ADHDTechies.com

Alternatives to Medication for ADHD and LD People

// December 4th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

Drugs like Adderall, Ritalin and Strattera can be very effective at treating ADHD, but we always want options.  Here is a list of some alternative ways to improve your ADHD that you may not have known about. I’ve tried almost all of them.

Brain Training Software

Lumosity.com is by far the cheapest and most robust. For $15/month, you can improve your attention by playing games on your computer or smart phone. Posit Science is a far more expensive software, but has a money-back guarantee and a  long history of research on its effectiveness.

Brain Training Audio

The Listening Program has been around for over a decade, and claims to improve the brain by only listening to specially-engineered music in headphones.

Neurofeedback

Neurofeedback uses funny-looking headsets that read your brainwaves while you watch movies. When you’re not focusing properly, the movies stop until you regain focus. This trains your brain to pay attention properly, and can have long-standing effects.

Meditation

I’ve written about my experience with Vipassana Meditation, which I believe to be particularly effective for ADHD people with impulse control issues. It’s by no means the only form of meditation that will work though.

Light Therapy

Light boxes have been used as an effective treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.) and depression, but there is also some evidence that it can be affective for people with ADHD as well. Given the fact that ADHD can co-occur with depression, light therapy can be doubly useful as a supplementary therapy.

Physical Stuff

I’ve had some indirect results from the Alexander Technique, which I detail in another post. AT improves posture which reduces facial tension, which in turn removes some distractions.

Also, Learning Breakthrough uses balance training to improve attention deficits. Programs like Brain Highways seem to incorporate exercises of this nature as well, to treat ADHD, Autism, LD and more.

There’s a ton of stuff like this out there, more to come!

Vipassana Meditation and ADHD (or, How I Felt After 10 Days of Silence)

// October 12th, 2011 // 3 Comments » // Uncategorized

Soon after I was formally diagnosed with attention deficit disorder several years back, I became vigilant in finding natural alternatives for treating ADHD. Vipassana Meditation is what I’d say to be one of the most effective approaches that I’ve personally tried.

For those who haven’t heard of it, Vipassana is a type of meditation that is related to mindfulness meditation. The technique is in effect a step-by-step guide on how to pay attention. (more…)

The Alexander Technique, Back Pain and ADHD

// October 5th, 2011 // 3 Comments » // Uncategorized

The Alexander Technique was something I’d tried in order to improve my back problems. It’s had a significant effect on my back, but a side effect was it’s effect on my attention.

For those of you that don’t know, the Alexander Technique is essentially a method of retraining your postural habits. An AT instructor will begin by observing and analyzing the way you move when doing everyday things, (more…)

Impulse Spending

// July 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

As a professional web developer, I work for big firms and make decent money. I have healthcare, I own a home. I’m far from rich but I’m doing ok for someone that can barely keep it together on my bad days.

Still, no one at an income level likes to throw money away. And the ADHD impulsivity makes all of us want to kick ourselves now and then. It seems like once a month I’ll look at my credit card bill and ask myself, “I spent how much money? On that??” (more…)

You’re Not Lazy!!

// July 4th, 2010 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

I despise being thought of as “lazy.”

Having ADHD and LD, I’m a bit slower than the average person at times. “Slow” in the literal sense; my brain sometimes takes longer to process things. “Slow” does not mean “stupid.”

So as a result of slower processing speed, I’ve found ways to get more done with less effort. Using tools like Evernote and Zooom. Having an assistant handle paperwork, do my laundry, help me organize.

Some people perceive this as laziness or pretentiousness. It’s not; it’s effective time management.

CEOs of large companies don’t have salespeople, computer programmers and project managers working for them because they’re “lazy.” They hire them because one person can’t do the job of so many people. The CEO has one job; manage the company well, and delegate everything else.

ADHDers are faced with a similar task; managing our lives. We may have a life as simple as anyone else’s, but it takes us twice the work to manage it because we’re slower. That’s the same as one person with two jobs. We need to delegate the work.

So when someone implies that we’re lazy, know that it isn’t true; we just have more jobs than they do. Get other people to help out and focus on only one job, and you’ll get it done faster and better.