A Splintered Mind

Healthline I have this amazing article planned about the power of Inbox Zero for ADHD people. It was inspired by a sarcastic article written by somebody who took pleasure in her unread mail. I thought it was batty as well as catty, but then I never wrote my article in response. I forgot all about it until I started typing this blog entry. THAT , my friends, is the power of ADHD. Yes, you, too, can completely forget about amazing articles because the neighbor’s dog barks between the moment of Brilliant Idea Genesis and you finding something to write it down on. It may not have been the neighbor’s dog. It could have been my daughter asking me for help, a knock at the door, the ping of a new text message, the sudden realization I haven’t eaten yet all day… You get the idea. No idea is sacrosanct and protected when ADHD is in play . What were we talking about again? Right! Inbox Zero. I sure wish I was better at it. I miss so many opportunities when I fall behind. ...

My favorite times of the year are Spring and Fall. Then I can emerge from my protective cocoon, spread my wings, and go outside without dying. In the Winter, the cold moisture gives me bronchitis. Just ONE cold can linger for weeks, so I curtail my beloved walks and slog on a treadmill instead. But the Summer! Wow! The Summer melts my brain. At least in the Winter I can still think and function, but the heat reduces my brain to a gelatinous goo that prevents coherent thought. I used to hide inside for months, but over the years the boredom of the shut-in life drove me outside out of sheer desperation. Unfortunately, if I stay out in the heat too long, I need hours to recuperate. Who can afford 3 hours of downtime? Now I have a list of coping strategies to help me keep my ADHD mind working at top form even when my brain is at full boil inside my skull. Since I live in the desert, I have to take precautions. I've done some polling here on the site, and I've discovered that m...

Photo © Rick Gravrok I had a dream about guns yesterday. I was being visited by a fifty-something married couple and they asked me if I had a gun. I told them, “Yes, I have a rifle in the back room,” which is odd because I don’t actually own a gun or rifle in real life. At any rate, the wife was shocked since my youngest daughter lived with me and suddenly, as is the way with dreams, my living room was filled with social workers, religious leaders, and school administrators! All of them began trying to convince me that the rifle was a bad idea and reflected poorly on my parenting. One of the officious people demanded to know why I felt justified to own a gun. I then related warm memories from Boy Scouts when I attended a turkey shoot. It’s OK. We shot targets, not turkeys. I found myself defending my gun ownership by having to recount how much I trained myself, how often I practiced, and by sharing details about the gun handling lessons I took. Again, this...

Loved speaking w/ gr8 folks RT @KimZapata Finished speaking with these rock stars @natasha_tracy @SplinteredMind pic.twitter.com/SFmEtuiWer — Natasha Tracy (@natasha_tracy) June 9, 2016 If you’ve been following along lately, then you’ll know that I spoke at Mental Health America's conference on June 8th. I knew that MHA was a well established organization, but I had no idea that the MHA has been a mental health advocacy organization since 1909 . It wasn’t the only bit of new information I learned. I was there for a blip, but I gained so much from the experience. This entry will be long, but I wanted to share with you how I dealt with anxiety. Although I mastered my panic anxiety disorder decades ago, I still have performance anxieties that flare up. ⁂ What a shame I was only at the conference for a few hours. Because of the way my flight worked out, and because I couldn’t afford to stay for the whole conference, I flew in Tuesday night, slept the sleep of the jet...

The other day a young girl from Florida named Tovonna committed suicide after friends posted nude photos & video of her onto Snapchat—a popular mobile app for sharing media with friends. According to reports, her mother didn’t understand what Tovonna was upset about. It’s possible she was hysterical and not clear, because it turns out she had been filmed while showering. Three hours after talking to her mother, she shot herself with her mother’s pistol. Tovonna’s death has been overshadowed this weekend by the horrific gay bar mass-shooting in Orlando, but while some people might want to focus on gun control, and others might want to blame her family, I want to focus on cyberbullying. According to Drapeau & McIntosh , suicide is the 2nd leading cause of individuals aged 15–24. Homicide places third. Every few years, cyberbullying plays a part in these tragedies, leading many to cry, “Something must be done!”, which usually amounts...

I imagine you're wondering how television can cure anybody of anything. The news is depressing. Insipid sitcoms are depressing. The endless sea of reality TV is depressing. Doesn't it just give people headaches? How can I use television to treat my depression‽ For those reasons and more, TV is not my coping strategy of choice. I try to limit my TV time, and expressly avoid vegging out in front of it. TV is an ADHD sink hole. However, I can't deny that it helped me out one day. Let's explore why it worked. The First Step Is to Be Aware Last week, I felt particularly down in the middle of a project. I recognized that I was moving into a deeper depression, but what was I going to do about it? I couldn't go out for a walk because I was ticking. [1] I couldn't exercise for the same reason. Besides, I was in the middle of a big project and couldn't afford to waste any time. Exactly at the moment I was resigning myself to grinning and bearing it, I realized that I...