Mine:
- Learn a second language and keep up with the language your parents speak. You will regret being a brat about not wanting to speak this language especially as your family members pass.
- The only opinions about you that really matter are from the people you respect and who respect you back
- Being a kind humble person, who leads their political convictions with curiosity and not self righteousness is important. As that one person said: “I am no hero and neither are you.”
- Don’t throw out your old media (mix cds, tapes, records, photos, zinee, etc) because you think they’re embarrassing. They either will not be embarrassing later or they will become expensive and you can tell them for mad bucks.
Don’t get too attached to anything.
Don’t let your curiosity fade
Maintain open minded compassion for those different from you
Never be fully convinced you understand the best way to do anything
In disputes between the affected and the unaffected give added weight to the most affected
Learn to recognize a moral panic, and even if you have concerns related to it don’t join in. It’s the group dynamic equivalent of spiraling and catastrophizing.
Don’t drink your calories unless you want to gain weight
Does anyone have advice specific to adhd or neurodivergence in general? Things you found helped you that took time to realise?
Be honest with yourself about your social battery. If a friend wants to watch a movie I try and tell them if I’m Down to hang and watch a movie so long as it’s okay that I don’t give it my undivided attention (aka are we gonna watch a slapstick comedy where I can check my phone or draw while watching or are we putting on Schindler’s list).
Being honest with my friends and partner as to where my focusing levels are at has saved a lot of conflict and has made people feel more respected (from what they’ve told me!)
Exercise and eating right actually do help. It’s just really hard to do without meds for me
It seems obvious now, but it took me too long to realize I don’t have issues focusing on things, I just have a hard time focusing on things I’m not interested in. I was a terrible student in grade school and took some time off after I graduated before going to university. That time away allowed me to mature and gain the discipline I needed to get through the stuff I wasn’t interested in. I then breezed through my major because I loved it.
Don’t spend as much energy on trying to improve the things that you’re bad at. Figure out your strengths and lean into them.
If you have ADHD, get medicated. While it’s no replacement for good habits, it makes starting those good habits SO much easier. I wish I had started taking it 15 years sooner.
If you also have ASD, a lot of people aren’t going to understand you. The way you view the world is different. Be kind and be true to yourself and you’ll meet lots of people who appreciate your difference.
Spending time being doing nothing actually helps your focus later, boredom is good for you and actually promotes creativity.
Don’t multitask, you’ll just end up half-assing every task.
If you have the means, see a psychologist who specializes working with people who are neurodivergent. It will greatly improve your communication skills. If you’re in a serious relationship, get couples counseling even if things are going great. This will help you break down any communication barriers before they have the opportunity to become resentment.
I could keep adding to this list, but having an exercise routine is probably one of the best things I did to improve my focus. Plus I also get the long term health benefits of strength training.
These are good.
Dont do any drugs harder then psychedelics. But especially dont do opiates and benzos. I would rate opiates, besides, and alcohol as the worst drugs to use.
Yes I am an alcoholic, but I avoided the other two. Honestly wish i had access to clean cocaine because id probably prefer that over drinking. Saving opiates for my elder years because im sure I will be hurting alot by then and will need them.
However, its your body. You choose. Heck the rules. Isn’t it obvious the rules never mattered? Some think it is a recent phenomenon, but we are only being publicly informed. it has always been true. Oh the slaves are free? Guess they are prisoners now (slaves).
Don’t buy your wife a wide vase. Just get her a normal sized one. Otherwise you’ll have to buy twice as many flowers for the rest of your marriage.
There’s usually more than 1 way to do something.
Sometimes people get caught up on wanting to do it the best way, and then they just dont do it at all.
If there’s an easier, less ideal, maybe slightly more wasteful way to do something, and its the difference between doing it or not, just do it that way and dont get hung up on perfection if the alternative is not getting it done.
If its something that needs to be built into a habit, it might be enough to get you started, and then maybe you can move on to the better way in the future.
Edit: just to clarify, often times the outcome is the same but people get caught up on the how vs just getting it done. Don’t get caught up on the best how if there’s another way that’ll also work that you will find easier to do.
It’s way easier getting in shape young. Don’t put it off.
Educate yourself, and question everything. No one is worth following blindly. If you don’t understand the “why” of something, keep digging until you do. Critically thinking is the most valuable skill you can have, so develop it as much as you can.
Never, ever stop asking why
If I could offer you only one tip for the future, Sunscreen would be it
1.) If you think you’d be happier living somewhere else, start putting things into motion now. Moving is hard, but it’s harder when you’re older.
2.) If you’re depressed, working out will not make your depression worse. It’s supposed to help. Give it a shot. Don’t forget.
3.) Don’t have kids.
4.) Don’t date people that you think are dumb, even if they’re incredibly attractive.
Absolutely second the don’t have kids. Best decision I made in life.
Keep learning new things.
Learn cursive and develop your own handwriting.
Writing down things physically makes learning way easier. And keeps your brain young - because, there is a reason why dementia is hitting some people in their 40s.Edit: brush your teeth and floss every day. If you don’t like to floss every day get a water flosser for those days.
Cursive as a primary concern and dental hygiene as an afterthought? Hot take…
If you learn cursive poorly enough, then you can pose as your own doctor, and get all the medicine you need. It just makes sense.
Keeping your mind young is primary concern.
Dental hygiene you should already have.
I don’t know about number four my friend. I was going through some of my old CD cases of that long ago and there’s more than a few that I deeply regret.
Hah fair enough !
My advice:
-
Don’t trust the advice of generations that have left a world worse that they were born into.
-
-
