Procrastination is a common challenge that everyone faces, but for individuals with untreated ADHD, it can present a significantly increased level of difficulty. In fact, for those with ADHD, procrastination can be a relentless struggle, impacting their ability to complete tasks at work, at home, and in personal relationships. This can lead to feelings of frustration and overwhelm, making it seem impossible to even start important tasks. However, with the right treatment and support, individuals with ADHD can develop strategies to better manage procrastination and improve their daily functioning.
If your procrastination is more severe than what people typically experience when faced with annoying or difficult tasks, you could have ADHD. Fortunately, you aren’t alone. Klarity can connect you with an experienced healthcare provider for fast, simple, and affordable online ADHD treatment. Start by taking our free 2-minute evaluation to learn more about your procrastination and determine if ADHD treatment is right for you.
Overview of Adult ADHD
Adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurological disorder characterized by a persistent pattern of inattention, hyperactivity, chronic procrastination, and/or impulsivity that interferes with and impacts work, home life, and relationships – especially if left untreated.
While long considered a childhood disorder, it is now recognized as a lifelong condition that persists well into adulthood. In addition to other symptoms, people with ADHD procrastinate often, making it difficult to be productive in their personal and professional lives.
If you suspect that you have ADHD, a provider on Klarity will review your symptoms and determine whether a diagnosis is accurate. They’ll then provide any necessary treatment to help alleviate your symptoms, including procrastination.
Start Your Personalized Mental Health Treatment Today. Get Better Faster from the Comfort of Home.
Normal Procrastination
Normal procrastination is choosing not to get around to something in a timely manner. This temporary condition can be due to a number of factors, including fear or anxiety, higher priorities, misunderstanding of urgency, not being prepared, or reluctance to do the task. Everyone, at some point, for some reason, finds themselves procrastinating.
ADHD Procrastination
ADHD procrastination is a far more serious matter and may completely stall any progress toward completing a task. Procrastination is an avoidance behavior. Imbalances in motivation can occur in people with ADHD, as they tend to hyperfocus on tasks they deem interesting but procrastinate over tasks they deem tedious. And that procrastination can become chronic.
A provider on Klarity can help you evaluate your behavior to determine if you are suffering from ADHD-related procrastination.
Tips for Combating ADHD Procrastination
If ADHD is the source of your procrastination, there are evidence-based strategies that can help you manage the thought patterns underlying your work avoidance and develop concrete strategies for meeting your work (and life) goals.
Get Professional Help
If you believe that your procrastination is being caused by ADHD, seeking professional care is the best way to combat this. A healthcare provider like those available on Klarity can help you find medication and can provide personalized treatment plans to help you stay on track.
Medications for ADHD can effectively manage symptoms of ADHD, including procrastination. If you are trying to combat your procrastination or other symptoms of ADHD, Klarity provides affordable access to convenient online treatment.
Limit Distractions
As an adult with ADHD, it’s easy to get derailed by internal and external distractions. You may even find yourself using these distractions to avoid a task. Removing distractions involves taking steps such as using site blockers on the Internet to help focus, turning off your phone and email notifications, and taking care of personal issues before getting started on a task.
Get Organized
Organization is key to avoiding ADHD procrastination. While there may be many tasks on your list of things to do, a great way to start is to prioritize these tasks in a way that makes sense to you. Then, break up the task (which we’ll cover more later), organize the tools, resources, and other supplies you’ll need to do the task, do your best to estimate how long it will take, set a timeline for the task, then begin! The first step is just to get started; from there, you’ll be able to organize your task in a way that’s best for you.
Set an Early Deadline
It’s no secret; if time isn’t an issue, it’ll make procrastination far more likely. In addition, effective time management can be extremely difficult with ADHD. Even if your task doesn’t have a deadline, setting a deadline will keep you on track to complete it. Setting an early deadline allows you to complete a task in a timely manner.
Break Up Larger Tasks
Big projects can often feel overwhelming, and when you’re overwhelmed by the size of the task it’s far harder to start. To make things easier, try breaking up large tasks into smaller, more realistic chunks. Write out the tasks required for each job and tackle them as individual jobs, each with its own separate deadline.
Create and Use Lists
Lists can help you visualize what steps to take and allow you to record progress in completing tasks and moving through your day. Break down each day’s list of tasks and responsibilities by the hour and allot a timeframe for each. Time management and creating lists can be invaluable for structuring your day’s activities, staying on task, and sidestepping procrastination.
Avoid Multitasking
Thinking you have to complete many tasks at once can make starting on any one of them daunting. Streamline your workload by sticking to a process of doing one thing at a time rather than trying to tackle multiple tasks simultaneously. Avoiding multitasking can help you maintain your focus as well as your concentration.
Tackle the Hardest Part First
Sometimes the hardest part of completing a task is just taking the first step – other times, another part of the process is the most challenging. Rather than trying to get yourself to get through a project and all the while dreading the difficulty to come, try tackling the hardest part first and get it out of the way. After that, the rest is far easier to work on and complete.
Take Exercise Breaks
Stepping away for a bit and clearing your mind can be extremely beneficial. Besides being great for your health, taking a short break for walking, stretching, or exercising is a great way to jumpstart your thought process. If you’re having trouble getting started, exercise is a great way to jumpstart your energy so that you can return to the task at hand feeling renewed.
Reward Yourself
People without ADHD tend to encounter less trouble with procrastination because their brain naturally rewards them when they work on tasks – even doing the dishes can feel good. Without this natural tendency, it’s helpful to give yourself a small reward after the competition of tasks. This could be anything from a short nap, a hot bath, or a leisurely stroll in the park.
Do You Suspect You Have Adult ADHD?
If you find yourself struggling to complete tasks, making careless mistakes, or struggling to concentrate long enough to finish an activity? If so, you may have adult ADHD. The good news is that you can get a judgment-free evaluation, a diagnosis, and a treatment plan all from the comfort of your home. Klarity will connect you with a mental health professional who has experience treating ADHD and procrastination so that you can get back to focusing on what’s important.
Schedule an Online Examination with a Licensed Professional
If you are struggling to manage your procrastination and suspect that it’s being caused by adult ADHD, Klarity is committed to helping you find treatment (if applicable) and take control of your symptoms.
To determine if online ADHD diagnosis and treatment services are right for you, take our free 2-minute self-evaluation and start your journey toward better focus.
