How to Declutter When You Have ADHD and Are Drowning in Stuff
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- čas přidán 19. 01. 2021
- Have you made a New Year’s resolution to finally organize your home space in 2021? Perhaps, you tried in previous years to get organized, but every attempt failed, and you ended up feeling overwhelmed. Maybe, it was because you were not using an ADHD-friendly style of decluttering.
On average people spend 153 days (that’s 6 months) of their lives looking for misplaced items, of which 75% are misplaced at home. As a result, 43% of people feel stressed due their disorganization. These numbers of time spent looking for items is amplified when ADHD is at play.
The physical state of your home is often a representation of how you feel in your head. This mental clutter can lead to anxiety or depression and can define your overall sense of well being.
Studies have shown that clutter negatively affects your perception of your home and your ability to have pleasure while in that space. This effect spills out beyond the home leading to lower overall satisfaction with life in general.
A big problem for people with ADHD when it comes to letting go of their items has to do with decision making and potential use. They keep differing the decision of what to do with specific possessions, so the piles keep growing. Some hang on to things because they hope to convert it into something else or use it later for a hobby they hope to start. Cleaning becomes more difficult.
Items become more easily misplaced due to distraction and poor memory, often making them late for work simply because they cannot find their keys or their cellphone. Arguments with the spouse become more frequent as the mess builds up. Overwhelm sets in and inaction becomes the norm.
This session is designed to help you:
1 - Recognize the core reasons that contribute to clutter build-up when ADHD is present and how this becomes an issue in daily life.
2 - Utilize an ADHD-friendly method to improve your ability to let go of items.
3 - Apply strategies that help with your overall ability to maintain an organized home or office.
The information on this video and through the Centre for ADHD Awareness, Canada (CADDAC) is for information purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for medical advice. ADHD should always be assessed, diagnosed and treated by a qualified medical physician.
You lost me at the 'maybe' box. My whole life is a 'maybe' box - remembering to go back to it never happens, and the Doom Piles grow.
I absolutely know myself well enough by now at the age of 52 know that I cannot do a maybe box maybe boxes sit there for 6 months. I call it get rid of this s*** now box, even donating is too much of an issue. All my stuff comes from donations in rehashing it...nope, TOSS IT AND CLEAN UP MY LIFE!!
The moment the picture of the stacked, sorted dishes came up I almost started crying. My partner has always wondered why I "restack" and sort the unwashed dishes on the counter before it goes in the dishwasher and I could never explain why and have never seen anyone else do it in this exact way. I have gone undiagnosed for 31 years. I have always felt out of place for loving order and organisation but not being able to keep it. Thank you so much for making me feel like I am not alone in this and that I am not "just lazy" and "messy" 🌷
Oh good lord...my life is smothered by paper, writing things down, lists. They don't help. I can lose a list faster than you say boo, and I can carry a grocery list and still not get all the groceries on it. So the lists end up with the journals and bills and useless pieces of thoughts written down. Piles of paper don't help or change a thing.
Tldr:
Start by moving things to the correct rooms. ie: separate everyone's clothes
Think about how much the item "costs" and if it's worth holding onto (costs = space it takes up, visual clutter it adds, $, etc.)
Put everything visually accessible. Clear labeled containers.
Start a "sanity basket": a basket that holds all the misc things that need to be put away. Must be put away by end of week
I am watching this video inverse of attention span and have not got through it, not sure if you saw it in the video or not but thank you for mentioning the basket to put things in and collect once a week to put away. This is truly the least of my issues but thank you great idea
This. Video. Is. Changing. My. Life.
I had stumbled my way to a number of these individual pieces, but having the reasoning behind them (like Delay Decisions!!), and getting the overview of stringing them all together - this is LIFE CHANGING.
I've been trying to pack for a move, but got stuck in overwhelm unable to figure out where to start, and just have been moving a few unimportant things from one area to another. It's been weeks and time is running out. I watched this once, took extensive notes. Started applying the things, and realize I have some gaps, so am back to watch again to fill out the understanding and apply!
But just from the first viewing I am actually getting through rooms and spaces, and it all makes sense. THANK YOU.😭
Listened to this as I go through my room having just moved house. I have the attic room and I’m making zones for my bed, deck, wardrobe and drawers and books, felt really great to listen to and I’m reminding myself it doesn’t all have to get done now but also done is better than perfect. Excited for a calmer environment. This has been a long journey for me and this year I have moved twice. The first downsize was a week after my diagnoses and meds really helped not to get mega overwhelmed. Clothes for me are really sentimental and tricky to let go of but I’m going to try some on now and I already know there are some shorts I prefer over others so I know i gravitate more to the ones I prefer and don’t wear the other ones. That was a really helpful and new tip for me. Feels obvious but no one has ever said it how you said it and it’s just clicked. Thank you for your time and for recording this, I really appreciate it. Love from sunny England 🏴
I absolutely loved this presentation! I struggle with all my stuff and none my friends and family can understand why I have such difficulty! While without a diagnosis, the fact that this resonates so intensely with me makes me think I am in the right place! This is a great help for me! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience with us!
An absolutely wonderful presentation - better than any I've seen in many years! Truly ADHD-friendly, helpful, useful, inspiring - without unnecessary general talk. The negative effects of clutter that you do talk about are ADHD-related, and reminding is both necessary and helpful - I made a little list to keep me motivated. And few common neurotypical-friendly suggestions either(which are great but most often unusable). Great tempo. Focus was on the most important things.Thank you so much!
You erased one guilt source based on only having 3 small rooms after downsizing (no work space due to no "dump zone"); "Dump zones" just delay the process, in contrast to your paper-sorting technique which may take longer but reduces stress. This gave me motivation to be patient and stick to it until it's livable.
(A thought for city-dwellers, especially retirees, who may not have a car or a garage: Instead of putting "do-something-with's" on the front seat of your car, put it in front of your home's entry/exit door.)
This is the best best, most specific and practical, and realistic video I have watched!!!!! Wow!! So glad I found this! I look forward to watching more! Excellent insight, info, ideas!👏👏👏 thank you!
I was able to focus on this video and I didn’t understand why. Until I realized your background was of organized ducks with one blue duck that stood out. Idk why but looking at that duck helped me zone in on your words 😂🤷🏻♀️😂❤️
I know you’ve already had people tell you but I agree, too much going on for me to follow the information you were trying to deliver. Instead of multiple pictures for one slide you could opt for bullet styled list in some type of colored font. The color will attract my attention and the simplicity will allow me to focus on the information. For example, the slide at 08:53 has multiple images. Below each image, the topic is typed out. But because the font is black and white and much smaller in relation to the graphics, it receives none of my attention. I don’t mean to criticize, but I wanted to give you feedback because people with ADHD are the people who could benefit the most from the information.
Honestly, I'm sure this has great data. But as an ADHD adult, the graphs were so overwhelming I had to stop watching it.
I'm gonna be honest with the hopes that it's informative
I wouldn't be here if I didn't already know how awful it is to have way too much stuff in my way. We don't need an explanation of how horrible it is to have extra stuff and how much danger we're in. We know that. It's not necessary. All it's doing is making me want to leave
Agreed
is there a link to get the handout?
Thanks for recording this was so Sad I missed it
Wow, I got three out of three. Senior, hoard crafts and ADHD.
I thought this was excellent!
Overall this has good information, but I strongly disagree about clothing not being a sentimental category. I keep items of clothing because of memories associated with when I wore them.
Also, get rid of shoulder-pads??? What about the next 80s revival? I've kicked myself for getting rid of clothes which later came back into fashion. This might seem frivolous, but I really struggle to downsize my wardrobe.
Yes!!! I also associate clothes with situations, emotions, people and I am really afraid I will forget that by throwing them away, same with the "it will come back in style", I so often remember certain pieces I got rid off reluctantly which are back in style, talk about Y2K fashion 😂... so clothing is really the hardest for me to declutter...