AuDHD Life: Anyone else?

@Captain24 it's totally normal to 'regress' in skill or intelligence when one is recovering from trauma - just sayin' 😉

I never 'did' halloween growing up - always loved the vibe tho! I have only dressed up for it a few times, mainly for house parties. Never actually been trick or treating! I just like all the cool goth stuff that pops up in all the shops 🤣

I just thought I was getting dumber as I got older. @Jynx. I had the read out loud at the group and I made a fool of myself cause I stuffed it up.

I can imagine you walking around the shops in awe!

@Captain24 honestly I somehow manage to stuff it up almost every time that I read out loud when it's in front of people. I think it's nerves more than anything!!

Hehe yep!! Love decking my house out in seasonally inappropriate autumn colours 🤣🤣

They all speak with so much confidence and I could barely read the words let alone say them out loud. When I read I have to reread the same thing over and over. @Jynx. See I’m not very smart.

You’d love it if we did it like the US. Kids around here have started trick or treating. But only go to houses with some sort of decoration or they put on Facebook that people are welcome at their houses.

I mean, same @Captain24 lol - and also, that's a confidence/nerves thing, not a smarts thing!

Yeah it's definitely picked up steam, my neighbourhood hands out a letter with a bat on the back and says to hang it up if you want kids a-knockin.

If you were to dress up, what do you think you'd dress as?

We use to dress up at work (retail) and I dressed as a witch as I have the costume for it, an old dance one. I was the wicked week of the east in our wizard of oz performance. Plus the tin man. @Jynx

I really have no confidence. None at all

@Captain24 witchy vibes, classic - and for a reason! Love it 😍

Confidence is kinda like... having the ability to say "I will be ok, even if it all goes wrong." It means you don't care enough about the outcome to be anything but comfortably yourself.

Also, quite literally, if you haven't physically exuded confidence, your body doesn't know how. You could potentially practice you know - in the mirror, just pretend to be the kind of confident you wish you were.

Or if that leaves brain blank, then pretend to be a person who seems confident, like a celebrity. It might sound dorky and awkward (dorkward?) and lemme be super clear - it absolutely is. It feels lame, and weird, and dumb as heck at first. But the more you do it, the more natural it will start to feel - then when you pull this vibe out in social situations your body will be more chill with something that feels more familiar.

Does that all make sense or did I get lost in the ramble? 😝

Yeah. I don’t really do dress ups @Jynx. If for some reason I’m invited to a costume party I won’t go!

I did have to reread that multiple times! But that’s my brain anyway.

I can try but I don’t even have the confidence to look in the mirror! I hate seeing myself. I don’t even look in the mirror when I do my hair unless I’m drying it.

@Captain24 I always end up having to re-read complex paragraphs my dear, especially if I'm really trying to understand it fully - I reckon that's just an AuDHD thang don't sweat it ay

Ahhh well, scratch the mirror part - it's more about the felt sense anyway, maybe a mirror would only end up making one feel overly self-critical and we don't want that!!

But yeah maybe just see how it feels to just be a bit pretend-confident, heck go ahead and get silly with it if the mood strikes!! Ahahaha

Anywhoooo I gots to dash! Thanks for chats! 😉💜

@Captain24 I've got such a sweet tooth. I have recently got more into sour lollies. Coles has some cheap ones (in the Coles brand) that I actually FIRE. I do love some intense flavours to get some stimulation.

Yeah, it's very cliche. It is true though. Feelings are valid, but they're not always the truth. Did you know our brains are naturally wired to see negatives? It's because they're wired to see threats (back from our time as apes and stuff). But we don't have tigers chasing us anymore, however we're often still anxious and on alert. So the feelings aren't necessary, but they're still programed into our brains. Fortunately our brains can change. The evidence? Clearly we have brains that have changed since we're babies, right?

The motivation stuff is ROUGH. Low motivation is SO common for people with ADHD (and so many other diagnoses / experiences). I need external motivators for a lot of stuff. Don't get me started on how trashed my office is right now.

Can absolutely confirm that @Jynx is very rambly, weird and awesome in-person, as are all the peer workers on the Forums (just in a variety of ways) ♥️