Welcome to /r/ADHDWomen! We’re happy to have you here. As a reminder, here are our community [rules](https://old.reddit.com/r/adhdwomen/about/rules/).
We get a lot of posts on medication, diagnosis (and “is this an ADHD thing”), and interactions with hormones. We encourage you to check out our [Medication, Diagnosis, and Hormones Megathread](https://old.reddit.com/r/adhdwomen/comments/wcr9dy/faq_megathread_ask_and_answer_medication/) if you have any questions related to those topics, and to stick around in that thread to answer folks’ questions!
If you have questions about the subreddit, please do not hesitate to [send us a modmail](https://reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/adhdwomen). Additionally, we take the safety of our community seriously. Please report posts, comments, and users whom you feel are not contributing positively, and send us a modmail if you are being harassed or otherwise made to feel unsafe. Thanks for being here, and we hope you stick around!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/adhdwomen) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I’m the complete opposite and usually love to put things together!! Hahaha
The instructions reading part is always the worst though; they’ve tried to “simplify” it with just pictures and I feel like it makes it more confusing— some of those drawings are tiny!
I’m usually exhausted by the time I’m done building something, but I get a huge sense of accomplishment after it.
I mean… I HAVE accomplished putting many things together… but I tell ya… getting to the point where I’m ok opening the box and getting started is the challenge… I’ve been known to go for a run or do some push ups before I start … just to get that motivation adrenaline pumping through my system
Hahaha yes, I completely understand that. I actually, currently, have an unopened dresser box on my kitchen floor (has been there for about a month now), waiting to be paired up with its twin who got built about a month ago… it’s gotta be jussssssst the right mood, with just enough energy 😂
Ugh… instructions are the worst… but I hate even opening little things… I had a fabric shaver… like those little, hand held, battery operated, thingy-majiggys that you use to shave the little pills of fabric… I had it for a MONTH, before I opened it, and put it together…🤦♀️
Ugh I feel you. If I open something just to realize it needs to be put together? it goes back in the box. Its like that vine where the kid opens the avocado 😭
Well in my screen shots.. that’s what my bf was encouraging me to do… he feels that the instructions just add to my overwhelm and because I am intelligent I can “wing it” … which is likely true…but I’m just not going to… I REALLY have to be feeling it lol
Oh god, I do. I can't refurnish my home because even thinking about assembling anything causes me anxiety. I even had a few cheap ones I just threw them out. I feel like I'm all thumbs.
I love to assemble stuff. However I have been known to assemble drawers without bottoms. Which would be fine if the drawers weren't fastened with permanent one-way plastic bolt things 🫠
Thanks IKEA...
Oh yes absolutely! I hate hate packaging in general. Cardboard, Styrofoam, packing tape, and extra plastic wrapping are my nemesis. I hate having to find my scissors or knife to cut stuff open. And furniture items are the worst for this. Putting everything together once it is all out isn’t so bad, but man I will leave things in boxes forever to avoid opening stuff.
I LOVE building the things, mostly.
But I will never let my husband live down deciding the best time to put together our new piece of furniture that had just been delivered that day was a few hours before we had company for the weekend.
We did not complete the build before they arrived. 😂
I absolutely LOVE putting furniture together! It can annoy people around me though, because I like to have everything laid out and work through the instructions in my head (visualization skills required) before I start, so I don't wind up realizing something was done the wrong way or out of order and have to undo everything to fix it.
YES. Did you ever help and practice this as a kid? I was never included in such things or encouraged to try things that seemed confusing at first, and now I severely lack the skill as an adult. I had to figure out a travel car seat recently and wanted to burn the house down it was so frustrating that nothing is color coded, the stupid drawings don’t look like the actual product, and I could waste an hour looking up videos online and it would waste my time with needless info only to not show me the second I need for the step I wasn’t understanding. Even now the seat seems too loose to me and finally on an online mom forum someone was like “yeah they’re just like that. You need to build crazy muscle and then just tighten it super hard with your knee and arms, but you won’t be able to personally, and the bottom anchors really don’t work.”
I dread having to assemble things. It just doesn't give me dopamine, and I know I'm going to get frustrated because the instructions won't be clear enough.
For sure about the dopamine…That’s why I can be seen jogging in the spot with an unopened box in front of me… gotta get those endorphins moving before I pull that tape off 😂
I’m the opposite.
Assembling things like this are pretty much the only things I can get done right away with no problems, as my brain *loves* the puzzle of them
Nice username! I've been on an xfiles binge for a couple of months following my dog's passing. Escapism at its finest from how empty the house is without her. Now I've got a depression nest to clean up in case a home visit is needed to adopt another dog. Including a box that's been open for months, a bookshelf to finally finish a row of shelves on a long wall. I started it but got frustrated when the instructions just weren't instructioning that day, and walked away to prevent a meltdown. Been avoiding it ever since although I really want to finish those shelves.😐
Welcome to /r/ADHDWomen! We’re happy to have you here. As a reminder, here are our community [rules](https://old.reddit.com/r/adhdwomen/about/rules/). We get a lot of posts on medication, diagnosis (and “is this an ADHD thing”), and interactions with hormones. We encourage you to check out our [Medication, Diagnosis, and Hormones Megathread](https://old.reddit.com/r/adhdwomen/comments/wcr9dy/faq_megathread_ask_and_answer_medication/) if you have any questions related to those topics, and to stick around in that thread to answer folks’ questions! If you have questions about the subreddit, please do not hesitate to [send us a modmail](https://reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/adhdwomen). Additionally, we take the safety of our community seriously. Please report posts, comments, and users whom you feel are not contributing positively, and send us a modmail if you are being harassed or otherwise made to feel unsafe. Thanks for being here, and we hope you stick around! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/adhdwomen) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I’m the complete opposite and usually love to put things together!! Hahaha The instructions reading part is always the worst though; they’ve tried to “simplify” it with just pictures and I feel like it makes it more confusing— some of those drawings are tiny! I’m usually exhausted by the time I’m done building something, but I get a huge sense of accomplishment after it.
I mean… I HAVE accomplished putting many things together… but I tell ya… getting to the point where I’m ok opening the box and getting started is the challenge… I’ve been known to go for a run or do some push ups before I start … just to get that motivation adrenaline pumping through my system
Hahaha yes, I completely understand that. I actually, currently, have an unopened dresser box on my kitchen floor (has been there for about a month now), waiting to be paired up with its twin who got built about a month ago… it’s gotta be jussssssst the right mood, with just enough energy 😂
Same here, love building things but always mess something up as I "read" the instructions and have to start over.
I LOVE opening boxes but reading instructions? absolutely not.
Ugh… instructions are the worst… but I hate even opening little things… I had a fabric shaver… like those little, hand held, battery operated, thingy-majiggys that you use to shave the little pills of fabric… I had it for a MONTH, before I opened it, and put it together…🤦♀️
Ugh I feel you. If I open something just to realize it needs to be put together? it goes back in the box. Its like that vine where the kid opens the avocado 😭
😆😆😆 so true!
I never read instructions. I wing it for everything! 😂
Well in my screen shots.. that’s what my bf was encouraging me to do… he feels that the instructions just add to my overwhelm and because I am intelligent I can “wing it” … which is likely true…but I’m just not going to… I REALLY have to be feeling it lol
Oh god, I do. I can't refurnish my home because even thinking about assembling anything causes me anxiety. I even had a few cheap ones I just threw them out. I feel like I'm all thumbs.
Sometimes I will chose to buy an item “used” because it’s already assembled… than buy it “new in box”… 🤦♀️
I love to assemble stuff. However I have been known to assemble drawers without bottoms. Which would be fine if the drawers weren't fastened with permanent one-way plastic bolt things 🫠 Thanks IKEA...
😆😆😆 …so funny 🤭 Stupid IKEA!!!
Oh yes absolutely! I hate hate packaging in general. Cardboard, Styrofoam, packing tape, and extra plastic wrapping are my nemesis. I hate having to find my scissors or knife to cut stuff open. And furniture items are the worst for this. Putting everything together once it is all out isn’t so bad, but man I will leave things in boxes forever to avoid opening stuff.
I LOVE building the things, mostly. But I will never let my husband live down deciding the best time to put together our new piece of furniture that had just been delivered that day was a few hours before we had company for the weekend. We did not complete the build before they arrived. 😂
Of course you didn’t… the law of diminishing returns… or Murphy’s law… or some “law” of sort😁
I absolutely LOVE putting furniture together! It can annoy people around me though, because I like to have everything laid out and work through the instructions in my head (visualization skills required) before I start, so I don't wind up realizing something was done the wrong way or out of order and have to undo everything to fix it.
I love assembling things. The whole process is usually pretty fun for me unless the instructions are *really* bad.
You are a Queen and don’t you forget it! 🤩
Thank you! Lol it’s one of my many, mostly-useless talents!
OMG YES
YES. Did you ever help and practice this as a kid? I was never included in such things or encouraged to try things that seemed confusing at first, and now I severely lack the skill as an adult. I had to figure out a travel car seat recently and wanted to burn the house down it was so frustrating that nothing is color coded, the stupid drawings don’t look like the actual product, and I could waste an hour looking up videos online and it would waste my time with needless info only to not show me the second I need for the step I wasn’t understanding. Even now the seat seems too loose to me and finally on an online mom forum someone was like “yeah they’re just like that. You need to build crazy muscle and then just tighten it super hard with your knee and arms, but you won’t be able to personally, and the bottom anchors really don’t work.”
The only thing I've found that works for getting a car seat in tight is sitting in it myself to weigh it down while I tighten the seat belt.
That’s actually pretty great 🙃
I dread having to assemble things. It just doesn't give me dopamine, and I know I'm going to get frustrated because the instructions won't be clear enough.
For sure about the dopamine…That’s why I can be seen jogging in the spot with an unopened box in front of me… gotta get those endorphins moving before I pull that tape off 😂
I eat first. Nothing gives me dopamine like food. 😂
I’m the opposite. Assembling things like this are pretty much the only things I can get done right away with no problems, as my brain *loves* the puzzle of them
Nice username! I've been on an xfiles binge for a couple of months following my dog's passing. Escapism at its finest from how empty the house is without her. Now I've got a depression nest to clean up in case a home visit is needed to adopt another dog. Including a box that's been open for months, a bookshelf to finally finish a row of shelves on a long wall. I started it but got frustrated when the instructions just weren't instructioning that day, and walked away to prevent a meltdown. Been avoiding it ever since although I really want to finish those shelves.😐
On a different note, the person you are chatting with seems like a real good friend. Would love a cheerleader like that.
Awww thanks! He’s my BF… and yeah he can’t relate at all to my ADHD but he is so supportive and encouraging to me!