From the “This is only news to neurotypicals” department
We thrive, yes… But it takes its toll after repeated incidents.
AuDHD here. I got put on Buspar for anxiety once. It worked amazingly well at getting rid of anxiety. Unfortunately, I learned that anxiety was the only way I accomplished anything meaningful. I would have to be anxious that I would disappoint someone or something would result in terrible outcomes if I didn’t do it. When the Buspar got rid of anxiety, I lost my drive to accomplish anything. I remember telling the doc, “I don’t feel like doing anything. I just sit there.” So, I was taken off of it.
My personal psychological intervention for ADHD was military training instilling discipline and increasing anxiety to illicit the military discipline to avoid doom. In other words, I accomplished everything meaningful by pretending I was in war. Accomplishments weren’t accomplishments to celebrate. They were avoidance of harm to feel relieved by. A life full of fear rather than pleasure and pride.
omg I can’t believe I just figured that out rn lol 😆
We are fighting a war. Try not doing the things that stress you out. Straight to living in a van down by a river.
But man, what a carefree couple months it gets you. Like mana from the sky, a blissful oasis in a sea of hurt, never to return.
“People with ADHD can only get shit done when they’re stressed and will often create stress just to motivate themselves” is in freaking Driven to Distraction, the first mainstream book about ADHD from like 30 years ago haha.
I thought I read that somewhere, many years before this study “just” discovered it. Shoot, I’ve been using that knowledge as a coping mechanism for at least a decade lol
Tell me about it, I just got off an 8-hour brunch shift, running my ass off the whole time, and I am flying.
This worked until I developed GAD. Now it’s hard to get motivated and hard to wind down, lol.
What’s GAD?
Probably Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Ah that makes sense.
(Also the last few years of my downward spiral till I hit bottom ) Meds have changed my life the last six months.
Yeah, meds have helped, in my case. At least benzos, but I try not to use them since they were explicitly prescribed as a last resort. I gotta book an appointment at a second doctor one of these days… It wasn’t really working out with my previous doctor.
What are “benzos”? At first I thought that was Bezos.
Benzodiazepines. Class of drugs used for sleep, anxiety and even anesthesia. Wikipedia: benzodiazepine
Yup.
If you figure out the motivation thing, give me buzz. For winding down, I found that doing mindless sorting tasks is good for relaxing. For instance, I build LEGO things, my son plays with them and takes them apart eventually, and I sort them back out. One time, I went through my son’s old clothes and made a list of what was in each box. I felt so relaxed after the clothes logging! It was a nice little Saturday!
We are wired differently. “Winding down” doesn’t look the same for us. It’s just hard to find the right task to let our brains relax.
Amazing about the comments is that while a majority seems to “deliver” when the pressure is on, they split 50/50 on whether they feel great during it or suffer greatly, no middle ground.
I’m definitely in the 2nd group. I can get it done if the alternative has horrifying consequences, but it’s not a good feeling.
Maybe two things are mixed up, though. One is like a thing where not doing it is horrible, such as vet appointment for the pet, crucial last deadline at work, kid’s birthday party. The other is like working in a high stress environment, like a project where everything is on fire and under pressure, it’s not about our condition, or an emergency situation like a sinking ship.
I, personally, suffer greatly in the former, but less than the average person in the latter.
Pressurized work makes me feel alive and useful when I succeed.
Yeah, I think both can be true for one person. It very much depends on the context if I’ll feel great or if I suffer during times of stress. Working in a café with many different orders to fulfill and things to do: nice!! Finishing assignments for university last minute and not doing a good job because you started much too late: feeling like a failure.
I basically have permanent anxiety because of this. My entire life, tasks have been driven by fear and anxiety. My emergency response is fucking amazing because of this. I broke my wrist last year and was in a zen mind state. Handled it like it was nothing and didn’t panic. It makes me wonder if software engineering was the wrong field for me and I should’ve instead been an ambulance driver.
Ambulance drivers are paid jack shit unfortunately.
I’ve seen how much EMTs make, no you should not have
Surgical field, possibly valid.
It’s seriously criminal how underpaid those folks are.
It’s seriously criminal how underpaid
thosefolks are.
My ADHD must be broken then. Or it’s the OCD and GAD talking
Oh yeah, stress will really amp up my comprehension. It will also amp up the suicidal idealation.
And health issues.
Psh, that’s for future me to deal with!
I feel like my adhd is the reason for my extreme stress? I’m inattentive as fuck, which is very fucking stupid because the ptsd symptom I can’t turn off is hyperawareness. I’m always noticing everything, but trying to keep track of it long enough to put into context is a struggle. Life those two symptoms are at odds and making each other worse?
Even trying to explain it like this feels stupid.
I’m here with you, friend.
I’ve let non-verbal pets (my snake, for one) die because I knew I needed to feed them, but my task paralysis prevented me from doing so when I thought of it and my lack of time management meant they could always go one more day.
Man, 2020 sucked major ass. I’m sorry Juno! You deserved better than me.
It is exhausting to live like this. Now, I just have passive SI and am waiting to find out what cancer or terminal disease I have that will claim my life while I slowly eat and sit myself to an early grave.
Someone had to carry out a study for that? I thought that’s common with ADHD.
Stress just turns on a switch in the brain which would otherwise be off no matter how much a situation warranted it.
When i was 14 i had my first real big assignment in school. We had to write 14 pages about something. We had like 8 weeks or something. My teacher looked specifically at me and said: that’s not one of these things that you can start in seven weeks and think you get by.
I knew what i had to do and i had time to do it. Anyway, i started the friday when i only had 3 more days left, didn’t find the book i was looking for so i did the whole thing on a sunday and got an A. It was there where i first wondered if something is wrong with me or if school is just bullshit.
Turns out it’s both!
I often felt bad for the people who really tried. I never read a single book that i made a book report of. And i liked reading.
Yeah, it’s the pressure of needing tasks completed immediately and the obvious importance/need to remove the stress-causing thing.
It’s a perfect recipe for hyperfocus and also why I can’t set my own deadlines–because I know it’s all wibbly wobbly when there isn’t a hard deadline from an external source. I’d be rich if I had a dollar for every time I wished someone would just tell me when something is needed instead of asking me to give an estimate.
If the task feels like boring busy work or bullshit and no one told me otherwise, you’ve got fuckall chance it’s getting done.
that’s the only way I ever submitted anything in college lmao
wait what do you mean I’m now suffering from permanent burnout and near adrenal exhaustion and inability to execute on any of my hobbies anymore? No that clearly just means I need more caffeine and to work harder because I’m lazy
Funny, I didn’t remember posting this.
Are you me, and me, you? ??
Hey it’s me, your you.
Just need a professor emailing you that your crocheted sweater is due tomorrow at 8am!
oh god oh fuck i hope i get a good grade on my 3d printing exam
I’m actually taking a weekly course on model railroading! We have homework involving stuff like modeling terrain with plaster and painting landscape layers! I would not get that stuff done if it wasn’t due at the next class!
If you white knuckle past the point of burnout, you eventually start getting out of bed again to do hobbies. But only hobbies that feel useful and needed, and only if done feverishly so your brain can’t dwell on feeling burnt out and all the fun is gone. Dunno, maybe it’s just me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Disclaimer: It doesn’t go so well for people who wish to remain employed :/
I’m in this comment and I don’t like it
Yes, but maybe the ability to feel stress helps you to avoid it?
So maybe those with ADHD can do more in stressful moments… and then die sooner.
NT “journalist” : Breaking news: CPTSD & ADHD are closer relatives than previously thought.
NDs : …
