ADD-ADHD Mindfulness Matters Musings

ADD - ADHD & THE RACE HORSE: WIN, PLACE OR SHOW - UP!

How is a person with ADHD like a race horse? 

Hopefully you have been to a racetrack or seen a horse race on TV. Often you will see a horse that comes out of the gate like a bat out of hell. No matter how hard the jockey tries to rein him in, to structure the pace so he can last till the end, he just can't stop the horse from flying past all the others.  Half way through the race our horse is 3 lengths ahead of the rest. As they are coming around the last turn and heading for the finish line, there is no sign of our horse. Sadly, he does not finish the race because somewhere in the last quarter stretch he stumbled and hurt his ankle.  The horse limped off the field as the jockey tried to understand what happened so that he could explain it to the horse's owner and trainer who were both furious and frustrated. 

The next time the horse raced the same thing happened. He shot out far ahead of the other horses and went flying as fast as he could. One could almost 'see' the look of pure joy on his face. This time the jockey had a bit more luck trying to pace him for the long race.  After being only 1.5 lengths ahead at the half way point he continued to pace him as best as possible. Alas, our horse came in last.  Almost 2 lengths behind the rest.  The horse got the signals from the jockey this time but just couldn't give 'it' up completely. 'It' of course was the excitement of rushing headlong into something he loves and perhaps even hyper-focusing along the way??

So, how is a person with ADHD like a race horse?  I suppose a better question to ask would be HOW can a person with ADHD stop being like that race horse whenever we start a new, interesting and exciting project?  First we have to break down the steps, parts, tasks, sections, portions... of the project. Pacing ourselves means structuring our time by writing down in our planner When and for How Long we are going to do each and every part of this project. If it is an ongoing project it means restructuring our time to include this new task into our life.  Savoring the parts we like instead of rushing past them can help to continue on with the part of the 'race' that normally would lose our interest.  Putting down into that planner When and under What conditions it is OK to start the next project is also helpful.  Win, Place or Show, it helps to continue to show up by planning the pace and listening to that jockey in our head. 
And remember, mindfulness matters!
Mindfulness Matters Coaching®

Facebook | The BridgeMaker

Quoted from http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=34704267273&ref=nf#/group.php?gid=34704267273:

Facebook | The BridgeMaker

"My two business' keep me busy. My clients are moving forward. My cat is eating again after losing 3 lbs. The Autumn leaves in Vermont are worth dealing with the freezing cold. I love that I am starting my day this way along with the Law of Attraction Daily Quote. Thanks Alex for being a grateful human' being' that is 'doing'. jj"

This was my re-entry into the Social Networking mileau. I took a few days off to focus on fun, friends, house and catching up on work. As a person with ADHD I find it difficult to maintain my pre-set limits on the internet. The more that I use Facebook and Twitter for business, the more demand on my time it takes. This is also a problem for my clients that I am coaching. How interesting to be working on solutions to this problem together. 

Sticking to my schedule, using my timers, including my new timer program, and seeing a "playback" movie of everything I did on the computer compliments of the program "TimeSnapper", has been putting me back on track. SERIOUSLY, you have to watch a movie of how you spent your hyperfocused Sunday morning in order to "snap out of it" for good!  mindfulness matters!

Virtual Help - HELP

When a person with ADHD receives Virtual Assistance from support personnel we often end up in ADHD Driven Hell (see my article written for addvance.com “HOW MANY COACHES DOES IT TAKE TO SCREW IN A LIGHT BULB?”… or “What’s My Role Now?”). 

Thanks to the efforts of a nice guy named Phil from Feedblitz, I somehow(?) found my missing subscribers. Unfortunately, despite his time and efforts, I still do not know how to add people who have said yes without having to build a whole new newsletter.  I somehow lost all of my subscribers while trying to add another list.  Despite the efforts of a nice woman named Barbara from Eclectechs, my website is still in transition disarray, aka; it looks totally wacked out.   Andee, the web developer who was making changes got rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery. I'm innocent on that front.  So now Barb is trying to make it look like it did instead of what it does but has not been able to yet.

The problem is, trying to describe and explain verbally to the helper what is visually in the mind of someone who is kinesthetic by nature. Also, their knowledge might tend to have them moving faster and assuming more technically then we are able to comprehend. Ah the ADHD brain. And then of course there is the verbal 'teaching', instructions and observations coming from this virtual support person.

How to process and respond is always a challenge. Taking notes and instant messaging or emailing is helpful. Allowing for time out in between each piece of the project which needs to be broken up in places so that you can have time to gather your thoughts, the helper's instructions and what you want to say after it has been well thought out is also helpful. 

One last though; it seems that I always tackle these virtual projects on a Friday which is mostly a home office based work day. Unfortunately if what we are working on is not complete, we are stuck with it for the weekend. So, time to rethink Virtual Assistance Day.  Always remember, mindfulness matters.
Mindfulness Matters Coaching®

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Monday Morning Motivation and ADHD Fugue

According to Dictionary.com the definition of fugue is:
2.Psychiatry. a period during which a person suffers from loss of memory, often begins a new life, and, upon recovery, remembers nothing of the amnesic phase.

Whoever came up with that definition must have had ADHD in mind!

to read the rest please go to the "ADD/ADHD Coaching Blog: The Blog by ADD/ADHD Coaches" http://www.addcoachingblog.com/

always remember... mindfulness matters.

Social Networking or The Bermuda Triangle of Cyberspace

Hello from 'Learning Central...'
ADHD and multitasking is another posting, so for today I will say that I am NOT very good at  "ADHD Multi-tasking".  I've been lost in an ADD-ADHD ocean of Social Networking for the past month, aka; The Bermuda Triangle (OK,perhaps a teeny, tiny bit of ADHD obsessing - hmm another posting emerges...).

I started out with an invitation from Tara McGillicuddy to befriend her on LinkedIn. Soon to follow was Facebook and I shortly added Twitter.  Well, next thing you know bloglines, blogger, Yahoo, MySpace, delicious... IT NEVER ENDS, and apparently neither did my attention span.

Thanks to Tara I now have a service that I only have to write ONE post to and it will 'ping' them all. 

I am a business owner, a writer, a therapist, a coach, and a person with an actual personal life.  So, how to balance them all. Ask for help comes to mind. OK, got that covered. Revamping my website so it will all be easier to organize all of the Web 2.0 end of the business. Now I am heading back to basics and I feel much freer. (is that a word?).

Being mindful for me means meditating each morning. What came to me very clearly was, ASK FOR HELP.  That was the rescue boat, the life saver that pulled me out of the WEB 2.0 Bermuda Triangle. ASK FOR HELP was the rescue lifesaver that gave me back my balanced life and allowed me to be on an 'ADD experts panel' on a blog radio show that Tara sponsors. It allowed me to be able to answer your questions at the ADHD Awareness Marathon and attend next week's ADHD Virtual Conference - and still go to work every day. WOW, asking for help is smooth sailing on a sunny day on Lake Champlain.

I am writing about this topic to help myself and my readers to enjoy all that the web has to offer and still be creative and productive with a balance to all we are producing. 

Sometimes we have to go out and find a new lifeguard because the people that we usually ask for help just can't help us with our current quest. Hopefully they will give you their blessing, as I do today.  mindfulness matters.

Mindfulness Matters Coaching®

Speak Your Blog

WOW! I am producing this script with SpeechVIBE.  I had surgery on my left hand on Thursday, August 15, 2008 and it is very painful to use it.  SpeechVIBE has saved me so much additional pain.

 

I am so glad that I prepared for this surgery by learning how to use SpeechVIBE.  Patience is not easy for someone with ADHD and/or Learning Disabilities, but it truly does pay off.  Mindfulness is living in each moment with awareness and without any judgments.  Mindfulness empowers us to accomplish our dreams and goals (and the have-to’s!).  Practicing mindfulness allows us to be patient.  Practicing mindfulness has allowed me to create this entry with SpeechVIBE.

See a demo on the SpeechVIBE website or download a free trial version.  I have negotiated a special price so make sure that you use my promo code: ADDExpert

I’ve also arranged for a special rate for SpeechVIBE Professional so upgrade today.  Don’t forget to buy SpeechVIBE Professional or SpeechVIBE as a gift for a friend or relative!   Remember to use my special promo code: ADDExpert.  Enjoy!

ADHD & GIFTS

ADDer's have a tendency to hold on to thoughts, possessions, ADD moments, ADHD embarassments, and just plain everything else, way longer then people without ADHD.  It always amazes me when good things happen, gifts from my higher power or the universe [depending on your beliefs] when I was least expecting it.  Yet, as I examine what has happened the past week or so, I realize that all of the wonderful gifts that have come my way did so because I was accepting the difficulties that came along without obsessing over them, without 'negativeizing' them, and without complaining about them.  So, it is my understanding that because of my openness I was 'here' (aware, open and accepting) to the things that popped up at the moment that they did, the gifts.  Wow, combine mindfulness with the law of attraction, and life really perks up, especially when ADD matters arise. (Like when do they NOT arise?).

Moral of the story is to remember that mindfulness means non-judgment of our thoughts, others statements, and all that happens in our moments and therefore our lives.  Be present for the 'gifts' so that they can be given to us, so that we can recognize them AS gifts.  Living in the moment means acceptance of that moment. It makes it much easier to deal with "ctca" (crap that comes along), and makes for a happier and more peaceful life.  Remember that mindfulness matters!

Mindfulness Matters Coaching®

ADHD is Here to Stay, I’ll Mindfully Live Life Anyway!

Mindfulness and hyper-focusing:

What is the difference? One of my amazing Coaching clients with ADHD recently asked me this question. When you sit down at the computer at 7:30am and look up to see the clock and it is 5:30pm, you have to ask yourself, what have you been doing for 10 hours? If you can answer that question with a full accounting of each time your egg timer went off, then you had a very Mindful Day; (hopefully filled with all that you planned to do each hour). If at 5:30 you keep staring at the clock in disbelief cursing your ADD, and your stomach is rumbling, and the cat drank the very last sip of water hours ago but you weren't listening to his polite meows (personally, mine scratches the computer tower to get my attention), then you were truly, without ANY doubt, hyper-focusing.

When you have ADHD it can be as difficult to stop hyper-focusing as it is difficult to focus. Actually, I think that it is harder to stop the hyper-focusing because you get lost in time. When you are having trouble paying attention you are very much aware of time as you continue to glance at the clock waiting for it to move.

I hope that we all can take some advice from that clock on the wall; what, your clock doesn't give you advice? Awwh, what a shame! Seriously, time is a precious commodity and whichever form of focusing or not focusing or hyper-focusing that you are experiencing, the bottom line is that you are giving a chunk of your life away. Take back that chunk. Practice mindfulness. Breathe in and breathe out, stay in your moment, keep thoughts non-judgmental and as your mindfulness and spirituality grow stronger, focusing will emerge as a much healthier and certainly a much more guilt free experience. mindfulness matters!

Where Have I been?

Well, I can't imagine how so much time has gone by since I last posted. The truth is, I've been trying to lasso my ADHD and be a great coach, and be a great therapist and write/publish and be a business owner.  I was up most of the night just 'working' Facebook, which I am still trying to get a clue about how to keep up with it. So, I had a lightbulb idea (sorry, lack of sleep) and decided to gather all of the posts that I wrote all over everyone else's blog or Facebook page,(I hope I did not just give the world the 'keys' to my Facebook account) and post them here. SO, here goes:  (OH MY, please don't click on any of these links till your finished with my blog because they will probably take you away from here and I would be very sad and you would miss my musings!). Remember, Mindfulness Matters!

d another comment
Judi added the Super Wall application.   2:16am

Judi joined the group FaceBook Phenomenon: MAKE 5000 FRIENDS IN 30 DAYS! 1:41am

Judi joined the group Ive got ADHD and I think.....Oh look!..A Squirrel!!!    1:39am

Judi wrote on Tara McGillicuddy's wall.  1:31am

Judi joined the group ADHD Support Network.    12:52am

Judi joined the group ADHD Coaching.  12:51am

Judi is trying to get off Facebook and attack my inbox. HEY, What is Poke? I just did it to a friend and I have no idea what it is??     9:41am

Judi posted a link.  9:34am

Source: www.biztipsblog.com

"How to Leverage the Internet and Take Your Business to the Next Level | Internet Marketing Tips and Tactics for Independent Professionals and Small Businesses from Denise Wakeman and Patsi Krakoff of the Blog Squad."

The brilliance of these 2 divas of blogging totally blows my mind. I was up until 3:30 in the morning "doing" Facebook, and here I am again 4 hours later. This is a full time job... Either these 2 brilliant women have a dozen people working for them or they never sleep. I respect and admire and am overwhelmed. I keep listening to just about everything that you say (I unfortunately space a few 'calls' here and there) (and we won't even talk about - although I might use it for an article - my paying for the mentee program for 3 months, plus 1 month free, and never even checking out the website never mind actually using the program) - there are times when my ADHD brain is on overload, like right now. But it is also like a sponge, it keeps trying to soak up everything and there is no such thing as too much - OR a shut off switch. OMG, I need sleep. I am truly in awe of Denise and Patty. AND I am inspired to work!  Mindfulness Matters!

Today

about an hour ago

10:30am
OK, I admit, I'm going back to Facebook to try and figure out how to send my posts as NewsFeeds.
bye for now, coach judi.

11:30am
PS. The moral of the story is: I had a free/play morning scheduled and have accomplished more then I ever imagined I would. SO, be brave and create, follow, chase and LIVE your dream.
smiles and cheers, coach judi

Blog? Mindfulness? Oh yeah, do it daily.

Ok, I admit it, I haven't written in a month.  Excuses, I have so many, but like many things that people with ADHD want to do on a regular basis, it has to be scheduled to become a habit.  When it comes to writing I prefer to be a bit more 'free spirited'.  I put too many restrictions on myself about how this blog had to be perfectly done before I could just let my thoughts flow.  Or, how I had to have my website and the words ADD and ADHD in every sentence in order to promote my blog on Google.  It is these perfectionist expectations that hold us back.  Today, while reviewing my weekly goals, and amidst the reality of all that I want to accomplish, I said to myself, "Just Do It".  So here it is. And when my Tele-Class titled "Mindfulness VS ADHD" that I am presenting on ADDclasses.com is over and done with Wednesday, April 23rd, 3:00 - 4:00 EST, I will again feel relaxed and satisfied and finished and ready to move on to the next project.

OH, wait, this entry IS moving on even in the midst of all my preparations and emotions about Wednesday's presentation.

YEAH ME!  whew, that feels a lot better.  A reminder to myself and others that we do not have to do everything perfectly and that staying in my moment will help me to accomplish a whole lot more then I could have ever imagined while being elsewhere in my head. 

Thanks for 'listening' and remember, Mindfulness Matters.