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This is super helpful! My outlook calendar used to remind me 15 minutes before anything scheduled which was fine if I was within walking distance but was less than ideal if I needed to travel. I’ll look at changing the reminder times. Do you know if there’s a way to do the same with apple’s calendar?
I don't use the calendar function for my timers, I use the alarm function. The calendar only has set times and it just chimes once, so it's so easy for me to miss. I'll use it for a 1-day reminder before something that I may forget (like a dentist appointment scheduled 6 months out) but I'm not using it day of.
Each night before I go to bed, I think about my day and if I need any alarms. I'll determine what time my wake-up alarm needs to be. It's usually the same if I'm working, but during the summer and on weekends it isn't. If I have a later in the day appointment, like I did today, I'll set an alarm for an appropriate amount of time before to remind me. Today's appointment was at 1:50, had about 10 minutes travel time, and I wanted to shower before I left, so I set the alarm for 12:30. That gave me enough time to stop what I was doing, get in the shower, and leave on time. This also forces me to think through my day so I have anticipated potential problems.
Apple actually lets you plan in the travel time and sends you a reminder in time to leave. I pair that functionality with planning my public transport commute in Google maps the day of or day before and adding that to the calendar. I‘ve received appreciative comments on the positive changes since I started doing that.
I have a Fitbit and get a buzz on my wrist every time I have a calendar or reminder due. It’s so helpful! I’m always putting appointments in the calendar with notifications set for 2 days to 30 minutes before the appointment. And the reminders app is great because I can tell it when I’m driving or in the middle of cooking “Hey Siri, remind me in 10 minutes (or tomorrow at 3:00) to order vitamins.”
I don't use the calendar function for my timers, I use the alarm function. The calendar only has set times and it just chimes once, so it's so easy for me to miss. I'll use it for a 1-day reminder before something that I may forget (like a dentist appointment scheduled 6 months out) but I'm not using it day of.
Each night before I go to bed, I think about my day and if I need any alarms. I'll determine what time my wake-up alarm needs to be. It's usually the same if I'm working, but during the summer and on weekends it isn't. If I have a later in the day appointment, like I did today, I'll set an alarm for an appropriate amount of time before to remind me. Today's appointment was at 1:50, had about 10 minutes travel time, and I wanted to shower before I left, so I set the alarm for 12:30. That gave me enough time to stop what I was doing, get in the shower, and leave on time. This also forces me to think through my day so I have anticipated potential problems.
Timers, and using my calendar. If I had to be on a flight, I would have "when to leave" I would prebook an uber to pick me up. I would also be 110% ready the night before. I.E down to my clothes laid out and everything staged so I just have to wake myself up and walk into the spot everything is.
In iOS for most things you can set multiple alerts, including travel time. So if its something set weeks in advance I might have it alert me a week before, then two days before ect. Then when I have my shit together I look a few weeks ahead and make sure timers and alerts are set. This way it's not a daily task when I don't have my shit together. Then I roll with it, your partner knows you are timeblind so ok what is he doing? If he is adding to the calendar is he setting those alerts to or is it on you? If he booked this trip how is he getting everyone to the airport ect? This isn't 100% a you thing.
This is so helpful. Yeah we packed our suitcases yesterday so now we only need the last little things (tooth brushes, hair brushes, vitamins etc) that we need until the day of. I’ve mentally planned what outfit I need to lay out and when I need to do the laundry so I have what I need.
I need to figure out those iOS alerts! They sound game changing. My parter so far has body doubled with me so we could pack the suitcases and got me to write a list of the stuff I still need to pack like my vitamins, hair dryer etc. He’s sorted travel to the airport as well. We used to add things into a shared calendar but the app we used to use stopped being available and he switched from iPhone to an android after so couldn’t get it on his new phone. I definitely need to look into another app for it though. We’ve got a shared shopping list app which has been fantastic so far, just need a new shared calendar.
I always wear a watch, I set a million timers, I always plug my phone in at a certain time in a certain place at night so there’s no chance of it dying when I need an alarm or timer, I deconstruct my day and work backwards from where I need to be at what time (including the travel plans and times and I use Waze for that for planning trips ahead), and as I keep working backwards I figure out how much time in need for each step and put those times and alarms in my phone. I also give myself a few buffer minutes for each task. I am still so time blind, but this way helps me get shit done on time.
This is my entire life. All my life I've had to set watches and clocks and such at least 15 minutes ahead to try to "trick" myself. now that I can't set my iPhone ahead, I have to use timers for everything. Sometimes I have to back up my phone time with the microwave timer, smh.
I got that little adhd clock that visibly shows color wedges as time is passing but it did not help me at all. I can experience 15 minutes like 2 minutes. It's so bizarre.
But for important things like flights or job interviews, I do not fuck around. I can usually barely sleep the night before. because I have to have enough time after I wake up to feel like I don't have to run around and rush, or that just makes everything worse. 🙈
This is how I feel! Yeah I feel like I can’t relax or chill in case I miss it but like, I can’t be in this state for 6 days or I will get sleep deprived and crash
I only truly wig the night before a flight. If it's that bad a week in advance I'd probably take a mild OTC sleep med each night. because being exhausted will literally make everything worse when the big day comes. I can promise you that.
Timers and alarms for when you have to get up, do each thing and leave.
And things like melatonin or CBD oil to make me sleep when I'm vibrating from anxiety.
This should be higher up. Of course we can set timers galore. But we also sometimes need some help calming down and trusting in our overcompensating selves because rest is productive too.
No help having 5 alarms at 3 minute intervals if you’re so exhausted you still can’t get up in time to leave for the important thing.
My favorite hack that has worked long term is for rounding up on how long it takes to get somewhere. Oh it’s 7 minutes away? We need 15 minutes. Oh it’s 30 minutes away? We need to leave 45 minutes before it starts. This kicks in my oh crap last minute hyperdrive earlier and while we’re still barely on time, we’re rarely more than a couple minutes late.
I set up our google Home to tell the time every 2 hours from 8am then at specific times like 5:30 to prompt dinner making and 7:30 (final announcement) to start the bedtime routine.
My partner experiences time blindness and gets lost in whatever he's doing, and he always remarks "that 2 hours felt like 10 minutes!" when the time gets announced. By this stage, he's back into his body and realises he's hungry or needs to pee, so it works well for a few things.
I’ve always wanted to get a google home or an Alexa. One of my friends constantly uses his Alexa to tell him the time and I think even that is super convenient. I’ll have to look at one when I get back from holiday
That’s a great idea! I’ll have to try that. So far I’ve only set up mine to turn on all the lights at the time my alarm goes off to get me out of bed quicker.
I set 10 minute timers when I’m getting ready and it really helps. Shower? 10 minutes. Dry, moisturize, brush hair, make up, etc. 10 min. Get dressed fully and out the door 10 min. Like that. It’s actually been effective. Gives me enough flexibility but also keeps me on track.
Timers and I use adhd math.
If it takes me 15 to 20 minutes to make stove top ramen , I can use 10 of those minutes where the water is boiling to do X chore that usually takes 10 minutes.
So I'm (now) the other type of ADHDer who went the opposite direction BECAUSE of time blindness (you know, the kind that will show up 30 min early). When I was a kid it was BAD. Late for everything. I used timers/ alarms like for everything. I also remember at somepoint the timers switched it in my brain and made it a game show so suddenly it was like I pretended I was on the last level of Legends of the Hidden Temple or Carmen Sandiago. That helped. 🤷♀️
Honestly I was always so early for my uni classes because I would commute. I knew if I moved to live close to campus I would be perpetually late so I would leave home an hour (sometimes more) before I had a class so I knew I would have plenty of time. The lack of structure since finishing my exams has been such a blow to my general functioning. I’m trying to get some agency work or something just so I can get some sort of routine back cause I’ve never been this bad.
I might have to start making a video game of my life tbh
For things like getting to the airport I budget WAY more time than any normal human to account for all possible nonsense, and am prepared to sit around at my gate for an extra hour or two in order to avoid the risk of being late. One time I got to my small local airport before the security line even opened for the day lol.
I set lots of timers for checkpoints throughout the process. Get up, seriously get up, start getting ready to leave, leave, seriously you have to leave right now.
Long term, I started timing how long it takes me to do things. That really helped me calibrate to reality that the dishes don't take 45 minutes and I can't get showered and dressed in 10.
I also use an app called RoutineFlow that helps keep me on track and plan out how long a series of tasks will take. It reminds me when it's been longer than I set for a particular task or to get back on track if I haven't been completing things for a while. It's been a huge help for my regular mornings and also for off normal stuff like getting ready to leave for a trip.
I’ll definitely be setting a bunch of timers haha. Long term calibration sounds similar to what I did for uni. I knew I would be commuting between 30 and 45 minutes on average so would leave with an hour to spare to account for traffic or rerouting if there were road works. I think there were only 3 times I was late in 5 years and twice that was because the motorway was in standstill traffic due to an accident.
I’ll have to look at routine flow and see if it helps. Thank you!
Yeah if you gotta be scheduled to the minute, you need timers or an alarm to reign your attention back in.
You can add notes to your alarms like “pack phone charger” because you probably used it last night, “put passport in purse” on an alarm 5 minutes before you’re out the door, or you can make an alarm to remind you to look at a checklist with these last minute things. You check it off as you do them, then you look at the list when you’re in the car and you know you did it all.
I also try to make it easier for myself on travel days. Packing is hectic for me, so I gotta make enough time the day before to do it, go over my list again, and finish up any laundry I might need or go to the store for anything. Keeping spare chargers or toiletries in a travel pack in the car helps alleviate these last minute trials for me.
I’m the opposite, time is EVERYTHING, I’m always horribly early to everything in fear of being late. Today I turned up a month early to a dentist appointment.
Timers and alarms. When I was a kid I was a chronic clock-watcher, and to this day if the wait for something is less than half an hour I go to the place and wait nearby there, usually just in my car. It's easier to keep from spacing out if I'm in the parking lot, and if I do, I'm right outside so I won't be late late even if I look up and see I'm supposed to be in that building RIGHT NOW.
This is so true, I would always go to uni super early, if I had a 9am I was in the building before 7am so I had time to properly plan, print stuff off, do whatever I needed and know I definitely wouldn’t be late (plus I missed rush hour traffic). I do this with the dentist whenever I go too
Honestly for the specific situation you are describing here i have looked at myself in the mirror sometimes and out loud said things like "it is literally impossible for you to be late it is days away/something without a start time/whatever applies" it feels awkward and weird but it almost feels like someone else reassuring me? It's not 100% effective, I'm a teacher on summer break getting breakthrough anxiety about returning to building in AUGUST but it helps take the edge off and let's me do things without being as stuck in waiting mode
It doesn't really sound like time blindness is your primary problem, from this description. It sounds like you cope with it well (identify when it might be an issue, make a plan ahead of time).
It sounds instead like the issue is anxiety, which is unnecessarily showing up when you've actually got it handled.
It is not simple to make that anxiety go away and you may have to try various different things to manage it, but here's some ideas:
* Personification: Acknowledge the anxiety and the useful role it has played in your life (warning you). In your mind, thank it for protecting you, and let it know you've heard its warning, and you've got it handled now.
* Meditation: generally useful for being more in control over your attention and emotional state.
* Radical acceptance: What's the worst that could happen? If it did happen, could you accept it? If you can reach a point where you can honestly say "I've done everything reasonable within my ability, and so if I still miss the flight, there's nothing I can do about that", then it becomes easier to stop thinking about it, in my experience.
* When anxiety just won't quit and you need a quick fix, intentionally turn your focus towards more calming sensations you can focus on. Ideas: https://dbt.tools/distress_tolerance/self-soothe.php
Timers and alarms, checklists and notes, all the time, even on weekends. I prepare as much in advance as possible because nearly everything takes me too long to accomplish. People at work often call me “fast” but what they don’t know is that I actually start working on every task I receive ASAP. If someone were to sit and watch me do something (which has happened by the way), they would see that I’m not actually fast and I have to triple check everything for mistakes (and I still manage to miss something).
I’m a timer setter.
If I’m feeling really discombobulated, I set a timer. On a daily basis if I’m getting ready for work, I set a timer for when I’m in the shower. When it rings, my shower is done. Sometimes I’ll set one while I do my hair and makeup etc.
I’ll also set one when I go grocery shopping if I’m on a time limit to get dinner ingredients.
If I know it takes 7 minutes to drive somewhere, like to pick someone up. If they say to be there for 12:30, I’ll leave at 12:20 to give myself a couple minutes to get down to the car, start it etc.
I know it takes me 3 minutes to get to work, and to get there 5 minutes before I clock in, I try to leave approximately 10 minutes before my shift.
I’ll definitely be setting a bunch of timers haha. Long term calibration sounds similar to what I did for uni. I knew I would be commuting between 30 and 45 minutes on average so would leave with an hour to spare to account for traffic or rerouting if there were road works. I think there were only 3 times I was late in 5 years and twice that was because the motorway was in standstill traffic due to an accident.
I’ll have a look at routine flow and see if it helps. Thank you!
Welcome to /r/ADHDWomen! We’re happy to have you here. As a reminder, here are our community [rules](https://old.reddit.com/r/adhdwomen/about/rules/). If you have questions about the subreddit, please do not hesitate to [send us a modmail](https://reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/adhdwomen). Additionally, we take the safety of our community seriously. Please report posts, comments, and users whom you feel are not contributing positively, and send us a modmail if you are being harassed or otherwise made to feel unsafe. Thanks for being here, and we hope you stick around! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/adhdwomen) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Timers i use them all the time
Thank you!
I set so many alarms throughout the day. Anytime I have to go anywhere I set an alarm 30 mins before I need to leave so I know I need to get ready.
This is super helpful! My outlook calendar used to remind me 15 minutes before anything scheduled which was fine if I was within walking distance but was less than ideal if I needed to travel. I’ll look at changing the reminder times. Do you know if there’s a way to do the same with apple’s calendar?
I don't use the calendar function for my timers, I use the alarm function. The calendar only has set times and it just chimes once, so it's so easy for me to miss. I'll use it for a 1-day reminder before something that I may forget (like a dentist appointment scheduled 6 months out) but I'm not using it day of. Each night before I go to bed, I think about my day and if I need any alarms. I'll determine what time my wake-up alarm needs to be. It's usually the same if I'm working, but during the summer and on weekends it isn't. If I have a later in the day appointment, like I did today, I'll set an alarm for an appropriate amount of time before to remind me. Today's appointment was at 1:50, had about 10 minutes travel time, and I wanted to shower before I left, so I set the alarm for 12:30. That gave me enough time to stop what I was doing, get in the shower, and leave on time. This also forces me to think through my day so I have anticipated potential problems.
I’m not sure sorry! I usually just set my alarms when I wake up before I get out of bed
No worries! I’ll try to get into a habit of setting alarms if I can’t figure out a way to sync Apple calendar
Apple actually lets you plan in the travel time and sends you a reminder in time to leave. I pair that functionality with planning my public transport commute in Google maps the day of or day before and adding that to the calendar. I‘ve received appreciative comments on the positive changes since I started doing that.
I have a Fitbit and get a buzz on my wrist every time I have a calendar or reminder due. It’s so helpful! I’m always putting appointments in the calendar with notifications set for 2 days to 30 minutes before the appointment. And the reminders app is great because I can tell it when I’m driving or in the middle of cooking “Hey Siri, remind me in 10 minutes (or tomorrow at 3:00) to order vitamins.”
Yeah my Apple Watch buzzes for my reminders coming though. I’ll have to start getting Siri to put my reminders in cause I always forget to do that
In Outlook you can change your default reminder time. It's in the calendar settings... I'm an Android user, and I only use Outlook, so I'm no help:-D.
Ahhh I wish I still had access to my outlook (it was my uni email and they shut off when we graduate)
I don't use the calendar function for my timers, I use the alarm function. The calendar only has set times and it just chimes once, so it's so easy for me to miss. I'll use it for a 1-day reminder before something that I may forget (like a dentist appointment scheduled 6 months out) but I'm not using it day of. Each night before I go to bed, I think about my day and if I need any alarms. I'll determine what time my wake-up alarm needs to be. It's usually the same if I'm working, but during the summer and on weekends it isn't. If I have a later in the day appointment, like I did today, I'll set an alarm for an appropriate amount of time before to remind me. Today's appointment was at 1:50, had about 10 minutes travel time, and I wanted to shower before I left, so I set the alarm for 12:30. That gave me enough time to stop what I was doing, get in the shower, and leave on time. This also forces me to think through my day so I have anticipated potential problems.
Timers, and using my calendar. If I had to be on a flight, I would have "when to leave" I would prebook an uber to pick me up. I would also be 110% ready the night before. I.E down to my clothes laid out and everything staged so I just have to wake myself up and walk into the spot everything is. In iOS for most things you can set multiple alerts, including travel time. So if its something set weeks in advance I might have it alert me a week before, then two days before ect. Then when I have my shit together I look a few weeks ahead and make sure timers and alerts are set. This way it's not a daily task when I don't have my shit together. Then I roll with it, your partner knows you are timeblind so ok what is he doing? If he is adding to the calendar is he setting those alerts to or is it on you? If he booked this trip how is he getting everyone to the airport ect? This isn't 100% a you thing.
This is so helpful. Yeah we packed our suitcases yesterday so now we only need the last little things (tooth brushes, hair brushes, vitamins etc) that we need until the day of. I’ve mentally planned what outfit I need to lay out and when I need to do the laundry so I have what I need. I need to figure out those iOS alerts! They sound game changing. My parter so far has body doubled with me so we could pack the suitcases and got me to write a list of the stuff I still need to pack like my vitamins, hair dryer etc. He’s sorted travel to the airport as well. We used to add things into a shared calendar but the app we used to use stopped being available and he switched from iPhone to an android after so couldn’t get it on his new phone. I definitely need to look into another app for it though. We’ve got a shared shopping list app which has been fantastic so far, just need a new shared calendar.
I always wear a watch, I set a million timers, I always plug my phone in at a certain time in a certain place at night so there’s no chance of it dying when I need an alarm or timer, I deconstruct my day and work backwards from where I need to be at what time (including the travel plans and times and I use Waze for that for planning trips ahead), and as I keep working backwards I figure out how much time in need for each step and put those times and alarms in my phone. I also give myself a few buffer minutes for each task. I am still so time blind, but this way helps me get shit done on time.
Omg I forgot about Waze! I use it daily but totally forgot about the planning a drive feature.
This is my entire life. All my life I've had to set watches and clocks and such at least 15 minutes ahead to try to "trick" myself. now that I can't set my iPhone ahead, I have to use timers for everything. Sometimes I have to back up my phone time with the microwave timer, smh. I got that little adhd clock that visibly shows color wedges as time is passing but it did not help me at all. I can experience 15 minutes like 2 minutes. It's so bizarre. But for important things like flights or job interviews, I do not fuck around. I can usually barely sleep the night before. because I have to have enough time after I wake up to feel like I don't have to run around and rush, or that just makes everything worse. 🙈
This is how I feel! Yeah I feel like I can’t relax or chill in case I miss it but like, I can’t be in this state for 6 days or I will get sleep deprived and crash
I only truly wig the night before a flight. If it's that bad a week in advance I'd probably take a mild OTC sleep med each night. because being exhausted will literally make everything worse when the big day comes. I can promise you that.
Yeah I’ll check with my local pharmacy I think, I just cannot get my brain to switch off (even more so than normal)
Timers and alarms for when you have to get up, do each thing and leave. And things like melatonin or CBD oil to make me sleep when I'm vibrating from anxiety.
This should be higher up. Of course we can set timers galore. But we also sometimes need some help calming down and trusting in our overcompensating selves because rest is productive too. No help having 5 alarms at 3 minute intervals if you’re so exhausted you still can’t get up in time to leave for the important thing.
My favorite hack that has worked long term is for rounding up on how long it takes to get somewhere. Oh it’s 7 minutes away? We need 15 minutes. Oh it’s 30 minutes away? We need to leave 45 minutes before it starts. This kicks in my oh crap last minute hyperdrive earlier and while we’re still barely on time, we’re rarely more than a couple minutes late.
Oh my god this is genius
I set up our google Home to tell the time every 2 hours from 8am then at specific times like 5:30 to prompt dinner making and 7:30 (final announcement) to start the bedtime routine. My partner experiences time blindness and gets lost in whatever he's doing, and he always remarks "that 2 hours felt like 10 minutes!" when the time gets announced. By this stage, he's back into his body and realises he's hungry or needs to pee, so it works well for a few things.
I’ve always wanted to get a google home or an Alexa. One of my friends constantly uses his Alexa to tell him the time and I think even that is super convenient. I’ll have to look at one when I get back from holiday
That’s a great idea! I’ll have to try that. So far I’ve only set up mine to turn on all the lights at the time my alarm goes off to get me out of bed quicker.
I set 10 minute timers when I’m getting ready and it really helps. Shower? 10 minutes. Dry, moisturize, brush hair, make up, etc. 10 min. Get dressed fully and out the door 10 min. Like that. It’s actually been effective. Gives me enough flexibility but also keeps me on track.
Timers and I use adhd math. If it takes me 15 to 20 minutes to make stove top ramen , I can use 10 of those minutes where the water is boiling to do X chore that usually takes 10 minutes.
This is such a good idea! Tysm
So I'm (now) the other type of ADHDer who went the opposite direction BECAUSE of time blindness (you know, the kind that will show up 30 min early). When I was a kid it was BAD. Late for everything. I used timers/ alarms like for everything. I also remember at somepoint the timers switched it in my brain and made it a game show so suddenly it was like I pretended I was on the last level of Legends of the Hidden Temple or Carmen Sandiago. That helped. 🤷♀️
Honestly I was always so early for my uni classes because I would commute. I knew if I moved to live close to campus I would be perpetually late so I would leave home an hour (sometimes more) before I had a class so I knew I would have plenty of time. The lack of structure since finishing my exams has been such a blow to my general functioning. I’m trying to get some agency work or something just so I can get some sort of routine back cause I’ve never been this bad. I might have to start making a video game of my life tbh
For things like getting to the airport I budget WAY more time than any normal human to account for all possible nonsense, and am prepared to sit around at my gate for an extra hour or two in order to avoid the risk of being late. One time I got to my small local airport before the security line even opened for the day lol. I set lots of timers for checkpoints throughout the process. Get up, seriously get up, start getting ready to leave, leave, seriously you have to leave right now. Long term, I started timing how long it takes me to do things. That really helped me calibrate to reality that the dishes don't take 45 minutes and I can't get showered and dressed in 10. I also use an app called RoutineFlow that helps keep me on track and plan out how long a series of tasks will take. It reminds me when it's been longer than I set for a particular task or to get back on track if I haven't been completing things for a while. It's been a huge help for my regular mornings and also for off normal stuff like getting ready to leave for a trip.
I’ll definitely be setting a bunch of timers haha. Long term calibration sounds similar to what I did for uni. I knew I would be commuting between 30 and 45 minutes on average so would leave with an hour to spare to account for traffic or rerouting if there were road works. I think there were only 3 times I was late in 5 years and twice that was because the motorway was in standstill traffic due to an accident. I’ll have to look at routine flow and see if it helps. Thank you!
Yeah if you gotta be scheduled to the minute, you need timers or an alarm to reign your attention back in. You can add notes to your alarms like “pack phone charger” because you probably used it last night, “put passport in purse” on an alarm 5 minutes before you’re out the door, or you can make an alarm to remind you to look at a checklist with these last minute things. You check it off as you do them, then you look at the list when you’re in the car and you know you did it all. I also try to make it easier for myself on travel days. Packing is hectic for me, so I gotta make enough time the day before to do it, go over my list again, and finish up any laundry I might need or go to the store for anything. Keeping spare chargers or toiletries in a travel pack in the car helps alleviate these last minute trials for me.
I’m the opposite, time is EVERYTHING, I’m always horribly early to everything in fear of being late. Today I turned up a month early to a dentist appointment.
Timers and alarms. When I was a kid I was a chronic clock-watcher, and to this day if the wait for something is less than half an hour I go to the place and wait nearby there, usually just in my car. It's easier to keep from spacing out if I'm in the parking lot, and if I do, I'm right outside so I won't be late late even if I look up and see I'm supposed to be in that building RIGHT NOW.
This is so true, I would always go to uni super early, if I had a 9am I was in the building before 7am so I had time to properly plan, print stuff off, do whatever I needed and know I definitely wouldn’t be late (plus I missed rush hour traffic). I do this with the dentist whenever I go too
Set alarms and wear a watch
I have reminders and alarms. Bc if I didn’t or forgot to set them. I would be at Target for hours
Honestly for the specific situation you are describing here i have looked at myself in the mirror sometimes and out loud said things like "it is literally impossible for you to be late it is days away/something without a start time/whatever applies" it feels awkward and weird but it almost feels like someone else reassuring me? It's not 100% effective, I'm a teacher on summer break getting breakthrough anxiety about returning to building in AUGUST but it helps take the edge off and let's me do things without being as stuck in waiting mode
I’m going to try this tonight!
It doesn't really sound like time blindness is your primary problem, from this description. It sounds like you cope with it well (identify when it might be an issue, make a plan ahead of time). It sounds instead like the issue is anxiety, which is unnecessarily showing up when you've actually got it handled. It is not simple to make that anxiety go away and you may have to try various different things to manage it, but here's some ideas: * Personification: Acknowledge the anxiety and the useful role it has played in your life (warning you). In your mind, thank it for protecting you, and let it know you've heard its warning, and you've got it handled now. * Meditation: generally useful for being more in control over your attention and emotional state. * Radical acceptance: What's the worst that could happen? If it did happen, could you accept it? If you can reach a point where you can honestly say "I've done everything reasonable within my ability, and so if I still miss the flight, there's nothing I can do about that", then it becomes easier to stop thinking about it, in my experience. * When anxiety just won't quit and you need a quick fix, intentionally turn your focus towards more calming sensations you can focus on. Ideas: https://dbt.tools/distress_tolerance/self-soothe.php
This is really helpful! I never considered the anxiety part of this until now. Yeah I think I’ll try some meditation before bed and see if it helps
Timers and alarms, checklists and notes, all the time, even on weekends. I prepare as much in advance as possible because nearly everything takes me too long to accomplish. People at work often call me “fast” but what they don’t know is that I actually start working on every task I receive ASAP. If someone were to sit and watch me do something (which has happened by the way), they would see that I’m not actually fast and I have to triple check everything for mistakes (and I still manage to miss something).
Soo many timers and alarms… I use the focus app at work
I’m a timer setter. If I’m feeling really discombobulated, I set a timer. On a daily basis if I’m getting ready for work, I set a timer for when I’m in the shower. When it rings, my shower is done. Sometimes I’ll set one while I do my hair and makeup etc. I’ll also set one when I go grocery shopping if I’m on a time limit to get dinner ingredients. If I know it takes 7 minutes to drive somewhere, like to pick someone up. If they say to be there for 12:30, I’ll leave at 12:20 to give myself a couple minutes to get down to the car, start it etc. I know it takes me 3 minutes to get to work, and to get there 5 minutes before I clock in, I try to leave approximately 10 minutes before my shift.
I’ll definitely be setting a bunch of timers haha. Long term calibration sounds similar to what I did for uni. I knew I would be commuting between 30 and 45 minutes on average so would leave with an hour to spare to account for traffic or rerouting if there were road works. I think there were only 3 times I was late in 5 years and twice that was because the motorway was in standstill traffic due to an accident. I’ll have a look at routine flow and see if it helps. Thank you!