Better Mornings with ADHD
Why are mornings so hard, with ADHD?
Is it waking up? Getting out of bed? Is it leaving the house on time? Is it forgetting things you’ll need during your day?
Maybe you can get yourself up and out, but with kids added to the mix you feel that you are in over your head.
It’s a common but underserved topic for individuals and families with ADHD, with major implications for family life, school, and working life.
The best time to learn and establish self-management practices is early in life. But even for those who have good supports when young, taking them into adulthood can be hard: the freedom of late adolescence can derail the best habits! Understanding what works and why you do things as you do can help.
The framework I use starts with the basics of how humans have conceptualized time: morning, mid-day, evening, bedtime. There are different activities associated for each. “In the morning, it is time to wake up and get ready for the day.”
A good morning starts the evening before. Evening is a time to think ahead to the next day: what you will need for the weather and planned activities, and putting them and your clothes out in staging areas. Talking about what is coming up as a family is great for thinking and for staying connected.
Using a visual to illustrate morning activities takes the role of “minder” off the parent and onto the child. It also neutralizes the tasks: instead of “demands”, they are simply “what we do at this time.” To your visual routine, include a timeframe with clock pictures at regular intervals helps the child know if they are on track. (I recommend multiple analogue clocks in bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, living room, to make awareness of time easier.)
It may be helpful for time awareness to set timers at intervals of 10 or 15 minutes, as reminders to check in with the time — in case distractions happen. Working backwards from when you need to leave the house, learning to understand and internalize the flow of activity that will get you out on time is important.
Every person and family will have different trouble spots, and so the curiousity is to find them and explore new things to try; one client tried getting out of bed 10 minutes before their kids got up, and found it made a huge difference for everyone.
For more information about ADHD and mornings, you might appreciate this CHADD webinar by Michelle Novatni, PhD and author: Mornings Matter With ADHD.
ADHD Life Support is the blog of
Susan McGinnis, CALC of ADHD Impact Coaching LLC
Coaching adults with ADHD www.adhdimpactcoaching.com