A Rather Difficult Day with ADHD…
- I start the day with just over 3 hours sleep. My brain is so wired all throughout the night that even when I did manage to get some rest, it was filled with weird dreams + racing thoughts.
- By 6:30AM I give up, make a cup of tea and eat a banana.
- Bemusedly stare out bedroom window until I hear the cat in the lounge room.
- On autopilot I feed Mikasa.
- Her purr wrenches me out of autopilot that I realise I’ve fed her two hours earlier than usual.
- She will now yowl for breakfast at 6:30am for the next three days.
- Deciding to choose my battles, I leave her eating and decide to shower instead.
- I do not shower, forgetting almost as soon as I decided too.
- Sit down at my computer and decide to start my work day.
- Computer immediately has technical difficulties and instead of snapping to problem solving as usual, I turn it off and rest my head on my keyboard.
- Computer restarts, the technical difficulties are resolved.
- I do not bother trying to figure out why they happened. I’m picking my battles, remember?
- Work passes in a productive blur. I switch off all distractions and set alarms + timers + reminders.
- I get everything done, in a strict, timely and sensible manner.
- This will be the first and last time those adjectives are used to describe me or my actions today.
- I ask my housemate, Bilvy for a word that means reassurance but is a little more professional (I’m writing an email). He suggests “confirmation”.
- I proceed to forget that word 4 consecutive times, over and over again before I can even write it down.
- Calendar alarm goes off: flu vaccination in 30 minutes.
- Suddenly remember I never showered.
- Jump in the shower, decide not to wash my hair, as it wouldn’t dry in time (can’t use a blowdryer as they’re too heavy for my arm to use).
- Forgets, washes hair.
- Drives to flu vaccination with the windows down in an attempt to air dry sopping wet hair.
- Arrive at GP clinic looking like I’ve been standing in a wind tunnel whilst walking backwards through a hedge.
- Get called through, nurse asks if I have any pre-existing conditions that make me eligible for the free shot instead of paying.
- I do (it’s CRPS).
- I forget what the name of my condition is called (it’s CRPS).
- I explain I have a “chronic illness that causes me to be in pain all the time and leaves my body in a state of inflammation which has lowered my immune system” (it’s called CRPS).
- Remember it’s called CRPS just as I’m leaving and practically shout it in her face.
- Good work.
- Head over to the hospital and ask about getting a COVID vaccine, as I qualify due to my CRPS.
- Remember the name this time (it’s CRPS), but forget to ask which vaccine I’m booking in for.
- Nurse tells me after 10 minutes of getting all my info that I’m booked in for Astra Zeneca, as that’s all that’s available.
- I’ve been advised to get Pfizer and to not get AZ.
- Am too embarrassed to tell the nurse I need to cancel the appointment, so accept and drive home.
- Feeling a bit woozy now, health anxiety is kicking in. Am I having a negative reaction to the flu shot? I’ve never had one before but it’s never too late for a cheeky anaphylactic reaction right?
- By the time I get home I’m flushed and dizzy, almost convinced I’m having some rare vicious reaction.
- Suddenly remember I have significant medical trauma and being in a medical setting is a huge trigger for me.
- Dizziness wears off, I eat some soup.
- Stop writing because I get distracted by beauty YouTuber drama.
- Start writing again, realise I’m probably having a very mild reaction to the flu shot as I do have a bit of a fever, but that I almost definitely not dying.
- Anaphylaxis does not pause so one can watch tea/drama videos.
- I am probably not on death’s door just yet.
- Decide I’ll confer with my mother on whether to get the Astra Zeneca shot or cancel my appointment.
- Crawl into bed.
- Absentmindedly eat an entire 300g punnet of cherries.
- Realise at this stage nothing else productive is going to get done today.
- Decide it’s probably worth having a nap as long as my stomach don’t decide to betray me after consuming spicy pho and a cherry tree’s worth of fruit.
- Close eyes for 15 minutes.
- Brain feels like this gif:

- Suddenly remember I need to call psychiatrist to get an updated script for my ADHD medication.
- Immediately hit with intense phone anxiety, absolutely cannot make any phone calls right now.
- Accept that this is just how my day is today.
- Managing 4+ hours of decent, productive work is a huge achievement and I shouldn’t feel bad for not being able to do anything else.
- (Still feel a little bad.)
- Turn on Winnie the Pooh on Disney+
- Brain rumbles happily.
- <excutive functioning = fully offline>

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blog personal adhd chronic pain crps executive dysfunction neurodivergent
Oh wow I think you have described me and my day!
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Days like these definitely make things tricky sometimes! 💜
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