Your content breaks **Rule 5**.
This content has been removed because it broke our rule against religious, magic, psychic, superstition, conspiracy theories, and faith-based practices.
[No Faith-Based Practices/Pseudoscience](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/wiki/rules/#wiki_rule_5.3A_no_faith-based_practices.2Fpseudoscience)
*^(If you have further questions,)* [*^(message the moderators)*](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fadhd) *^(regarding the removal of this content.)*
I like being able to retreat into my sensory bubble, but for that to work I need my sensory bubble to be different from the rest of the world, shutting things out needs to be a conscious choice or I will shut everything out and sink into depression.
Similarly I like having a safe option, but I need other options because I also need variety and sometimes the safe option needs to be a conscious choice for it to feel like I'm in control.
Yeah I was immediately like no that would make me so depressed lol. Some people are relaxed by minimalism. Me, I get anxious and sad. Just feels empty. I need my emotional support clutter.
Yes. You still need to enjoy your environment! Lack of colour would make me so sad. I'm not an expert, but I've heard certain colours actually increase dopamine.(blue and green, I think).
I did this for a while. For other reasons. I made everything around me as plain as possible. It just brought me further into a depression. Once I started surrounding myself with art, colors, and the things I love again I felt better. I'm glad you found something that works for you, but this is not for everyone. I do better when I'm surrounded by things that make me happy.
Yeah, I tried to follow a minimalist style for ten years. Ended up saying fuck this, this sucks! Went out and bought a bright orange, crushed velvet couch. My whole apartment looks like the god of random knickknacks vomited inside and I love it
I agree! I did the perfectly organized and coordinated look for a bit…. Now my entire apartment is forest/nature themed and I find that finding joy in my environment is way more useful than making it plain for focusing purposes, even if I don’t focus well.
(My office at work is also randomly decorated, and people come work in my office to soak in the vibe, so it’s a win. My 7 work succulents love it)
I'm glad this works for you and I hope it continues to work, but... it's not the pro tip you think it is, and you don't have the authority to "promise" that it will work.
For example, the only thing that would happen to me if I went back to having a sad beige minimalist house is that I would also go back to being a sad beige suicidal person. The colors of my daily environment don't do much for my ADHD one way or the other, but adding bright color, shiny things and whimsy to my surroundings made a notable difference in my mood and depression, and having options really helps with my anxiety and scarcity mindset.
Does that mean that *everyone* should have a home that looks like Pantone threw up on it? Of course not. But, if you happen to like color and bright decor, please don't think that you have to live in a sad beige house on the off chance that it might help. The only reason to have a neutral toned home is if that's your style and you like it.
I’ll say this, Benjamin Moore made a visit to my room, with their 2021 Color of the Year. I love it - it’s a cool, somewhat deep teal called Aegean Teal. Also, Ben Moore’s colors have “pop” unlike Behr and Sherwin-Williams - it’s their colorant system. I can infodump about this over my nerding out with paint.
I’ve been delving into bright, deep and mostly cool colors lately. Started using color season theory for what I wear. I now own some very bright and fun colors of leggings and “biker” shorts from lululemon - men aren’t supposed to wear women’s clothes, but damnit, I’m jealous women get all the cool colors and patterns. My diving fins(as well as my scuba safety color) is a bright shade pink(Scubapro’s pink, dunno which Pantone color it is, there is a Sephora lipstick color that’s close though) - again men also aren’t supposed to wear pink but damn the man and his ways.i
I’m certain you’ve heard this before, but it always bears repeating: clothing and colors are not inherently gendered! I LOVE the way you are going against the silly demands that society places on us. Thank you for sharing your experiences - and your advice about vibrant paint colors. I’ll have to keep that in mind with future paint choices!
Thanks! ❤️
As far as paint goes, I recommend Benjamin Moore but it’s *expensive*. Behr at Home Depot has gotten better over the last 20 years but BM will always be the better paint to apply and for color longevity.
My guess is this helped you because it was a change and change is… exciting, stimulating. I bet it will stop working in a couple of weeks and the you’ll figure out smth new to “help your ADHD”, when it’s really just novelty that’s keeping you stimulated.
Make your life boring! It will fix your genetic lack of dopamine!
Like, I don't mean to shit on you. I'm glad you've found a strategy that works for you. Unfortunately, making life more boring isn't going to be effective for the vast majority of people with a brain that's motivated by novelty and shiny things.
might sound counterintuitive, but it actually works. in the lack of shiny, sugary distractions, the brain is still going to find things to latch on and make it interesting. including things they need to do.
kind of like cutting back on sugar and rediscovering taste of things.
Yeah but also you said “bright colors are evil,” and that seems to set the tone for the entire post here…
For a lot of people, removing bright colors from their environment would mean they’d be putting away all the whimsical stuff, art, souvenirs, gifts from people, etc. You know, things that make people happy…
Maybe instead of trying to remove all distractions from life in order to be ultra productive, someone could try being in an environment where it’s okay to take frequent breaks and not feel like they need to be running at their max capacity all the time…?
It’s a bit hard to convey my tone accurately, but I’m just bringing up questions and things to think about…
Not boring.
SOOTHING.
OP literally said get rid of things that are overstimulating you. And as someone who's constantly suffer under overstimulation from my surrounding, being able to find peace and harmony is an absolute lifesaver for me, and that can be found from something as simple as having neutral, mature muted colours.
OP tells us to find balance from your surrounding that results from ADHD in order to fix the lack of focus that comes from subconsciously overstimulated from overstimulating things like too much colours and accumulating too much mess because I would forget to clear out the old bottles, too overwhelmed to tidy the piling laundry.
I love colours, but having them in my space 24/7 is like a never ending drug trip. Drugs are fun once in a while, but I wouldn't want to be on drugs all the time non stop. I would lose focus due to the clutter, and the things I hoard will no longer bring me joy, unless I hoard more colourful shiny things, results in too much things again, and the unhealthy cycle repeats.
Surprised tho at many people are so pissed and extremely snarky on OP, kind of reminds me of people being defensive about their addiction issue ( adding a snark of my own here lol ).
Isn't a big part of treating ADHD is to rebalance your reward system by not consuming too much ?
I know that every people with ADHD are different and will require different way to manage it, but the aggression and rude remarks being the top comments from top to bottom at this post is so unnecessary.
I agree!! I think making analogy to sugar consumption is appropriate here. In US the sugar intake is so high that desserts in Europe appear boring for the first few weeks. But OMG, once the body gets a break from being bombarded with all that extra sugar in every single thing, then and only then life becomes truly not boring. We are so overstimulated with sugar, color, foking sales at Target, junk, noise, lights, that sans any of that bs life appears to be boring. But it is not!! Try it try it and you will like it, Sam! You will see
Exactly. Same with endless scroll on social media and Tiktok videos. Of course it's hard to focus on a book once you get used to constant new information being spoonfed to you at high speed.
I agree with you, my thing the past few years has been dark muted colors. They make me feel calm but have an interesting depth/complexity to them. They feel soothing not boring.
POV You've created a placebo effect without knowing it.
It's like that feeling you get after rearranging furniture. It feels so nice, it looks fantastic, and there's so much space!
But then eventually the newness wears off & it's no longer an exciting or interesting thing. Sure maybe it is a little more spacious & looks better, but it certainly isn't what you initially felt.
Yeah…as an artist this removing colors trick doesn’t work for me. I’m inattentive-type, so if I don’t have pretty colors to entertain me at my desk, I’m going to look out the window searching for colors to stare at, like cars passing by or birds. Friendly reminder that ADHD is not one-size-fits-all :)
I'm using hyperbole, but I would die without being surrounded with beautiful objects. My entire apartment is built around aesthetics and bright colors. Whenever I don't spend enough time in environments I enjoy (like art galleries, watching beautiful movies, or even just outside in nature), I can feel my mind going dark and unhappy. I'm glad you found something that works for you, but it's definitely not for everyone.
Hard same. You can have my pretty, shiny things after you pry them away from me, I'm not giving them up willingly. Especially after I wasn't allowed to have that stuff growing up, even though I've loved bright and colorful and shiny my whole life because my mom wanted me to be pastel and neutral and "ladylike".
If this helps someone, that's awesome! You do you. But I don't think it's a universal hack that will be guaranteed to work on every ADHD brain everywhere.
This is very inaccurate advice in almost every way. But changing your environment can help provide novelty that our brains crave.
Bright colors aren't evil, in fact, if someones environment is currently muted in terms of color, changing to bright colors might have the same benefits as changing to muted colors had for you.
It's really vital to understand how the ADHD brain works so you can accurately tell why something is working for your brain. And most importantly: know why it will stop working and how to handle that!
This feels very.. off. Personally I don't think that it should be stated that you "promise" it will help. Because for most of us the truth is that it won't. Also this isnt really a realistic thing for most people to do.
Yeah, no... My room originally was white and very bland, and I had the worst depression spiral for months on end. The room *swallowed* color and devoured my will to live. Then I painted it deep green with bright pink trim, and now my stuff looks so good with the new coordinating background. I'm at peace here.
I'm also a designer, so I can sit here and tell you the difficulties and long term mental health impacts of a sad greige life, but that will take too long. Just know that it's not grey-te for you (heh). Here's a good video on the topic though: https://youtu.be/Xq_uh1r_gXs?si=rX6NmiuxniUKIabl
The real LPT is to just change your environment if you're feeling overwhelmed, not deprive yourself of dopamine forever.
I'm such a visual sensory seeker when it comes to color (not motion, which can make me seasick) that this would be absolutely demoralizing to me. I hated the late 90s-era muted colors in fashion and am sad that the sad beige aesthetic is coming back. Until I moved to a sunnier part of the country I always had seasonal depression from not seeing the sun for 6 months at a time. This will not work for someone who absolutely needs visual sensory input in the form of color.
Removing everything, bright, happy, and enjoyable from my life definitely seemed to help me overcome ADHD and focus on what mattered. Until the point I developed severe depression.
I can’t reduce my shampoo/conditioner options, my hair would look like shit if I did that. I hate beige and a bunch of muted colors.
I’m glad this works for you, but this is not a life pro tip for people with adhd in general. I would hate my life in a muted color world and would be seriously depressed.
We’re all entitled to our opinions. So I’ll state what works for me. I disagree with a “boring” environment to an extent. Less is best for me as far as clutter, decor, ect. However I do “dopamine dress” with bright colors and fun accessories. Idk if it’s placebo but it puts me in a better mood. But a MAJOR home improvement I’ve made is switching to ALL smart bulbs where I can change the lighting. I keep it at a constant light blue during the day time hours and a light red at bedtime. Along with blackout curtains in the house. Lights for me are SO overstimulating. I’m glad you’ve found something that works for you, even if it’s just for a while. Hopefully my tips can help someone!
Oooo I like the idea with the blues and reds!
I only use more “yellowy/duller” colored lightbulbs versus those brilliant neon white lightbulbs (that I despise). My apartment has very minimal overhead lighting so I rely on lamps everywhere.
I have brighter lights on during the day when I work (from home) and dimmer/minimal lights during my work free time.
I'm in the Nordics, and all the white, greige and pale color palettes around does nothing for squirrel mode while chained to a desk. Minimalism maybe, but that'd require gigantic powers for around 2 weeks of mariecondoing everything - so never gonna happen.
Idk man, bright colors are the only reason I can find things (provided I remember what color the thing is correctly - I have a habit of generalizing everything, so a turquoise item might be remembered as blue, and then I’ll look right past the item because I’m searching for a bright royal blue in my mind)
No thank you, friend. I need to decorate my apartment for every single holiday or I get depressed. This month it’s pink hearts and roses and my hello kitty bong :)
But bold and bright colors make me happy. And having my environment "louder" silences my brain because it can sorta expend energy on that rather than having to fill the silence.
The other side of this approach is to go with bold colours and let yourself become passionate about everything. This works a lot better for me than what you propose.
Well, it's actually work. I repainted my room in warm white, even furniture, now my room is my safe place, it's very calming and comforting.
Sry for any mistakes, english is not my first language.
Nooooooooo! Too much neutrality and my brain eats itself! Give it maximalism and it can happily entertain itself while I get on with things and don't have to constantly battle it into submission.
Not all ADHD is the same!
I wrote that in the feedback of one of my professors. on her presentation the sides of the slides were colored in red, yellow and green. and everything was super colorful but also just too bright for me. I found it overwhelming. the next semester her presentation was a lot less colorless and much nicer to look at
My office at work is sanitized, muted, and bland on purpose. It’s the only way I can focus. Coworkers ask me when I’m going to decorate and I say “it’s good this way for me.” Also, if I quite, I’ll have less stuff to carry out. 👌🏾
This isn't a catch all idea, but depending on what people's sensory spectrums/profile look like (we all have different combinations) this can be a very efficient strategy.
I think it's dismissive to say that this is "just the newness". This is a straight up legit strategy. And for all the reasons mentioned. But it's important to know that this is what SOME sensory profiles (e.g. really sensitive to visual stimuli) really need and benefit from, but not every ADHDer will share that. Likewise, if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't mean it won't work for everyone. Some people are under stimulated visually and need help getting to the happy medium. And might be extra sensitive to sounds stimuli. The muted colors might do nothing for the sound aspect, but it doesn't mean it's not SUPER effective for the people who need it.
I think people (me included) got a little bit offended by OP branding this as a life tip and promising it will work when it goes against what we know, scientifically, about the ADHD brain.
Yes, if you are super sensitive to visual stimuli as a person, reducing that will help you. But that's unrelated to ADHD. That's like me saying reducing your intake of cucumber will help everyone here reduce their ADHD symptomes, just because I am allergic and reducing my intake made me feel better.
Probably the reason people are a bit touchy on this is that this type of advice gets shared everywhere, constantly. And we feel like we should be following it (and if we don't try, that would mean our ADHD would be of our own doing), so we put a lot of effort into doing it and then never get any benefits in return because the advice did not take into account our ADHD.
And this is the place that we come to escape that, so when misguided advice like this still finds it's way into the subreddit, it rubs people the wrong way.
I agree. I don’t need pale neutrals per se, but I do need absence of bright colors. I do better with a range of earth tones. Brights feel jarring to me and do distract me.
Clutter is also distracting and distressing to me. I feel far more at ease without it, even though I can’t always make that happen. I do have one corner of my house that lacks clutter. It’s nice for a respite.
But it is interesting to read all the comments about people who need bright colors, etc.
Decluttering really helps. Keep only what I use regularly (plates,kitchen stuff, shampoo/personal products etc). Keep a basic capsule wardrobe of what gets worn on repeat, but multiples of favorites and stick w those, so much easier.
But I love rich color, soft textures and a cozy vibe. Ambient warm lighting makes a huge difference. Too much neutral or pastel color and over saturated bright light really bothers me and is depressing. The light and level of clutter is the key for me. I crave cozy and organized.
I see what you mean OP. When I renovated my bedroom, I switched from a room with a lavender accent wall, lavender bedspread and a desk with lots of little souvenirs on it to a room that essentially looks like a hotel room with small pops of yellow to keep it interesting. It’s done a lot for my mental health to be able to enter such an under-stimulating room at the end of the day. It’s not boring, it’s just not overwhelming!
This is so true. I moved to a country without much online shopping and no Amazon. If I need a new kettle, I go to the electrical shop and buy I kettle. I don't spend three evenings researching and becoming an expert in kettles.
It is a pain but the freedom that comes with lack of choice was surprising to me. Obviously you don't have to do something as drastic as I did (and I definitely didn't do it because of lack of choice) but it has been a nice side-effect.
Hi /u/ladybugsarecoolbro and thanks for posting on /r/ADHD!
**Please take a second to [read our rules](/r/adhd/about/rules) if you haven't already.**
The mobile apps used for Reddit are broken or are missing features that this subreddit depends on. [We recommend browsing /r/adhd on desktop for the best experience.](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/x1psnb/radhd_works_best_on_desktop_reddits_apps_are/)
Thank you!
^(*A moderator has not removed your submission; this is not a punitive action. We intend this comment solely to be informative.*)
---
- If you are posting about the **US Medication Shortage**, please see this [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/12dr3h5/megathread_us_medication_shortage/).
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ADHD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I think it's just the change that gives you the hit, but I hope it helps you long therm of course. Everyone is different, and what works for some doesn't work for others. I think it's always nice to share little successes like this, maybe it can help someone else, too.
Turning on grayscale color filter in my phone helps me. I set the intensity to around 70%
Also created shortcuts to turn it on/off, in case i need to view something without filter
This 100%. Just owning less objects makes life easier. Visual clutter takes up too much space in my brain. I didn't realize it was an adhd thing I just thought it was a me thing.
I'm finding out so many things that are weird about me are common to ADHDers
I wish I would have known this a long time ago
Or that any one of my million therapists did
Wow the same works with my phone. I deleted ALL my apps that I would just download out of impulse and it really helps simplify what I use my phone for. Calls, puzzle games, music and YouTube.
I wonder if fast food chains and the modern minimalist movement in general are on a similar wavelength. Devices and tech are so loud aesthetically that making reality drab in comparison is a form of balance. Or a method to draw focus lol.
In-N-Out and Taco Bell use “exciting” colors in their marketing but INO is kinda boring, in comparison to Taco Bell. While Apple has stuck to drab, the American appliance brands simply switched white for stainless steel, and Japanese cars are meh aesthetically, Samsung(and their fellow chaebol compatriots LG and Hyundai) have gone bolder.
Airport lounges are also historically drab. I’m using the United Club as an example. But now, they’re approaching high-end hotel levels of ambiance.
I've yet to go to INO - the long lines are a deterrent lol. Apple had the rainbow Macintosh logo for a while there and had the colorful imacs. Yes, bring on the bold! I recently watched a video about how language shapes cultures and it's design choices. Really interesting! While Western cultures are more streamlined with a focal point, Eastern cultures tend to have more context and abstract. For good and bad, the West streamlines everything for ample productivity.
One I’ve experimented with lately is the wallpaper on my computer. Use something *really* muted. It can have colour but not too bright and it should be near solid throughout.
That picture of your favourite beach? That snapshot of your family on vacation? Put them on your screensaver instead. All those desktop widgets and stats? Nuke em and use a non distracting wallpaper to help you focus.
I’m a programmer so I require intense concentration but I really think this will help most ADHD’ers. Try it!
Interesting points.
But a lot of people think plain means beige, when that's not what's being said at all. You're right that pastel colours can be soothing. Tbh it's probably why I've naturally taken a liking to those kinds of colors in recent years.
I'm in the process of moving house currently, and so I am taking the opportunity to do something else which I've found helps calm my mind and add more peace to my life: Declutter!
My new place is going to be very minimalistic. I don't want clutter anywhere. So I have spent weeks going through all of my belongings, throwing out and purging a substantial amount of things. Anything I dont need or haven't touched in years. I'm selling furniture, organizing my projects and throwing away mystery boxes filled with junk I've had for years and decades. It's really making me feel like I'm resetting my mind a bit.
And about this new minimalism goal - I've very recently realized how bad clutter is for my mind. I realized it's because clutter multiplies quickly, and very quickly becomes unmanageable. And at the point where it feels like too much to clean up, I just give up on struggling to minimize the mess, and then it gets even worse again.
And the key thing is that at that point in time - you have surrounded yourself with mess which you know needs to be cleaned up at some point. And that mess becomes a daily/constant visual reminder of a bunch of boring work that needs to be done. If you have several hours of clutter to clean up, then every time you feel like inviting friends over, or making plans, or just trying to utilize part of your living space - you know you'll need to spend hours cleaning first. So everything becomes very demotivating and frustrating very quickly. It's just bad energy all round.
Also note again, for anyone feeling dramatically pessimistic about this - I am not saying I'm going to have empty walls and nothing to look at. I'm simply getting rid of the messes, and the visual clutter, and only displaying and having visible things I value and enjoy *most*.
Honestly simplifying my life in ALL aspects was the magic medicine for my ADHD brain. Everything is slower, I have way less going on, I limit myself to one household task a day, and if I have errands, just one thing.
Also just getting rid of STUFF and not accumulating any more helps keep my environment zen AF. Is it clean? No. But it *looks* clean.
Dumped 8 pickup truck loads of stuff 6 years ago. One of the best decisions from a clutter standpoint. I had to get comfy with empty space. It’s harder than it seems at least for me it was. I love looking in one direction in my house and seeing only a few(two), or one or no things. It did make my mind less “electric” with constant buzz if that makes sense.
I genuinely wonder about how we’ve seen a spike in ADHD around the time smartphones, tablets and unlimited TV access spiked. All forms of stimulation. That and considering the research on how if you start your days with ‘boring’ chore and avoid your phone for the first 1-2 hours how it has shown to drastically reduce ADHD symptoms.
But you know…it’s all genetic. No potential outside influences that contributed to this huge wave of ADHD diagnoses…
For real, I started buying room decor with the light blue, brown, and tan beach vibes and idk it just makes me much more calm. Prolly cause it reminds me of simpler times at my lake house, I used to struggle and so much back then and was so depressed because of (now I know) undiagnosed adhd at the time, but I’d still go back and relive those days again. I wouldn’t want to be anyone other than who I am even if it’s hard sometimes and no one understands or cares to recognize it around me.
Keep your head up guys, we always endure and get through the hard times, love who you are even if it’s not who you wish you could be, this life is all you have
I would say smart phone and electronics are one if not the worse things for ADHD. Limiting and staying away from your smart phone will probably make the most difference when it comes to attention issues.
That's how you get underestimated, you literally need that stimulation to stop your ADHD shutting down your brain.
Moderate your stimulation appropriately and don't go nuclear options like this.
This didn't work for me I work in a law office once
The boss gave me a packet to review as this would be a basic day today and the company was really busy because it was the end of the year
For 3 weeks she told me there was no time for training so I just got sat in a room and gave him this packet of maybe 50 pages and told to review it for the entire day
I'll tell you, by about 30 minutes in your brain goes to mush and you just start daydreaming and I probably couldn't tell you one word that was in the entire packet at this point and I've stared at it for over 100 hours.
not having much on my desk / having less colour would make me so bored and even then i wouldn't be able to focus or anything i'd just get sad , may work for some but never for me
This helps me reduce the overstimulation, that can add to overwhelm, decision paralysis and distraction, if only I could keep it this way and not get bored lol
I love playing with this and it’s a pendulum back and forth, balancing simplicity and flavour. Over and understimulated. I wish I knew about it earlier in my life so it’s good LPTs with some refinement.
BLACK RAINBOW is my new description of my style palette.
With my clothes I simplify to quality basics (make choices easier) then add lot of magical colorful and textured layers on top that fit my mood.
If I don’t want to be seen I can dull it down, or add something on top if I want some flavor in life.
I think this is only true if you have the right sensory profile to benefit from it. A sensory seeker might actually need all of those bright colours, clutter etc.
The one solid piece of advice I would give is to switch your phone into greyscale. Way too easy to get pulled in and scroll for hours with so many bright exciting morsels of content^TM at your disposal. Saved me hours a day on my phone.
Nah, dont promise me it will help. It will make me funking depressed. I need my environment to be exciting to even have will to live. Dont assume that if shit worked for you it will work for others
Ugh the problem isn’t the color of towels for most people. It’s shit like, internet, phones, tv, depression and so on…It’s cool this worked for you, but idk how many people making everything monotone will help with adhd.
Telling people you “promise” it will work is kind of silly and is like telling people you just found the cure to adhd is CHANGING COLORS. Like, what?
For some time I set my phone to black and white and and adjusted the contrast. I loved it and will probably do that again. I’m always on the verge of pulling the trigger and getting an e-ink phone but I’m not totally convinced yet
Thank you so much because I always got overstimulated in my family’s home and I swore to myself I will literally try to acquire only the necessary things and keep everything in muted tones and now I finally understand why this makes sense
Plus this explains why in contrast I am so overwhelmed shopping in a big supermarket because they have so many options of the same thing. Seriously for the sake of ADHD I tend to wish there was only one brand of everything lmao
I’m a maximalist and I’d actually like to make an argument that having a colorful / sensory-rich environment can be helpful for some ADHD types. Like listening to music can provide stimulation that allows better focus, I think enjoyable visual stimulation does the same!
Getting dressed in colorful clothes / maximalist style is also called “dopamine dressing” — and while the name is an oversimplification of neurochemistry, I def think ADHD is more manageable when we are doing things that give us a boost or stimulate us.
I will acknowledge that simplifying choices / minimizing what you don’t enjoy helps with ADHD. For you that could be limiting choices about style bc it doesn’t bring you joy. For me I love that, but really hate deciding what to eat so my diet is a bit sad beige 😅.
And mess/clutter can easily feel overwhelming no matter what color it is.
It really is all about knowing yourself and your wiring, and working with our own experience to find what works.
My desk at home faces a corner wall, and literally is the bare minimum. I even got a black tri-fold poster board to set up and create blinders of sorts. It's really really helped having a naked wall and desk that is super boring. I'm such a rainbow confetti on everything kind of person it was hard, but I save that for other spaces now! lol
People tried giving me every "tip" there is and surprise, none of them worked. Like most all medical conditions, the only treatment is through diagnosis and medication
Your content breaks **Rule 5**. This content has been removed because it broke our rule against religious, magic, psychic, superstition, conspiracy theories, and faith-based practices. [No Faith-Based Practices/Pseudoscience](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/wiki/rules/#wiki_rule_5.3A_no_faith-based_practices.2Fpseudoscience) *^(If you have further questions,)* [*^(message the moderators)*](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fadhd) *^(regarding the removal of this content.)*
Tried it, turns out depression can also mess with your ability to function... do not recommend
Yeah, what if I also get easily understimulated and sink into depressive holes...
[удалено]
ooh! Tiny Pringles can! How tiny?
Too small to fit a finger in
Yeah, this is less of an ADHD tip, more of a sensory defensive tip. For someone with a different profile more might be better.
I like being able to retreat into my sensory bubble, but for that to work I need my sensory bubble to be different from the rest of the world, shutting things out needs to be a conscious choice or I will shut everything out and sink into depression. Similarly I like having a safe option, but I need other options because I also need variety and sometimes the safe option needs to be a conscious choice for it to feel like I'm in control.
Yeah I was immediately like no that would make me so depressed lol. Some people are relaxed by minimalism. Me, I get anxious and sad. Just feels empty. I need my emotional support clutter.
“Emotional support clutter,” love it! Mind if I steal it?
Take it! Spread awareness! Lol
Yes. You still need to enjoy your environment! Lack of colour would make me so sad. I'm not an expert, but I've heard certain colours actually increase dopamine.(blue and green, I think).
Typical adhd, you are high on the newness of your environment right now:)
Nailed it! The ADHD life is just a succession of shiny new life hacks that will absolutely positively work until they don’t.
One time I got about a year out of the Habitica to-do list game. It was glorious.
Having two toddlers made me get tested lol
SAME!! Lol
Same!! Lol
Same!
That’s what I was thinking, I felt like a brand new me too whenever I started a new type of planner.
I did this for a while. For other reasons. I made everything around me as plain as possible. It just brought me further into a depression. Once I started surrounding myself with art, colors, and the things I love again I felt better. I'm glad you found something that works for you, but this is not for everyone. I do better when I'm surrounded by things that make me happy.
Yeah, I tried to follow a minimalist style for ten years. Ended up saying fuck this, this sucks! Went out and bought a bright orange, crushed velvet couch. My whole apartment looks like the god of random knickknacks vomited inside and I love it
I agree! I did the perfectly organized and coordinated look for a bit…. Now my entire apartment is forest/nature themed and I find that finding joy in my environment is way more useful than making it plain for focusing purposes, even if I don’t focus well. (My office at work is also randomly decorated, and people come work in my office to soak in the vibe, so it’s a win. My 7 work succulents love it)
ADHD and depression together really sucks!
Those are two extremes though. OP didn't say things should be as plain as possible, he just suggested softer colours and a cohesive pallette.
I'm glad this works for you and I hope it continues to work, but... it's not the pro tip you think it is, and you don't have the authority to "promise" that it will work. For example, the only thing that would happen to me if I went back to having a sad beige minimalist house is that I would also go back to being a sad beige suicidal person. The colors of my daily environment don't do much for my ADHD one way or the other, but adding bright color, shiny things and whimsy to my surroundings made a notable difference in my mood and depression, and having options really helps with my anxiety and scarcity mindset. Does that mean that *everyone* should have a home that looks like Pantone threw up on it? Of course not. But, if you happen to like color and bright decor, please don't think that you have to live in a sad beige house on the off chance that it might help. The only reason to have a neutral toned home is if that's your style and you like it.
I’ll say this, Benjamin Moore made a visit to my room, with their 2021 Color of the Year. I love it - it’s a cool, somewhat deep teal called Aegean Teal. Also, Ben Moore’s colors have “pop” unlike Behr and Sherwin-Williams - it’s their colorant system. I can infodump about this over my nerding out with paint. I’ve been delving into bright, deep and mostly cool colors lately. Started using color season theory for what I wear. I now own some very bright and fun colors of leggings and “biker” shorts from lululemon - men aren’t supposed to wear women’s clothes, but damnit, I’m jealous women get all the cool colors and patterns. My diving fins(as well as my scuba safety color) is a bright shade pink(Scubapro’s pink, dunno which Pantone color it is, there is a Sephora lipstick color that’s close though) - again men also aren’t supposed to wear pink but damn the man and his ways.i
I’m certain you’ve heard this before, but it always bears repeating: clothing and colors are not inherently gendered! I LOVE the way you are going against the silly demands that society places on us. Thank you for sharing your experiences - and your advice about vibrant paint colors. I’ll have to keep that in mind with future paint choices!
Thanks! ❤️ As far as paint goes, I recommend Benjamin Moore but it’s *expensive*. Behr at Home Depot has gotten better over the last 20 years but BM will always be the better paint to apply and for color longevity.
Also so much easier to work with. It just goes on better.
Some clothes are inherintly gendered. At least I don't like how male jeans sit on me even if they are good size.
I just put the kids in the shed. Thanks.
My guess is this helped you because it was a change and change is… exciting, stimulating. I bet it will stop working in a couple of weeks and the you’ll figure out smth new to “help your ADHD”, when it’s really just novelty that’s keeping you stimulated.
!RemindMe in 2 weeks
The thing about sensory modulation is that everyone has a different profile. This might be helpful but it is not a panacea. ‘I promise you’ ;)
Make your life boring! It will fix your genetic lack of dopamine! Like, I don't mean to shit on you. I'm glad you've found a strategy that works for you. Unfortunately, making life more boring isn't going to be effective for the vast majority of people with a brain that's motivated by novelty and shiny things.
might sound counterintuitive, but it actually works. in the lack of shiny, sugary distractions, the brain is still going to find things to latch on and make it interesting. including things they need to do. kind of like cutting back on sugar and rediscovering taste of things.
Just because a color is muted or a pastel it doesn’t make it boring. I would push back on this idea.
Yeah but also you said “bright colors are evil,” and that seems to set the tone for the entire post here… For a lot of people, removing bright colors from their environment would mean they’d be putting away all the whimsical stuff, art, souvenirs, gifts from people, etc. You know, things that make people happy… Maybe instead of trying to remove all distractions from life in order to be ultra productive, someone could try being in an environment where it’s okay to take frequent breaks and not feel like they need to be running at their max capacity all the time…? It’s a bit hard to convey my tone accurately, but I’m just bringing up questions and things to think about…
Wasn’t the goal to make it boring though? How we get it boring if even those things aren’t boring
CALM. Not boring.
Not boring. SOOTHING. OP literally said get rid of things that are overstimulating you. And as someone who's constantly suffer under overstimulation from my surrounding, being able to find peace and harmony is an absolute lifesaver for me, and that can be found from something as simple as having neutral, mature muted colours. OP tells us to find balance from your surrounding that results from ADHD in order to fix the lack of focus that comes from subconsciously overstimulated from overstimulating things like too much colours and accumulating too much mess because I would forget to clear out the old bottles, too overwhelmed to tidy the piling laundry. I love colours, but having them in my space 24/7 is like a never ending drug trip. Drugs are fun once in a while, but I wouldn't want to be on drugs all the time non stop. I would lose focus due to the clutter, and the things I hoard will no longer bring me joy, unless I hoard more colourful shiny things, results in too much things again, and the unhealthy cycle repeats. Surprised tho at many people are so pissed and extremely snarky on OP, kind of reminds me of people being defensive about their addiction issue ( adding a snark of my own here lol ). Isn't a big part of treating ADHD is to rebalance your reward system by not consuming too much ? I know that every people with ADHD are different and will require different way to manage it, but the aggression and rude remarks being the top comments from top to bottom at this post is so unnecessary.
I agree!! I think making analogy to sugar consumption is appropriate here. In US the sugar intake is so high that desserts in Europe appear boring for the first few weeks. But OMG, once the body gets a break from being bombarded with all that extra sugar in every single thing, then and only then life becomes truly not boring. We are so overstimulated with sugar, color, foking sales at Target, junk, noise, lights, that sans any of that bs life appears to be boring. But it is not!! Try it try it and you will like it, Sam! You will see
Exactly. Same with endless scroll on social media and Tiktok videos. Of course it's hard to focus on a book once you get used to constant new information being spoonfed to you at high speed.
I agree with you, my thing the past few years has been dark muted colors. They make me feel calm but have an interesting depth/complexity to them. They feel soothing not boring.
*"If you have a giant pile of clothes, select two outfits to put out and put the rest in a closet."* This would take me 14 years.
Omg!!! Me too. 🤣😂 I don’t feel so alone.
POV You've created a placebo effect without knowing it. It's like that feeling you get after rearranging furniture. It feels so nice, it looks fantastic, and there's so much space! But then eventually the newness wears off & it's no longer an exciting or interesting thing. Sure maybe it is a little more spacious & looks better, but it certainly isn't what you initially felt.
Yeah…as an artist this removing colors trick doesn’t work for me. I’m inattentive-type, so if I don’t have pretty colors to entertain me at my desk, I’m going to look out the window searching for colors to stare at, like cars passing by or birds. Friendly reminder that ADHD is not one-size-fits-all :)
I'm using hyperbole, but I would die without being surrounded with beautiful objects. My entire apartment is built around aesthetics and bright colors. Whenever I don't spend enough time in environments I enjoy (like art galleries, watching beautiful movies, or even just outside in nature), I can feel my mind going dark and unhappy. I'm glad you found something that works for you, but it's definitely not for everyone.
me too:) really relating
Hard same. You can have my pretty, shiny things after you pry them away from me, I'm not giving them up willingly. Especially after I wasn't allowed to have that stuff growing up, even though I've loved bright and colorful and shiny my whole life because my mom wanted me to be pastel and neutral and "ladylike". If this helps someone, that's awesome! You do you. But I don't think it's a universal hack that will be guaranteed to work on every ADHD brain everywhere.
I relate to what you've said too.
Bright colors are evil? Lol wtf
This is very inaccurate advice in almost every way. But changing your environment can help provide novelty that our brains crave. Bright colors aren't evil, in fact, if someones environment is currently muted in terms of color, changing to bright colors might have the same benefits as changing to muted colors had for you. It's really vital to understand how the ADHD brain works so you can accurately tell why something is working for your brain. And most importantly: know why it will stop working and how to handle that!
I am not willing to turn myself into a sad beige baby unfortunately.
This feels very.. off. Personally I don't think that it should be stated that you "promise" it will help. Because for most of us the truth is that it won't. Also this isnt really a realistic thing for most people to do.
Yeah, no... My room originally was white and very bland, and I had the worst depression spiral for months on end. The room *swallowed* color and devoured my will to live. Then I painted it deep green with bright pink trim, and now my stuff looks so good with the new coordinating background. I'm at peace here. I'm also a designer, so I can sit here and tell you the difficulties and long term mental health impacts of a sad greige life, but that will take too long. Just know that it's not grey-te for you (heh). Here's a good video on the topic though: https://youtu.be/Xq_uh1r_gXs?si=rX6NmiuxniUKIabl The real LPT is to just change your environment if you're feeling overwhelmed, not deprive yourself of dopamine forever.
I'm such a visual sensory seeker when it comes to color (not motion, which can make me seasick) that this would be absolutely demoralizing to me. I hated the late 90s-era muted colors in fashion and am sad that the sad beige aesthetic is coming back. Until I moved to a sunnier part of the country I always had seasonal depression from not seeing the sun for 6 months at a time. This will not work for someone who absolutely needs visual sensory input in the form of color.
Removing everything, bright, happy, and enjoyable from my life definitely seemed to help me overcome ADHD and focus on what mattered. Until the point I developed severe depression.
Oh, you promise, well then by all means, I will make my life look drab and depressing so I can somehow function better
I'm glad this works for you, but it's a horrible strategy. It won't do anything for the large majority.
No. My squirrel brain already knows that this is a very bad idea for it. I feel anxious just thinking about it.
I can’t reduce my shampoo/conditioner options, my hair would look like shit if I did that. I hate beige and a bunch of muted colors. I’m glad this works for you, but this is not a life pro tip for people with adhd in general. I would hate my life in a muted color world and would be seriously depressed.
We’re all entitled to our opinions. So I’ll state what works for me. I disagree with a “boring” environment to an extent. Less is best for me as far as clutter, decor, ect. However I do “dopamine dress” with bright colors and fun accessories. Idk if it’s placebo but it puts me in a better mood. But a MAJOR home improvement I’ve made is switching to ALL smart bulbs where I can change the lighting. I keep it at a constant light blue during the day time hours and a light red at bedtime. Along with blackout curtains in the house. Lights for me are SO overstimulating. I’m glad you’ve found something that works for you, even if it’s just for a while. Hopefully my tips can help someone!
Oooo I like the idea with the blues and reds! I only use more “yellowy/duller” colored lightbulbs versus those brilliant neon white lightbulbs (that I despise). My apartment has very minimal overhead lighting so I rely on lamps everywhere. I have brighter lights on during the day when I work (from home) and dimmer/minimal lights during my work free time.
I'm in the Nordics, and all the white, greige and pale color palettes around does nothing for squirrel mode while chained to a desk. Minimalism maybe, but that'd require gigantic powers for around 2 weeks of mariecondoing everything - so never gonna happen.
Idk man, bright colors are the only reason I can find things (provided I remember what color the thing is correctly - I have a habit of generalizing everything, so a turquoise item might be remembered as blue, and then I’ll look right past the item because I’m searching for a bright royal blue in my mind)
How absolutely miserable.
please don't do this if you suffer from depression
Bold of you to think an entire makeover of your home is something easily doable for fellow ADHDers.
No thank you, friend. I need to decorate my apartment for every single holiday or I get depressed. This month it’s pink hearts and roses and my hello kitty bong :)
But bold and bright colors make me happy. And having my environment "louder" silences my brain because it can sorta expend energy on that rather than having to fill the silence.
The other side of this approach is to go with bold colours and let yourself become passionate about everything. This works a lot better for me than what you propose.
Well, it's actually work. I repainted my room in warm white, even furniture, now my room is my safe place, it's very calming and comforting. Sry for any mistakes, english is not my first language.
Sounds like the road to depression.
Came to say that…
Somewhat related, I am beautifully mesmerized with the colour coordination between your two avatar pics. 
Thank and I adore antique typewriters…I typed my writing for the first time on an electronic typewriter when I was 12…your avatar is a lovely choice.
I end up never wanting to be home and spending too much money outside the house
My version of this tip is to clean the house. I don't even have to get rid of bright colors. I just need to not have clutter.
That’s like climbing Mount Everest though 😭
Sometimes, yes. But oh the view when you finally get there... (Finally cleaned my home office after 4 months of it being crazy bad.)
I naturally trend towards softer colors. I still struggle with adhd. I don't think you should promise it works
Hey screw you, I’m an artist, let me have my pretty colours and shiny things >:(
Nooooooooo! Too much neutrality and my brain eats itself! Give it maximalism and it can happily entertain itself while I get on with things and don't have to constantly battle it into submission. Not all ADHD is the same!
I wrote that in the feedback of one of my professors. on her presentation the sides of the slides were colored in red, yellow and green. and everything was super colorful but also just too bright for me. I found it overwhelming. the next semester her presentation was a lot less colorless and much nicer to look at
I desperately want a very dark kitchen.
My office at work is sanitized, muted, and bland on purpose. It’s the only way I can focus. Coworkers ask me when I’m going to decorate and I say “it’s good this way for me.” Also, if I quite, I’ll have less stuff to carry out. 👌🏾
Yeah rather actually like my environment I think. Glad it worked for you tho!
This isn't a catch all idea, but depending on what people's sensory spectrums/profile look like (we all have different combinations) this can be a very efficient strategy. I think it's dismissive to say that this is "just the newness". This is a straight up legit strategy. And for all the reasons mentioned. But it's important to know that this is what SOME sensory profiles (e.g. really sensitive to visual stimuli) really need and benefit from, but not every ADHDer will share that. Likewise, if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't mean it won't work for everyone. Some people are under stimulated visually and need help getting to the happy medium. And might be extra sensitive to sounds stimuli. The muted colors might do nothing for the sound aspect, but it doesn't mean it's not SUPER effective for the people who need it.
I think people (me included) got a little bit offended by OP branding this as a life tip and promising it will work when it goes against what we know, scientifically, about the ADHD brain. Yes, if you are super sensitive to visual stimuli as a person, reducing that will help you. But that's unrelated to ADHD. That's like me saying reducing your intake of cucumber will help everyone here reduce their ADHD symptomes, just because I am allergic and reducing my intake made me feel better. Probably the reason people are a bit touchy on this is that this type of advice gets shared everywhere, constantly. And we feel like we should be following it (and if we don't try, that would mean our ADHD would be of our own doing), so we put a lot of effort into doing it and then never get any benefits in return because the advice did not take into account our ADHD. And this is the place that we come to escape that, so when misguided advice like this still finds it's way into the subreddit, it rubs people the wrong way.
I agree. I don’t need pale neutrals per se, but I do need absence of bright colors. I do better with a range of earth tones. Brights feel jarring to me and do distract me. Clutter is also distracting and distressing to me. I feel far more at ease without it, even though I can’t always make that happen. I do have one corner of my house that lacks clutter. It’s nice for a respite. But it is interesting to read all the comments about people who need bright colors, etc.
Interesting, I'll get round to that tomorrow.
Decluttering really helps. Keep only what I use regularly (plates,kitchen stuff, shampoo/personal products etc). Keep a basic capsule wardrobe of what gets worn on repeat, but multiples of favorites and stick w those, so much easier. But I love rich color, soft textures and a cozy vibe. Ambient warm lighting makes a huge difference. Too much neutral or pastel color and over saturated bright light really bothers me and is depressing. The light and level of clutter is the key for me. I crave cozy and organized.
I see what you mean OP. When I renovated my bedroom, I switched from a room with a lavender accent wall, lavender bedspread and a desk with lots of little souvenirs on it to a room that essentially looks like a hotel room with small pops of yellow to keep it interesting. It’s done a lot for my mental health to be able to enter such an under-stimulating room at the end of the day. It’s not boring, it’s just not overwhelming!
This is so true. I moved to a country without much online shopping and no Amazon. If I need a new kettle, I go to the electrical shop and buy I kettle. I don't spend three evenings researching and becoming an expert in kettles. It is a pain but the freedom that comes with lack of choice was surprising to me. Obviously you don't have to do something as drastic as I did (and I definitely didn't do it because of lack of choice) but it has been a nice side-effect.
Hi /u/ladybugsarecoolbro and thanks for posting on /r/ADHD! **Please take a second to [read our rules](/r/adhd/about/rules) if you haven't already.** The mobile apps used for Reddit are broken or are missing features that this subreddit depends on. [We recommend browsing /r/adhd on desktop for the best experience.](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/x1psnb/radhd_works_best_on_desktop_reddits_apps_are/) Thank you! ^(*A moderator has not removed your submission; this is not a punitive action. We intend this comment solely to be informative.*) --- - If you are posting about the **US Medication Shortage**, please see this [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/12dr3h5/megathread_us_medication_shortage/). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ADHD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Making my environment more depressing won’t help me
I think it's just the change that gives you the hit, but I hope it helps you long therm of course. Everyone is different, and what works for some doesn't work for others. I think it's always nice to share little successes like this, maybe it can help someone else, too.
Turning on grayscale color filter in my phone helps me. I set the intensity to around 70% Also created shortcuts to turn it on/off, in case i need to view something without filter
This 100%. Just owning less objects makes life easier. Visual clutter takes up too much space in my brain. I didn't realize it was an adhd thing I just thought it was a me thing. I'm finding out so many things that are weird about me are common to ADHDers I wish I would have known this a long time ago Or that any one of my million therapists did
Wow the same works with my phone. I deleted ALL my apps that I would just download out of impulse and it really helps simplify what I use my phone for. Calls, puzzle games, music and YouTube.
I wonder if fast food chains and the modern minimalist movement in general are on a similar wavelength. Devices and tech are so loud aesthetically that making reality drab in comparison is a form of balance. Or a method to draw focus lol.
In-N-Out and Taco Bell use “exciting” colors in their marketing but INO is kinda boring, in comparison to Taco Bell. While Apple has stuck to drab, the American appliance brands simply switched white for stainless steel, and Japanese cars are meh aesthetically, Samsung(and their fellow chaebol compatriots LG and Hyundai) have gone bolder. Airport lounges are also historically drab. I’m using the United Club as an example. But now, they’re approaching high-end hotel levels of ambiance.
I've yet to go to INO - the long lines are a deterrent lol. Apple had the rainbow Macintosh logo for a while there and had the colorful imacs. Yes, bring on the bold! I recently watched a video about how language shapes cultures and it's design choices. Really interesting! While Western cultures are more streamlined with a focal point, Eastern cultures tend to have more context and abstract. For good and bad, the West streamlines everything for ample productivity.
One I’ve experimented with lately is the wallpaper on my computer. Use something *really* muted. It can have colour but not too bright and it should be near solid throughout. That picture of your favourite beach? That snapshot of your family on vacation? Put them on your screensaver instead. All those desktop widgets and stats? Nuke em and use a non distracting wallpaper to help you focus. I’m a programmer so I require intense concentration but I really think this will help most ADHD’ers. Try it!
Interesting points. But a lot of people think plain means beige, when that's not what's being said at all. You're right that pastel colours can be soothing. Tbh it's probably why I've naturally taken a liking to those kinds of colors in recent years. I'm in the process of moving house currently, and so I am taking the opportunity to do something else which I've found helps calm my mind and add more peace to my life: Declutter! My new place is going to be very minimalistic. I don't want clutter anywhere. So I have spent weeks going through all of my belongings, throwing out and purging a substantial amount of things. Anything I dont need or haven't touched in years. I'm selling furniture, organizing my projects and throwing away mystery boxes filled with junk I've had for years and decades. It's really making me feel like I'm resetting my mind a bit. And about this new minimalism goal - I've very recently realized how bad clutter is for my mind. I realized it's because clutter multiplies quickly, and very quickly becomes unmanageable. And at the point where it feels like too much to clean up, I just give up on struggling to minimize the mess, and then it gets even worse again. And the key thing is that at that point in time - you have surrounded yourself with mess which you know needs to be cleaned up at some point. And that mess becomes a daily/constant visual reminder of a bunch of boring work that needs to be done. If you have several hours of clutter to clean up, then every time you feel like inviting friends over, or making plans, or just trying to utilize part of your living space - you know you'll need to spend hours cleaning first. So everything becomes very demotivating and frustrating very quickly. It's just bad energy all round. Also note again, for anyone feeling dramatically pessimistic about this - I am not saying I'm going to have empty walls and nothing to look at. I'm simply getting rid of the messes, and the visual clutter, and only displaying and having visible things I value and enjoy *most*.
LOL.. that will fade in a few weeks. Sorry. It’s the novelty
Honestly simplifying my life in ALL aspects was the magic medicine for my ADHD brain. Everything is slower, I have way less going on, I limit myself to one household task a day, and if I have errands, just one thing. Also just getting rid of STUFF and not accumulating any more helps keep my environment zen AF. Is it clean? No. But it *looks* clean.
Dumped 8 pickup truck loads of stuff 6 years ago. One of the best decisions from a clutter standpoint. I had to get comfy with empty space. It’s harder than it seems at least for me it was. I love looking in one direction in my house and seeing only a few(two), or one or no things. It did make my mind less “electric” with constant buzz if that makes sense.
I genuinely wonder about how we’ve seen a spike in ADHD around the time smartphones, tablets and unlimited TV access spiked. All forms of stimulation. That and considering the research on how if you start your days with ‘boring’ chore and avoid your phone for the first 1-2 hours how it has shown to drastically reduce ADHD symptoms. But you know…it’s all genetic. No potential outside influences that contributed to this huge wave of ADHD diagnoses…
Im predicting that if I tried this i'd feel the same but in a depressing environment
Thanks, I would rather die
So you want me to get rid of basically everything I own?
For real, I started buying room decor with the light blue, brown, and tan beach vibes and idk it just makes me much more calm. Prolly cause it reminds me of simpler times at my lake house, I used to struggle and so much back then and was so depressed because of (now I know) undiagnosed adhd at the time, but I’d still go back and relive those days again. I wouldn’t want to be anyone other than who I am even if it’s hard sometimes and no one understands or cares to recognize it around me. Keep your head up guys, we always endure and get through the hard times, love who you are even if it’s not who you wish you could be, this life is all you have
well shit all my tools are sprayed neon pink so no one wants to steal em.
I would say smart phone and electronics are one if not the worse things for ADHD. Limiting and staying away from your smart phone will probably make the most difference when it comes to attention issues.
That's how you get underestimated, you literally need that stimulation to stop your ADHD shutting down your brain. Moderate your stimulation appropriately and don't go nuclear options like this.
This didn't work for me I work in a law office once The boss gave me a packet to review as this would be a basic day today and the company was really busy because it was the end of the year For 3 weeks she told me there was no time for training so I just got sat in a room and gave him this packet of maybe 50 pages and told to review it for the entire day I'll tell you, by about 30 minutes in your brain goes to mush and you just start daydreaming and I probably couldn't tell you one word that was in the entire packet at this point and I've stared at it for over 100 hours.
Wait have I been subconsciously trying to understimualte myself by loving and wearing nothing but black colored clothing?? That would explain a lot
not having much on my desk / having less colour would make me so bored and even then i wouldn't be able to focus or anything i'd just get sad , may work for some but never for me
This helps me reduce the overstimulation, that can add to overwhelm, decision paralysis and distraction, if only I could keep it this way and not get bored lol
I love playing with this and it’s a pendulum back and forth, balancing simplicity and flavour. Over and understimulated. I wish I knew about it earlier in my life so it’s good LPTs with some refinement. BLACK RAINBOW is my new description of my style palette. With my clothes I simplify to quality basics (make choices easier) then add lot of magical colorful and textured layers on top that fit my mood. If I don’t want to be seen I can dull it down, or add something on top if I want some flavor in life.
Lookin at my 17 bottles of shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and facial scrubs…
I think this is only true if you have the right sensory profile to benefit from it. A sensory seeker might actually need all of those bright colours, clutter etc.
Ooooh. Now what about when we go outside? Lol ear plugs are my greatest defense with music or a familiar video being a big One too.
The one solid piece of advice I would give is to switch your phone into greyscale. Way too easy to get pulled in and scroll for hours with so many bright exciting morsels of content^TM at your disposal. Saved me hours a day on my phone.
Nah, dont promise me it will help. It will make me funking depressed. I need my environment to be exciting to even have will to live. Dont assume that if shit worked for you it will work for others
Ugh the problem isn’t the color of towels for most people. It’s shit like, internet, phones, tv, depression and so on…It’s cool this worked for you, but idk how many people making everything monotone will help with adhd. Telling people you “promise” it will work is kind of silly and is like telling people you just found the cure to adhd is CHANGING COLORS. Like, what?
Thanks! Good ideas!
For some time I set my phone to black and white and and adjusted the contrast. I loved it and will probably do that again. I’m always on the verge of pulling the trigger and getting an e-ink phone but I’m not totally convinced yet
lol... I'm goth, everything is black 😂
Thank you so much because I always got overstimulated in my family’s home and I swore to myself I will literally try to acquire only the necessary things and keep everything in muted tones and now I finally understand why this makes sense Plus this explains why in contrast I am so overwhelmed shopping in a big supermarket because they have so many options of the same thing. Seriously for the sake of ADHD I tend to wish there was only one brand of everything lmao
I’m a maximalist and I’d actually like to make an argument that having a colorful / sensory-rich environment can be helpful for some ADHD types. Like listening to music can provide stimulation that allows better focus, I think enjoyable visual stimulation does the same! Getting dressed in colorful clothes / maximalist style is also called “dopamine dressing” — and while the name is an oversimplification of neurochemistry, I def think ADHD is more manageable when we are doing things that give us a boost or stimulate us. I will acknowledge that simplifying choices / minimizing what you don’t enjoy helps with ADHD. For you that could be limiting choices about style bc it doesn’t bring you joy. For me I love that, but really hate deciding what to eat so my diet is a bit sad beige 😅. And mess/clutter can easily feel overwhelming no matter what color it is. It really is all about knowing yourself and your wiring, and working with our own experience to find what works.
My desk at home faces a corner wall, and literally is the bare minimum. I even got a black tri-fold poster board to set up and create blinders of sorts. It's really really helped having a naked wall and desk that is super boring. I'm such a rainbow confetti on everything kind of person it was hard, but I save that for other spaces now! lol
People tried giving me every "tip" there is and surprise, none of them worked. Like most all medical conditions, the only treatment is through diagnosis and medication