I have never had ADHD, but I used to have a lot of problems to concentrate on class and while studying. My (perhaps naive) idea about my problem these days is that we just train our brain to be distracted. I have tried to fix it by applying deep work techniques (get rid of distractions, plan what I'm going to do, plan the breaks, make sure to eat/drink, etc). Basically I try to train myself (in a very Pavlovnian way) to enjoy concentration and hate mind wandering.
I've tried pretty much everything aside from prescription stimulants (can't get them)... The only things that work is some stuff I can get without prescription (tolerance is a bitch, though) and exercise.
Even after exercising, I feel good but I still can barely concentrate on anything, I have to always bring my attention back "manually", for lack of a better word.
I split my work into different 'tasks.' It's like a to-do list. One task might be to write an email, another task is to read a paper, another is to write some code, etc.
I put the tasks into a text file.
I run a python script that keeps track of which task I should be working on, displays it to me, and shifts from one task to the next every two minutes with audio cues for 30-minute sprints.
So, I work on the email for 2 minutes, then I hear 'SWITCH TASKS' in my headphones and I read like two paragraphs of the paper and I hear 'SWITCH TASKS' and I spend two minutes on the code, then I hear 'SWITCH TASKS' and it's back to the email. It cycles through the task list in 2-minute bursts.
I know it sounds insane and incredibly inefficient, but it's the only way I can keep my brain on track. I have to keep it moving at a million miles per second. When my brain is racing as fast as it can to keep up it seems to be happy and my aggregate productivity goes up (even with the inefficiencies at a micro-scale).
Sometimes I'm lucky and I get through a few 30-minute sprints my brain will fixate on one of the tasks and I can do just that for the next two hours uninterrupted, but that's not something I expect every day. It's nice when it happens.
My brain wants to be doing ten things, so I just feed it ten things and keep cycling though them in 2-minute intervals so it doesn't have a chance to get bored with any one thing.
Sometimes I don’t: I feel overwhelmed, I start to despair and I become very sensitive. Coming back from those times is hard, and sometimes I get into cycles of bad habits that persist for days (or, at the worst of times, weeks).
When I do manage, it’s a mix of things going on.
It helps to follow genetic advice like exercising, staying hydrated, sleeping enough, and not drinking too much. It’s generic advice because it’s pretty universally applicable.
Separating tasks into “must do” vs “want to do” helps keep things from falling through the cracks and makes it easier to prioritize.
I try to be mindful of when I am giving myself leisure time vs demanding performance, and reminding myself (preferably aloud) which mode I am in if I find myself distracted. Speaking of speaking aloud, vocalizing my internal monologue (aka “talking to myself”) helps me debug it, sort of like rubber ducking. I like to declare my goals for the day out loud to myself in my room, and it’s easier to get through hard times and make tough decisions when I talk to myself. I also feel like it improves my memory, though I haven’t measured to confirm.
It helps to work on my relationships with success and failure, and with meaningness. Some days will be failures. Most successes will be modest. Evaluating your self-worth on a day-to-day basis is like day-trading on the stock market, very risky and not the best growth strategy for most people. Warren Buffet’s investing advice is remarkably applicable to life in general.
Being in nature is incredibly healing. I love camping with friends/family, but any outdoor activity is good.
I’m incredibly optimistic about the potential of therapy involving psychedelics and I am a monthly donor to MAPS. Some people may benefit from pursuing similar treatment modalities on their own, though there are inherent risks and of course there is no silver bullet for mental health treatment.
How do you recover when you get distracted in the middle of work and can't get right back to it?
How do you even do the planning itself when that task is just one of the ten or so that your brain thinks should be done right now?