Looking for ADHD permies

Hi! I have been diagnosed recently and also started permaculture about a year ago. Now I am a bit afraid that I might lose interest in all of it someday and just let everything fall apart and feel terrible about all the time, money and effort I put into this. I dream of living a permaculture life that gets larger and larger during my life, finding solutions to everything, getting more animals, more land, finding community... I am simply afraid that my ADD will somehow take this from me. And yet I feel GREAT when I am outdoors in the garden, I am not confused or obviously unfocused, but feel calm and happy, with no further stimulation than the sounds that are already there.
Does anyone here have AD(H)D and has been doing all of this successfully for a longer period of time now? I would love to hear your stories and advice.
Thank you

I do not have ADHD but I have a hubs and kids who do. If you feel at peace outdoors it's probably providing you the dopamine boost your brain desires. You're probably able to get hyper focused on your outdoor endeavors and may have ultimate success there.  

There are things you can do to make your life and permie stuffs more ADHD friendly. Lists. Time timers, organization that works for your brain. All important. I've consumed a vast amount of podcasts and HOW TO ADHD on Youtube is a great resource for ADHD "proofing" your life.

Depending on what your biggest obstacle in ADHD is you'll have to make sure you have something to make you accountable. impulsive overspending is often something associated with ADHD so if that's a thing for you you'll need to be extra vigilant to make sure you don't overspend on things for your dream homestead. Losing equipment is an issue you may encounter and you may have to set up a system where you have a place to store your stuffs exactly where you would naturally put it down. Stuff like that.

I bet you'll have a great property!

If your doctor prescribed medicine then there is no reason you can't live a productive life.

I feel GREAT when I am outdoors in the garden ... but feel calm and happy

This! Just keep doing what you like to do.

My son has this and has held down the same job for more than 10 years.

Have faith and all will be well ...

The great thing about Permaculture is that it's SOOO BROAD. You can lose interest in cob, only to gain interest in Roundwood, then move on to straw bail then superadobe--and that's just construction!
Hi, I'm approaching 50 and wasn't diagnosed as a child as it wasn't really a big thing yet in my first few years of primary school. I actually did well in high school and college because I was able to jump from thing to thing and sting it all together into a liberal arts degree! I was in my mid-20s before I was diagnosed and I managed my ADHD with physical exercise--I played all the sports in high school and CAFFEINE which is very similar chemically to Adderall, so don't mix the two. I've been into Permaculture since my mid-20s as well and have not gotten bored with it yet. However, I do have a long string of not quite finished projects. But I also have several finished projects too.
The hardest thing for me has been the time when my children were young--not babies, but 3-5 years old age, I really really struggled to stay on top of my to-do lists then.
I suggest you find a lot of different methods of dealing with your ADHD and try them out and find out what works for you.  
How to ADHD Youtube Channel is a great place to find tips and techniques.

Melissa Ferrin wrote: I've been into Permaculture since my mid-20s as well and have not gotten bored with it yet.

This has been exactly what I needed to hear. I do not fret so much about how I will do the things that are necessary as long as I am interested in my garden, but fear more for a time where I might dream of a completely different life that seems more interesting at that time and just don't feel that joy anymore that I am experiencing now... I'm glad to hear that the more general kind of boredom has not been an issue for you. I also have a feeling that I can see my future hyperfixations laid out before me, which is nice: once all the beds are set up, I will go on to build the solar dehydrator, outdoor kitchen, willow feeder, someday I want to build a rocket mass heater and find solutions to produce electricity locally and so on. And I do not have a SINGLE clue how to do the more ambitious projects, which makes it really likely that I will still want to take them up as challenges in the future.

I have been working on organizational systems in the household and garden for a while now and I seem to be getting there slowly. We have only the bare minimum of stuff and try to keep as organized as possible. How to ADHD has been of great help with that.
Has anyone of you implemented some specific "hacks" that make permaculture and homesteading easier with ADHD? For example: We are using the family cloth approach to toilet paper and I find hanging all of the small pieces of fabric on the clothesline with an individual pin and taking them all of again with all the pins sooo boring. I have come up with a system now where I can simply toss them into the drawers of what used to be wire basket shelves from the inside of a closet which I have installed permanently with a little roof and let them dry there. This has been hugely helpful and so much more efficient.

I work hard to set aside time in the morning to journal and think. What projects are important and what makes them interesting?  I also reward good executive functioning with free time to do, clean or research whatever comes to mind.

For me, the total autonomy goes a long way to keeping me super interested.

Yes, that's a great idea, actually. Time to do whatever I want to be working on in the moment is possibly one of the best rewards for me.

I just remembered why I started being discouraged in the first place: I listened to a talk by Thom Hartmann where he talks about ADHDers being hunters while neurotypicals being good at farming. And I was like "Oh, no, I am not cut out for this " while actually, I very much feel like I am, even though I cannot know that for the long term.

A lot of your potential success lies in how you look at homesteading.  It’s quite varied in terms of projects. No one will tell you what to do or when. I read so many forums online, ADHD people will ask how can I make myself get things done. The only answer I’ve come up with is to either make something super interesting or there’s such a reward at the end you can’t resist. Otherwise it might be time for a different kind of life. For me it’s homesteading.

I’d love to hear from others here w ADHD, always looking to adopt better self-management hacks.

I have adhd, or perhaps a similarly manifesting dopamine issue from depression during brain development. I take a low dose of meds that helps quite a bit, and I spend a lot of time resting during spans of time that I feel frazzled. I put a lot of effort into moderating what goes into my brain (ie the news) in order to keep my mental energy free to focus on my goals.

Something that has been really helpful for me is to try reeeeeally hard not to have many projects going at once. It’s hard lol. But I think I would just melt into a stress puddle if I didn’t control myself. I probably won’t get livestock till ~4 or even 5 years on my land. Been here 21 months now. I built a simple tiny house, installed the fence, cut a half mile walking path, and did a variety of smaller projects. I started getting overly excited this spring, cause I was being inundated with time-sensitive opportunities. Actually, with homesteading, every opportunity is time sensitive. I started getting discombobulated from all the things I was trying to do at once, and have spent the last month determined not to take on anything new till I finish all these little things. It takes commitment haha. Every few days I’m like “hey, if I just spent one weekend starting such and such now, it’d be ready next year for such and such!” And then I remember ah….I’m doing it again.

If it feels right to you, and it’s been more than a few months, I imagine you’re going to be okay. I guess it depends how long any previous “hyper-fixations” lasted. My experience has been that my activity on the homestead pretty much goes in sprints. Sometimes I’m full of energy and motivation, and sometimes I have to surrender to the need to rest. Trying to do stuff when I really need to be resting is actually a bigger source of chaos than the sprints, I think:)

The best advice I can give really is to avoid expanding many things at once. I think if you can manage that, you’ll have a better experience in the long run. Unless you thrive in chaos though. Then an adhd homestead would be perfect haha.

Good luck!!

As for hacks, besides resting when frazzled:

I use those shoe organizers with clear pockets to store many many types of small items. Easy to find, easy to put away.

I like my storage to be shallow shelves, or wall-hanging - I like being able to see everything without moving stuff around.

Anything that needs to be remembered gets written down immediately. I think it takes a lot of brain power trying to subconsciously remember things, so I just get em out of my brain into the appropriate list.

Lately I’ve been finding a mini non-digital list of just the next few little things to do is helpful, as apposed to frequently consulting the mega list I call “The Plan”

I have ADHD
I started being interested in homesteading & gardening when I was in college - about 10 years ago.
Now with my own house and ability to create gardens & shape the earth, the interest has only grown stronger.

The good thing about 'permaculture' is that there are SO MANY different aspects of it. You'll never have 'learned it all'

From earthworks to soil amending, different ways of tracking & capturing rainfall, new plants and relationships between animals & soil organisms piled on top of all the different growing zones in the world - unlike many hobbies, there is never a point where you can say 'Okay, I know everything I need to know'

Growing in Kentucky hollers is different than growing in Georgia swamps, is different than growing in Colorado mountains, etc etc etc.
For every new location, there is a hugely new set of circumstances to account for, and a new set of plants & animals who will react differently to different elevations and water/sunlight pressures.

Another great thing about permaculture is that it's beefing up your knowledge for a huge variety of other possible fixations.
Maybe right now you're interested in growing fruit trees and Perennials.
The knowledge you have now will be able to boost your ability to learn about insects, birds, fungi, etc - which each can become their own hyper-fixation later on.

My special interest is 'Biology' - if it's larger than a Virus, I love learning about it. Permaculture fits neatly into that.
I got fixated on intentional communities
Then on earthships
Then other ecologically friendly methods of building & constructing houses
Then on greenhouse systems
Then on steam engines  & Solar water harvesting
Then on Starlings (the bird)
and fish-trapping
Naturalizing tropical plants to colder climates...
etc etc etc.

All of these things tie into gardening and homesteading, and all build off each other.  I didn't plan those hyperfixations - they happen naturally because each of these topics are fascinating.

Don't worry about losing your interest in 'permaculture' - It's far more likely that your interests will shift to something adjacent to it, which you'll still be able to apply that knowledge & purchases to.

You're gaining valuable knowledge that will be applicable to MANY things later in life, and will likely shape how you view how the world works.  Even if you lose interest in pursuing it as a main lifestyle, you wont lose those changes to your own perception of the world.

--

Do not assume that something must be /eternal/ to be worthwhile.
A flower is not worthless, just because its petals only open once, and fall apart a week later.  A plum tree's dormancy in winter is just as valuable to the tree & everyone who relies on it, as the fruit it puts out in the summer, and the flower it bears in the spring. You cannot have fruit without a period of rest.

The act of living is transformative, is growing, is experiencing each new moment and becoming something new.

You're allowed to enjoy the present moment.

The joy you found today is not a 'waste', just because you can't find the exact same joy tomorrow.

Can I guarantee you'll never lose interest in permaculture?
No, of course not.
But I think it's really unlikely. Permaculture is so wide-reaching, such a huge topic, even things like 'statistics' and 'the history of economics' can tie into past permaculture roots.
You may not want to live in a permaculture-only no-waste off-grid commune a few years down the road.... but I highly doubt you'll ever stop loving permaculture in general - and going no-waste or off-grid for a short time will impact your awareness and thoughtfulness of those topics for your entire life.

I am pretty sure I have ADHD. Everybody tells me I do and I have most of the symptoms I suppose. Doesn't bother me much.

If you are going to do something and then let it fall apart due to lack of interest, permaculture gardening would be a fine choice! I mean you gotta do something, right? I have started and quit about 500 interests but I feel like if I quit permaculture it would still be a net gain, I mean the improvements would still be there. Theoretically it's permanent!

(Sorry I didn't read all replies, but still wanted to add something)

As someone who's been diagnose as such, I don't think ADHD is a real life issue. At least for me, it is more relationship that are affected, because I can get easily distracted, although, I am pretty sure there is better solution to medication. Although these medication do help with everyday life, they are (IMO) prescribed in too high dosage. That being said, I don't think I would need these if society made sens, where making sens would be to be part of a community that lean toward healthy habits and making a better world, like people do in here.

Those are just a few sentences I wanted to share. I could elaborate more but I don't think it is necessary. To me it is as simple as this, ADHD becomes more of an advantage than a problem. I sure start more things than I can handle, but in the end, I get more experiment (and often good enough results) than if I just did fewer things perfectly, because there is always some way to do more work when the list is endless than when it is almost empty.

Edit: One important thing though, just make sure you're doing things safely. Safety is important, accidents happen, just wear the needed protection, keep track of how you do things (proper movement is also  important for our body), try to avoid negligence when operating something dangerous. Take the time to learn about safety, it is well worth it.

Hello fellow neurodivergents!  I have ADHD, combined type, diagnosed at age 57.  It was such a relief to find out that I wasn't crazy or lazy or had some other serious character flaw.  My love for the outdoors and for homesteading is one of the few constants in my life, even from childhood.  Sometimes I'm more involved than others, but it's the thread that keeps me grounded.  I can't imaging ever losing interest.  We often do very well in the outdoors.  In the outdoors I can focus, sit calmly, hear everything around me, notice the smallest visual inputs.  In the house I can easily and often walk from one room to another and have to say to myself, "Now what is it I'm here for?"  I'm very fortunate that I had no learning disabilities and do very, very well in school.  On the flip side, when you're a little girl in the 1970's with a high IQ there's assumption that it couldn't possibly be adhd and if you'd only try harder you wouldn't lose your work or your pencil, you're desk would be tidy and you'd not talk in class.  Anyway, I wouldn't worry about losing interest.  If the lifestyle is truly for you, you won't.

Tomke Roolfs wrote:Now I am a bit afraid that I might lose interest in all of it someday and just let everything fall apart and feel terrible about all the time, money and effort I put into this... I would love to hear your stories and advice.

I'm new to permaculture myself, but very familiar with ADHD. What you're talking about is our tendency to get hyper fixated on a topic for a period then get bored with it and move on to something else. Before my diagnosis, I learned to play 4 instruments, web and software development, and got into a long list of other unrelated things that I enjoyed. And still enjoy. I still play. I still build.

My advice: don't worry about it. Which may be hard because ADHD is usually co-occuring with Anxiety, Depression, and Substance Abuse Disorder.  

A few tips
- Develop a schedule, but be flexible. Don't focus on 30min blocks or 1hr blocks. Focus on the order of the tasks.
- Be deliberate in your actions. Pay attention to what you are doing while you are doing it. To quote Major Charles Emerson Winchester, III of the M*A*S*H 4077, "do one thing at a time, do it well, and then move on."
- Give yourself grace. If you find yourself falling behind or neglecting your responsibilities, acknowledge it, admit to it, and go to work fixing it. Sometimes it's easier to forgive others than it is yourself. Show yourself some compassion.

I hope this helps ease your mind a bit.

I experience a constellation of mental phenomena that qualify me for, among other things, an ADHD-inattentive diagnosis. I don't think I'm going to lose interest in gardening and small livestock and maintaining the homestead, but I do sort of flit from project to project rather than digging in and making real headway in any one direction. I'm not really sure what to do about it, but it hadn't really even occurred to me before reading this thread that it might be a problem...thanks! ;-)