Organizing Your Life

Over several months I talked about goal setting and getting things done.  This morning I was watching Discovery Health where the topic was on Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.  The discussion was led by a panel of three doctors who spoke on the topic of adults with this disorder and two or three symptoms that I see in quite a few of my clients.

I am not an expert on ADD or ADHD and please do not think that I know everything about this.  However, what these doctors were saying is that adults, like children  I assume, have these symptoms and have trouble in their lives because of them.

The symptoms I remember from this show that I am faced with almost on a weekly basis with adult clients are Disorganization and Time Management.

The next thing I heard from them was that there are times where the symptoms of ADHD/ADD are being confused with symptoms of depression.

The doctors were saying that these two inabilities to follow through cause adults with ADHD a lot of problems in their daily lives.

They also discussed the methods that have been being tested to help adults with their ADHD symptoms.  And because I am definitely not a doctor and not into spelling,even phonetically the medical names of medicines I will not even think of trying that one here.

There has been, however, a new medicine that is in trials for the adult with ADHD.  This medicine, according to the doctors, has several problems.  These problems stem from it not being compatible with people who have high blood pressure or heart disease.

So, my point in relaying this information is really rather a simple one.  I know that people who have ADHD and ADD have the symptoms listed above.  I would like to think that there is some natural way that those symptoms can be alleviated. I pray that one day the pharmaceutical companies would find the missing link here and fill it in for all those who suffer from the disease.

As for being disorganized, no matter how many books you read, or tapes you listen to everyone says just about the same thing.  It is not reading the material, or listening to it that is going to help unless you put the principles into practice.  If you continue to be disorganized then your solution is not simple enough to follow on a regular basis.

Easy, simple solutions require one consistent behavior when someone is disorganized.  That behavior is called a habit of performance.   You may set a goal of putting into practice one principle from a book on organization or one method that has helped others to retrain your mind to comply with being organized.

Habits are the basis of being organized.  Whether that habit is to always hang your keys in a key box next to the door, or to put your mail in a basket where everyone knows every day where the mail is, the bottom line is it is a HABIT.

Talk to your doctor if you exhibit signs (not just the symptoms above) of ADD, or ADHD.  Take the time to know the symptoms before you go to the doctor.  Be armed with information, write down your questions, and take a notepad with you to write down the answers the doctor gives you.  You pay your doctor to be there for you.  If they don’t fulfill your needs then seek out one who does.

No solution will work if you give up on doing it.  If you do not schedule it into your day.  If you do not follow through.  If you do not continue to attempt to try then the solution you put into place will not work for you.

Well, that’s it for today.  I hope that this blog gave you something to think about.  I am available to listen to your needs or comments on being organized and having ADD/ADHD.  As I said I’ve worked with numerous clients who struggle with the symptoms above.

Have a wonderful week!

Denise

http://www.progressiveorganizingsolutions.com

Right about now, the weekend before Thanksgiving, you are starting to think about being off for an extra day or two.  Your mind is switching gears between work and what you need from the grocery store to make that all important dinner.  Or you may be far from home and stressing over the fact that you won’t see your family for the holidays this year.  Your focus is thinning out on work matters and tuning in on what you want to give your son or daughter for Christmas, Boxing Day, or Channukah.  You may be focusing in on trying to stay focused.

My stress is realizing that I will be driving both Monday and Tuesday of this week and that today I keep falling asleep with my fingers on the keys.  A nap may be in my plans for today…somewhere between making Koulourakia (cookies) and making sure I have the ingredients for Spanakopita (spinach and feta cheese pies), Pastitsio (macaroni and beef pies) and stuffing for the turkey.  Of course, I will be getting up on Wednesday and cooking all of the above.  Yes, it is a long drawn out process that even my father-in-law seems impressed.

So how do you get past these stressors and stay focused and organized in your next few days?

I, yes me, use a list system.  It consists of the dishes I want to make, with the grocery list; the house cleaning schedule so I can make sure it is cleaned before company arrives; the scheduled appointments I have to keep; the call sessions I can make while the cookies are baking.  Of course this is all for up until Tuesday afternoon.  Monday and Tuesday are both out of town, so Wednesday is my baking and cleaning day.  On Thursday, I will prep the turkey and put it in the oven; clean whatever is left to clean (like the kitchen again) and then if I’ve taken the time to stop and put up the tree I will decorate it while the turkey is cooking.

Hmm, I wonder when I will find time to buy a tree.

Staying organized during this stressful time of year will help you remain calm and centered.  You will enjoy the season if you can remind yourself that this is a time of year when you give of yourself only when you have taken care of yourself.

I was watching a few minutes of Joel Osteen one evening when I heard him say something truly enlightening.

He was talking about how it is written in the Word that you should love your neighbor the way you love yourself.  Of course, this is all paraphrased.  My point here is the same as his point.  You can not love others, care for others, help others until you love yourself.

You can feel better about yourself by letting go of the ‘junk’ in your lives.  The bad feelings only pull you down.  They do not feed happiness and joy into your life.  Your friends and family have their own ‘junk’ piled up in their lives.  If you let go of your sorrow, your pain, your feelings of low self worth and increase your feelings of joy, happiness and wonder at what is here in the world for you to see and contribute to then you are better prepared to meet your neighbor with love in your heart.

How does organizing come into this?  De-cluttering is the first stage of getting organized.  Recognition that you will feel better, less stressed once you have let go of the ‘junk’ in your lives you will begin to recognize that you can find things, know where things are and feel organized.

Try letting go of some of the clutter this season as you prepare for the holiday.  Whether your holiday is Christmas, Kwanzaa, Channukah, or other holdiay let go of the clutter and be thankful for what you have.  There is always someone who has nothing right around the corner.

I think if we remember that one little thing;  Be thankful for “but for the grace of God” there you could be also.