With my ADHD, self-care doesn’t look much like meditation

At times, my ADHD can be stressful. I often have a hard time filtering out everything around me — especially when I have high-priority tasks staring right at me. This turns into a common cycle where my symptoms of ADHD cause me to feel stressed and anxious. And this cycle has made me realize that for me, self-care will look different.

Health care providers have suggested I practice meditation, sit in silence, or simply do nothing for at least 10–15 minutes a day. These practices didn’t work for me for a number of reasons. See, when I’m overwhelmed, noise and movement are helpful. My noise-loving brain can’t handle complete silence, and my body doesn’t respond well to being still. Plus finding the time to meditate in my fast-paced work environment was extraordinarily difficult.

Then one day I got an idea.

I remember feeling unmotivated at work one day. I had a 30-minute break and decided to give meditation a try — but with a twist. So, I took out my noise-canceling headphones and listened to songs with a stimulating beat. I minimized my work tabs and sat there, staring at the wall and bobbing my head to the beat.

To my surprise, the tension in my body eased up a bit. It was like a mini-vacation for my brain, and my body appreciated it. Without much effort, I finally found…