Hello brains.
If you watched this video on the left of your screen
You know how helpful routines can be.
But as people with ADHD
we like to change things
JOBS
CITIES
MAJORS
and whenever we go through a big change
whatever routines we built for ourselves
naturally get disrupted.
But that's okay.
We will rebuild...
Music plays in the background
Here are eight tips to help you rebuild your routines and get on with your life
ONE
Keep what you know works.
It can be tempting to start with a blank slate.
but the less you change,
the quicker you'll adjust to those changes.
So anything you liked from your old routine
that would still work with the new one, consider keeping
TWO
Design the rest with YOU in mind
HANG ON
Current you, not Future you
If you're anything like me
Future YOU is AWESOME
and can run a 5k between making breakfast for their family and going to work.
What about current you?
Do you like to sleep in?
Do you like to make breakfasts?
Are you more likely to workout in the morning or the evening?
Do you need to tackle mentally challenging tasks before your meds wear off?
How much alone time do you need?
How long can you go without it before you start canceling on people?
Phone Rings
These are all helpful things to take into consideration
THREE
Give yourself plenty of white space in your schedule
Remember transitions will probably take longer at first because you're not used to your new routines yet
So set yourself up for success
give yourself extra time between your new routines in case one takes longer than you expect
Personally while I'm adjusting to my new schedule of working on the show full time
I'm giving myself a full hour between my morning and afternoon routines
And then a couple hours before bed so that if work runs long
I still get to sleep
If leaving extra time in your schedule isn't an option for you
Parents
Person with a new job
Persons with two jobs
Or if transitions are especially difficult for you
You can speed up the process of setting those new routines
and reduce the transition time between them
By mentally walking through your new routines a few times before you need to start using them.
Imagine each part of the task and then imagine how you'll move on to the next one
You can do this as slowly
Or as quickly as you like
just make sure you don't skip any steps to get the full effect
FOUR
Right the new routines down
There's a surprising amount that will suddenly not be automatic when you go through big life changes
again speaking from experience
Once you're used to your routines your brain will usually remind you what's next
until then you'll probably need some help
So you need to have a way of keeping yourself on track
Put it in your schedule
Create a habit tracker
Sticker Chart
Use an app like Time Tune or Really
Yes. I know it's supposed to be for kids
I don't care it works
There's absolutely nothing wrong with parenting yourself
FIVE
If it all humanly possible
Wait until you're used to your new routine before adding in stuff that you've never done before.
New habits are a lot harder to stick to that's a whole other episode
So give yourself some time to adjust to your new routine before you take on that challenge
Going through big changes is not the time to try and create your perfect life, though
Yes, I too
Am tempted to do all the things I've ever wanted to do now that I am doing this full-time
But I know if I want to create new habits that lasts longer than five days
It'll be a lot easier
If I have solid routines in place to plug them into
SIX
Manage your stress levels
Change even good change is stressful
Expect small unexpected changes to affect you more than usual right now
because they're not really small changes
They're Peaks on a mountain of giant changes
Sometimes they're going to push you over the meltdown line
So if you find yourself crying in the middle of a grocery store because they no longer carry your favorite ice cream
It's totally normal.
It's what my psychiatrist told me
So be patient with yourself. If you need a little extra TLC right now
That's okay.
Ask a friend for support
Mail yourself a care package
Make time for bubble baths
or a massage
Play volleyball
Whatever helps you relax
SEVEN
Acknowledge your Achievements
It can be really easy when you're adjusting to a new routine to only see the stuff you didn't get to
Check out all the stuff you did
Even little things like getting to work on time that you might otherwise take for granted are a huge victory
when you did it with a new routine
so go get yourself some Froyo
AND finally
EIGHT
Tweak as necessary
If anyone gets all of their routines right on their first try
I'm gonna be very annoyed
Impressed but annoyed.
It's totally normal for it to take some trial and error to figure out what works for you
So expect that things will go wrong and you will need to make adjustments
It doesn't mean you're doing something wrong
It's part of the process
I'm currently in the process of doing that myself you do the best you can when you set it up
but sometimes you don't know what doesn't work until you try it
And honestly even once you get your new routine set things will still totally mess with them
A road trip
A new project
The holidays
A New romance
A new pet
Or even just an unexpected phone call in the middle of your day. Well sometimes totally mess with your new routines, and that's okay
We will rebuild
That's it for this week
Next time I will be talking about how to get new habits to stick.
Which means this one will probably be back
So we should probably give her a name
Leave suggestions for her name in the comments below and the name she likes best
We'll announce next video there will also be a prize, which we haven't decided on yet
It'll be A SURPRISE PRIZE
Huge big thank-you hugs to my Brain Advocates
And all my Patreon brains for making it possible for me to spend way too much time playing with Domino's
I really love this job
Usually
Good luck with your routines, and I will see you next week bye brains