Part of ADHD. You forget things, beneficial or not. I usually realize when I’m on the way to work, then do the math of turning around for it, and how late I’ll be if I do.
I’ll just add that routine is in itself a major challenge - for me, I don’t have routines as much as I have laying things out in a way that reminds me to do things regularly. For my meds, I just take it once in the morning, but the one routine I try my best to maintain is flipping the pill bottle upside down. If it’s upside down, there’s a high chance I either took it, or forgot to flip it before bed, but it’s a visual reminder so that I don’t need to actively remember to take them on routine, but if I see the pill bottle in a state, I know what action to take.
That’s probably one of the hardest things I’ve seen family members try to understand. I’m not trying to imply anything about you, this is just a related example, but I’ve had family members see my ADHD family members as just being lazy or intentionally ignoring things, or thinking they’re just selfish or whatever. The problem is, even if it’s beneficial, a part of ADHD is not having control over where your memory and focus is being put. You may want something, but that doesn’t mean you’ll sustain attention or effort to achieve it, and conversely you may place it in places you really don’t care about to a very consuming degree…
One of the downsides of adhd is, if left untreated, it can lead to substance abuse. One of the upsides is it’s easier to “forget” that you’re addicted to something. I once forget to drink caffeine for a few weeks. Just slipped my mind. I still had the withdrawal symptoms. Headaches, low energy etc., but my brain would not connect the withdrawal to the substance, because from my perspective caffeine did not exist. It was a weird experience.
Outsider without adhd here… Is this really a thing? If the medication makes you feel better how would you forget to take it?
Part of ADHD. You forget things, beneficial or not. I usually realize when I’m on the way to work, then do the math of turning around for it, and how late I’ll be if I do.
I’ll just add that routine is in itself a major challenge - for me, I don’t have routines as much as I have laying things out in a way that reminds me to do things regularly. For my meds, I just take it once in the morning, but the one routine I try my best to maintain is flipping the pill bottle upside down. If it’s upside down, there’s a high chance I either took it, or forgot to flip it before bed, but it’s a visual reminder so that I don’t need to actively remember to take them on routine, but if I see the pill bottle in a state, I know what action to take.
That’s probably one of the hardest things I’ve seen family members try to understand. I’m not trying to imply anything about you, this is just a related example, but I’ve had family members see my ADHD family members as just being lazy or intentionally ignoring things, or thinking they’re just selfish or whatever. The problem is, even if it’s beneficial, a part of ADHD is not having control over where your memory and focus is being put. You may want something, but that doesn’t mean you’ll sustain attention or effort to achieve it, and conversely you may place it in places you really don’t care about to a very consuming degree…
One of the downsides of adhd is, if left untreated, it can lead to substance abuse. One of the upsides is it’s easier to “forget” that you’re addicted to something. I once forget to drink caffeine for a few weeks. Just slipped my mind. I still had the withdrawal symptoms. Headaches, low energy etc., but my brain would not connect the withdrawal to the substance, because from my perspective caffeine did not exist. It was a weird experience.