I was recenlty diagnosed with ADD approximately a month ago. I am an independent contractor who works at home doing medical transcription. I'm finding it more and more difficult to make myself actually sit here and work for more than 20 minutes at a time and my paychecks are reflecting that. I sit down and know that I have to work, but then I think well what about the laundry and the floor needs to be mopped and the beds made and the dog fed, etc. I was put on Adderall very recently and am hoping to see some results soon. Does anyone else work from home and if so, how do you actually get any work done? :confused:

I don't work from home, but I work alone with this rotten computer, and having broadband internet, and this forum!! I get my stuff done just before hometime, or just before deadline!! It works for me, but I don't have such a busy day as you...
good luck..I couldn't work from home, NOTHING productive workwise would get done:p

I'm a mom, so if the work doesn't get done it literally screams and cries.
Other stuff...deadlines work.

Maybe you can set yourself little goals.
i.e. I will work until lunchtime then take an hour to do a chore or two.
or
work four hours take two off, work another four (if you have the traditional 8 hour day)

Sort of a -this is time to get paid work- and -this is time to get housework done-

And don't forget the rewards...rewards work well.

i.e.
If I make my work goal I will take off time to watch my favorite tv show (the secret shame kind, like a soap or, in my case, Judge Judy) ...and throw in some ice cream maybe.

Thanks so much for your suggestions. I guess I just have to take baby steps. It's so hard putting those other thoughts out of your mind that just seem so pressing at the moment. I've been working at home for close to 7 years and everything was fine and dandy in the beginning but within the past 6 months to a year, it seems to have gotten harder.

I was recenlty diagnosed with ADD approximately a month ago. I am an independent contractor who works at home doing medical transcription. I'm finding it more and more difficult to make myself actually sit here and work for more than 20 minutes at a time and my paychecks are reflecting that. I sit down and know that I have to work, but then I think well what about the laundry and the floor needs to be mopped and the beds made and the dog fed, etc. I was put on Adderall very recently and am hoping to see some results soon. Does anyone else work from home and if so, how do you actually get any work done? :confused:
I am on my second try at working from home, it has been a little over a month. The first time (with the same company) didn't work out so well because I never worked from home before. Now, since I don't have to commute to the office (45 minutes away) I absolutely love it! My first experience was prediagnosis and it was kind of a disaster. This time I went and got diagnosed and prescribed Adderall when I learned I was going to be working from home. It seems to be working out pretty good and the Adderall is help keeping me focused.

My day is set up as if I am going into the office except instead of spending the time getting ready to leave for work I am able to do a couple of chores instead.

I set up blocks of time for myself like this:

Get up around 7:30 or 8:00 a.m. have coffee and eat breakfast.
Do a couple of quick chores
Work from 9:00 a.m. to around noon
Have lunch and do a couple of more chores
Back working by around 1:00 until 4:45
At 4:45 I make a list of what I have to do the next day
Start dinner and enjoy the evening
I occasionally get distracted, so when that happens I force myself to get back on track and focus. I am also going to join a gym and incorporate that into my schedule so I can mix things up a bit. The Adderall is helping too.

My job is quite different from yours because I am not doing one specific task like medical transcription, so setting smaller blocks of time might work out better for you. Like...work 2 hours, 1 hour break, work 2 hours etc.. During those breaks you can get some chores you need to get done.

I need help with 'WORK AT HOME' issues too. I have always heard that setting your day up as you would do at the office, as Susane suggested, was important for success. Also, using a timer to time breaks so you don't get pre-occupied with something else.

However, my problem is not feeling ready to 'go out' & work in public as a newly diagnosed ADD'r, so I'm actively looking for at home jobs and keep getting these 'come-on's' and 'Scam-like' situations offered to me. I mean...can you really make money by filling out forms stating why you do or do-not like products, etc.??? ( Not win prizes, or be entered into a raffle, etc,)

Does anyone have an idea or suggestion for me that is legitament??? I'm really getting desparate.

Thank's! Addeline

Bunny, I work as a transcriptionist also, and have done both at home and on site. Would it help your motivation and scheduling if you had a schedule, where you had a shift, and clocked in and out? It works really well for the at-home team I work beside.

The timer for breaks and clocking in and out are both great ideas. Addeline, I had a friend who use to work in the recruiting industry and she started her own resume editing and writing business. What kind of computer skills do you have?

1kid2dogs, I think that's my major problem is no set schedule. I don't have to work at any certain time and I don't have to do a certain amount of work. It's all left up to me and I'm pretty much unmotivated lately.

I love doing transcription work, I find it interesting and challenging and I pretty much learn something new every day, but making myself come in here and actually doing the work is getting harder and harder.

As you are a fellow transcriptionist you know the more you work the more you get paid and the same goes for the less you work. My most recent paycheck has reflected my poor work habits.

I've considered going outside of the house to work again, but when I weigh the pros and cons, even working the little I do lately, I'd be losing money with gas prices, sitter, etc.

I've really just got to buckle down and do the work. How do you do your transcription work? Do you sit for X many of hours and then break or do you work X many of hours and are done for the day?

I so hear ya Bunny! I was thinking, about the 7 years, that is a time frame that is challenging. On jobs, in relationships, getting tired of the house, just a time of feeling restless and wanting a change. I know for me, the motivation factor is so hard. I work for a large clinic during the day, doing "related" work, and they occupy 150 transcriptionists who work from home. Now I work in office. I think the success of our group is that there is the shift you have to work. There are quotas to meet, as well as incentives. So, you still have to "get up" and "go to work." They have to clock in on time or they get "dinged." They have all gotten to be experts at alieving distractions around them, and are very discliplined. Maybe a more structured environment might help you feel good about things again. You probably know MTs are in great demand, so a change, if you would consider it, would be available to you. I did transcription from home after work for a couple of years. (I'm trying to find another account now for part-time) I had to finish it by the end of the evening, so there was my motivation. I still had my time to use as I needed, for mommy stuff, but knew I had the workload to get done, and could get back to it. I don't think I could do what you are doing right now! No timeclock, no quota, no incentive. I just don't have that in me, but tell me I have to start at X time, and fininsh X amount of work, I'm right on it.

And, maybe the Adderall will help you too. Give you a jump start, but you need to do somthing to get yourself excited about "going to work" again. I read that one of our MT's gets up at a set time, gets ready, waters her plants, and meditates before her "day." All are very structured. And that's hard for anyone, even more so ADHDers!

I wish I could be more help, at least I understand. :-)

bunny, i can totally relate. when i first started working at home a couple of years ago, before i was diagnosed, i found it very difficult to get myself over to my desk & stay there long enough to get any work done. after nearly a year, after burning through much of my savings, i finally went to the doctor for help. he put me on ritalin & that gave me the motivation to figure out why i was reluctant to work, even though i LOVE my job. i found that part of my problem was the feeling of being trapped at my desk. i bought a new notebook computer, installed a wireless network & started working in the living room on my sofa. that made a big difference. i also stopped thinking about the time of day or the day of the week. i'll work when i want to whether it's 3pm or 3am. i still end up working about 40 hours a week without feeling like a slave to a timeclock. the sense of freedom makes me feel more motivated to work. i've even started taking my computer with me when i'm out of the house. i'll pull over when i see a nice view, whip out the computer & start working. i'm no longer restricted by time & space!

I also work from home in my spare time. Here's some tips that might help.

1. Set up an actual office. A spare bedroom works very well if you have one. When you find a space for your office, remove EVERYTHING that you would not have in your office if you worked outside of your home…ex. TV, couch, etc. You should pretty much be left with the bare-bones, typical office cubicle.

2. Try to get into a routine, allow your self ONE lunch break, and "X" amount of "coffee-break" time and stick to it! Remember, if you work outside your home, your boss would get pretty annoyed if you were always out of your seat and not doing what you're supposed to. When you're not doing what you're supposed to, you are costing the company money! Now, YOU are the company and you are costing YOU money. I think that makes you the boss, so make sure you a being a good supervisor and keep your employees (yourself) on task!

3. If your spouce, children, roomate are a distraction, then when you are "at work" put a sign on the door letting them know you are not to be disturbed unless the house is on fire! This may take a while to get them trained and to abide by it.

4. This is a lot like #2, but you need to set "official office hours" and make sure you are at your desk and ready to work at your scheduled time EVERYDAY!

5. Studies show that people that work from home are more productive if the dress the part. Meaning, you should not get out of bed in the morning wearing your PJs and Barbie slippers and try to work that way. Instead, wake up, shower, dress as if you were going to an actual office, have breakfast/coffee/meds and do whatever you normally do before work. Just make sure you are on time.

6. If you don't need a phone to do your job, remove it from your office. Get an answering machine to take your calls during "office hours". Limit personal phone use to lunch breaks and emergencies.

7. Unplug your computer modem if the internet is not absolutely necessary for work.

8. Finally, just try to get in the mind set that you are not at home. I'm sure there are things I have missed so just try to think about the way a big corporation runs their offices and things they might do to increase productivity and try to adapt their methods to work in a home-office setting.

I hope this helps! Don't forget to take your meds on time to keep yourself on track!
–NewGuy

wow, newguy's technique is the polar opposite of mine! it's so restrictive. i definitely need more freedom, stimulation & inspiration.

I think that everyone is different and works/learns differently. Some people may really respond to the method I posted earlier and others may do better with thinkdifferent's post. Both, in my opinion are very good methods of working depending on your style. I have to admit, I usually work better with thinkdifferent's method of just working when and where you are inspired. Like I said, I do some work on the side from home and have done a lot of research on how to succeed, and I thought I would throw out some of things that "normal" successful home business people have found to be helpfull. I know that bunny0271 (like myself) is new to ADD medication and might respond well, with medication, to a strict work environment. I think that everyone that is new to this whole medication experience should just experiment with different methods of doing things until they find what works best for them. Personally, since starting on Adderall, I have changed a lot of my methods of doing things that seem to work very well now that I am on my meds, but what works for me might not work for the next person. I think I am rambling now, so anyway, just try different methods until you find what works for you.

Newguy, thank you so much for your feedback. I've just got to get myself back into the mindset that I have to work. I definitely need to get the TV out of my office, it is a huge distraction. Scheduling breaks is a good idea too. Thanks for the advice! :)

No, problem. I'm glad that my advice might help (even though I have a hard time following it myself!). My biggest problem when working is access to high speed internet. The problem is I need it to do my work. So I'll end this post with what my parents used to tell me all the time: "Do as I say, not as I do!" LOL just kidding, do what works for you, I'm sure the meds will help in the long run. If they aren't working for you, try switching to something else. I think I'm going to see if my Doc will let me try Ritalin next month and then I might even see if he'll let me try Dexadrine for a month just to see what works the best before I commit to the Adderall.

Wow...Great Ideas from everyone!

Susane...Thank's for the suggestion. I don't think I'm quite up to the level necessary to be a recuiter and start my own business...but it sure sounds good! One can dream I suppose!

All other ideas welcome. I'm 'older, recently diagnosed, still looking for the right med/dose to complement the Lexapro that I take for Depression...which does a poor job. Hopefully upping the Adderall will help.

Thanks and Happy Working to All!

Addeline

Good luck with everything ADDELINE, you sound intelligent, so I am sure you will be able to find the right work situation for yourself.

Just an FYI, recruiting doesn't really require much, just really good intuition and the thrill of finding someone a really good job...good for ADDers. At least that is what I think anyway.

How old are you? I had a data entry job that I used to love but then it got to the point where I just COULD NOT SIT STILL (I was 39 at the time)- I think it was hormone related as I am approaching menopause and there is some evidence to support this - Strattera has helped me and I'm back doing data entry---I used to do transcription in Radiology as well, would love to work from home, but only have 6 months experience...

Bunny, how's it going with the meds? Are they helping you? Need update!

i can only work from home.. or outdoors... just can't cope with offices and don't want to meds so that i can.

i work lying on the floor naked, i do web stuff, its perfect, some days i do none others i do 15 hours, i just go with my mood.
I'm laughing cause the above makes it sound like i'm a cam girl or something!!

nope, just make websites, (clean ones) but find clothes restricting!

I basicly work when i'm bored.
The future goal is to find some work that will be more meaningful for me, but for now, finding something that fitted in with me as opposed to me needing to fit in is great!

I think that making websites is a great way for adhd folk to pay the rent, if anyone wants any ideas in this regard let me know.

x