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Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

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Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#181

Post by rlemaitre »

Podgajski wrote: post #59

I read that whole thing and didn’t read one word about nutrition? I’ve come along way to understanding the nutritional metabolic pathways that may increase the symptoms of ADHD. Pyridoxine, or B6, is the most studied nutritional factor when it comes to reducing ADHD symptoms. I’m not saying this is the only cause of ADHD, but if this works other things might work as well. Zinc is a good possibility on the list also.…

Hi, author here,

Nutrition is very important indeed, but it has always been a problem for me. I wanted to focus on things I tried and worked on me. Of course, it's not perfect, but at least the points I listed made the things better for me. Everybody's different, so it's not a silver bullet, just my personal journey.

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#182

Post by danielbln »

Here's another hack: 10mg Methylphenidate. YMMV, but the alternative is a boat load of systems, routines, caffeine, which all may or may not work depending on how the day/week is going. Not a panacea to be sure, but for those adults with ADHD inattentive where dopamine deficiency impacts executive functioning it can be essential (and incredibly effective).

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#183

Post by autoexec »

disgruntledphd2 wrote: post #103
nonethewiser wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems likely to be a placebo. You have a vested interest in it working, admit its not based on any sort of science, and one of the setup steps is to overcome distraction (which is the problem that’s trying to be solved).

> Seems likely to be a placebo. You have a vested interest in it working, admit its not based on any sort of science, and one of the setup steps is to overcome distraction (which is the problem that’s trying to be solved). Fundamentally, if it works for the OP, who the hell cares? And how would you even double-blind test this anyway?

> And how would you even double-blind test this anyway?

Get lights that either start fast and slow down or blink at speeds that randomly change then use serial numbers to track which lights are which, but send them out at random to test subjects?

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#184

Post by navjack27 »

mathieuh wrote: post #92

I used to think I had some ADHD symptoms: growing up I never did any revision for any of my school exams until a couple of days before, all my coursework and projects were done last minute in a week of intense focus, I've had issues with drugs in the past etc. Then I met someone who actually has ADHD and saw them before they'd taken their stimulant drugs. They were completely nonfunctional in any sense of the word, t…

Yup! I wish more people who say they have ADHD could have that experience. If someone says they have ADHD but they are unmedicated and they already are holding down a decent job but are only recently kind of struggling with something they called distraction or issues with focus... Then I say they don't have ADHD because it's so much more than that. It is issues with actual executive function. It is being unable to put your shoes on because you can't keep a straight train of thought because someone else is distracting you and you can't help but following all those threads of distraction while you are trying to perform a manual task.

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#185

Post by imposter »

flir wrote: post #118
TheRealHB wrote: post #54

The Blinking LED, A simple Hack that still works for me after years: 1. Place a tiny LED (red or yellow) by the side of your monitor or virtually on the screen corner. Basically anywhere almost bordering your field of view. 2. Make it blink like a fast heartbeat (120-150 bpm) and gradually slowdown to around 60 bpm (or your slow heartbeat base). Make the slope approx 20 to 60 minutes (you can adjust the best rate by…

Intriguing. Wonder if sound would work also.

I used to hear to Hucci alot back in the day because most of his songs would hover around 60-70 BPM, I'd gather it was having a similar effect.

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#186

Post by enragedcacti »

_rqgx wrote: post #71

My therapist recently diagnosed me with ADHD. I strongly disagree with that diagnosis, and I realised I don't know what ADHD actually is and that the internet and this article haven't been of any help. I can relate to everything that this article says, but I suspect this is true of every single person with a mentally challenging job. HN is full of developers complaining about open offices and useless meetings; do all…

> HN is full of developers complaining about open offices and useless meetings; do all of them have ADHD? Otherwise, what's the difference between a ADHD developer and a regular developer?

Diagnostically speaking? The number of symptoms and the severity of those symptoms is basically it. Everyone will likely experience some of the symptoms of ADHD during their life. The co-occurence of those symptoms and the amount they affect your ability to function day-to-day is what makes the difference.

Some people will debate over how "real" ADHD is, where real means people with ADHD are a disjoint group and not just people on the very low end of the "ability to focus" bell curve. From my research I do believe it is "real", but that whether ADHD is "real" like sickle cell anemia is real or its just part of a normal bell curve doesn't really matter because society isn't going to adapt around you. If medication is what make the difference to maintain a normal life for some then that's probably a good thing that its available. If people who don't "really" have ADHD can learn strategies for focus and time management that's also a good thing.

> Dealing with those specific problems did much more than throwing my hands in the air and yelling "ADHD".

For a lot of people, dealing with their specific problems starts with recognizing what those problems are and identifying strategies to help. Diagnosing it gives validation that its something concrete you can work on, gives access to mental health professionals who can help you develop solutions, and creates a community of people all trying to solve similar problems.

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#187

Post by 93po »

FuckButtons wrote: post #164
pwillia7 wrote: post #56

This is great! So many people in the ADHD community don't dig in enough into the 'superpower' side of it, so I'm super glad you covered that here. We can't get rid of the bad parts so I think it's extra important to lean into the good parts too. I will also share this Historia Civilis video on the history of work, which really resonated with me as an ADHD person -- It's OK and even more 'natural' to have fast and slo…

I think many people in the adhd community don’t think it’s a superpower, which is why we don’t dig into that. As someone who was diagnosed later in life the profundity of what adhd has cost me cannot be overstated. It is not a superpower, it is my worst enemy.

Same. My adhd has made me a decent developer despite very much not wanting to do that sort of work. However it has absolutely destroyed my life and relationships and my ability to even sit down and get dev work done. I’m currently on my third “sabbatical” of my life because I’m incapable of working right now. I’ve been jobless close to three years of my adult life now - not because I was ever fired, but because I’m incapable of managing my adhd well enough to work. I’m trying extremely hard

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#188

Post by macNchz »

mathieuh wrote: post #92

I used to think I had some ADHD symptoms: growing up I never did any revision for any of my school exams until a couple of days before, all my coursework and projects were done last minute in a week of intense focus, I've had issues with drugs in the past etc. Then I met someone who actually has ADHD and saw them before they'd taken their stimulant drugs. They were completely nonfunctional in any sense of the word, t…

My wife has a copy of the DSM 5 on our bookshelf, and flipping through it I noted that very many disorders have diagnostic criteria that, beyond just having some symptoms, they cause significant distress or impairment of functioning.

I had a friend growing up who was diagnosed with ADHD quite young whose experience was similar to your story–he had major issues with school that ultimately led to him being expelled, not going to college, having trouble with work and family etc. I thought of him a lot as so many of my classmates in a hyper-competitive school environment discussed how they could get a diagnosis and medication to have an edge on college admissions or whatever.

Re: Hacking ADHD: Strategies for the modern developer

#189

Post by ShamelessC »

Cthulhu_ wrote: post #148
ShamelessC wrote: post #62

I love how this community has such a disproportionate number of people who have ADHD. It's almost like programming is actually just incredibly difficult to pay attention to for any normal human being and the field is competitive enough that people basically have to find a way to get a prescription for stimulants. (Honestly not trying to discredit anyone actually suffering from ADHD, just seem implausible to me that s…

To make it broader, neurodiverse conditions, autism spectrum being the other one; no surprise there's a lot of overlap between ADHD and ASD when it comes to some of the symptoms.

That honestly just isn't a stereotype I see play out in reality aside from the sort of "pop" coders like Carmack and Stallman. Like I've met neurodiverse coders, but in roughly the same proportion as I meet neurodiverse folks in other facets of life.
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