I use this notebook to write down my list of things to do each day. I use one side of the paper for an expansive list, and I use the other side to write only 3 tasks at a time to do. It is called the Triage Method and I found it through this video. Writing only 3 tasks at a time helps make tasks less overwhelming, which makes it easier to complete.
I also sometimes write out the hours of the day to fill in after I finish doing something. It helps me be more aware of what I'm doing throughout the day.
2. Weekly Planner
I use my physical weekly planner to plan out my week. I will write down events and appointments and when they happen. I make sure my planner is open, so I can see what is happening. I make sure to update it immediately if I am able, or I will forget. I do not like timeblocking, so I stick with horizontal planners.
3. Monthly Wall Calendar
I have a wall calendar that is in a place I can see it at all times. I write down events and appointments and their times. It helps to have lots of visuals to know what is happening and when.
4. Digital Wristwatch
This was a gamechanger for me. I bought cheap digital watches that have the month and date. I actually know the time and date. It helps me stay aware of time passing without my phone distracting me.
5. Visual Timer
I bought a cheap visual timer and it's been so helpful when doing monotonous tasks. I will shoot for 15-20 minutes instead of a full pomodoro 25/5, because it feels short enough to feel like I'm not bored out of my mind. I also have a visual timer app, but it can be a hit or miss because my phone is super distracting.
adhd study affirmations + tips to stray from discouragement
by a stem student with adhd.
you’re not always going to be consistent. you’re not always going to be motivated. you’re not always going to be efficient. and that is okay.
edit : thank you so much to whoever blazed this post. It means the world to me.
and the fact that you even got this far is an accomplishment in and of itself. In this line of work, people aren’t always the kindest to neurodivergent people especially since our symptoms can often hinder our performance academically.
if you’re good to go after reading the above, I’ve also made a post regarding adhd study tips that I haven’t seen anywhere else. (Part 2 is here!) But, if you’re burned out like me, feel free to keep reading.
honestly, these might serve a bit more as reminders because they’re kinda simple but even I needed this, so, here we go.
do not seek advice from anyone neurotypical unless it genuinely helps you. I cannot tell you the amount of time and tears I could have saved if I just considered the fact that just because popular self-improvement tips or study techniques didn’t work for me, it doesn’t mean I’m stupid or useless. It simply means our brains isn’t motivated by the same things neurotypical ones are, and therefore a lot of popular self-improvement videos or study tips aren’t going to work for you because 90% of the time, they’re not designed to work for neurodivergent people. So if you’d like to seek help in this area, look for tips and videos that ARE for neurodivergent people.
you might experience burnout a lot more than others. again, that is fine. if this doesn’t apply to you, great! Feel free to skip to the next tip/affirmation. If this does apply to you, read this carefully; if you’ve had any sort of streak in studying right now, chances are you know at least a portion of your studies were led purely on interest, curiosity or even novelty, as these are what keep us engaged in our studies. Knowing this, it is natural for you to experience burnout more frequently than others due to the possible hyperfixations that have been forming around your work. If you get burned out, please remember to take a break for a day and make sure it is efficient. Like your studies, your breaks are the key to having efficient study sessions in the future. So please treat yourself, especially if you’ve been working extra hard!
do not admire studious fictional characters unless it genuinely helps you or they too are neurodivergent. I know this technically could have been thrown in with tip number 1 but I felt like this tip alone is so important, because nowadays I see a lot of study tips with the title, ‘how to study like (insert studious fictional character here)’ and when I look at the post it kinda repeats the same few study tips I see all the time like ‘stay organized’ or ‘time block your day’ and I feel like admiring fictional characters who do things that don’t work for you can be damaging for your mental health, because we’re already told by neurotypical people all around us that we’re slow or lazy just because we don’t do things the way they do, and I think idolizing neurotypical people that make us feel bad at the end of the day just further promotes that kind of toxic thinking.
expect that a routine/schedule/technique that has been working for a while now may not continue to work in the future. things will always have to be new for us to be interested or engaged, that being said, if you expect this in the future you won’t be frustrated with yourself because you already had this in mind. It doesn’t mean you’re not smart. It doesn’t mean you’re lazy. It doesn’t mean you’re useless. It just means that you’ve done what you could, and now it’s time to move on to another routine/schedule/technique.
keep doing the things you love alongside work. I find that because our symptoms may cause us to fall behind on our studies, we tend to neglect our other needs as human beings just to make up for the fact that we simply do not learn or pick things up the same way neurotypical people do. Your hobbies and interests need to be part of your day, just as your studies do, even if you may take longer to learn things or remember important concepts in your studies. Neglecting your hobbies or interests can lead to even more frequent burn outs and even a relapse in depression and anxiety, so please take care of yourself and recognize that you need and deserve these things just as much as anyone else.
regularly discover what works for you on your own. here’s the thing; neurodivergent or not, no two brains work the same. Of course it is good to try out advice or tips you find online because they’re backed up by experience, but they’re backed up by that person’s experience with working with their own brain. So naturally, you need to find what works with your brain. Be open to trying everything, even the tips that are discouraged like listening to lyrical music while studying. That was the only way I learnt that this tip actually does help me at times, even when many people have said that it negatively affects your focus.
that’s all I have right now guys, I think I’m experiencing burn out or probably falling back into depression again so more than anything this also served as a reminder for me, but I really hope it also helped you guys nonetheless.
As always, tell me if you guys would like more posts like these and I’ll be happy to make more <33 please take care of yourself guys, and remember that your studies is just one aspect of your life. There are other aspects that need your care and attention too.
new adhd/mental illness/disability hack for your next semester
instead of focusing on getting shit done, focus on studying for at least 10 (20/30 whichever sounds easy to you) minutes a day. not even like the 5 minute rule, not to get started, but literally only 10 minutes a day. you won't get everything done this way, but you will do at least some part of it by the time it's due tomorrow. you're probably still gonna have to work your ass off on the last day, but it's gonna be a few hours, not the whole night
I find it so discouraging to focus on the task, it feels like it's gonna take so much time and it stops me from even starting, so when it's due tomorrow I literally have to start from zero and do the whole thing, when I stop focusing on the end goal of completing it, it looks... like it's a thing I can actually do, yk. and things actually start getting done somehow
again, it's not to get started, not to trick your brain into starting, it's to do at least something
Because days at home can be so unpredictable, it's super helpful for me to have multiple schedules that I can stick to when I need a little adjustment. So I made a general outline of potential schedules I may need!
General Weekdays: these are my typical weekdays where I'm just a full time student with nothing else going on.
9:00 - Wake up
9:00 - 10:00: Morning routine
10:00 - 12:00: 1st study session
12:00 - 1:00: Lunch break
1:00 - 2:30: 2nd study session
2:30 - 3:15: Break
3:15 - 4:15: 3rd study session
4:15 - 4:30: Break
4:30 - 5:00: 4th study session
5:00 - 5:15: Daily review log
5:15 - 11:00: Free time
11:00 - 12:00: Reading time—No phone
12:00: Bed time
Weekend: for use on busier weekends closer to the end of the semester and finals or for when I need some extra catching up :)
9:00 - Wake up
9:00 - 10:00: Morning routine
10:00 - 11:00: 1st study session
11:00 - 12:00: Break
12:00 - 1:00: 2nd study session
1:00 - 1:30: Break
1:30 - 2:30: 3rd study session
2:30 - 3:00: Break
3:00 - 4:00: 4th study session
4:00 - Done!
ADHD Days: for days when I haven't taken meds, or I'm feeling a little burnt out an unable to concentrate.
One of the hardest things about studying, or just being productive in general, with ADHD is getting started. It's so hard to just sit down and get something done. I was talking to my brother, who also has ADHD, and we realised we both do the same thing before studying. I always thought it was a bad thing, but after talking to my brother I realised it motivates me to continue being productive.
What we do is something we like to call "productive procrastination". It sounds bad, and yes, to an extent, it can be. Basically you do something not related to your task at hand that is still productive. It gives you that activation energy you need to just start what you need to do.
For example, yesterday I put on an audiobook and for half an hour I did a deep clean of my desk and bookshelves before starting my day of studying. Yes, this was procrastination, but it helped give me motivation. Doing something small makes what you need to do less daunting, because you get that bit of dopamine that keeps you going.
I also find that cleaning up my room really helps. I'm normally a really messy person, but when I study I need a clean space. I used to think it wasn't true, but I now really agree with the saying "messy room, messy mind".
You gain points for finishing tasks and building habits.
You can get eggs and potions to hatch pets and earn food to grow your pets.
DOPAMINE!!!
You can enter challenges to get gems to join special challenges
You can join parties to work together on quests and have group accountability
You can log achievements and convince yourself to do the things you need to do (this is also great for spoonies, without it I would just never get out of bed with exhaustion)
Focus frogs! A tool to help neurodivergent people chunk up work and take breaks while still maintaining momentum due to having a visual signifier of ur progress!
