How to Manage Boredom When You Have ADHD

DESCRIPTION: Boredom can be intolerable for ADHD adults. Find out why and what you can do about it to follow through on what’s important to you. KEY TAKEAWAYS: * your feelings of boredom may be related to your ADHD * your brain needs stimulation * there are strategies you can use to get the stimulation your brain needs and follow through on what is important to you RESOURCES: Dr. Ellen Littman Dr. Thomas Brown ADHD and 20 Ways to Remember What You Want TRANSCRIPTION: 00:00 What will you do to avoid boredom? For adults with ADHD the answer might be, “just about anything.” You’ve tuned into Scattered, Focused, Done – Reimagining Productivity with ADHD, a podcast for ADHD, adults like you who want to learn how to adopt the best strategies, tools and skills to be able to get your essential work done in a way that works with the way your brain is wired. I’m Marla Cummins and I’m glad you decided to join me today on this journey to re-imagining productivity with ADHD. So you can get your important work done without trying to do it like everyone else. 00:45 If you’re an adult with ADHD, then I know you’re probably all too familiar with the feeling of boredom. It’s that restless feeling, sometimes intense and almost painful when you just don’t feel engaged and you need to find something interesting to do now! If you can find something meaningful to you to do in those moments, then you’re golden. But what if? What if your boredom leads you to say something or act in a way you later regret? Maybe you make a joke that’s well funny to you, but not so much to others. Then again, you might start playing on your phone in the middle of a conversation. Other times your boredom may mean you don’t follow through on work that really is important to you. Obviously, if you don’t know how to recognize and manage these moments of boredom, the consequences of your inadvertent actions might really interfere with how you want to be and act in the world. 01:41 So figuring out how to manage your boredom should rate pretty high on your list when thinking about how to work with your ADHD. Don’t you think? So, keep on listening if you want to learn more of how you can do this in a way that gives your ADHD brain the stimulation it needs, but also minimizes the chance of your boredom coming out sideways in ways that you don’t want. Let’s start by looking at the connection between dopamine and boredom in ADHD adults. Of course, everyone feels bored now and again and neurotypical adults might be able to plow through a task they find boring because, well, they feel they have to. So, they fill out their expense reports because they don’t want to get in trouble. And they pay their bills on time to avoid paying late fees. External motivation really works for them and they might not even need internal motivation to complete a boring task. But for you an adult with ADHD, trying to attend to a task that is not intrinsically interesting can be the proverbial kiss of death in terms of being able to tackle the task effectively. 02:51 That’s not to say you can’t do the task you find boring. Let me say that again. That’s not to say you can’t do the task you find boring. It does mean, though, that you need to recognize those tasks that you find boring and then strategize how to follow through. The reason remember is ADHD adults already have abnormally low levels of dopamine, meaning your brain is just not getting the stimulation it needs to act.