The lack of starting ability

[Patte Rosebank]

Try watching the NFB cartoon, “Getting Started”.

It truly captures our difficulty in getting started…and it will really make you squirm, as you recognize yourself in it!

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[ashockley55]

oh my gosh, that was hiLARious, especially when he goes nuts at the end! Thank you for sharing!

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[Cyclone]

I remember that film from when I was in high school. It reminded me of doing my homework. It was the only time my room ever got cleaned!

Wawabyjohnah: You’re not alone. Trouble getting started was what ultimately led me to a diagnosis. I’ve always had trouble with this, but it was really starting to get to me at work; particularly when I started a new role just over a year ago that required more “boring” stuff, but things others depended on me to deliver. I thought it was depression at first, but the symptoms weren’t consistent. Furthermore, it wasn’t really new, just more problematic. When I had a report to write I would just sit and stare at my screen, paralyzed, unable to start. If someone asked a question on the topic I could talk their ear off, but writing it out was another story.

I had suspected I had ADD in the past, mostly because of difficulty paying attention. It wasn’t until I watched “ADD and Loving It?!” that I learned it was also associated with procrastination and difficulties with organization, among other things. That documentary has saved my life (and my marriage). From one scene to the next it was like someone describing me, and my disordered life.

-Cyclone

(here’s the link to the video in case you have forgotten how to use Google 🙄 http://www.nfb.ca/film/getting_started/ )

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[Anonymous]

Well until now haven’t faced this issue, you all have major experience regarding this.

pass a urine drug test

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[Tiddler]

http://www.nfb.ca/film/getting_started/

LOL This is so me!

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[Patte Rosebank]

Here’s a BBC article about the widespread problem of procrastination. And there’s no mention in it about ADHD-related procrastination.

If there are so many “normals” struggling with procrastination, they should be more tolerant of our procrastination!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19389707

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[ipsofacto]

How do you know the writer is NT? She sounds like an ADDer with great coping skills to me. I love the part about hiring someone to do the filing.

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[Patte Rosebank]

For those who like their information in audio form, here’s a BBC Radio 4 show about procrastination:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01m5hhw/Helping_Hamlet_Can_Science_Cure_Procrastination/

Just don’t put off listening to it. It’ll be listenable at the link, only until September 4th, 2012, at 11:32 England time (or 6:32 a.m., Toronto time).

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[philypsycho]

Procrastination….. I could do that, but then I could also get up ready to tackle something, be where I needed to do the project, be looking at it but not seeing it and forget what I went there to do

.

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[Anonymous]

Thank you, Larynxa, for posting the link. It was very interesting to listen to.

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[kc5jck]

Welcome back Surfer Girl.

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[Chica]

I think ADD procrastination is partly an instinctive impulse, as though you are a bit allergic to some activities – and I’m only half joking!

I wonder if procrastination has a slightly different flavour in different ADHD types? I just stumbled across an inspired entry in a thread about ADD and fatigue on this forum, written by Saffron & it describes my own experience of being ADD-PI and unreliable BEAUTIFULLY.

Saffron points out the quirky ups and downs of energy in her and her ADD son. After doing cognitive tasks like writing, or using working memory in multi-step tasks, she describes her son going physically floppy afterwards. I think it is natural to feel some kind of aversion to things that your whole system – body and mind – finds so intense and costly of energy. Saffron also names exactly the things that perk her and her son right up: getting enough food and protein, being around others they like, doing tasks like a game, upbeat fun or music, and positive touch like tickling her son’s back when he is tired and discombobulated.

Saffron has described my ADD primarily inattentive temperament perfectly, but I think procrastination in my classically over active ADHD father seemed very different. Where I can’t lift myself up to fully engage with things, he couldn’t hold himself back into fully engaging with things.

Either way ADD/ADHD issues always seem to have physical symptoms alongside every single behaviour – that’s why physical solutions like meds work, and that’s why sleep and exercise and regular protein can only help. Now how good am I at co-ordinating all of that every day? Hmm, I’m working on it….

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[Anonymous]

Hi,

Sorry if this has been suggested before, I am new to this website, but started reading all the replies and lost focus and couldnt read them all… I used to also think I was incredibly lazy, and have not been diagnosed, however, my son was recently diagnosed and the more I learn, the more i find myself thinking “OMG! Thats me!” since I have never understood myself at all, no wonder I am a total mystery to others when I cant even understand myself and why I am like I am! Anyway I ordered myself a book, cant remember the author, but the title was something about “Im not crazy, lazy or stupid!” This book is like somebody got into my head and wrote everything down (unfortunately I havent actually managed to finish the book, in fact ive only ever read about 4 books right the way through! lol) but try reading it! its an eye opener, trust me x

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[nellie]

Hi Jeni4361,

Welcome! I too had the same reaction to “You mean I’m not Lazy crazy or stupid?” I couldn’t believe it , like you say it really feels like someone got inside my head and transcribed my thoughts! The book was co-writtend by Kate Kelly and Kate Romondo but sadly Kate recently passed away. There’s a related blog entry on this site you might be interested in reading :

http://totallyadd.com/our-friend-kate-kelly/

Oh and incidentally, losing focus while reading posts is not an uncommon issue here . It’s amazing how quickly threads can get derailed !

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[Anonymous]

without wanting to derail further…Haha! Its nice to know I am not alone! x x

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