Articles on mindfulness and ADHD to keep you interested and motivated.
As the proud owner of an ADHD brain, you already know that sometimes our minds just do what they want to do without a lot of input from us. Though we come with no owner’s manual, we learn what we can in order to function well and move through the world as successfully as we can. This can produce a lot of fluctuation in mood and energy levels on a day to day basis. If we are not careful, this can leave us in a rut, held captive by whether or not today is a “good day.”
As the proud owner of an ADHD brain, you already know that sometimes our minds just do what they want to do without a lot of input from us. Though we come with no owner’s manual, we learn what we can in order to function well and move through the world as successfully as we can. This can produce a lot of fluctuation in mood and energy levels on a day to day basis. If we are not careful, this can leave us in a rut, held captive by whether or not today is a “good day.”
To say that I live my life in distraction would be an understatement. Adult ADHD is the number one obstacle to me accomplishing what I want to in the time I have allotted myself. There’s always something new to do, somewhere I have to be, and let’s not act like I am spacing my work out. I need something that I can use every day to help me manage my stress and keep my focus. Enter mindfulness, right? Well, not exactly.
Does morning planning seem like something that everyone else can do, but eludes you? You really are not alone! When you arrive at the office, or wherever you begin your day, try Mindful Morning Planning Using STOP to see if you can develop the habit of morning planning. This article has a companion infographic for you to download, print, and hang on your wall!
Like almost anything else in this world, there isn’t just one way to meditate… there are several different ways to go about it. Though all of these approaches are valid in helping you calm your mind and they all reap various benefits of meditation, we have found that two types of meditation are particularly helpful to those with ADHD: Focused Attention and Open Monitoring.
Practicing mindfulness—especially engaging in a regular mindfulness practice— can calm the emotions and benefit many of the “executive functions” by improving metacognition. Metacognition is a conscious awareness, or the ability to notice, think about, and regulate your thoughts and, thereby, choices.
Mindfulness and eating are a natural fit. What other activity do we give as little attention to while we’re doing it, while relying on habits to make choices, not always to our benefit? Eating like this means nothing more artificial than aiming to pay attention to eating while eating.
What is your experience of mind wandering like? For many, mind wandering can sometimes be relaxing, a way to mentally kick back and let the mind play on its own terms.
Mindfulness is not something I've ever pictured myself doing because it involved things I felt I was incapable of doing. I have ADHD. Sitting still and I are like frienemies. Until I learned to start with STOP.
In this part of the Fill Your Tank series, we look at how to get started by pulling up to the pump. Gain the cognitive fuel you need by getting started in the right way - the most direct route between you and your goals that is custom designed for your ADHD mind…
