do you have any recommendations for how to handle an understimulating university environment? i dropped out a year and a half ago after failing spectacularly, then realised i had adhd.
i remember being incredibly bored in every class despite the degree being the thing i'm most interested in. help, how do i fix this? i really would like to go back some day!
Hello! Thank you for your questionā¤ļø
Apologies for the late reply, depression has really been kicking my butt this year.
As someone who has struggled with this exact thing I will tell you right away that it isnāt an easy fix. Itās a process and you might have to go through some trial and error before you find something that works for you. I canāt promise I have the right answer for you but I will do my best.
What I can offer are some suggestions on how maintain your interest and thus your focus and motivation.
1. Make the subject more interesting
This can be tricky when youāre doing something you already know you enjoy but still feel understimulated. Try finding or incorporating at least one tiny tidbit of information that interest you and focus on that in order to keep up your general interest.
As an example: I once took a class on the history of crisis, and there was a lot of stuff in there that didnāt really interest me even though I liked the subject in general. It was hard to motivate myself at the start. However I was able to incorporate one of my special interests into my essay for that class and that made the entire thing much more enjoyable because I was able to gush and learn more about my special interest.
2. Stimulate yourself to prevent boredomš§
The general idea is to occupy yourself with something minor that allows you to listen and participate without suffering through overwhelming understimulation. Some suggestions are:
Making fun/interesting notes. Draw charts, diagrams, make little boxes or circles around your text, draw arrows, add little thought bubbles or clouds, whatever floats your boat.
Fidget toys, they can be anything for a ball of sticky putty, necklaces, rings, kneadable erasors to just a simple hairtie.
Fidgeting, some examples of non-disruptive fidgeting are: rolling or twirling a pen between your fingers (resist the alluring urge to click your pen so as not to bother others), dangling your legs back and forth, wiggling your feet/toes, tapping your fingers against each other, chewing gum etc
Knitting/crocheting/other hand-based work that is easily portable.
Be aware that some of these require that you not get too distracted by what youāre doing, it might be a good idea to try different things until you find one that doesnāt take away too much of your concentration.
3. Use external motivators
This one might be a hit or miss depending on your personality but for many people external motivation can really help you stay focused when internal motivation is lacking. Some examples of external motivators are:
Sitting in front. By sitting in front you have a more direct view of the person speaking and this helps engage you in what theyāre teaching. You also have their eyes on you more often which will act as an external reminder to pay attention.
Join studious peers. This works as a sort of body double system. If I see that the people next to me are paying close attention that makes me want to do the same.
Reward yourself when you successfully maintain focus with something you look forward to. This can be anything from getting a treat to some extra minutes gaming time later that day, whatever sparks your dopamine.
As an example: I used to have 45-minute lectures with a 10-15 minute break and then another 45-60 minute lecture after that. If I had paid attention and made good notes after the first 45 minutes I would treat myself to coffe and a pastry from the cafƩteria during our break. This was a way for me to reward myself for doing a good job. So whenever I felt my motivation lacking I would remind myself that I needed to pay attention if I wanted that cinnamon bun later on.
š¼I hope these answers were helpful to you. Remember to be kind to yourself and donāt judge yourself if things donāt work out right away. š¼
Thank you for reading and good luckš¼
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