Where I live, it’s really hard to get prescribed medication — there are only a handful of decent doctors for adult ADHD, all of which are expensive. My question is this: if you are not medicated, what do you do to manage? If you are medicated, what non-medication things actually help you?
My son’s ADHD behavioral therapist suggested a ketogenic diet, increasing B vitamins, increasing omega fatty acids, and increasing magnesium. She also recommended he be outside for at least an hour each day. She said physical activities like martial arts can be helpful because of the repetitive motion and use of gross motor skills. But she also suggested yoga or tai chi for me because I have fibromyalgia and ADHD. There are other things, but those were the big ones. Oh, she also said sleep is super important for our brains to function properly so I need to work on that. And meditation exercises to quiet the mind.
I experience brain fog ALOT but it’s better when I’m extremely hydrated and actually remember to eat so meal planning helps (protein shakes and vitamins are helpful) Exercise at least 3-5 days a week, makes me feel better and productive, I sleep more in the winter or take naps as needed when possible. I keep in mind that if it takes less than a minute to get done I’ll push myself to do said task. I put timers on my social media apps to reduce doom scrolling and procrastination. Making to do lists have been helpful, I also put reminders on my phone and calendar which my fiancé also gets alerts for so if I forget he reminds me. I sit down and plan out how I would like my week to go every Sunday, it’s my reset day (lots of cleaning and resting) I sometimes use a weekly planner that I pinned next to my room mirror so I can adjust my schedule as needed on paper rather than doing everything electronically because i got through preference phases. I try to be more compassionate towards myself if things don’t go as planned and try not to beat myself up for having toddler type meals some days when I don’t feel like cooking etc. I know this is a lot! I’m still trying to figure out what works too
