Today I’ve noticed my ADD / ADHD symptoms are out of control. I’m less focused and procrastinating much more than usual. I’m staring out the window a lot. I feel kind of like I did in my “Scattered Period” before I was really skilled at managing my ADD.

At quick glance, I couldn’t figure out why my ADD symptoms had flared. I’ve been exercising, taking Omega-3s, getting enough sleep. Looking closer though, I can pretty much point the finger at my diet. It hasn’t quite been the ADD-Friendly diet I preach.

With Scott out of town for a few days, Favorite Daughter and I have been taking liberties with our diet. It’s been healthy (unless you count the half-loaf of garlic bread I inhaled last night) but really low in protein. Except for frozen yogurt, I’ve had no protein for the past 36 hours.

Sorry about that brain. If I expect you to do your best for me, I have to do my best for you.

One of my ADD coaching clients has been having a really hard time managing her Adult ADHD lately.

She’s a student in graduate school, a mom and a grandma. So you can understand why her life is over-the-top hectic.

I’ve been coaching her for a few months. At first, she was making strong progress. Like many ADHD / ADD adults, she had a hard time finding a good doctor to manage her medications. In January, we both had high hopes when she started seeing a new psychiatrist and her ADHD medication management was finally being handled competently.

Her life was beginning to fall into place. She was doing what she needed to do for daily success: creating routines, exercising, and beginning to accomplish the tasks she needed to get done.

Suddenly, however, in the past month things fell apart.

Scattered, disorganized, missing appointments and having trouble sleeping, she just couldn’t get a foothold in managing her ADHD.

I’m a brain-based ADD coach. That means I recognize that her ADHD symptoms become worse because of her brain chemistry, not because of a lack of self-control or laziness.

So last week in our coaching call, I decided to go back to square one to see what was happening.

Lo and behold, it wasn’t surprising what I found.

As an ADHD coach, I believe that what makes up the core of successful ADHD management is solid self-care habits. Diet, sleep, exercise, fish oil, vitamins; the fundamentals.

Well, when we started digging into this client’s self-care regimen, here’s what we found. She was drinking very little water but was consuming lots of soda. She wasn’t eating breakfast. She was eating very little protein and skipping meals. She was basically living off muffins and donuts and soda and the occasional protein shake.

So it’s no surprise she was struggling staying organized and focused.

When I start working with a new client, We typically devote the first couple of weeks to self-care practices: regular eating, adequate sleep, ADHD-friendly diet, exercise and getting those important Omega-3s. My relationship with her was no different: we had begun with the basics.

Now we’re revisiting the basics and getting her living the right habits again.

Happily it’s working. Her sleep patterns have recovered and she’s back to getting organized, finishing her school assignments and following routines.

If you want to live more easily with Adult Attention Deficit Disorder, self-care matters. It’s not something you can do only when it’s convenient. It’s something you need to pay attention to every single day.

Bottom line. When it comes to managing adult ADD / ADHD, you’ll get out of your brain what you put into your body.

Today it’s time to give you a peek behind the curtain at how I use my iPhone to be the best ADHD coach I know how to be.

There is no doubt. My iPhone helps me be a better ADHD coach.

I didn’t make the decision to become an iPhone user lightly. In fact, I put off buying an iPhone for several years.

I was concerned about the cost. I was afraid of what would happen if I lost the darn thing. 
 
But I have to tell you getting the iPhone is one of the most dramatic leaps I’ve made towards offering top notch ADHD coaching services.

You see my iPhone makes it simple to seamlessly blend the needs of my ADD coaching clients in with the rest of my life. I no longer have to be in my office at my computer to stay in touch.

Everything I need to manage my coaching calls, my clients, and their needs — that is to say, the bulk of my business — is right in my pocket.

• I always have my client notes with me because I keep them on the phone.

• I always have reminders about what I need to do for my clients.

• My calendar and schedule are always with me. Need to reschedule a coaching call? No problem!

• Have a question about my Organized for Life program? I’ll get back to your email quickly.

• Texting is simple and a great way to keep in frequent touch with my text-loving clients.

• Managing client phone calls is effortless. Using my Bluetooth headset for our ADD coaching calls, I can move around the room and clients can still hear me clearly.

Why, just a couple of days ago, one of my clients texted me and asked me to remember to talk about managing money with ADHD during her next coaching call.

Before my iPhone I would have had to make a note and hope I would have seen it. This time it was as easy as asking Siri to remind me. Sure enough, this morning, a minute before the client called, a reminder popped up on my phone.

Oh, and about my fear of losing my iPhone? Turns out there’s an app for that too – actually several, some of them free. Google “best app to find a lost iPhone” to learn reassuring ways you can track an iPhone you’ve misplaced.

It’s almost like we share the work: the iPhone takes care of the details so I can do the part I do best: helping my clients learn to live more successfully with ADD / ADHD. My iPhone and I make a fine team.

The iPhone has truly helped me be more attentive and responsive to my clients needs. It helps me be the best ADHD coach I know how to be.

If you have Adult ADD / ADHD, using an iPhone to stay focused and on task makes sense. I often recommend my ADD coaching clients keep track of their busy lives and responsibilities using their iPhone calendars, reminders, lists and note-taking apps.

But have you thought about how you can use iTunes to manage ADD / ADHD?

You might not be used to thinking of music as an ADD management tool.

You might even be flashing back to your teenage days, when your parents told you to turn off the stereo to do your homework. Perhaps you’ve even told your own kids to take out the earbuds if they expect to get any studying done!

As with so many other tools and tricks known within the Adult ADHD community, what others may see as detriments or distractions can have just the opposite effect if you need extra help paying attention and managing time.

Using music to manage ADD / ADHD works and iTunes can make it easy to do.

For me, there is tremendous value in carrying my music with me all the time on my iPhone. Some of the most important pieces of staying focused with my Adult ADHD are on my iTunes playlists.

Using iTunes To Manage ADD / ADHD

Complete Tasks More Quickly
When you have a job to do that requires more momentum than brainpower, tap into your iTunes playlists. Filing, filling out forms, doing housework or any job you could label “administrivia,” will be completed more quickly and completely with a boost of lively music.

Focus Your ADD / ADHD
One of the most powerful ADHD management tools I’ve discovered is as close as iTunes: the Immrama Institute’s Focus mp3s.

With the help of these Focus mp3s and CDs my ADD coaching clients are managing their time and tackling their goals more easily than ever.

The sound of a gentle rain storm or ocean waves in the background lets them pay attention and easily get things done without distraction.Immrama Institute Focus mp3s are more than just white noise. They use a powerful brainwave technology to get your brain in gear.

Make Meditation Easier
The awareness gained from mindfulness meditation is said to be an important part of being able to manage adult ADHD. Yet, our wandering minds make it hard for people with Attention Deficit to meditate on our own.

I really like Kelly Howell’s Brainsync Deep Meditation mp3. With the help of iTunes on my iPhone it’s always with me.

Deep Meditation allows me to quickly get into a brain restoring focused meditation session at without wasting any time searching for a missing CD.

Reduce Clutter
iTunes on your iPhone also reduces physical clutter – a real benefit for ADHD-affected adults. MP3 files replace CDs, CD cases, CD players, CD player cases…..the list goes on and on!

Having your sound library at your fingertips is just another way your iPhone serves as a powerful remedy to the various challenges of living with Attention Deficit. Yes, the iPhone makes using iTunes to Manage ADD / ADHD simple to do.

I was reacquainted with the hidden cost of disorganization this week when I met with our CPA to do our taxes.

If you missed my memo, I fractured my heel in early December and have spent much of the past two months unable to put any weight on my right foot. No walking; no driving. Ouch is right!

Luckily, I didn’t have to miss a single day of work. As an ADD coach, my days are spent talking on the telephone. Walking isn’t a requirement.

I’m pretty much back on my feet again, though I’m still working out of a temporary office in our guest room for a couple more weeks to avoid the steep flight of stairs that takes me to the Effortless Living, LLC World Headquarters (aka my home office).

Not having access to my office and files has made being organized very challenging; especially at tax time.

At our tax meeting, I didn’t have all the papers I needed and those I did have were jumbled. I felt like a confused, distracted dolt.

CPA Kay gets gold stars for not laughing. If she saw the irony figuring up the taxes for a very disorganized organizer she was polite enough not to mention it.

You know how expensive disorganization is, right? Some of the costs are obvious; like late fees, wasted time and lost opportunities. But there are hidden costs of disorganization for Adult ADD, too. Costs that are less obvious yet add an extra whammy if you’re struggling to manage Adult Attention Deficit.

The formula goes something like this: physical disorganization fuels emotional distress and mental chaos.

When you can’t get organized it takes a toll. Each time you look at your home, your desk or your car, the piles and clutter send messages straight to your psyche.

The Four Hidden Costs of Disorganization for Adult ADD / ADHD

• The Cost of Confusion. When your world is cluttered, life is more confusing. You won’t know where to start and can’t figure out what to do next. Without a starting point to grab onto, your thoughts start spinning; only making the confusion worse.
• The Cost of Distraction. Clutter and disorganization are distracting. With a plethora of things lying about to catch your eye, you’ll get pulled off track more easily. A more simple, clear environment makes it easier for the distractible ADHD mind to stay focused.
• The Cost of Overwhelm. As disorganization builds it becomes harder and harder for the ADD brain to focus. Simply looking at all the decisions you need to make and actions you need to take can flip your mental switch into overwhelm. When you get overwhelmed your Attention Deficit makes it nearly impossible to make progress on anything.
• The Cost of Negative Self-Talk. As a former ADD coaching client, Sean, so eloquently put it, “When I look at the piles and the clutter it reinforces my belief that I’m a failure. That I have no hope of ever getting a handle on managing my ADHD. Everywhere I look I see what a loser I am.”

The ugly fact is these emotional costs can block what needs to be done to get organized and to handle the problem. It’s a catch-22.

Many ADHD Adults tend to make light of the clutter. But clutter takes us into dark places. Clutter increases the challenge of living more successfully with Attention Deficit. The hidden costs of disorganization for Adult ADD / ADHD are nothing to laugh about.

If you’re not yet a pro at being organized with adult attention deficit you lose things. A lot. Losing and misplacing things is one of the hallmarks of our scattered, unfocused lives.

My ADHD coaching clients have taught me something interesting though. Most of them rarely lose their iPhone or smartphone.

Because that iPhone is such an important lifeline to being organized and connected to the Internet and world, they pay attention to where they put it.

Personally, just as an extra precaution, when I recently bought my iPhone I decided to spend a few more dollars each month for iPhone insurance. That way if I lose it, I can easily get it replaced.

I’ll more likely need the insurance if I drop the iPhone and break it. It’s already taken a couple of spectacular falls. Someday, the little protective cover it wears won’t be enough to avoid fatal damage.

It is nice to know however, with all the things we lose living our ADD / ADHD lives, we don’t need to worry too much about losing our iPhone. It’s shiny enough to catch out attention and help us stay organized with ADD / ADHD.

In my last post, I painted an extremely rosy picture of how you can use your iPhone to manage adult ADHD.

I’ve told you my new iPhone 4s is the most useful ADHD management tool I’ve come across. (Other than a top-notch ADD coach, of course!)

Initially, my whole premise may ring a little bit counterintuitive. “Mobile technology….isn’t that the ultimate distractor factor?” you might be thinking.

Well, maybe. Certainly, there are some sand traps we all need to be aware of with an iPhone or other Smartphone.

With the Internet always at your fingertips, it’s alarmingly easy to get pulled off track. Ready access to information is a marvelous thing, and it’s wonderful that we can easily find the facts we need without, say, making ten phone calls or driving to the library.

Yet what happens when you look up the title of a book online? First, you find yourself browsing other titles by the same author.Then you start reading an interview with the author. Of course the interviewer refers to a controversy the book stirred up on another site, so you go take a peek to see what that’s all about. And before you know it, you’ve frittered away another hour.

Then there are the more overt iPhone time-wasters. Facebook (hey, my brother finally posted his ski vacation photos!). Twitter (that marathoner I follow in Seattle just completed how many miles?). Angry Birds and other games are forever awaiting you.

The biggest challenge, though, is when you let your iPhone interfere with sleep by spending precious nighttime hours texting and checking Facebook on your phone instead of going to bed.

Getting to bed at a reasonable hour is already difficult for many ADHD adults and the easy accessibility of the iPhone can make it even harder.

The solution isn’t complicated, but it does require self-awareness. You have to really be attentive to how you’re spending your time and what you’re doing when you have this constant entertainment system right there in your pocket.

Fortunately, there are some really handy alarm and reminder apps for your phone that will keep you on track.

Despite all its potential pitfalls for distraction, my overall assessment is still positive: the iPhone is a fundamentally powerful tool for organizing and managing adult ADHD.

Whether you love or hate recent advances in technology that let you stay connected 24/7 — or love and hate them — there are definitely you can use an iPhone, or any other smartphone, to help you to manage your Adult ADD / ADHD.

I happen to use an iPhone. I was a skeptic and for many years put off making this seemingly expensive purchase. It turns out, though, that the cost is negligible compared to the benefits I reap by using the iPhone to easily stay more organized. Remember, losing things, not having information, and missing appointments cost money in the long run as well.

The benefits of smartphones are not exclusive to iPhones. Most makes and models include valuable organizing tools as well. But it’s the iPhone 4s — the model that includes virtual assistant “Siri,” who responds to voice commands — that has particularly amazed me with how quickly it has become an integral part of managing my adult ADHD.

Innovative Ways Of Managing Adult ADHD Using an iPhone

Moments ago, while writing this post, I suddenly remembered I needed to water the house plants. That’s something I often forget to do. Before Siri I would have fallen into the typical ADD trap of jumping up to immediately water the plants forgetting I was in the middle of writing a blog post!

Today, with a push of the button, I simply asked Siri to remind me to water the plants later in the day. Siri made it simple to create a reminder and not get distracted from my task.

My ADD coaching clients tell me they too are using their iPhones to manage adult ADHD in innovative ways.

• A client whom I’ll call Carla (I never use real names of clients, of course) uses her iPhone to take photos of recipes. Then, when she’s at the supermarket, she can check the photo of a recipe to be sure she to get the ingredients she needs. No more frustrations with the grocery list being left home, forgotten on the kitchen counter.

• Terry uses her iPhone to snap photos of the tasks that she wants to do around the house. Then she looks through the photos and makes her list of things to do based upon the photos taken.

• Another great iPhone function is that when you schedule a phone call or appointment in the Calendar app, you can use the Notes section of the Calendar to record the phone number of the person you are calling or seeing. No more searching for the phone number when it’s time to get on the call – or if you’re running late for the appointment or need directions.

The iPhone is truly a brilliant ADHD management tool. As a relatively new user, I’m just beginning to scratch the surface of its potential. These are just some of the ways you can use your iPhone, or other kind of smartphone, for managing your ADD.

Let me know. How does your iPhone help you to stay on track and better manage your Attention Deficit?

Adults with ADD /ADHD have really hard time with money management.

It’s a tangled relationship.

Impulsive shopping and spending make it much more complicated than organizing paperwork and learning to pay bills on time. Our impulsive spending also means we need to learn how to eliminate debt and create a savings plan.

Yes, money management is a thorn in the side of most ADD / ADHD adults.

If you are ready to overcome the chaos in your finances and get your money management under control, you’ll be interested in a FREE teleseminar ADDClasses.com is offering:

ADHD Money Management: How to Eliminate Debt and Save

Date: Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Time: 9:00 pm ET (New York Time)

Instructor: Stephanie Sarkis, PhD

Where: Listen over the Telephone or Internet!

Here’s the deal. To listen for free, you must register for the teleclass before Tuesday, February 7, 2012.

Can’t make the call? Don’t fret. If you’ve registered you’ll have access to a recording for a week.

If you’ve found this blog post after the teleclass? No problem. You can still listen to it for a only a few dollars.

Click here to register for ADHD Money Management: How to Eliminate Debt and Save

The Last Word in ADD Success

Like all good spouses my husband has a favorite story.

He regaled us with it, once again, just the other night.

Scott loves to tell about the ADHD money management system I used when we got married. How soon after we got home from our honeymoon I handed him a purple shoe box stuffed full of past due bills and unfiled statements.

When you’re married to the same man for 27 years you can expect to hear the same hilarious stories repeated over and over.

It doesn’t matter that now I handle all the family finances with an iron fist. The bills are paid on time. I can produce any receipt or statement and he asks for. I have a money management system and schedule I stick with.

I still can’t live down that little purple shoe box.

It’s okay. I really like the guy. If I’m lucky I’ll be hearing about my purple shoe box ADHD money management system for the next 50 years.