(electronic upbeat music) - Hey, everybody.
Happy Thursday.
Now today, we're gonna talk about executive dysfunction,
but before we jump into the question,
are you new to my channel?
Welcome, I put out videos on Monday's and on Thursday's,
so make sure you're subscribed and have
those notifications turned on so you don't miss out,
but let's get into this question, and the question is,
"Kati, do you think you could
talk about executive dysfunction
and how to describe it to loved ones
or how to overcome it, et cetera?"
This is a great question and it really encouraged me
to do some extra research, so thank you for asking.
And the term executive function
has been a common term in schools
and therapists office for awhile,
but not a lot is known about it,
and while many people assume that this term
means so struggle with organization,
the more we learn about it and the more we realize
that there are many other skills that are involved
in our executive functioning, and disorganization
just happens to be one of them.
The executive functions are a set of processes
that all have to do with managing oneself
and one's resources in order to achieve a goal.
It's an umbrella term for the neurologically based skills
involving mental control and self regulation,
and what this means, really, is that everyday life
is just a bit harder to manage.
Obviously, it can be slightly more difficult
or feel completely unmanageable depending on how your issues
with executive function affect you personally,
because everybody's gonna be different,
just like any diagnoses, one person could feel
mild depressive symptoms where another person
struggles to even get out of bed or shower,
so know that it's your experience
and it's important that you understand
how it's affecting you, to what level.
But overall, completely tasks that require many steps,
like let's say planning a vacation,
can be very, very difficult, if not impossible.
Executive dysfunction can affect children and adults
and many people who have ADHD, depression,
those who suffered a stroke, or have learning disabilities
can struggle with executive functioning as a whole.
We can also have a hard time remembering things
that we were just told, keeping track
of what needs to be done, and organizing our days
so that everything does get completed
when it needs to get finished.
Now, when it comes to executive functioning,
there are eight areas that it can affect.
They are, number one, initiation.
We can struggle to start projects or tasks on our own,
or even come up with problem solving strategies.
We often just wait for someone else to start something
and then we'll jump into it.
Two, inhibition, we can struggle to stop certain behavior
at what would be deemed an appropriate time,
and we can also have a hard time not acting out impulsively.
Three, emotional control, we can have a hard time
managing our emotional responses to situations
like for example, we could lash out in anger or upset
before even hearing the other person's side at all,
because we just feel it and we say it
and there's no break in between.
Four is shifting, we can have a tough time transitioning
from one task to another or being flexible
if times change or situations are altered.
If we have a schedule in mind, we like to keep to it,
because it's really hard for us to quickly move
back and forth from tasks or from activity.
Five, working memory, it can be really hard for us
to hold any information in our brain
long enough to complete the task.
Just like in school or work when we read or hear something
in class or in a meeting, we can type it out to relay
the information to someone else, but someone with
executive dysfunction wouldn't be able to do that
or it would be extremely difficult for them.
Number six, planning and organization,
now this is what I was talking about at the beginning,
most people think it just affects our organization skills
and this is a component, right?
Now, under planning and organization,
we struggle with the ability to manage current
and future oriented tasks and demands.
That's why planning an event or a vacation would be
really difficult, because there's
a lot of steps involved, right?
We have to be organized and get things
planned out in a timely manner.
Seven, organizing of materials, being able to keep things
in order so that they're easily retrievable
when needed can be really hard.
This can mean that all of the stuff
in our home is all over the place.
Our cubicle at work is a disaster.
Our book bag from school is like a total disaster.
We can even struggle to find the homework
that we were just given and we know we need to complete,
which can make getting things finished really, really hard.
And number eight, self monitoring, it can be really hard
to recognize how we're doing in relation to those around us.
Since we struggle to plan, organize,
and not act impulsively, we often
don't see the faults in our ways.
Now, I know that that is a lot to consider,
but if someone in your life is
struggling with executive dysfunction,
before jumping to any conclusions,
just ask them which areas they struggle with most
and how it affects them personally,
because as we know, everyone is gonna be different.
Now to get into how we can better manage it.
There are many, many behavioral tasks that can help,
and the first is, utilizing time, organizers,
planners, lists, alarms, et cetera,
anything that can help you stay on task
and remember what needs to get completed
will help immensely.
Number two, always ask for written instructions as well,
that way, if you forgot what someone said
at the end of class or in that meeting,
you can check your written instructions and work from that,
because remember, it's really hard for us to have this
working memory and we can struggle with short term things.
Like, if someone told us their phone number,
chances are by the time we go to put it in our phone,
we won't remember, so make sure you write things down
just to give you that back up.
Number three, make a schedule and ensure you can
check it multiple times a day, maybe even set alarms
that remind you to check it to make sure
that we're on point and doing the things
that we need to do at that time in our day.
Number four, break down large tasks into smaller ones.
I mean, everybody should do that,
but it's especially important for those of us
who struggle with executive dysfunction,
and also can be helpful to estimate the time
that each of those portions will take you.
And always write the due dates
at the top of each of those portions.
So, every page or everything you open in a Word Document
or Google Doc, make sure the very top bold letters,
it tells you the date that that is due
so that we don't forget and miss a deadline.
And number five, keep your work and play areas
completely separate and just keep your to-do's
maybe in their own file folder
and labeled as your to-do's for that day or week
and do your best to keep those in their own space
so they don't get lost or confused with other things
that need to get done at different times.
And I've talked about that before,
how important it is to separate our spaces,
because our brain, oddly enough,
gets really used to like, sleeping in bed
and working at a desk, and relaxing when we're on the couch
and so make sure that we allow our brain
to have those transitions so we can focus when we need to
and zone out and watch some bad TV when we want to.
Number six, set reminders to let you know
when transitions are coming up
so that you have time to prepare for it.
I know things can happen in life
when we don't have the ability to prepare ahead,
but let's give ourselves the
opportunity as often as possible, so setting those
reminders, maybe your phone just makes a little
(exclaims)
and we know that that means we have five minutes
or 10 minutes before we're gonna have to
go into that meeting or we're gonna have to
go on that sales call, whatever it is,
we need to give our body and our brain
the time to prepare for that transition.
And the seventh tip is, utilize the story of an emotion,
as well as taking short breaks from interacting with others.
Maybe 10 to 15 seconds so that we can breathe.
(breathing) and pause,
before we say something we don't mean,
because I know we can be really impulsive
and feel our emotions so quickly, it's important that we
give ourselves a beat (electronic upbeat music)
so we don't say things we can't take back.
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click the link in the description and check it out.
I hope you found this information helpful.
This was really interesting to research about,
so thanks for asking that question,
and as always, let me know if I left anything out
or I didn't mention a tool or technique that has helped you,
because with your experience and my expertise,
we will keep working together towards
a healthy mind and a healthy body.
And I will see you next time, bye.