Ask HN: Do you have any condition like ADHD, and if so how do you manage them?

For me the first step to managing ADHD was to realize that the name "attention deficit hyperactivity disorder" doesn't really tell me much that's useful. It doesn't have any useful attack points. Consider instead: "difficulty Organizing and Sustaining a Directed Effort". I work on each of these three issues separately.

Directed Effort: it is hard to take the time to explicitly declare exactly what I want to accomplish. I struggle not to just jump into an effort, but that is pathological.

Organize: having declared what I want to accomplish the next step for me is to explicitly organize exactly how I am going to go about pursuing that direction. Again my tendency is to just jump in and "do it". Again that is pathological.

Sustain: My commitment to any effort decays rapidly. I need to create an explicit schedule of sessions for reviewing my progress and refreshing my understanding and commitment.

The one key word that makes this work is "explicit". It's painful, but without making the effort to write it out in complete form, my projects wither away. This is not a magic solution, because even then it is a struggle to get to completion. I use an outliner for this.

I have struggled with ADHD for 75 years. That is my best understanding of the problem.

Honestly my biggest problem is that neurotypical people are generally caught off guard and dont understand my impulsiveness/risk taking/flippance with major life happenings. i.e. quitting my job on a whim. My risk taking behavior has turned out well for me, but makes me feel like a pariah among conservative/responsible friend groups. How to handle it? Find people that understand and are okay with people who act outside the bounds of "what is okay". Aside from that, I use gating behavior where I keep distractions far away, alcohol, parting, distractions, for periods of time (1 - 3 months), and then allow myself to be erratic and risk taking for a few weeks.

Yes, I do. I got diagnosed not long ago. I was suspecting that I have it. There were obvious signs.

Severity and the type are different from person to person. If I understood my doc correctly, I have very severe ADHD.

Pre-diagnosis and pre-medication, I excessively drank coffee (up to 10 Monster Energy Zero a day; also: Red Bull Zero, Rockstar Zero etc.). It calmed me down, and I could sleep with it better. Prolonged fasting. Fasting prompts endorphins, endorphins promote dopamine. Dopamine is supposedly the thing you are lacking on. Also, I hate to plan ahead my food or prepare food, so this is a good way to reduce further stress. I also do it in an alternating manner. Meaning one day I eat my minimum calories (2000), the other day I just don't eat anything except calcium-rich water and salt (coffee too). I can do that without any issues, since I have enough body fat and I can live off of it for some time. May be not for you.

Comorbidities usually come along with ADHD as well, I had at least one.

So you are asking for advice. The problem is you don't know what type you have, if you even have it, or how severe it is. So don't think that you have to drink 10 Monster Energy Zero to fix you up. What works for me, may not work for you! (That's the issue here.)

I was not impressed by the meds, while they "tamed" me (less hyperactivity and impulsiveness), I still have inattention and forgetfulness.

The meds are not a magic bullet. I was naive thinking that way... They approximate (!) your brain chemistry to that of a neurotypical person. Don't expect to get a normal brain with it.

For years I didn’t manage it (I’m 40 and have had my suspicions since I was 13), ADHD is to me a huge boon for programmers. I’d basically come into work late and outsource many of life’s responsibilities. And drink A LOT of coffee.

It’s was only when running my own company during the pandemic during a massive decline in revenue that it all became too much and I got a prescription as well as managing my sleep much better that I was able to cope.

I still sometimes forget to take the meds tho, and some days it’s good and some days it’s horrible. It’s mostly bad news that triggers it to the point of it getting out of control.

I’m still not entirely sure that I have ADHD but the non-amphetamine meds def help with whatever it is. The amphetamines messed with my sleep too much.

If you have issues with attention that started during adolescence or adulthood, that may be a marker for psychosis and not ADHD. ADHD only starts during childhood (although it might last into adulthood).

I have ADHD. Meditation helps, for me at least. I use the Headspace app for guided meditation.