How to think more clearly
One of the more common challenges with ADHD is brain fog.
ADHD brains have trouble regulating focus, and sometimes, that means we have a few dozen things bouncing around in our head, and our focus rapidly shifts from one to the other.
While that sometimes means we bounce around from one topic to another when talking, if the shifting happens too fast, we don’t linger on any one thing long enough to really process it at all, which can leave us feeling foggy and cluttered.
You’ll sometimes hear folks with ADHD describe this as “having bees in their head.” To me, if feels a bit like a big old cotton ball, or like trying to see without my glasses on.
So… what you can do about it?
- Write down everything that’s in your head. Offload the stuff in your brain’s RAM, so your head stops pinwheeling. (I like Obsidian for this.)
- Walk away from your computer. Staring at a screen for longer isn’t going to help. You can’t just power through it.
- Get outside and move your body. Do something that will create dopamine. It’s a critical neurotransmitter that we don’t have enough of, and it helps with focus and working memory.
- Pick the smallest or easiest thing and just start working on it. Getting your brain moving is step one to shifting from scattered focus to hyperfocus.
- Give up! Seriously. Recognizing that some days are just a wash is ok. Do something that doesn’t involve using your brain much, and take a mental health day.
Over the next few days, I’ll write about some of this stuff in a bit more detail. I also cover my personal system for managing all of this in Getting Shit Done with ADHD.
And if you have a tip or trick for overcoming brain fog that I didn’t cover here, I’d love to hear! Send me an email or hit me up on social media and let me know!