So the ever-lovely @Birdofparadise8 was asking me about ADHD symptoms recently, and I thought I'd talk a bit about my experiences with time-blindness!
A common trope for us ADHDers is that we're always late! Or, if you're like me, the only reason you're on time is because you have to over-prepare to ensure you can keep yourself on track (and by overprepare, I mean that I set like 3 alarms every time I need to do something that isn't part of my normal routine; one to wake me up, one to REALLY wake me up and get me started on getting ready, and one to warn me that I need to leave the house in 5 minutes).
What is time-blindness?
Time-blindness is struggling to accurately perceive lengths of time, as well as easily losing track of time. So for example, if I put a pot on the stove to boil water, I know logically that it should be boiling within about 5 minutes. But I don't know what 5 minutes feels like. I can't just estimate it, I need a timer or I will either a) come back too soon/every minute or so to check on it or, far more likely b) forget about it entirely and come back to an empty, smoking pot.
I don't know what an hour feels like, so if I am told someone will be coming over in an hour and I don't set an alarm, I'll get lost in what I'm doing and nek minnit they're already knocking on the door, and I still haven't put pants on!
It's also losing track of time. Because of our interest-based nervous systems, it's all too easy for us to get caught up in something, and not realise that hours and hours have passed. Conversely, when we have to do something we're not interested in, time will slow to a crawl and 5 minutes can seem like 5 hours. As with some other ADHD symptoms, this is not something that neurotypicals don't experience, but that the severity of the experience is more amplified for us, and will impact us more frequently and intensely.
As a result, we can become that stereotype of the constantly late, always disorganised ("no I didn't fill out that form on time, because it was soooo boring and I lost track of when it was due" anyone?) person, and get accused of not caring enough. With ADHD, it's never that we don't care! We just have extra mental barriers that require energy and resources to overcome.
Alternatively, we can also end up overcompensating - like me, knowing that I'm prone to lateness, I often end up arriving way too early to things! Getting to an appt 20 minutes early isn't uncommon haha. Don't even get me started on getting to the airport on time (I am guilty of both arriving 2.5 hours early to a domestic flight, and also missing my flight... lol woopsie).
How to cope
The best way I've found to manage my time blindness is with alarms and timers. One of my ADHD buddies told me they got a smart watch because online ADHD communities said it was helpful. I got one, and HOLY HECK it really is helpful - being able to set alarms and timers on a device that is actually strapped to my body is a lot easier than say, needing to set a timer for a pot of water, walking out of the kitchen to get my phone, and forgetting what I needed to do as soon as I left the room. Plus it responds to voice commands, so I can say right then and there, 'set a timer for 10 minutes'. The only issue I've ever come across is that sometimes I set too many timers and forget what each one is for 😅
For me, setting timers helps for everything - even getting ready to leave the house. Lets say I manage to get ready but I don't need to leave for another 20 minutes. What does 20 min feel like? I dunno! So unless I set a timer, I end up scrolling on my phone, and with the dopamine drip it provides, suddenly it's been 45 minutes and I'm late!
It can also help for when affected by hyperfocus. If I am getting stuck into something that I know I'm really invested in, I will often set a timer for 45 min or an hour - to remind me to get up and stretch, go pee, and drink some water! Actually, I should go do that now... 😅
It can also help to inform our friends, family, MH professionals, employers, etc. that this is something we experience. It can help them to understand that our lateness/losing track of time is not an indicator of our levels of care/committment. It can also help if we ask them to help us stay on track with gentle reminders.
So there ya go friends!
How does time blindness impact you? Have you got any handy tips or strategies that you find helpful to stay on track? Lemme hear em!
I also found this neat lil article on ADDitude that talks about others' experiences with time-blindness, if anyone wants extra homework 😉
Running Late Again: Time Blindness and My ADHD Brain
@Shaz51 @Glisten @ArraDreaming @Halster @Bubala @borke09 @Losingmyshiz @deshift @greenspace
