Thoroughly ADHD
I'm Alex Delmar, a certified ADHD coach and person with ADHD. I'm here to share what I've learned so other people with ADHD can enjoy better lives!
Thoroughly ADHD
Your ADHD doesn't mean you're doomed to live in chaos.
Struggling with clutter and chaos as an ADHD adult? You're not alone—and it doesn't have to stay that way.
Most organizing advice simply doesn't work for ADHD brains. We need strategies that acknowledge our need for stimulation, our inconsistent focus, and our unique processing styles. That's why traditional cleaning methods often leave us frustrated rather than fulfilled.
This episode unpacks practical, ADHD-tailored approaches to tackling messy spaces without overwhelming yourself. From turning cleaning into a game (yes, wearing a belly dancing skirt while vacuuming counts!) to strategically organizing cleaning sessions with clear stopping points, these methods work with your neurodivergent brain rather than against it.
You'll learn essential rules for ADHD-friendly cleaning: ensuring you can pause without creating more chaos, starting with quick wins like clearing dishes and trash, and properly labeling sorted items so you can seamlessly resume later. I share specific techniques for approaching overwhelming spaces, including the category method (perfect when you have limited time) and the zone method (ideal for visible progress).
The key insight? Even small, consistent improvements add up over time. You don't need to transform your entire living space in one marathon session. Instead, clear manageable areas, maintain what you've accomplished, and gradually expand your efforts.
Whether you have five minutes or five hours to dedicate to organizing, these strategies can help you create meaningful change in your environment—without the shame, guilt, or frustration that often accompanies cleaning with ADHD. Subscribe, follow, or like to catch next Tuesday's episode, where I'll dive into how to maintain the progress you've made and prevent backsliding into chaos.
You might be here because you're struggling with keeping your things in order, or maybe your space feels completely out of control, with stuff piled on every surface and you risk a sprained ankle every time you walk across the room. Hey, people with ADHD tend to be messy. In the old days, before we did everything online, I had papers strewn everywhere, and I'll never forget the happy surprise when my friend Elizabeth got into Tulane, despite using an application, she found on my bedroom floor with the clear imprint of a sneaker on it. Welcome to Thoroughly ADHD. I'm Alex Delmar, a certified life coach and person with ADHD. I'm here to share what I've learned to help other people with ADHD enjoy better lives, no matter how messy your environment is. Right now, there is hope for you to improve it, but you probably have to make accommodations for your ADHD brain. Remember you do much better with tasks that are interesting or important to you, fun or urgent. So while you clean up, play your favorite music, try to beat a timer, have a friend, keep you company, make a game out of it or even plan a future get-together at your place of it. Or even plan a future get-together at your place. If you live with others, everyone can compete to see who can get all of their things out of the shared spaces the fastest. Be creative. I used to wear a belly dancing skirt to vacuum or dust because it was so pretty and the jingling sound made everything more fun. And where else was I going to wear it?
Speaker 1:In order to straighten up a space, I follow a few general rules. First, no matter what your method, you must be able to abandon the project at a moment's notice without causing any more chaos than when you began. Second, always start with bringing any dirty dishes or food items to the kitchen and then throw away all the trash. Third, if you decide to sort items instead of putting them away immediately, you have to clearly label the groups right away, like tape, a sign on the wall. This is so you don't mix them up mid-cleanup and so that if you walk away for the day or the month, you can just pick up right where you left off. If everything doesn't already have a place where it belongs, you have to figure that out before you can successfully tidy up. For tips on how to do that, you can listen to last week's episode of Thoroughly ADHD titled Everything in Its Place If you don't have enough closet space or bureau drawers to put everything away. You can use stackable bins or even cardboard boxes, but remember to group similar items together and to clearly label the containers If you're starting underwater and you have a huge amount of stuff to pick up.
Speaker 1:There are some strategies that I think work especially well for people with ADHD, because they are adjustable for different amounts of time or energy levels and they have clear stopping points. One method is to choose a class of things and pick up just those items. The shorter the block of time you have available, the narrower your focus should be. So if you have an hour or more, you could deal with all the clothes Half an hour, put away the clean clothes or, a few minutes, throw the dirty clothes in the hamper. When you've finished one type of item, you can choose to continue with a different one or not, but you've accomplished something.
Speaker 1:Another approach is to clean by zones. So clear the floor or pick a surface like a side table or countertop, and as you finish each zone you can decide to move on to another one or call it a day. After the surfaces are cleared off, you can start on drawers and shelves to clean out one at a time If you need to clear out a lot of clutter, have a box for things you are giving away and a big garbage bag for things that are no longer useful, and another bag, if you recycle, right next to where you are working. I like to start in one corner and work my way out so I can see a clear difference and don't get discouraged. But the important thing is that you are dealing with each item as it comes to hand and then, as you finish up for that day, immediately get all the trash and the donations out of the house.
Speaker 1:Whichever strategy you choose, the trick is to make sure any area you've tidied up stays in order, and I'll talk about how you might accomplish that in the next episode. After all, if you can maintain the area you've improved and don't add to the problem elsewhere, even if you only expand it a little bit each time you work on it, eventually you'll get everything done. After you have things put away, you can actually clean. If you have limited energy or time, focus on kitchens and bathrooms first and most frequently, and then I just go in order of whatever looks worst. If you're not sure what to do, there are a number of resources, such as Goblin Tools which will tell you the steps to clean something and the best order to do them. I'm Alex Delamar and this has been Thoroughly ADHD. I know your time is valuable, so I hope you found something useful here and that you'll like follow or subscribe, and that you'll come back next Tuesday when I'll talk about how you might maintain any progress you've made. Thank you.