The Sixty-hour hyperfocus COMA

[Anonymous]

Oh man!

I’ve hardly slept in a week after my hyper-focus coma on the computer!

I take photos as a hobby, but am considering whether I should keep it up or not.

Trying to get the perfect shot and result can sometimes be a losing game!

Perfectionism and hyper-focus=NO relaxation and NO sleep

But when you get that one good shot……

Wow!

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[Anonymous]

Facebook is an amazing time suck, but so is a good book, or making art or planning meals. I can hyper focus on anything except housework, cleaning, organizing or doing things like balancing the check book.

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[Ivriniel]

I can hyperfocus on cleaning, if there is one specific thing that I need to clean. Given oh, say a piece of silver that needs polishing, I can work at it until it is spotless.

Give me a room to clean up, and that’s *hard*. Well, actually, it depends on the room. If it’s something like the bathroom, where everything is in easy reach, I can get it done. If it’s something like a living room, where I have to take stuff out of that room, and put it away in another room, I will easily get distracted and lost.

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[Anonymous]

@shaneg

personally, i can’t keep myself entertained on WoW long enough to play for that long. plus, my ego won’t allow it due to the social stigma that is often associated with playing WoW that much.

apparently (in my mind) that doesn’t apply to all other video games. lately, its been starcraft 2 and halo: reach. ugh. i hate when i just lose track of how much time i’ve been playing, look at the clock, exclaim “what the..” and become upset with myself that i could do that instead of something more worthwhile or even just simple household chores.

and actually, up until today (namely reading this thread) i had no idea that adhd could do that to people. while it is a problem, when you find out that you can’t help it for the most part, it takes the sting out of the resulting disbelief that you spent so much idle time doing something that could have been better spent doing something else. that said, you should still take responsibility for your actions (as i am learning to do) and realize that while its not inherently unhealthy, it *CAN* be unproductive. when that hyperfocus is channeled, however, i’ve had my roommate express complete and utter jealousy towards how much and how well i can accomplish projects and other tasks.

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[Anonymous]

Hey Irviniel, have you considered taking up a career in something like art conservation or restoration? Or maybe jewelry design? Sorry, you might be perfectly happy with your current career but I’ve been thinking about the possible pros of having ADD and this kind of hyperfocus is great! Just thought I’d…blurt it out there.

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[Ivriniel]

eringunsinger: Thanks for the thought, but apparently I have the graphomotor skills of a 12 1/2 year old. Making little things is hard.

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[Anonymous]

How often does this hyperfocus thing happen to you all? It is definitely a stress related thing for me, but it is even just mild things like…well lets just says it would not have any sort of life altering consequence. Its not so much of what I have not finished it is what needs to be completed. It is amazing what you do get done when you dont sleep, and it is also amazing the trail of destruction left behind. However, when I crash….boy do I crash. The thing is I will sleep for the most wonderful 8-10hrs ever and I am good to go. It is not uncommon for me to do 36-48 sprints at least every 1.5 to 2 weeks.

Most sleeping aids I have tried are hallucinogenic or they make me completely nonfunctional for no less than two days. I find it enjoyable to read, so that is often effective.

I guess it would just make me feel better knowing that I am not alone in the frequency portion of this. Someone could at least lie and say yes. …kidding.

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[Barrister14]

Hyper-focus was my ticket to success. When all is chaos (and I sometimes created it by inattention, procrastinating, etc. when the work should have been done on time), I’m the star. Trouble is, as a “hired gun” (lawyer, in my case), most people don’t like to be in crisis constantly. You can be a star at crisis management for short and exciting periods of time in others’ lives. But when that “ability” results from how you’ve lived and approached life since age 5, the downside is your own life. Consistently managing and overcoming major crisises for others never translated into the mundane abilities to balance my own checkbook, pay my bills on time, maintain relationships, etc. Though the college/grad school degrees would indicate to most that all the skills were there. Thanks to all for this new site.

P.S. Hyper-focus can yield great results. But, as an infrequent “lock on” to what’s interesting and not boring—as a way of life–has dire (and repetetive) consequences for we ADD.

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[Anonymous]

the above should read…..36-48hour sprints at least….. sorry all.

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[Anonymous]

Holy shit!!! If I could do 60 hours in one shot I would get so much done!!! I’m envious!!! If only I could devote that much time to my writing!!!

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[Anonymous]

I have always hyper-focused when I work on anything creative. I call it my “old lady at the casino” mode. I imagine those stories of people who pass out at the slot machines because they can’t pull themselves away from the machine to eat or sleep. I really should have chosen a career as an artist (or those that eringunslinger recommended!)…these totally suit me. Example: I recently decided to make a necklace (something I’d never done) for my best friend for Christmas. I went to my local bead store and figured out how to wire wrap, then spent a few hours working on it. The store closed, so I brought it home unfinished. The woman at the store was impressed and let me borrow the tools overnight! I couldn’t think about anything other than this necklace all night, and even dreamed about wire wrapping! It was awesome, very unique and lovely. I brought it back to the store the next day to show it off, and they loved it! Anyway, I finished it and don’t have the tools anymore. A week later…I am still dreaming about wire wrapping, designing jewelry, color combinations, ways to problem solve things that I encountered. OMG…I am obsessed! I am chomping at the bit to buy tools and materials, but am forcing myself to show financial restraint after the holiday spending

I chose to be a teacher, which lends itself to many opportunities for creativity…but man, do I struggle with report cards, grading, and any other paperwork! I am a different person given those tasks (same as paying bills and other organizational tasks).

Teachers call this hyperfocus mode “flow”. I’m not sure that most teachers really even understand what it is!!! Since I experience it myself when I am doing something I am truly engaged in, I try to recreate the experience of flow for my students. In this way, ADHD has made me a better teacher. I understand the need to become fully immersed in engaging, meaningful activities. I love the excitement my students have when they are in this zone! And…I love being in it with them!

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[Anonymous]

Ancestry, Facebook, Instructables, Etsy have all taken up enormous amounts of my time. Just the other day I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t sleep (happens all the time), so I decided to play backgammon on my phone till I got tired. I was still playing at noon! The hyperfocus is amazing, I just wish I could hyperfocus on something productive. Even when I do actually work on a project, once I stop, I often don’t start again. Example, I am currently sitting in front of a wall that is half painted. I started it about 6 months ago and I had to stop in the middle for some reason. After I had cleaned up all the equipment, I didn’t want to start again. I sit and daydream all the time about what my house will look like when all the painting is done, but it will probably be years before I get around to actually doing it. I have even taken the paint can back to the store to have it re-shaken twice so that I can start up again, but there it still sits behind a door…

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[Anonymous]

I also hyperfocus on creative tasks or sudden creative interests, I loose total concept of time, I won’t even stop to eat. This has sometimes paid off in certain employment ventures.

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[Anonymous]

About five years ago, due to huge bills we had at the time, my wife and I decided to declare bankruptcy. Now, I’m not a lawyer, and it wasn’t a terribly complicated bankruptcy, but did all my research on the Internet, printed up all the necessary forms, and locked myself in my bedroom for a weekend and went at it. There were papers all over the bed, and I’d have to pack it up for the night so we could sleep, and start over the next day. At the time I didn’t know about ADD and hyperfocus, but looking back I’m sure I was hyperfocused on completing the task. I got it all done, and our bankruptcy went through without a hitch.

Wish I could hyperfocus like that all the time!

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[Anonymous]

Oh man, that is so me. I am currently feeling like I’ve been run over by a truck due to a hyperfocus binge. On Wednesday night I was doing something on the computer, brain awake and buzzing, and ended up staying all night building a website for hours. The next day I didn’t even feel tired. After 40 hours straight of being up doing stuff I was sure I’d be able to sleep like a dead person last night, but I had a terrible sleep. My body feels totally wrecked from lack of sleep. I’ve gotta sleep tonight or I’m gonna keel over.

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[Author]

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