Manage Your House

Cleaning Up as an ADHD Couple

When both partners have ADHD, keeping the house clean and organized can be extra difficult. Here, tips for sharing household tasks as a couple and establishing smart routines.

Those with ADHD are easily overwhelmed when a task is too big. The answer is to reduce the size of the task and to enlist support. Hiring a housekeeper to do toilets, floors, and, if possible, laundry twice a month is not a luxury, but a necessity in many ADHD homes. As for tidying, you and your wife could schedule six (maybe eight) weekends to go through the house together. Reduce possessions and embrace a minimalist lifestyle. If you do this right, no room should take more than two minutes to tidy.

Also, you and your wife will have to establish a routine. Both of you, together, should tidy up once a day, ideally when you get home from work. Blast some music and go, room by room, putting things away. You will function better if you can enjoy the music and each other. If the home has been purged of unnecessary items, this should take no more than two songs.