Add - How Stress Affects Us
Did you know that stress can dramatically compound ADD symptoms? It’s true. In linear-thinking people, stress increases their level of distractibility. Imagine what it can do to someone who has ADD! When at all possible, you should avoid stressful situations, but at times, stress just happens.
Simply put, stress comes from external forces that weigh on the individual. In the United States, our daily lives alone can be stressful and frustrating. Think about it. Many of us wake up, rush through breakfast, and fight horrendous traffic to get to work that many of us don’t even enjoy. That’s a lot of stress, and the day just started. It’s silly! Since we’re ADD, we seem to feel the impact of these stresses more because we’re already dealing with the symptoms of ADD. Top that off with some hardcore stress and extend it over time, and you’ll see physical problems arise. Nobody wants those
But there are some simple ways to avoid stress, which can be classified into three categories–temporary stress, life-changing stress, and ongoing problematic stress. Temporary stress is from simple occurrences that frustrate us like losing our keys or not waking to the alarm. They happen only now and then, and the effects of that kind of stress dissipates and then disappears completely.
Life-changing stress comes from events like getting married, having a baby, or getting a new job. Though these are all positive events, they’re still quite stressful. Negative stresses like a death, divorce, or getting fired can be much worse. But the worst kind of stress is the kind that doesn’t stop. If you’re in a bad relationship, a bad work situation, or have debts mounting, you’re experiencing ongoing problems, and these kinds of problems cause the most damage You need some kind of plan to keep them in check.
First, control what stress you can. As an example, if you have a friend that’s extremely negative and all her negativity causes you to be stressed and negative, too, then stop being friends with her. Just don’t be around her. Or, don’t compound your stresses. Don’t get a new job, a new puppy, and a new place to live all at the same time. And realize what your limitations are. Don’t take on one more social engagement or one more product that you can’t handle. Don’t make stress for yourself.
And this may be very difficult, but do one thing at a time. When you’re ADD and used to being a multi-tasker, you often find it hard to slow down. Then, when nothing is completed and accomplished, you put even greater stress on yourself because now your self-image is suffering. Try using Mark Joyner’s Simpleology at http://www.simpleology.com, where you can plan your day, record your thoughts, and keep an orderly schedule throughout the day, without thinking too much about it. I know that’s impossible for some people with ADD, so remember the 10-minute switch off. Do one task for 10 minutes, and then another when that 10 minutes is up. Rotate the tasks according to your ADD attention span, and eventually, they’ll all be done.
You just can’t avoid stress, though, no matter how hard you try. Make a list of your main stresses and eliminate the ones you can. Plan your day and try to work within your plan and your own personal brand of ADD. If you do that, your stress load will be much less and you can spend more time focusing on the things you love.
Tellman Knudson is CEO of OvercomeEverything, Inc. and a certified hypnotherapist and NLP practitioner who has helped many clients achieve ADD Success. Get our Free ADD Success Tips newsletter when you visit InstantADDSuccess.com at http://www.instantaddsuccess.com
Tags: ADD