ADHD overwhelmed

People with ADHD have a more acute experience of life than others. This implies that even if you're hyper-focused on the activity or project in front of you, your mind can still be flooded with other thoughts and ideas.

There may appear to be a lot going on at all times, which can be daunting. You're not alone if you have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and feel like practically everything is overwhelming you.

When you're feeling overwhelmed, here are some suggestions.

"People with ADHD have problems maintaining their attention span," says Emily W. King, PhD, a psychologist in Raleigh, North Carolina.

"This means that completing a task or managing other executive function skills like formulating a plan, organizing the plan, starting the plan, maintaining attention to the plan, and transitioning to something else after the plan is completed can be difficult."

"It can also be difficult to return to the plan if something disrupts or distracts them. As a result, they leave a lot of things incomplete." You may want to shut down because of your emotional overwhelm, but there are ways to control those feelings so you can still get things done!

According to King, the greatest approach to deal with such overwhelming feeling is to do activities like:

timers

Reminders with pictures

phones

"Many of the errors made by someone with ADHD are unintentional," she explains. "Those of us without ADHD need to be understanding when they're feeling overwhelmed since their emotions can come on quickly or impulsively."

1. Workplace stress

There are so many things to do that you don't know where to start? Take a few minutes to relax and calm yourself by doing some deep breathing. Then, step by step, develop a list of everything you need to do.

"Do each activity for a specific amount of time, then take a 5-minute rest," King advises. "Then move on to the next assignment," says the narrator.

2. Overwhelmed by the demands of controlling your children's life

These days, kids are quite busy. They have a lot on their plates between soccer practice, ballet, doctor's visits, and playdates, which means you have a lot on your plate as well.

Furthermore, as a parent, you will receive several emails from school, camp, sports teams, and other organizations. It's enough to make you want to hide in the bathroom and never come out if you're juggling all of this at the same time.

But don't be concerned. There are strategies for keeping track of — and really attending — all of your children's appointments.

"For setting up reminders, rely on technology," King advises. "And make it a daily practice to go over all of your texts and emails." Check to see whether you've received any essential texts. Set up filters in your inbox to organize your emails into folders that you can review on a daily basis. Instead of aimlessly browsing your inbox, you'll go straight to the important emails this way."

3. Is your inbox overflowing?

Clearly, the creators of "Inbox Zero" do not have ADHD. It'd be more like "Inbox Under 1,000" if they did.

"Even if you don't have ADHD, you definitely deal with this as a parent," King says. "Seeing so many emails can be daunting, and folders are a terrific way to keep track of them." Remember to use the search bar if you need to find an email you read a few weeks ago but can't find."

"Delete emails at milestones like the end of the school year or the completion of a commitment to reduce clutter," King adds. "To prevent spam out of your business and personal inboxes, build distinct work and personal emails as well as a separate email that will attract spam."

4. You're overburdened with bills to pay.

It's no surprise that bills pile up because of procrastination, disorganization, and a lack of enthusiasm many of us have when it comes to duties that don't provide us with immediate gratification: electric, phone, cable, mortgage, credit cards...

"Automate everything!" King proposes as an easy solution.

Set up automated bill payment with your bank or service providers. When you don't have to worry about paying bills on time or dealing with late fees, you'll feel a lot better.

5. Overwhelmed by grocery shopping or meal preparation

Utilize smart home gadgets such as Amazon Alexa or Google Home, your phone's notes app, or a blank piece of paper hung on your refrigerator.

"Add it to your list as soon as you realize you're out of anything or have used up the last bit," King advises. "You've completed the majority of your shopping list!"

To make meal planning and preparation easier, King suggests creating a meal schedule, such as Meatless Mondays or Taco Tuesdays, so there aren't as many possibilities. Then, each week, rotate your favorite recipes to make weeknight meals simple and predictab

You may also use meal-planning websites like Plan to Eat, which allows you to download recipes off the internet and add them to your weekly menu, which automatically generates a grocery list, saving you the time and effort of having to write down each ingredient you'll need.

When your child has ADHD and is feeling overwhelmed, there are a few things you can do to help them.

"Remember that your child's brain is still developing," King adds, "and it may take them longer to gain the skills that other children have at specific ages." "Children with ADHD learn social and emotional management skills significantly later than their neurotypical peers, so just because they are in a certain grade or age doesn't indicate they can do anything."

The first thing you should do if you see your child is feeling overwhelmed, according to King, is to listen to what they have to say.

"Always connect and be helpful when a child is stressed," she advises. "After everyone has calmed down, figure out why something didn't work and what type of approach the youngster will need the next time they are in that position."