Things that help with add
 

So about a year ago I was diagnosed with add and was prescribed adderall which worked amazingly for me. But after about 6 months or so I stopped taking it to make sure I wasn't developing an addiction or anything, thankfully I wasn't but I did notice that quitting the adderall made my add 10x worse than it was before. Because of this I renewed my prescription after about 3 months of being off of it and, just like before, it has helped a lot. But during my 3 months of adderall-free add I found a few ways other than medication to help with my add. The thing that helped me the most is meditation, it's hard to do with add but I found that if I meditate and clear my mind for 20 minutes twice a day my add would be a lot better than usual. Another thing that helped with my add was (surprisingly) video games, I think this is because it kept my mind focused on one thing rather than letting it wander. And aside from meditation, weight lifting was probably the most effective way for me to control my add because, like video games, it kept my mind focused on one thing. So the purpose of this post is to share what I've done to help with my add and hopefully help others with theirs. Feel free to comment or add things that you have found to help with your add.

p.s sorry about the rant.

Re: Things that help with add
 

Exercise is usually a good thing and the mediation, it´s good it helps although it does require a commitment and discipline, for me the urge is to fall asleep and that´s not the same, medidatation is "actively" relaxing.

I have only just started meds so can´t comment on whether the adhd is worse. I only know that since I have started wearing glasses that my eyesight is worse than before but apparently this isn´t strictly true. Wearing glasses doesn´t accelerate eye deterioation but the blurriness becomes more noticeable after taking the glasses off.

So maybe you notice your symptoms more when not on meds because it´s a marked change.

Re: Things that help with add
 

I agree. You're just noticing them more. They just feel worse because the medication reduces them so much. When I went on a break that only really lasted for a week and then I sort of adapted. I mean I still had the symptoms but they didn't seem worse than they were before I started my medication.

I can't meditate. I've tried it and it doesn't do much for me. I exercise and that makes me think clearer for about half an hour. I usually strength train. Video games actually stop me thinking after I stop playing them, and of course during them. I think video games get a bad rep. The critics don't realise how much you have to think, plan ahead, be patient and be alert. Video games can mentally drain me. And they have made me exercise patience.
When not medicated I keep myself busy doing household tasks. It keeps me away from the computer. I don't really fret about not being able to focus on reading. All the mentally exhaustive reading and writing it's strictly a medication only task, unless I'm sure I'd be able to do it without medication.
I take my weekend off so I can deal with the symptoms without the meds. It's good practice, and it doesn't last long, so if I'm going insane from my symptoms I at least know I can take my meds again next week.
Lastly, I have to allow myself to take breaks. Not just jump in on a task and keep going until it's done. I need to know my limits, otherwise I'll just freak out and panic at the enormity of the task.

Re: Things that help with add
 

I find meditation hard to do and exercise hard to get (I don't trust my city streets to be jogging there, maybe I should try a treadmill).

FracturedStory, maybe I should try gaming again, :lol:
I sometimes could spend hours on a level in HappyWheels because it can be hard sometimes

Re: Things that help with add
 

Yeah meditation can be really hard with add because it's really easy for your mind to wander but once you are able to control that, meditation can really help with add. If you want to give this a shot I would recommend breathing meditations, they are really simple, all you have to do is close your eyes and focus all of your attention on breathing. If you catch yourself starting to think about other things then just re-focus on your breathing and after a little bit of practice it becomes second-nature and it is a great way to help silence the "chatter" in your mind.

If you want more info on meditating this site is really helpful:
http://www.how-to-meditate.org/breat...ditations.htm/