I’ve often described the inside of my mind as a manic scene from a never-ending music video. My thoughts continuously bounce from one subject to another in completely unconnected and random ways. Even when I am focused, listening to another person, there is always a secondary track playing in the back of my mind, thinking about unrelated topics. I am also a habitual daydreamer who spends much of the day lost in my own thoughts. As a child, none of this seemed to be a problem, but as I grew into adulthood and launched my entrepreneurial career, I began to wonder if it might indeed be a condition that holds me back.
After reading about Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), I became convinced that even though I only exhibited a few of the symptoms, this was my problem. For several years I tried meditation, but could never focus for more than 2-3 minutes at a time. Group sessions and guided meditation didn’t help. I also tried hypnosis, but that didn’t work either. Afterwards, I started reading about the various drugs used to treat Adult ADHD and decided that the solution to my MTV mindset could only be found in a prescription.
However, I couldn’t find an unscrupulous medical professional willing to just write me a prescription to solve my self-diagnosed ADHD. I visited several behavioral health professionals, all of whom told me that I didn’t have ADHD and that I didn’t need medication. Finally, I made an appointment with a psychiatrist, certain that I could convince her to give me a prescription that would make my thinking focused and laser-like. Unfortunately, she turned out to be like the others, firmly informing me that I do not have ADHD and it was not holding me back in any way.
With no other alternative, I decided to continue meeting her and to follow her advice. In doing so, I learned to stop fighting and to accept the fact that my natural thought processes may not be like everyone else’s. I stopped trying to force myself to meditate the ‘proper’ way and instead, began enjoying my quiet time in the morning, letting my thoughts go wherever they want, not trying to force them to stay focused on one particular thing. And if I want to listen to music during my quiet time, I enjoy whatever suits my mood. Some days, that might be buzzing bees and pan flutes, but others, it might be Metallica or Motorhead.
When I made those changes, my life began to change and I started to achieve the personal and career success that I had wanted. This is of course, just my experience, but for me, the solution to my self-diagnosed ADHD was not found through drugs. Instead, my solution came through acceptance and a willingness to stop trying to conform to what others said was right. I had to find the answer that was right for me, not the one that is right for everyone else..
My simple solution to solving the Adult ADHD problem that was holding me back