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“How Those with ADHD Go for the Gold Every Day!”

The list of things you deserve a medal for is endless.

Nicole Perkowitz: Writer, Coach, and Speaker
By Nicole Perkowitz Updated on February 13, 2018
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Coping with ADHD often takes tremendous effort. Recently, while putting together furniture after a move from Los Angeles to Chicago, I realized that normal activities for those of us with ADHD brains are like Olympic events, and we are all Olympic super stars in our own way.

Life is not a dress rehearsal. We give it our all every day. And, to top it off, many of us are our own harshest judges. From getting out of bed, to remembering to drink the coffee you made before it gets cold, the level of intensity and focus it takes to get through an average day with an ADHD brain is tremendous.

None of us has a Gold Medal day every day, but just as being an Olympic athlete is impressive, regardless of how you do in any particular event, we are impressive. I salute you.

[How Swimming Saved Michael Phelps: An ADHD Story]

So, as the games kickoff in PyeongChang, I put together a list of ADHD Olympic-sized events you definitely deserve a medal for:

  • The Zzzs: Falling asleep. Staying asleep. Waking up.
  • The Rise, Shine, and Get Started Event: Getting in bed. Getting out of bed. Getting moving. Getting down to work.
  • The Sustenance Event: Anything involving healthy meals, including grocery shopping.
  • The Correspondence Event: Voicemails! Emails! Mail mails! All the mails!
  • The Impulse Control and Finances Event: Enough said.
  • The Interruption Event: Man, oh, man.
  • The Planning Event: Creating a schedule and maybe even sticking to it.
  • The Overcoming the Resistance Event: Using positive self talk. Believing in yourself.
  • The School Years Event: Hang in there!
  • The Kitchen Cabinet Event: Remembering anything.
  • The Organization Event: Finding something you’re looking for in your house, car, office, or bag.
  • The Children Event: Being one. Having one. Keeping one alive.
  • The Cleaning Event: Ugh!
  • The Asking for Help Event: This is hard enough to admit to oneself, much less the world!

[On Your Mark, Get Set, Glow: 3 Inspiring Athletes With ADHD]

Not to mention emotional regulation, getting exercise, being misunderstood, coping with co-morbid conditions, making a manageable to-do list, self-care, and so on. The list of things you deserve a medal for is endless.