ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

I just signed up on these forums because I'm at wit's end. I'm hoping to get some feedback on an idea I had for myself and, ideally, find out that I'm not alone with this problem. If there's a solution I don't know about, that'd be doubleplusgood!

Is there a need in the adult ADHD community for treatment that's more intense than merely coaching/counseling? I went ahead and added a poll to this post for those who don't feel like replying but still want to register their opinion.

What I have in mind if something akin to an ADHD bootcamp where there's a caregiver or other participant closely monitoring daily regimented activities to provide immediate accountability and address any issues on the fly. The day's schedule would be tailored to meet a person's needs in terms of behavior modifications necessary. Ideally, schedules would be setup so that people are actively working during the day. Counseling would also be a scheduled component.

I think this could be something worth investigating for adults with ADHD who don't have some sort of partner/roommate who can help support their efforts. I don't doubt a system like this could wind up being too costly for most, but before I try to tackle keeping the costs down, I want to confirm that there isn't something wrong with the concept.

Here's my brief story to show where I'm coming from with this idea:

I've personally had little success implementing coping mechanisms with/without the aid of parents/counselors/coaches. Reflecting on years of past attempts and after undergoing a personal Strengths/Weaknesses/Opportunities/Threats analysis with close friends and family members, I've come to realize that many of my issues & bad habits reinforce each other. An example would be that I have extreme difficulty in establishing/maintaining routines, which hinders most efforts at addressing other issues. I know many people, including those without ADHD share in that difficulty, but I'm just using that example as an immediate an obvious one. A more complex example would be my poor organization and tendency to hyper-focus on unnecessary details leading to lowered productivity, which throws off my time management.

Implementing one grand system to address most/all issues at once seems to make sense, but what I've found in past attempts is that there are too many ways for the system to fail. When I tried this with a coach who I met with 3 times a week, there were simply too many things that needed to be addressed and because they weren't being address immediately, my work continued to suffer as problems cascaded. Maintaining sanity under those conditions was particularly difficult.

It's for those reasons that, as much as I hate to admit it, I think I may need some sort of nearly-constant presence to catch mistakes until an appropriate system emerges and takes root in the form of good habits. At that point, there'd be a weening process of sorts to allow for independence to develop.

Sooooo...any thoughts?

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

my defiance issues might become a problem :p but i like the principle :D

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

Well, it wouldn't work for me just because someone coming into my home telling me what to do wouldn't fly well with me. I hate being micromanaged, and I hate being told what to do. I only tolerate authority at work because it's a means to an end (and my boss is a pretty chill guy and acts more like a coach than a boss).

But my home time is MY time where I get to do what I want.

But for some people I think it could be a good thing. :D

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

I was thinking this could work either in your own home or in some place you move in to for X number of weeks. Again, try to avoid thoughts on cost at this point.

As for as the authority issues go, I'm right there with you guys, but I'm sure there's a way for the caregiver to interact with you so that it's not from a position of authority. For instance, maybe every 30-45 mins of work time, you spend max 5 mins reviewing the past work session with the caregiver to ID issues experienced & pick up any balls that were dropped.

I can see having someone there being really helpful in terms of detecting when I fail to add something to my schedule. Another would be when I'm committing to doing something (now or in the future) that should be delegated or simply declined.

But yeah...the point here isn't to have an in-your-face drill instructor, but a living functional safety net.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

This. After 10 minutes I would have already screamed "SHUT THE F*** UP" and punched the guy in the face.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

Ha! Yeah, that's totally not the point of the caregiver.

I'm not sure how exactly the helper would interact with you, but let's assume that it's in a way that's acceptable to you. Otherwise, the whole program would pointless. The main issue they're there for is to detect issues software currently can't/doesn't detect, like when you make a commitment to attend/do something & fail to schedule it (just a single example). How they report to you, I dunno. That'll probably need to be researched/tested.

So, assuming the caregiver isn't ******* you off or intruding, what then?

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

Also, someone voted there's a solution for this already. Hopefully they'll post what it is!

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

Behaviorally, I see a few issues.

1) The skills are dependent upon prompting, which may be difficult to fade. How will you prevent yourself from going back to old habits once treatment ends? Prompt fading should not be taken lightly.

2) How will you keep up interest/morale? Having someone follow you around constantly, telling you everything you mess up and how to do things would be both exhausting and infuriating. Some sort of reward system would have to be in place....think gamification

3) Can training be generalized? Can you take skills learned in intensive treatment and apply it to other areas, instances, etc.

4) How long would it be? It takes a long time to learn new habits and to master them, becoming independent.

I think the future for training might be more self monitoring/awareness implemented with technology, APPs perhaps, that help reserve behaviors and give rewards for completion of tasks/etc.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

To be honest, I'm not sure. This would be something that needs to be researched. Any references you have on this would be tremendously helpful!

I think one way to protect morale would be by batching updates from the follower, though where the line is drawn between too frequent and not frequent enough would need to be figured out. You're absolutely right, though, and I think that, like most behavior modification systems, a reward system would be fundamentally necessary.

That's actually one of the reasons I think day-time periods would need to be spent actually working (if not at work, though an at-work solution would definitely come with its own hurdles, especially emotionally). Ideally, you're experiencing treatment in, if nothing else, the primary contexts of your life (ie. home, work, etc.). Your caregiver won't come along on dates or anything like that :p

I know that studies on how people learn information have shown that learning in the same environment you need to recall it improves your recall, but as far as learned behaviors go, I'm not sure what role environment plays.

I think the program would need to last long enough for most habits to at least be established, with some sort of continuing treatment beyond the in-patient period to keep things going. I just googled "how long to form new habits" and found research that found the average period for that is 66 days, but can be much longer, depending on the habit. I wonder if there's research that has attempted to measure how long specific ADHD-related habits take to form and/or identify factors that affect length of time needed.

66 days sounds like a pretty long time for a treatment program, though, and would definitely make this an expensive idea to pursue. I wonder if there are any ways to minimize time required to learn new habits.

Couldn't agree more. I think as tech progresses, we'll see better systems for overcoming out issues. As a coder & wannabe entrepreneur, I think ADHD treatment hasn't yet hit the radar of any startup hubs (ie. Silicon Valleys), but is bound to in the next couple of years. I can definitely see a big innovation opportunity in terms of developing a device/app capable of sensing when someone with ADHD needs a certain prompt.

Lots of good questions raised, so far! Keep em coming while I head back to researching!

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

UM no I dont take well to authority at all,Idk if id make it 5 minutes especially w some ones whos an egomanical control freak before I cuss em the hell out and tell em to get bent or fudge off.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

Crawford, I would start researching Applied Behavior Analysis. There is a lot of information about all those things I talked about.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

So apparently I should REALLY emphasize the fact that the helper isn't an authority figure.

For the record, I'd be right there with the rest of you in terms of punting any kind of authority. If there's been a constant issue I've had in the past with people trying to "help"/"support" me, it's been that they think they need to assume some sort of control over me. Screw that!

I think I'm coming from the same place most of you are. If I didn't have a vision of something in my head that I'd like to use, I wouldn't have ever posted about it ;)

Queuing new research topic...done!

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

I think your on to something here, Crawford.

Let me share my experiences with you.

When I was 12, My mother sent me to a private bording school that specializes in kids with learning difficulties (www.landmarkeast.org if you are interested). This was, needless to say, a god send for me, and I attended this school for 3 years. After that I returned to pulbic school where I didn't do great, but I did graduate from High School, where I probably would of been written off if I hadn't gone.

Landmark East does what you are talking about, and they even have aduilt educational programs as well.

I was also put on Dexedrine when I was there and I found that that helped me a lot. I didn;t take it as much in high school, which now I do regret, but you can't change the past.

For me it worked. I should on continued to take my meds after I got out of there however.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

I am my own personal drill sergeant.

Hmm, I dunno. If I decided to change and agreed to have someone giving me direction I'd think I'd go along with it. After all, isn't that what having a book editor is all about?

I only do things once I agree to. Once I do though I am a productivity machine.

If you're on medication and have supports in place and give the instructor an overview of what you're capable of, and they just kept you on track, until those habits started to stick, then it would be good.

I'm one of those people that will go to any length to succeed, keeping within the confines of Her Majesties laws of course.

I'm fortunate that I don't have to juggle too many tasks that I have time to work on building better organisational skills, maintaining good health and fitness, and continuing the quest to be the smartest person in the world.

However I have this problem with anxiety and controlling explosive moods. My default function is to have routines and be repetitive.

I think it's a good idea. Mind you, I think you need to cater to different personality types. And there must be trophies you can earn. That's a good motivator for me. Even if it's a lump of dried clay with a Roman numeral lightly chiselled in that says you've passed Level 1.
I like trophies.

Re: ADD bootcamp/rehab?
 

Well saying "bootcamp" heavily implies its similar to real boot camp, which involves getting screamed at, insulted, and infuriated for many weeks straight.