r/ADHDthriving

What are the weird/unconventional things you guys do that helps you focus and be productive?
Not the usual “ sleep well, exercise, meditate, use a planner promote advice lol.

I mean some random shit that somehow works for you adhd brain.

I have ADHD, and lately I've been feeling completely lost during my job search. It's not because I don't know what to do—I know I should be networking, applying, following up, tailoring my resume, preparing for interviews, etc.

The problem is that I don't have a system. I need a structured process that tells me what to do each day, remind me of next steps, and keep everything organized. Without that, I end up feeling overwhelmed and jumping from one task to another.

Creating a structured workflow for myself has helped a lot, but I'm curious how others manage this.

If you have ADHD, what does your job search system look like? Do you use a planner,spreadsheets, reminders, or something else? I'd love to learn what has actually worked for you.

Looking for a few adult men with ADHD to beta test a guide + workbook I made (Systems, Not Willpower) before public launch. What you get: free copy of the full bundle ($19.99 value). What I'm asking: read through it, try a few exercises, and send me a short honest review (2-3 sentences is plenty) good or bad. DM me if you want in, first come first served.

I'm suspicious of any company trying to make money off of my ADHD, but I imagine there are some apps out there that actually help some symptoms.

Any recommendations or anti-recommendations?

The Shimmer ADHD Growth Summit keeps coming up on my feed, and some of the speakers look interesting.

Training is a very good for everyone but I find most training boring

Now I’m trying to strengthen my grip strength by just hanging something

Thought of buying a bar you set up in the door but I thought , let’s explore where to hang outside

So I went to the playground outside my apartment, it felt a bit wierd to be an adult going by yourself to a playground

I made a quick 360 turn and didn’t find any people around, so jumped up and hanged in the swing.

I skipped to count I just hanged and use my mind, I saw someone getting close I jumped down and looked in a other direction.

This was the first day.

Second day, I did the exact the same now I didn’t care as much. I’m just hanging , I don’t do anything bad.

I also made up what i would answer if someone would ask what I was doing.

“I am training for Robinson…”

After some round I directly felt, this is getting boring. To just hang in the same spot.

I thought, let head home again. I should be happy to just get here for today.

I was heading home…

But didn’t come long until I started noticing other spots where I could hang. I saw a bar in the Castle in the playground, perfect i thought this bar is smaller and I get an another feeling.

I found 5 different spots to hang in

Different spots at the playground

In some rope bar,

I also found a drying rack for clothes. You know those metallic thing out in the garden that no one uses.

I was checking the stability just to ensure it wouldn’t crash on me

Then I thought in my head, how fun it would be if a person saw me just hanging in different objects around the garden.

Now they calling me the monkey man 🦍

I’m 25F from India, and I’ve been unemployed for quite a while now. After graduating, I got into IT but eventually got laid off. Since then, I’ve struggled to get back into the field. I tried different things and different career paths, but nothing really worked out.

The biggest problem now is that I can’t seem to make myself study or even start things, even when I know exactly what I need to do.

I feel like I’ve lost my ability to read and concentrate. I’ll sit down intending to study, but my mind immediately starts wandering, overthinking, or creating completely hypothetical future scenarios. I end up doing nothing and then feeling guilty about it.

I also struggle with inattentive ADHD, binge eating, anxiety, loneliness and feeling depressed. I constantly compare myself to people my age and feel like I’ve fallen behind in life.

A lot of my thoughts are basically:

“What am I even doing with my life?”

“What if I never get my career back?”

“Why did I make those decisions?”

“Everyone else is moving forward while I’m stuck.”

I spend so much time ruminating about the past and worrying about the future that I barely have any mental energy left for the present.

I started methylphenidate SR 18 mg four days ago, but so far I actually feel more lethargic and emotionally numb, rather than more focused. I know four days is very early and I’ll discuss this with my psychiatrist, but it made me wonder if anyone else experienced something similar when starting medication.

Honestly, I feel very lost right now. I know what I should be doing — studying, applying for jobs, building my career — but somehow I just cannot consistently make myself do it.

For those of you who have gone through long periods of unemployment, executive dysfunction, or feeling completely stuck:

How did you get yourself moving again? What actually helped you?

I’d especially love to hear from people who were in a similar place and eventually managed to rebuild their career/life. ❤️

Super random however, I had a thought tonight and discussed it with my partner
( we both have ADHD )

Does your hyperactivity or inattentive affect you more I am generally curious… I was saying to my partner that I found My hyperactivity generally affects me personally a lot moreover because I found it really difficult with racing thoughts and allowing myself to relax and not moving around so much and talking about the most random shit HAHAHA

While My partner founds his inattentive a lot more difficult not being able to listen if not interested and forgetting stuff not being able to complete task during the day.

I personally don’t really care about my inattentive behaviours bc my hyper activity is SOOO difficult and debilitating. So kind of forget about my inattentive 🤣🤣🤣

We are both medicated for reference which has been life changing for us as individuals and a couple

Let me know your thoughts and experiences with how ADHD and which one affects you more and what you do to support yourself 😊

Cara - good habits need good friends. Set your routines, then share them with the people who'll keep you to them.