An Idea for ADHD Symptoms

I will start by saying I have not been diagnosed with ADD, but it runs in my immediate family. Whether or not you believe in the existence of ADD as a true disorder, you may notice that certain types of food, organization, and activities help some of your more active or unfocused children.

Organization is key for me. If I don't organize my activities, my brain feels fuzzy and it's a struggle to accomplish anything.

                                                                               Image courtesy of clker.com

I have found it helpful to list certain things at the start of the day. This is the third thing I do each morning, after getting dressed and ready and doing devotions. It is extremely helpful for me as an adult; I can see how it would be very helpful for a teenager or college student; and I think it would be an excellent practice to start with younger children so that they get into the habit. In fact, I will start tomorrow by helping my five-year-old do this for six days, and then I will report back on the experience.

Materials:

There is blank notebook paper near the beginning of my homemaking binder. There is also a pencil in a pencil holder in the binder. This is very important! The first time you get up from the task of writing down the daily list might be the time that you get distracted and don't come back to it.

Procedure:

I write "Daily Focus" at the top of the page. For each day of the week, I have selected one to three areas to focus on that day. For example, today was 1) planning guest posts for another blog and 2) errands (which I listed).

Next, I write "Daily Order." Underneath that heading, I number the tasks I want to get done that day.

I have previously made categories of my roles and prioritized them (for example, 1) wife; 2) mother; 3) homemaker; 4) moneysaver; 5) volunteer). So my Daily Order starts with a subheading of Wife, then #1: (whatever task I most want to get done that day that pertains to being a wife). Continue to number tasks as long as you can think of tasks you want to get done that day in that category. Then write the next subheading and continue to number tasks below that category. Continue with other categories, in order of priority.

I have a rule for myself: If I've almost reached the end of the page, I have to stop. It's unlikely I will get through a whole page of tasks in one day, so I have to accept that and stop somewhere.

Last, I write the heading "Extraordinary Thing for Today."This is the place to write down one special, above-and-beyond, excellent, or brave thing you will do today.

Usage:

I refer back to this page during the day, especially each time that I start to get distracted and wonder what I was going to do or should do next. This often happens to me!

The list does not help me accomplish each and every task I can think up, but it does help me have a clear conscience or sense of purpose as I go through my day, and that's worth a lot.