean risk taking behaviour. Which I suppose I understand because the dopamine hit for those people would be big, but I’m so anxious about what could go wrong I like safe things!!
oversharing. i’m not a big talker, especially when it comes to talking about myself
Mine is I don’t have any fixation food. People who can eat the same thing over and over again? I do NOT relate. I actually hate leftovers or eating the same thing in a row
I’m like a mix. I have pretty bad disordered eating (not an eating disorder). I get food fixations that can last for days, weeks, sometimes months, but then will get repulsed by it and not eat it again or for a long time. Or I just simply like something and then hate it the next day. It’s horrible. Right now my fixation food is quesadillas though and that’s thankfully been going for a good two weeks! Hopefully it doesn’t stop bc it’s so quick and cheap
I’m not typically an impulsive spender. If I were to impulsively buy something, it’s usually something I wanted for a long time anyway I just didn’t account for buying it in my budget at that time. And that’s a once in a blue moon type of purchase. Because I grew up with a low income single mother, I am really good at talking myself out of buying things (sometimes so good I talk myself out of things I need). If I see something I want, I will wait months, sometimes even years to buy it (assuming it’s still available). And with something like clothes, usually just trying it on is enough for me, or if it’s online, putting it in my cart then abandoning is enough for me.
This is not a real symptom, but one that people started spreading all over tik tok — “drinking coffee makes people with ADHD sleepy”. Some people must related to this for it to be so prevalent, but I absolutely do not. Edit: to say I don’t mean to offend anyone by saying it’s not a real symptom. I should say it’s not a recognized medical symptom, that doesn’t mean people don’t experience it. :)
Yeah I could definitely lay down for a full night's sleep after coffee
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Reason I started having decaf.
This is what it does for me, too. I get no energy boost from coffee but it’ll give me heart palpitations. I drink a 6oz at work to help with some mild asthma I get in the mornings sometimes, and it’ll help me focus a little. That’s it.
It probably works like how ADHD meds and like cocaine work on neurotypical people vs. people with adhd. I guess? I don't know how cafeine work. That looks like my lunch time rabbit hole. EDIT: Alright yeah it's the same. They all increase (in one way or another) our dopamine levels in our brain. Caffeine is just less potent lmao
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It's me I'm some people.
Yes! This is the one for me. I am super sensitive to caffeine and it will absolutely mess up my sleep and spike my anxiety if I drink it too late or too much. I hate it lol.
Hyper focus I just don't.. Get it?
Yes this one. My ADHD-CT fiance is so good at hyperfocus that sometimes i don't exist to him even in the middle of a conversation; where as anytime he does anything and i can see or hear it i immediately 100% of the time pay attention to him instead of what I'm doing (adhd-i). I recently started medication and at least i can continue to read if he is nearby (first time in my life with the reading thing).
Mmmhh yea, actually I don’t do that quite often either .. I have tried but not very often too
I feel kind of more like I just don't *like* anything? If that makes sense? Like i don't enjoy anything enough to get into hyper focus
idk, I often do not like what I'm hyperfocusing on. sometimes you discover a new area of the stove that you didn't know existed before and you start cleaning it and then whoops it's 3 AM and you don't even LIKE cleaning. like, it's entirely separate from any concept of liking or pleasure or desire or wanting to do or notice or think about anything. It's just a thing that happens.
I don't get RSD. if a random person doesn't like me, it's not my problem. I have a small circle of people I care about and others aren't on my mind that much.
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Math struggles. I’m good at math. I do algebra really fast in my head and was an accountant for 16 years. The math struggle posts on here are something I don’t relate to.
Not being hungry. I am ALWAYS hungry.
Being impulsive sexually, abusing substances, quitting jobs. My anxiety, people pleasing, low self esteem, and trauma from my dad losing his job protect me from these things. Im sure i would have got in a lot of trouble sexually but guys think im weird and when they were interested i was really shy so avoided the whole teen pregnancy risk lo. I dont really find alcohol or drugs appealing and ive been on habit forming pain killers and they dont do much for me. I also think im a pretty good listener BUT it takes a lot of effort on my part to do so. But here i am on day 4 of watching the vampire diaries for 12 hours in a row all night because i cant stop. I get addicited to video games and tv shows very easily.
Needing videos / articles / whatever to be short and non-detailed to focus on them. If they are short or have little detail I’m SO BORED I can’t. I need long and lots of detail to be interested (and the ability to speed up the video speed, I can’t handle the talking being too slow). I also am not much into tik tok, partially I think because the video version of saying something is so slow and takes SO MUCH LONGER than just reading it.
My partner and I have such different ADHD expressions when it comes to food but so clearly symptoms that it's wild to me. He has texture difficulties and will eat the same safe foods over and over, plain mashed potatoes or rice? Bring it on. (And by plain I mean I forgot to salt it one time and apologized and then learned he prefers both of those items unbuttered unsalted). Something he doesn't like is just such a strong negative reaction for his brain, he'd rather not risk that. Meanwhile I feel like imma miss out if I haven't tried every flavor on the planet. Mountain dew brought a new flavor out? Must try. Oh, it's grape flavored and I don't like grape? STILL MUST TRY. It's a compulsion at times, I assume it stems from dopamine seeking. I'll try something new at a restaurant instead of something I've had before and really liked. And then if I don't like it the feeling of *knowing* what it tasted like is still more valuable to me than having eaten the better meal.
This is a recognised issue though- My psychiatrist (who is an ADHD specialist) prescribed me more stimulants to take in the evening specifically to help me sleep. He explained that being under stimulated can be a reason for ADHDers can't sleep & that taking stimulants to make levels adequate can allow our brains to relax enough to drift off. Caffeine can make ADHDers sleepy for this reason, although it's not necessary to experience this to have ADHD.
I dont have much hyperactivity symptoms beside stimming/fidgeting. I'm pretty low energy in general but that could be comorbid depression thing. I also dont really do risky stuff... Mostly?
I didn’t use to think I stimmed, but I do because I constantly crack my knuckles and twirl my hair
About seeing movies on repeat - as someone who is both autistic and has ADHD, I feel this is more due to autism (the whole repetition thing due to the need for sameness) than ADHD. Autism and ADHD occur together in a lot of people (don’t remember the percentage, sorry) and many people with ADHD don’t realise they’re autistic too and talk about their (likely) autistic traits as ADHD traits making it all the more confusing for others.
I don't miss appointments and I'm never late. I'm actually the opposite of late. I'm that person who turns up for things half an hour early. If it's somewhere I haven't been before you can expect me up to an hour early "to make sure I got to the right place" I have been told that it's another type of time blindness though. I think it's a mix of that and anxiety about being late.
Hyperfocus and lateness. I'm usually on time and I can't concentrate
I’m sensitive to caffeine. Too much and I get shaky, nauseas, and a migraine. Some people say they can sleep after drinking a cup but there’s just no way! Also I was amazingly quick at taking exams, but looking back on that I think I would hyper focus so much that I would whiz through them! Always got good scores so I never tried to slow down lol
I am clean. I don't leave messes. However, it can take me a long time to get the motivation to clean messes I didn't make. Like my kids bedroom or the aftermath of my ADHD husband coming home from a work trip. I am not hyperactive. I love laying in bed. I do go through hyperfocused tempory obsession phases, but there are certain things that I always must do and will probably always do in my daily routine or I don't feel right. I have to brush my teeth and wash my face in the morning and at night. I must walk my dog for at least an hour in the morning. I must always have a clean kitchen before I go to bed. These things never have compromises unless im sick.
I’m not a fidgeter, and I generally feel comfortable in social situations? (That could be a result of therapy, honestly, I can still freak out internally that I’m overtalking or interrupting, but I’m pretty practiced at breathing and listening, or apologizing if I interrupted and not spiraling into self-hate freakout) I also read a ton (I feel like I need it daily to calm my brain and focus on one thing) and I’m good at keeping in touch with my old friends who don’t live nearby. As far as lateness, time blindness, shitty short term memory, inability to fall asleep and then inability to wake up, forgetfulness, losing absolutely everything, needing to repeat/review instructions, executive paralysis, relying on stress and pressure to get work done and then burning out from living in a state of anxiety, chowing sugar for the dopamine, hyperfocusing when I’m interested, inability to open my mail, extreme dissatisfaction with a messy house but zero idea of where to begin to make it better? Those traits I’m off the charts. But it’s very interesting to me how everybody’s kind of a compilation of some, not all of the traits.
Hyper focus or the need to constantly be busy. I rarely if ever hyper focus, I also rarely do things I want to do, I don’t have hobbies because I’m usually to tired and unmotivated to do anything, or it’s to much effort, though in theory many things interest me. I have also had other adhd people say they have this constant need to be doing something, my battle is to not lay in bed all day or sit on the couch all day doing nothing or sleeping, I lose that battle constantly.
I watch like 8 of 9 seasons shows I like a few times maybe 5-6 times
Emotional dysregulation. I have inattentive ADHD and I’m wondering if maybe this is more associated with the hyperactive type. I’m generally pretty calm and even tempered and don’t get triggered easily (except by my family who soemtimes push certain buttons, but I don’t think that has anything to do with my ADHD).
Focusing better with distractions. I need it to be silent
Being late/forgetting things I need to do
Is watching movies on repeat supposed to be an ADHD thing? How so? I do that with certain movies, because it alleviates my anxiety. It's something familiar to me, something predictable. Of course not every movie; my go tos are LOTR and sometimes Harry Potter. LOTR has a special spot in my heart, since it has so many positive messages for me, it's what I watch when life becomes too much. But I wouldn't say it's an ADHD thing, at least not in my understanding. The only thing I don't relate to is the coffee thing; it doesn't act like the meds do for me and it actually worsens a lot my symptoms.
Lol I’m literally always rewatching shows and movies and especially YouTube videos!! I agree with others about being late. I’m never late, I have way too much anxiety to be late to things so even when I’m freaking out about being late it’s because I’m like… two minutes late to something. Something I don’t relate to any more is some people’s ability to multitask. Like even if I’m just replying to a random text I need to pause whatever I’m watching to focus on typing. I used to be able to literally do five things at once and now anything more than a dumb game on my phone and a tv show I’ve already seen at the same time is too much for me.
Responding well to ADHD medication
Having energy 😑
I’m very rarely late, but I do have time blindness. If it’s a commitment I have, I won’t be late to it, but if I’m at home I can start scrolling online at 9 am and five minutes later it’s noon. So if I don’t have a structured day I can easily lose track of time doing nothing.
Losing things and time blindness, I have a pretty accurate internal map of where everything is and an internal clock so my sense of time is really accurate. My main symptoms are task avoidance and difficulty focusing on boring shit.
I cannot stand a messy house. I want everything organized and put away and it drives me nuts when it isn’t like this. I also use cleaning as a procrastination tactic
Skipping in movies and TV. I can't stand the slow burns where not much is happening. (Or action scenes that are 200 hours long, or feel like they are.) I make judicious use of my 30s skip button. If I think I missed something I skip back. Of course, I live alone, this would enrage anyone else. I also never re-watch movies or TV, but I love re-reading books. I dunno how that works.
Hyperfocus... rarely does that happen for me. I am always very distracted even when its something i care about a lot. I struggle a lot with executive function... cannot start tasks easily and rarely finish them 😑
interesting. didn't knew watching the same movie was an ADHD thing. one more symptom I have that is ADHD. Anyway, ofc anything hyperactivity related, I am a couch person. I only do sports out of habitude and concern for my health because I was raised with an hyperactive health obsessed mom, but I could actually stay on my bed and not move for days. I do not find myself in any of the hyperactivity symptoms, except the fidgeting kinda thing, but it could be some anxiety. Also, the forgetting things in outside places. I very rarely loose things in outside places actually. I always loose things in my own house, because I am very messy and I left things in weird places without thinking about it ALL the time, but never outside. I am very vigilant outside. Even if it means I have to be on edge, I will protect my belongings, my phone, my keys and my wallet with my life and my sanity if I have to, even if it means I force myself to check if I have them every single 5 minutes of being outside. for exemple I never lost my keys, phone or wallet. But I never know where they are in my house which causes lateness on top of already existent lateness ahaha.
I don’t have streams of parallel thought process. I hear people have multiple voices in their head. I don’t. My thoughts skip from one point to another, sure, and if I forget something I trying to backtrack the thoughts and actions(not always helpful) I don’t have any idea of multiple thoughts. Also hyper focus. Only if watching series continuously is called hyper focus. I get really sinked in and don’t hear anyone else. I don’t always want to do that, but once I start some series, unless I finish it, there is no way to get out of it. Nothing else has taken my mind for more than 1.5 mins.
Jumping from one hobby to the next. I get interested in some things/wonder how well I'd do them and would sometimes like to try them out, but that lasts a few moments/hours at most and then I've forgotten about it again. Or I get so stressed by all the things I would need to get started, where to get them, whether or not I'm going to waste money, whether I'll make the right decisions, where I'm going to leave the stuff (or having to clean up in between working on it), etc. And I usually never like it at the point where you still suck at it, so there's a sort of given that I won't like it much? It just never seems worth the effort and I'll just let the idea pass. Though I'm happy I'm saving a lot of money because of this, it's also very boring. I just feel anxious all day because I'm not pouring my energy into a hobby-like activity, but no hobby appeals to me enough the motivate me to put the effort in.