[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.The best method for people with ADHD to keep time is to rely on external aids suchas alarm clocks, digital watches and mobile phone alarms, etc.These alarms can beset at a regular time every day, for example, the night before, and be integrated intoa routine.Some personal organiser systems or mobile phones can be programmed tomake different tones according to the activity.Clients should be encouraged not justto set an alarm for an event beginning, such as a driving lesson beginning at 1.00 pm,but they should work out the time they need to begin getting ready for the lesson, e.g.start packing their bag at 12.00, catch the bus at 12.30, etc.Such an early warningsystem can also improve attention as it can increase arousal, which is an interrelatedsystem (see Chapter 4)TIME KEEPINGOften, people with ADHD develop a sense of learned helplessness regarding theirtimekeeping such that they assume they will always be late and others come to ex-pect very little of them.A motivating method for improving time keeping is by ask-ing the individual to rate the importance of punctuality and evaluate the impact oftheir lateness for different situations.An example is given in Table 5.9 for Chloe, amother of two boys who also have ADHD (a blank form is included on the Compan-ion Website for use in sessions).By performing the evaluation in Table 5.9, Chloe was able to determine whichevents were absolutely crucial for her to be on time in order to avoid disadvan-taging her children and damaging her reputation.Previously, she had shruggedoff the implications of regularly being late, and assumed that others would justthink she was scatty.However, she was more motivated to prioritise events andbe on time when she had explicitly thought through the consequences of poorpunctuality. TIME MANAGEMENT 95Table 5.9 Evaluating the importance of punctualityImportanceof punctualitySituation (0 10) Potential impact/outcome of being lateLooks unprofessionalArriving late at work 8People may think I m uncommittedOther people have to cover for meuntil I arriveWould get more work done and nothave to stay lateMight miss out on hearing whatLate for parents 9teachers recommendeveningTeachers may assume I m a bad motherSons education may be affectedThe boys may become unnecessarilyLate to pick up the 7worried that I won t comeboys from schoolThe boys need routine tooOther mothers may think I m neglectfulIt may delay every appointment thatLate for hairdressers 4follows mineappointmentThey might turn me away and then I dhave to rebookThe food may be ruinedLate for lunch at 2It s not fair on mum who likes to beparents houseorganised about when we eat.Shemay be upsetThey might worry I ve had a car crashon the wayI may miss the appointment and haveLate for doctor s 6to wait until the end of surgeryappointment forOther more ill people might haverepeat prescriptionless time at the end of the daybecause all the appointments willbecome delayedI might not get the prescription,so run out of medication andthen I d be even less able tomanage my timeMy friend may feel anxious orLate to meet a friend 3embarrassed about waiting alonefor a drinkIt may look like my friend has beenstood upIt s wasting their timeMy friend may be in a bad mood bythe time I get there.It may spoilthe evening 96 ADHD IN ADULTSCONCLUSIONSTime passes quickly for people with ADHD resulting in them having difficultieswith time estimation.This often means they are late for appointments and do notachieve objectives and goals.By encouraging individuals with ADHD to make a time plan of progressive stepstowards set goals, they will learn what it feels like to complete and achieve tasks.This in itself is positively reinforcing but, additionally, a reward system must beincorporated into the time plan process.Time wasting activities trap the individual into engaging in distracting activitiesthat serve as obstacles to achievement.Sticking to a time management plan can befurther hampered by timekeeping difficulties and poor punctuality.By developingexternal strategies to compensate for prospective memory problems and examiningthe consequences of lateness in more detail, the individual can learn to improve theirtime keeping.For the therapist, the goal is to help the individual learn that life is not an obstaclecourse but to teach the client to navigate their way through a pathway of the difficul-ties and challenges they are bound to encounter.Aside from the time managementand organisational skills outlined in this chapter, this will also involve the problem-solving skills discussed in the next chapter. 6PROBLEM-SOLVINGPeople with ADHD have difficulty solving problems for many reasons.They mayrespond impulsively, rather than think through a solution and its potential outcomes.They may worry unnecessarily about minor, more immediate issues and lose sight ofthe whole picture, in other words they can t see the wood for the trees.This meansthat they may find it hard to generate solution options.Past experience means theymay tend to focus on negative outcomes as these are what they have come to expect.However, by learning to adopt a methodical approach to solving problems, moreoptimal outcomes can be reached.A problem can be defined as any life situation or task that requires something to bechanged or resolved.In order to allow the person to function adaptively.The problemmay be explicit (for example, needing accommodation) or intrinsic (for example,feeling unattractive).Obstacles such as novelty, ambiguity, conflicts of interest, orlack of resources may prevent an immediate response or solution from being effec-tive
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
