Mornings can be hard for many people. Mornings with ADHD can be even harder. Using all the tools to set the stage for a successful day are even more important with ADHD. Here are some things we utilize to have successful mornings with ADHD.
Start the Night Before
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Plan, plan, plan! Transitions are often harder with ADHD. Knowing what to expect in advance can make life easier. Also, it helps if I look ahead and make sure we are set up with adequate sleep, positive thoughts, and things in place to decrease the stress. Things inevitably take longer than expected with ADHD. Adequate planning helps alleviate the negative impact.
Check out our nightly routine for success here. We end the day with positive reflections in our gratitude journal. We apply our magnesium lotion with essential oils to help with sleep and emotions. In advance of an early morning, I prepare as many things ahead of time as possible. Clothes appropriate for the planned activity are set out. If a lunch on the go is needed, this gets packed in the fridge. A healthy breakfast with protein is prepared, or supplies out and ready.
Feed your body well
Check out the supplements we’ve added to our routine to help correct deficiencies common in ADHD. Freezer meal prep has been a lifesaver for fast, easy, and healthy breakfast on the go. Little Bit loves these French Toast Casserole Bites, or Pancake Sausage wraps for another low prep option. Protein, fiber, and low sugar are our biggest goals.
Move your body
After a good breakfast, our best mornings start with some form of exercise. In our household, this is often practicing some of their gymnastics skills. Keep following for an upcoming post on basic gymnastics skills that can be safely practiced at home with little to no equipment. Some days the girls will join me for a short workout video. Other times I will join them for a fun dance video. Whatever the exercise of choice, exercise is a healthy boost to the dopamine that’s lacking with ADHD.
Stimulate your senses
I start our diffuser almost every morning. Sometimes Little Bit wants to choose the oil if she’s awake. Read about the oils we use for emotions here, which are my go to oils.
Most mornings I start music. If it’s a morning the girls will need to do school, I will choose an upbeat instrumental mix. Our favorites are Piano Guys or Lindsay Stirling.
If the weather is good, our exercise jumpstart might happen outside to add a dose of sunlight. Vitamin D is demonstrated to have positive effects on emotions and immunity. Factoring in at least a little bit of sunlight every day is a huge help. Check out how we incorporate that with our furry pet therapy here.
Tools for focus
We homeschool in our home. You can read about why here. We use a variety of sensory tools for school success. I recently pursued an opportunity that will increase my work hours from home. A technique that has been successful with Little Bit, but I didn’t recognize the mechanics is body doubling. I expect to utilize the principals of body doubling a lot with increased work hours at home.
Multilayer approach
Putting all of these tools together may seem overwhelming. I have had to implement new strategies one at a time. I still fail to do everything consistently. However, the goal is to teach her the strategies that help her, to use long beyond childhood. Wether we pursue medication at some point or not, she will still need to use all of her tools for success. If medications are difficult to obtain for some reason, as we have encountered with my husband, she will have many learned tools to fill the gap.
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The content in this post is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. It is merely opinion based on personal research and experience.