So first off, you may be wondering,
"What the heck IS executive dysfunction?!"
Well, it's when your executive
functioning skills..... uh... don't function.
"So," you ask, "What are
executive functioning skills then?!"
I'm
glad you asked.
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| Accessibility: Photo of blue high-rise office buildings with the words "Executive Dysfunction" in bold white letters. |
Able
to start a task exactly when you planned to, without any difficulty
or procrastination? Congratulations, that's your executive
functioning skills at work. Able to easily remember all the tasks you
need to accomplish today? Yup, that's an executive functioning skill.
Have the self-control to start a task that you don't particularly
want to do, but still needs to be done? You guessed it, executive
functioning skill. Able to quickly and easily change mental gears and
move from one task to a totally different one? Right again, executive
functioning skills!
So,
what causes someone to NOT have those skills?
Well,
a lot of things. People who have A.D.D. (Attention Deficit Disorder)
or A.D.H.D. (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder) often struggle
with executive functioning. Autistic people, people with depression,
folks with dementia or Alzheimer's Disease, and those with brain
injuries can all struggle with executive functioning skills.
For
someone like me, executive dysfunction can make you feel like you're
constantly scatter-brained. It can make you wonder why you never feel
motivated to do anything, why you can't seem to start a big job, why
you struggle with decisions, and why it takes all day to finish one
task. You may be time-blind, with no idea how long it should take to
complete a task. Maybe you constantly lose things; your car keys,
cell phone, earrings, wallet, a box of books. (Ask me how I managed
to misplace an entire box of books.) You might even lose your...
SQUIRREL!...err, train
of thought, in the middle of a sentence.
Unfortunately,
people who don't understand executive dysfunction may call you
"lazy", "absent-minded", "forgetful",
"impulsive", "messy" and so on.
If
that sounds like you, rest assured, you are not alone.
You are not lazy or dumb. Your brain still functions, just a little
differently!
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| Accessibility: Drawing of a human brain. The left half is black and white and marked with diagrams and mathematical equations. The right half is splattered with rainbow paint. |
Today
I'm going to share with you the top 7 "hacks" that I use to
work around my executive dysfunction.
Number
One: Say It Out Loud!
A
lot of people talk to themselves, but I find if I'm making a recipe
or doing something that takes a lot of steps, it really helps to
"talk myself through" what I'm doing! Narrating my actions
step-by-step really helps me stay focused. It also helps because I'm
not only processing instructions visually, I'm also
processing them audibly. So it's
bound to sink in one way or the other! Plus, giving yourself a
pep-talk never hurts!
Number
Two: Reminder Bracelet!
This
is actually a relatively new hack that I just tried today, and it
seemed to work pretty well! When cooking, I often forget the oven on
or forget to check my food. I used to use a timer, but the timer
"died" recently and I came to realize that a timer, while
handy, isn't failsafe.
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| Accessibility: Photo of my arm with a colorful beaded bracelet. In the background is an oven. |
So
today, when I put my chicken tenders in the oven, I also put a lumpy,
colorful bracelet on. I don't often wear bracelets and really
don't like the way they feel, so
I was constantly touching it/pulling on it/twisting it. And of
course, each time I touched it, I remembered that I needed to check
the oven! Of course, I still had to write down what time my food
would be finished. Eventually, I'd like to get a white rubber or
plastic bracelet that I can actually write on with a marker!
Number
Three: The Moving Glasses!
There's
nothing worse than getting an idea in the middle of the night, or
remembering something you need to do just after you get in bed. The
obvious solution, of course, is to get up and write it down. However,
that's not always doable. Maybe you're camping, in a motel, or at
someone's house and you just don't have a pencil and paper (or your
phone) handy!
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| Accessibility: Photo of a folded pair of pink glasses on a blue background. |
Well,
I have to wear glasses to see. They're the first thing that I reach
for in the morning. So, my "hack" is as simple as putting
them someplace odd. Or it could be as simple as folding them up (I
usually leave them open.) So when I wake up in the morning, I think,
"Huh? Why did I put my glasses way over there? Oh yeah, I'm
supposed to remember _____! (Whatever it is!)"
Number Four:
Make a list!
Now if you're anything like me, you can make a list, and still forget
to take your list with you (or look at it!).
My solution to that was to print off a list of what I might need when
walking out through the door, and tape it right ON the door, so
there's no possible way I can leave the house without seeing it! My
list is simple: Keys, purse, cell phone, phone charger, grocery list,
reusable grocery bags, backpack, and shaker (musical rhythm shaker
that I sometimes play while singing at an event.) I almost always
forget one of these items, but since I made this list over a month
ago, I haven't forgotten one of these items yet! That's a WIN!
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| Accessibility: Photo of list taped to green door. |
Number Five:
Picture/Word association!
When I was in school, the bane of my existence was having to remember
and recite facts or lists. I can easily remember songs lyrics and
stories, but "English Rules" just lost me entirely!
I thought I was going to fail one English class for sure, because I
had to write down 8 English Grammar rules that I Simply. Could. Not.
Remember!
Then I hit on a brilliant (to me) way of remembering. At the time, I
was obsessed with a musical group with eight members. Hmmm... eight
members, 8 English Rules.
So, I simply assigned one English Rule to each band member and
imagined them saying it. When I sat for my exam, I pictured each band
member in my mind, and I could "hear" them as plain as day,
reeling off "their" rule! (I passed the class too).
Number Six: Even
Numbers!
This is related to Number Two, and it's pretty simple. If I put
something in the oven that needs to stay there for 15 minutes, and I
put it in at 4:48... well, I'm already lost, because I have
dyscalculia and it'll take me 15 minutes just to figure out when to
take it out of the oven.
So, I wait two minutes and put it in the oven at exactly 4:50.
I take it out at 5:05. Boom. Done. Crisis averted.
Number Seven:
Set Alarms!
Now, this is probably "old hat" to anyone with a smart
phone (or smart watch, or who is just plain smart!) but... set alarms
to remind you to do stuff!
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| Accessibility: Illustration of an old-fashioned alarm clock. Instead of hands and numbers, the face has a red question mark. |
Since I started taking my daily multivitamin at night (it helps
regulate my sleep patterns) I had a terrible time remembering
to take it at exactly 10:00 p.m. So, I set my alarm to remind me to
take it. I still jump every time the alarm goes off, but at least I
don't forget!
I hope you found these "Executive Dysfunction Hacks"
useful! What hacks do you use? Feel free to leave a comment and let
me know!
