Hi there,

just a couple of questions to see if others react the same way as me.

I have a number of set routines that I wonder if they are adhd related.

I play guitar several hours a day and have to do it when watching DVD's.
Also when I recording/mixing (several hours a day) I find having a DVD on in the background (with sound turned down) focusses me.
If I try working without it I find I cannot concentrate properly.

Also I cannot seem to watch TV or a DVD in the evening without being on the internet. TV alone is highly boring and after a day of work I like to relax with internet and a DVD- this happens every night. I am completely ok with it, but wonder if the dual stimulus is something others require too.

Basically I don't seem to function without doing at least two things at once.

Is this common ADHD type behaviour?

James

(Chronicles of Riddick playing in the background whilst I type this)

I find that happens to me quite a bit. I can't handle talking, or loud, distracting noises, but I've noticed that if I can hear a hum and it suddenly stops it completely throws me off. But if its totally silent and the hum starts that throws me off too. Whatever noises I started focusing with have to stay, whether it be some or none. And how much noise or silence I can handle in the first place varies from day to day.

And in regards to doing more than one thing at a time, that is def. ADD and I can def. relate to that. I'm not hyperactive but I have a lot of internal restlessness that needs releasing on occasion and also doesn't allow me to ever sit or especially stand still. If im on the compute rI usually have music on or have something to play with or eat or drink, I can never do just one thing.

Interesting response.

Ok...
Do you ever get this?

I could be talking with someone and their voice might have a certain inflection to it, or they might have a particular word they use quite a bit.
I leave the conversation and go for a walk and all I can hear in my head is that tone/inflection or vocal phrase repeating over and over and over- like a broken record.
Also they come back at random moments- if I eat food with MSG in it or overdose on caffeine then I am up all night with these things going on in my head.

Anything unique or noticeable about them becomes a subject of focus that is IMPOSSIBLE to ignore.
One example is the simpsons episode where Ralph says "Me fail English, that's unpossible"

The word unpossible will be in my head repeating and repeating and ... well you know the rest.

JR

I'm the ultimate multi-tasker.

If I don't have 10 balls in the air, I can't manage one.

Almost all of my behaviors are simultaneous. I can work on the computer without anything else because there are always at least 3 applications going -- usually 5 or 6. I go nuts w/o internet.

Even driving is impossible without either an audiobook or a very thought-heavy problem to work on (I often design studies or compose papers in the car, then put everything on (digital) paper later.

One thing at a time? Impossible.

octatonic, I can relate to that one as well. That reminds me of a time probably about 7 or so years ago that STILL comes back to mind on occasion. It was just a guy who said the word "there" too much. "There" was repeating in my head for I don't even know how long!
Its funny you should use that example of Ralph,too, I had that stuck in my head for about a week as well.
If someone I talk to enough says the same thing enough, I'll even start saying it impulsively. One of my friends, in his wierd ADHD way, calls everyone "son" and now I do that! Everyone! Even my coworkers and I completely don't mean to but it always comes to mind and just pops out when I am adressing them.

So, as you can see, I am completely with you on this one too, try me with another one!!

I find this is true in many people with ADD.
When I was in school, I couldn't study unless there was constant loud music or unless the TV was on. Even now when I go to sleep at night, I have to have a fan on regardless of how cold it is. It's not so much the temperature, but it's the need to have some kind of constant noise to calm me down. When it's too quiet I become restless and anxious. This really drives people nuts when you have to share a room with them.

One of the habits that a friend recently clued me in on is that the first thing I do when I get home from work is turn on the TV even when I have no intention of watching. I explained to her that this is because I feel nervous and on edge when it's too quiet.

Davey I sleep with the fan on too! Year round! I can't sleep without it on either, it is just too quiet and its irritating. One night it was cold so I experiemented with not putting it on and it took me so much longer to get to sleep and it was so frusterating I got up several hours later to turn it on. I decided being cold was better than no sleep.

Davey I sleep with the fan on too! Year round! I can't sleep without it on either, it is just too quiet and its irritating.

Bingo, I sooo do that. But usually its the TV as well. Falling asleep while in a quiet environment is alot harder.

maybe thats part of the reason I fall asleep almost everytime I sit down to watch tv. You wouldn't think the TV would be the best sleep aid but few things put me to sleep the ol' tube.