Why Everything Takes Longer When You Have ADHD (In Comics)
Welcome to the world where “crying over spilled milk” is interpreted literally and having fun is the only solution
ADHD CHRONICLES
Welcome to the world where “crying over spilled milk” is interpreted literally and having fun is the only solution
What is the enemy number one for a person with ADHD? There are many contenders for this coveted place, but one of them wins the race when it comes to my productivity: Time! Welcome to the world where “crying over spilled milk” is interpreted literally and makes everything take longer than it should. Constant breaks from work are commonplace and the only refuge from losing time is doing something fun and stimulating.
ADHD stands for “Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder”, and no, it’s not a social media trend, it is a mental condition, which can be quite disabling. Most of us with ADHD struggle with focus, concentration, and doing pretty much anything that is not exciting and new, which often leads to mood dysregulation. But it’s not all lost! There is treatment and there is humor to be had, hence my comics are here to brighten our ADHD days. And…the last comic even offers a solution to some of these problems!
Disclaimer: This story and comics reflect my personal experience with ADHD and are not meant to be generalized to every ADHDer out there. I am also not a medical professional, just an ADHDer trying to find peace of mind through humor and art!
Why everything takes longer when you have ADHD
The theme “Why everything takes longer when you have ADHD” started with my comic about the mental effort needed to do everyday tasks in my previous ADHD story, linked below. At the end of this story, you can find more links to my stories about ADHD.
Living With Adult ADHD: Explained In Comics
Chasing a life where everything is exciting and nothing is boringmedium.com
1. I cry over spilled milk (or coffee)
While you might think this comic is a tiny bit exaggerated, I’m here to tell you situations exactly like this have happened to me. Lack of emotional regulation, over-sensitivity, and despising boring everyday tasks can all lead to emotional outbursts that can last for hours…until I calm down and realize it can all be done in 2 minutes and it really isn’t a big deal!
Try telling that to my past self. The good news is it gets easier with family support and treatment. And it gets way better if I do something I actually like doing. In that case, the issue of procrastination and emotional dysregulation is pretty much solved entirely. In fact, everything takes less time if I am doing something fun!
Even after quite some time of being diagnosed and learning about my ADHD, I still get surprised when I complete complex tasks in record time. I stop and ponder about whether my ADHD has maybe been miraculously cured? But then it hits me: “Oh, this was a task I like! Of course, I can write an academic paper*, but I can’t clean spilled coffee.”
*You see how writing the first draft (and not any other after that) of an academic paper can be fun for me? It took me ages to understand I have ADHD precisely because of this. How can someone who enjoys academic tasks, seen as boring by most people, possibly have ADHD? Well, because what is fun to me or anyone else is just a matter of personal interest and has nothing to do with ADHD. So, yes, you can be an excellent student and have ADHD. The fact that I enjoy writing only the first draft is more telling than anything else.
2. Pomodoro technique, you said?
I love when people suggest I try out the Pomodoro technique! Because then I can tell them how this usually works out for me… Break time all the time, baby!
Jokes aside, my brain is always looking for some stimulating dopamine-rich thing to do. And after 5 minutes of work, I genuinely start looking around trying to “reward” myself for all the “hard work”. The only way I can ever be productive is to make my work be that stimulating dopamine-rich thing, and if I manage to do that, then it’s hyperfocus time!
I can work for a long time, not even noticing I’m working. I usually end up sitting for hours, it gets dark, and my husband comes back home, turns on the lights, and asks me how long I have been sitting in the dark. The answer is “I don’t know”.
Regardless of whether you want to consider hyperfocus as a positive or a negative consequence of ADHD, the power of productivity ADHDers can harness when doing something they like is immense. For that reason, let us look at the last comic, where I promised you a solution to everything taking longer when you have ADHD.
3. Solution: Get paid to do fun stuff!
So yeah, this solution is pretty simple and probably unsurprising. If I can only be productive when I do what I like, then I should make that my work! Recently, I got a postdoc at Tilburg University, where I will be able to apply my academic linguistic knowledge to researching comics! And you might not know this, but my original interest in comics comes from analyzing how comics work, not necessarily drawing them.
I am aware this job won’t solve my ADHD problems, I mean if I spill coffee, I still have to clean it. But knowing that after I clean it, I will come back to doing almost exclusively something I like will make it that much easier. :)
What is your relationship with time and work? Let me know in the comments!
The end
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My other ADHD stories with comics:
Living With Adult ADHD: Explained In Comics
Chasing a life where everything is exciting and nothing is boringmedium.com
How Comics Help With My ADHD
With comics included!medium.com
Being Neurodivergent Explained in Four Comics
The single factor that explains why I act baby-ish, play with toys, and can occasionally “predict” the end of the worldmedium.com
Owning ADHD and Coping With It: In Comics
I rarely read books, but when I do, it’s because I want to write one.medium.com
Living With Adult ADHD Is Spooky: Explained in Comics
Muahahaha — 4 spooky things that might happen to ADHDers and other innocent souls this Halloweenmedium.com
ADHD Xmas In Comics
How to embrace being ADHD during Xmasmedium.com
ADHD Heart Is the Best Decision Maker: How I Always Know What I Want (In Comics)
And I want it now. On repeat, please!medium.com
I Spy, I Draw: How Art Makes You More Mindful
ADHD hack against racing thoughts: Draw anything you observemedium.com