Coaches’ Corner: Boredom, an ADHDer’s Greatest Enemy

ADHD boredom intolerance can lead you to look for stimulation when you find your current situation boring. People with ADHD who can’t tolerate boredom may act out, daydream, or lose interest in the task at hand. This can lead to problems getting your brain to focus or reignite interest in something.

When we’re bored, it can be challenging to muster up the energy and motivation to get anything accomplished. To make matters worse, understimulated ADHD can lead to impulsive behavior or getting stuck in negative thinking patterns. In short, boredom often leads to trouble.

The ADHD brain seeks out stimulation, and it doesn’t differentiate between positive and negative. This is why it is so important to avoid falling into the boredom rut, where thoughts and distractability can run amok! While it’s impossible (and maybe not even preferable) to avoid boredom completely, there are a few things you can do to keep it to a minimum in order to avoid those ADHD pitfalls.

1. Focus on your passion. Spend time each day doing what you love! It will activate your mind, fight stress, and help you get boring tasks done. On top of that, spending some quality time doing something you love will make you more productive when it’s time to buckle down.
2. If you don’t know what you’re passionate about, do some investigating. What did you love to do when you were a child? What would you do if you didn’t have any responsibilities? What have you always wanted to try but keep putting off? The ADHD brain loves an adventure and novelty, after all!
3. Create a list of interesting activities. ADHDers often struggle to access this basic information, especially when they are faced with boredom, overwhelm, or stress. If you are not a list person, find some other way of reminding yourself of the things you enjoy doing. Consider making a box of index cards with different activities and blindly pick one when you’re struggling to decide what to do.
4. Keep a busy (but not too busy) schedule. While you don’t want to over-schedule yourself, it is important to stay just busy enough to avoid boredom setting in. It’s easier to keep the ball rolling than to get it moving in the first place.
5. Get active. Take a walk, dance around, play outside, do laundry. It doesn’t matter what you do, just move! This will activate both your mind and your body and improve energy levels, mood, concentration, and motivation.

Spending time having fun and enjoying life is not selfish, it’s an important part of self-care and makes you more productive in the long run. Next time you feel bored, use it as a cue that your brain needs attention. Give it what it needs and you’ll be pleasantly and enjoyably surprised!

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