ADHD Hobbies, in 5 easy steps

We've all been there, right?

1) I discover a new hobby. Wow - this is so interesting!

2) Intense study of the hobby. Hyperfocus kicks in. I learn all about the tools, techniques, and possibilities. I look up beginner guides and hunt for starter kits.

3) Starting the new hobby. For several weeks or months, this hobby is super exciting! I'm off to a promising start. I'm gratified by my progress and love buying and making shiny new things!

4) Hitting the wall. In the middle of a project, I hit a rough spot. Instead of working through it, I get frustrated and stop. A few months go by and every time I look at the half-finished project I feel guilty. Eventually it gets put away in the overflowing "UFO" (Un-Finished Objects) storage.

5) Rediscovery! Sooner or later, the hobby will pop up again - in conversation, a YouTube video, or while I'm piling yet another abandoned project on top of it. I'll re-gather my tools and give it another try. Maybe this time will be the time I stick with it...

Just a typical Sunday

Things I want to do today (an over-enthusiastic list):

Get up early (already failed - got up at 11)

Fold and put away all of last week's laundry

Re-build the door on the chicken run

Finish sewing the spring masks I started 2 weeks ago

Replace the plywood in the hall and lay some more laminate flooring

Clean out one of the garden beds for spring peas

Buy flowers for the porch baskets

Plan the garden

Clear out the (future) office and finish scraping the sand paint off the walls

Paint something, write something, or build something

Do last week's work from my organization workbook

Make a healthy dinner

Get everything ready for work tomorrow morning - pack a lunch, set out clothes, make sure my shoes & keys & purse are ready to go...

Things I'm probably going to do today (a reality check):

Fold some of the laundry and put it back in the basket

Feel overwhelmed, bored, distracted, hungry, or all 4 at once

Sew a mask? Maybe?

Start garden planning and get frustrated by it as usual

Remember I'm spending all my money on medication and therapy and can't actually afford to buy flowers this month

Play The Sims 4 for several hours

Start dinner at 8pm because I was distracted

Panic at 9pm about all the things I haven't done yet, stay up too late trying to do more, and resolve (as usual) to do better tomorrow. If you don't have a neurological disparity that affects your executive functioning, you're probably wondering why I even make these lists when the 1st would realistically take more than a full day to complete, and the 2nd is basically an admission of laziness. If you do struggle with executive functioning you probably read them both and nodded to yourself. More to come on executive dysfunction, time blindness, and other fun ways the ADHD brain "works". But for now - I've been writing and editing blog posts for over an hour and my Sims are waiting!

About Me

 Hi,

I'm Dawn.

I am 35 years old.

My pronouns are she/her.

I grew up in a small town. I moved to a mid-size city. I have a college degree, some certifications and a lot of knowledge that is useless for trivia nights because no trivia game ever asks about 1890s corsetry or building rammed earth houses or quantum computing.

I was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder in my 20s. I have been depressed since my pre-teen years at least, cycling from "it's not that bad" to "every time I cross a bridge I consider steering into the river". I was put on an antidepressant medication and my suicidal thoughts went away, which was promising. My de-motivation and distractibility and extreme fear of failure did not.

Turns out depression was a symptom, not a cause.

Turns out I have struggled with ADHD (Inattentive type) my whole life, and like many women I was only diagnosed as an adult, and only because my coping mechanisms were failing. To be honest they weren't working in the first place, but I had recently checked some awesome things off my "adulting" list and could afford health care, so I was running out of excuses.

My diagnosis was a result of seeking therapy for executive dysfunction, which is a fancy way of saying "I can not get shit done no matter how hard I work". Seeking therapy was a result of seeing several friends also do this. It's easier when you're not alone.

Which is the point of this blog. There are dozens of ADHD blogs out there already. Most of them are way better than this will be. But that's okay, because everybody has a different experience and viewpoint, and I just want to share mine.

Also this is the ADHD impulsivity talking - I want to keep sharing ADHD things somewhere other than social media, and starting a new project is fun!

Will it help me? No idea.

Will it help you? I can only hope.