What is ADHD Time Blindness? | ADHD Tools for Time Management
““Lost time is never found again”. ”
Never was that truer than after the 6 hours I spent deep diving celebrity legal issues on YouTube this past Saturday night….I’m basically an expert on conservatorships now.
And I’m not saying that you shouldn’t treat yourself to getting lost in reading a book or your favorite hobby or binging a tv show or scrolling TikTok.
Where we ADHDers get into issues with time is when we get sucked into something that prevents us from doing other things we need to do as a mom, a business owner, and a human.
That’s why I wanted to discuss what ADHD time blindness is, how people with ADHD perceive time differently, and some tips for helping you better manage your time when your ADHD brain has other ideas.
What is ADHD Time Blindness?
Time blindness is generally defined as the inability to sense when time has passed and estimate the time needed to get something done.
Neurobiologists have come to believe that the ability to perceive and estimate time is linked to activity levels in the pre-frontal cortex of the brain. Studies, like the one I’ve linked in the episode description, have shown the pre-frontal cortex in those diagnosed with ADHD can have weaker structure and function.
And can you guess what else happens in the pre-frontal cortex???
Executive function.
Time management requires all kinds of executive function skills like organizing, focus, task switching, motivating yourself to start or finish a task and pulling yourself out of hyperfocus.
So while suffering from time blindness or struggling with time management aren’t diagnosing criteria for ADHD, it makes sense why so many of us with ADHD struggle with time management.
ADHD Time Perception
Another contributor to our ADHD time battles relates to how we perceive time.
Dr. Russell Barkley describes how people with ADHD split time into 2 categories…”Now”, meaning what is currently on our radar because it is what is due, what interests us, or what we need in the immediate future. And “Not Now”, meaning what is beyond our radar or what is happening in the future that we tell ourselves we don’t need to worry about at this moment, even if it’s important or necessary.
You may have heard or read the term “time horizon” which describes how close a future task or event needs to get before our ADHD brains moves it from the “Now” category to the “Not Now” category. In other words, we often wait to take action, even on something we want to do or feel passionate about, until it becomes absolutely necessary or maybe even too late.
This also helps us to understand why those of us with ADHD struggle so much with goal setting and planning.
I’m reminded of a yearly planning workshop I attended several years ago as part of a very expensive business coaching program I was a part of (and before my ADHD diagnosis)….
When I described the struggles I was having coming up with the numbers and marketing plans, I was called out by the coach for making excuses and not trying hard enough. I was absolutely mortified.
Because I was trying and I did want to do the work, I just couldn’t wrap my brain around thinking 3, 6, 10 months beyond where I was right now.
And I don’t fault this coach. She didn’t know I had ADHD because I didn’t know I had ADHD.
But it is definitely an experience that influenced my desire to work with ADHD populations. I wanted to provide them with a tool kit to help them understand how to work with their unique ADHD brains rather than trying fit that square peg into round, neurotypical hole.
ADHD Time Blindness Hacks
Speaking of tool kits, I want to wrap up with some ways you can help to support your ADHD brain when it comes to time management, time perception, and time blindness.
And thanks to the discovery of neuroplasticity, we realize that we can change or rewire our brains at any age with daily experiences.
You may have heard the phrase “neurons that fire together, wire together” which means the more often you practice a stimulus, the stronger the neural connections in your brain become.
In other words, you don’t have to accept that you’re lacking in time management skills or that your time blindness gets in the way of your progress.
And sure, ADHD time management strategies may look a bit different than those for a neurotypical brain, but that’s OK. If it means that you can feel more confident, feel more productive, or meet the goals you’re setting for yourself, does it really matter that you got there a different way?
With that said, here are 9 actions you can take to help combat ADHD time blindness…
1. Time yourself so you know how much time a task takes. Then plan blocks for those tasks in future based on those times.
2. Create a playlist for a certain length of time (like or 60 minutes) to play during your work session or activity. When the music stops, so do you.
3. Try the Pomodoro Technique. This is when you work in short, timed segments (usually 25 minutes) followed by a 5 minute break. Repeat this process times for a complete sesion.
4. Set reminders and/or alarms to signal the end of your work session or activity. Maybe use a different sound or ringtone than your usual wake up alarm or cell phone ringtone.
5. Schedule to-do list items on your calendar with a clear beginning and end time. It can also help to schedule a non-negotiable activity following so you HAVE TO stop.
6. Add in margin time around different activities to allow for overflow and transition to the next activity or work session.
7. Use analog clocks to help you see the passage of time.
8. Identify what distracts you or sucks your time. When you know what the problem is, it is much easier to start brainstorming a solution.
9. Find accountability. Ask a friend or family member to check in on your to make sure you stop at the time you want. Or have an ADHD accountability coach like me check in. 😉
It may take a little while for you to find your groove but I promise things can get better if you struggle with ADHD time issues.
And if you still feel like you’re flailing and failing to get everything together, I would love to help! My ADHD coaching clients meet with me weekly to discuss what they have planned for the week. We assign times to work on these tasks or projects based and then I follow up to check in on their progress.
If you’d like me to help you figure out your priority tasks each week so you can finally follow through and reach your goals, click the button below to sign up for a free, no-obligation call with me to discuss how I can support you.
