Once more, this is personal experience with driving and probable adhd. Since I’m not diagnosed and this is what I struggle with don’t take this as 100% factually correct or the one all be all.

I’d like to think a big struggle that people have with ADHD and driving is to do mainly with focus and also partly impulsivity.

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As you likely know people with adhd have trouble with maintaining and dictating what we focus on.

It’s a pretty big theme with adhd.

With driving there’s a lot you need to pay attention too.

When you have trouble directing and sustaining your attention this can be tricky but also very dangerous.

This doesn’t just have to be you not paying attention to the road, this could also be because you’re paying too much attention to the road.

Multitasking is really difficult when you have adhd, so of course driving is hard.

At least this is what I’ve noticed.

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The solution to this? Supposedly medication helps with it, I wouldn’t know.

But there is also the hard way, which is continuing to train your brain into the right way of thinking so you can drive safely with minimal distractions.

It can be very dangerous, but it’s possible to learn to drive. It just might take longer.

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With driving impulsivity also is a big factor. Because people with adhd tend to have trouble controlling their impulses, they may decide to drive when they’re not fit too.

Or they might make a decision on the road that’s a bit risky.

Which is dangerous, and can be really hard to control in the moment.

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However, you don’t have to drive if you dont want too.

Driving certainly gives you a large medium of freedom to go where you want, but at the same can easily be achieved by taxi, Uber, train, bus, boat, and plane.

Sure it’ll cost you a bit more money.

Try and create a schedule. If you plot out your days accordingly, then it will be easier to follow through. Make it routine! But also be sure that you’re able to take breaks, so add those in as well. It always helps me to a guide to follow, so maybe it can help you as well. Personally, I thrive on routine 😉

Also, playing certain games, and often just sitting and breathing can increase a persons focus. Try doing that. And hey, thin mints are amazing!

Does anyone else have advice?

Hello! Thank you for sending this in, and I’m sorry for the delay in response. I completely understand how you may be feeling, and it is very frustrating when we cannot concentrate or remember things. I really hope I can help with sharing some of my techniques.

Our concentration can often jump to places for a number of reasons, and it causes us to leave things unfinished or have to spend a lot more time on something than we should. I personally take hours on assignments, when it should take no more than one. I end up sitting down, determined to complete it but instead finding myself distracted and letting my mind focus on something else, instead of the task I am currently doing. I am still working on this, and I have gotten better with some techniques I have been carrying out;

The first thing I did was to create a weekly planner. I made it on my whiteboard, and separated it into 8 columns (one for every day of the week, and an extra one for notes). I was able to then plan when I was going to do what, even if it was something small like post a letter or work an hour on some work. I found it really rewarding when I could rub a task off after completing it, and finding the day blank where I had finished my tasks and had time to relax. This doesn’t necessarily have to be used if you worry about forgetting things, and I believe you can use it to help focus your time into one task and focus on finishing it. Do you feel this could help, or you could give it a try? Is there anything about this you would change?

The second thing I have begun to do is create reminders on my phone for important things. I am able to give it a date it must be done by and, using this with the weekly calendar, I can work out when I need to work on it to get it done in time. This contributes to focusing on one task at a time and not forgetting it, however the environment you are in also takes part in how we work and focus. Here are some tips I have learnt:

Sitting in a room you perhaps don’t usually sit in

Make sure your chair is comfortable

Make sure it is not too hot, or too cold

Sit next to a plant, or have a plant on your desk

Leave your phone in another room, along with any other device you do not need

Divide the task up until little pieces; eg. 5 minutes working, 5 minutes break and so on

Reward yourself when you complete a task!

Have a glass of water by your side

I believe all of these contribute to our focus, especially the room we are in and the distractions we have. Sometimes, people work best with music. I personally don’t work well with music, as I often find myself singing along or listening to the lyrics and ending up losing track of what I am doing.

If you are struggling with school work, there should always be someone at your school who will be available to talk to regarding this. There may be an after school or lunch club where you can go along specifically to work on your assignments, all while a teacher is present for help. Do you feel this may be something to consider?

The final tip I would encourage you to do is dedicate some time, perhaps each day or week, to relax and breathe. Whether we are busy or not, it is always healthy and okay to take a few hours out of an evening to perhaps have a hot bath or have a nice meal. Allowing ourselves this time can help a lot when coming to times where we need to focus, as our stress levels can be reduced.

I really hope these tips might help you, and that you are able to mix it up a little to find what environment you work best in. You are more than welcome however to come back to us with anymore questions, or simply another opinion on this via ask or live chat. You can do this, I believe in you! One day at a time.

Sleeping

Mindfulness

All the best,

Hey there, dear.

I’m sorry you’ve been struggling with this recently.

Now I have to first make it clear that I am not a professional so I cannot tell you for sure what’s causing this. I do think you should definitely go see your doctor and let them know about this as they will be able to offer you the best advice and may be able to give you a diagnosis; which could be a positive thing and really help you. <3

To me, and I have to stress *not a professional*, it does sound a little like anxiety to me, but obviously I can in no way tell you for sure. These are all physical symptoms of anxiety:

Pounding heart

Sweating

Stomach upset or dizziness

Frequent urination or diarrhea

Shortness of breath

Tremors and twitches

Muscle tension

Headaches

Fatigue

Insomnia

-source-

As you can see by that list, shortness of breath is only one of many symptoms that can people can suffer from with anxiety. But as I said above, I would definitely see the doctor, to be sure.

We have two pages that I think could help you: Calming Anxiety & Panic and Grounding Techniques. I’d suggest having a good read through both of these and using some of these techniques to help you when you’re feeling overwhelmed.

I hope this helped, dear.

it gets to the point where i either feel physically sick at not doing my work but i still can't make myself to it or if i do manage to work on it i feel even more worse because i'm not listening to what my body wants to do.....

     Essay and report writing has always been one of the most difficult things for me. Forget sports, or math, or any other school subjects or odd talents. Writing a report has always been extremely frustrating and incredibly time consuming. It's not that I don't have an interest in what I'm writing about, rather that I struggle focusing. Yes, everyone gets distracted, but its more than that. No matter how hard I try to focus and just get the damn paper done, the more frustrated I get.

     Its aggravating when every little sound, from the air coming from the heater in your room, to the sound of foot steps from upstairs grabs your attention. Its all of the little details around you, pulling your mind in twenty different directions. Out of the corner of your eye, you keep seeing the bright pink highlighter on the edge of your desk. Move it before it falls.

     Back to writing. Writing the same sentence you have been working on for the last 10 minutes. You keep getting stuck because the wording is off. It's just not right, and its bothering you. You've re-written it now countless times. Don't even get me started on how many times you've restarted or considered restarting the entire paper.

     Back to writing. The thoughts millions of thoughts in your head are racing, busy and loud like the crowd at a concert; too loud and hectic to make sense of anything. Proper paragraph structure doesn't even concern you, because you're lucky if you can even mange to write a paragraph without reviewing each sentence countless times. I just want to curl up in bed and watch a movie.