Why ADHD People Are Not Selfish or Narcissistic
How an ADHD Person Makes a Present
You know that saying, “Don’t forget to stop and smell the roses”? About taking life in and enjoying things and stuff?
Well, I think having ADHD I am very good at that. But the thing is, someone with ADHD does not just stop and smell the roses. They stop, pick the blossoms, put them in a little wicker basket of their own making, take them home, watch 10 hours of YouTube videos on “How to Turn Your Simple Backyard Blossoms into Perfume,” follow steps in videos (skipping the ones that seem unnecessary), stir the pot, try not to burn themselves/set the house on fire, skip breakfast, lunch, dinner, eat chips and apples sporadically, continue this for a week until their perfume formulation does not smell like garbage, buy tiny fancy perfume bottles off Etsy (woulda made them themselves but haven’t gotten around to taking that glass blowing class yet), package everything away with really pretty ribbons, hide it in “super secret place” so no one finds these amazing presents before Christmas (even though you live alone), forget when Christmas is until day before Christmas, realize that sending a physical object by mail is not as fast as sending a text message, realize super awesome brilliant presents will not arrive on time, realize presents are shabby and foolish and nobody wants handmade stuff anyways, fall into the abyss of your eternal failure, not send anything out, cuz no one likes when you’re late, go to Christmas on the computer over Skype with everyone thinking you’re a selfish narcissist who didn’t even bother to sign a cheap dollar store card for the friends and family that have been there for your issues All Year Long, sit in the corner of your living room beside the Christmas tree you never finished decorating wishing you didn’t use up so much air and pretending your tears are ones of joy, wish you could have done something, something just this once, something conventional, but your very nature prohibits it, say goodbye, turn off the lights in your living room, wander to your bedroom in the dark, fall into your bed, stay in bed petrified, in the dark, holding the little perfume bottles you’re never gonna hand out. Open one, smell it, and be surprised at how well the perfume turned out. — The End
P.S. I don’t know if this is how you actually make perfume, it’s like a metaphor, and I’m not going to look it up cuz I’m gonna get sucked into that forever (cuz fascinating) and I promised a friend to do something and I’m already late…
Take-aways:
ADHD person: Know Thyself, Accept Thyself, Don’t Reject Thyself
Other person: Even if an ADHD person appears to be ignoring you, it’s often cuz they’re actually thinking deep thoughts about the Universe or even about you. It’s weird. I know. ADHD people care. A lot. About Everything.
I don’t know if I’m supposed to explain what all I was writing about in here or if it’s self-evident or what but if I must I would say that the whole piece is a metaphor for how hard an ADHD person works on their projects, how much they care about others, and how easily they fall into despair. (Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria anyone?) And also, how society’s expectations of linear time management can be so damaging to a person with ADHD.
So there you go, I’ve gone and explained my whole piece, my high school English teacher would be so Unproud. If she’s still alive that is. Unless one can still judge. Omnipresent Disapproval. #PerksFromTheOtherSide
If you want more shenanigans and real-life examples of what it feels like to live with ADHD, all the terms (okay, some of the terms), how ADHD brains think and deal, how on Earth to keep an ADHD person on task (hint: friendship), how to love someone with ADHD, (especially if it’s yourself) you can do so in ADHD Chronicles, link below.
Also, dear ADHD brains:
I know you, I see you, I understand you.
Thank you for reading.
