ADHD and too many thoughts at once can be both a strength and quite exhausting. My morning began with an icy step out of the car and a warm swim in the lake – but a few hours later, one thought had turned into five and my plans for the day were already starting to fall behind.
🇸🇪 Svenska – Läs inlägget på svenska →När en idé blir fem – och dagens plan redan är försenad
🇬🇧 English – you are here
I started my day at the lake today.
When I left home, the car showed 3.5°C outside.
Three and a half degrees.
When I stepped out of the car, it felt almost frosty. I got out rather cautiously and could actually feel the cold taking hold of my legs.
But once I reached the lake, I wasn’t going to let the cold air tell me that it was too cold for a swim.
Because, of course, it wasn’t.
The water was around 19°C, and after those 3.5°C in the air, stepping into the lake almost felt like stepping into a heated pool.
Only much nicer.
A morning could hardly begin any better
I got into the water and swam.
It was exactly the kind of swim I want in the morning.
I finished by washing my hair and myself in the lake.
Then I was done.
For me, a morning could hardly begin any better than that.
Cold air.
Warmer water.
A lake.
A swim.
And that feeling afterwards, when your whole body knows it has woken up.
Then I had an idea
On my way home, I decided to try a different route.
I’ve been wondering whether I might cycle to the lake one day, so I wanted to see how long the alternative route would be.
It turned out to be 21 kilometres.
It’s a smaller and narrower road, but perhaps it doesn’t have quite the same kind of heavy traffic. That might make it feel safer for cycling.
But then, of course, the next thought arrives.
People live along that road. They have to get to work. Someone might be in a hurry in the morning.
So just because there is less heavy traffic doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the best road to cycle on early in the morning.
Maybe I shouldn’t cycle to my morning swim at all.
Maybe that route should instead become a daytime cycling trip, when the morning traffic has passed and I can cycle simply for the pleasure of cycling.
And this is roughly where it happens.
ADHD and too many thoughts at once – one thought becomes five
Sometimes having ADHD is difficult.
Right now, it is.
Because here I am, trying to write a blog post.
At the same time, I’m getting ideas for the app I’m developing.
So I start working on the app too.
Suddenly, I’m working in two places at once.
The blog post is open.
The app is open.
One thought leads to another.
I think of something that should be changed in the app. While I’m doing that, I think of something that should be added to the blog post. Then that gives me another idea for the app.
And it continues.
It’s not that I lack ideas.
The problem is that they all arrive at the same time.
ADHD and too many thoughts at once can change the day’s plan
This has consequences.
Because I actually had a plan for today.
That plan is already running late.
Not because I’ve been lying on the sofa doing nothing.
Quite the opposite.
I’m doing loads of things.
And perhaps that’s exactly the problem.
I’m doing a lot, but I’m doing several things at once, and every new idea feels important enough that I want to deal with it immediately.
It’s a strange feeling to be very active while also watching the things I actually planned to do standing to one side, waiting.
The blue system can become too much as well
When I look at this through my circles, it becomes quite clear.
🔵 My drive system is definitely active.
I’m curious.
I’m creating.
I’m writing.
I’m developing the app.
I’m thinking about cycling routes.
I get ideas and want to explore them.
There is nothing wrong with the blue system. Quite the opposite. I like that part of myself. Much of what I create probably comes from there.
But even something enjoyable can become too much.
When everything wants to be done at once, my body begins to react.
My thoughts become crowded.
And somewhere along the way, that blue drive can start pulling me towards red.
🔴 Stress.
Now I have to hurry.
I’m already behind with today’s plan.
I should do that other thing as well.
And something that began with curiosity and enthusiasm starts to feel like chaos.
I don’t have to act on every idea right now
Perhaps that’s what I need to remind myself of while I’m writing this.
An idea won’t necessarily disappear just because I don’t act on it immediately.
I can write it down.
Let it wait.
And return to what I had actually decided to do.
Right now, that’s this blog post.
Not the blog post and the app.
Not the blog post, the app and planning a 21-kilometre cycling trip.
One thing.
Then the next.
Between the lines
It’s easy for me to think that the problem is that I don’t get things done.
But sometimes the problem is the opposite.
I want to do too much.
I see possibilities everywhere, and one thought gives birth to another before the first one has even had time to settle.
That’s a part of myself that I actually like.
I don’t want to lose my curiosity, my ideas or my drive.
But I do need to help myself when everything arrives at once.
My morning began with 3.5°C in the air and a lake that felt almost warm.
There was only me, the water and the swimming.
No app.
No blog post.
No plan falling behind.
Perhaps that’s exactly the feeling I need to bring back into the rest of my day.
One thing at a time.
A few questions for you
Do you recognise that feeling when one idea quickly becomes two, three or five?
What happens inside you when something that began as enjoyable and creative starts turning into stress?
How do you notice when your drive system has gained a little too much speed?
What helps you stop and return to one thing at a time?
And can you allow a good idea to wait – without feeling that you have to act on it the moment it appears?
You might also like to read
If you’d like to read more about how I try to understand time, energy, ADHD and everyday life, here are a few related posts on Malix:
🟨 Yellow Time – When Preparation Makes Everyday Life Easier
Yellow time adds another perspective: preparing and creating the right conditions before moving on to the next thing.
Read Yellow Time – When Preparation Makes Everyday Life Easier
🌿 One Thing at a Time – When I Need to Use What I Teach
Here I write about exactly what happens when one thing quickly becomes five, my thoughts start heading in several directions, and I need to use my own tools to find my way back.
Read One Thing at a Time – When Everything Becomes Too Much
🧠 ADHD and Structure – When the Brain Wants to Get Everything Done
In this post, I write more about all those loose threads, the urge to do everything at once, and how small blocks can help me manage both my time and my energy.
Read ADHD and Structure – When the Brain Wants to Get Everything Done
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Here on Malix, I write about life as it actually is – ADHD, everyday life, relationships, compassion, thoughts about time, and those small things that sometimes turn out to be quite significant.
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Yesterday is history, and the future is over there.
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