Hey Reader

Late last week, a package arrived for me from Amazon. It was two big boxes of clothes hangers. Yep. You read that right. Clothes hangers. About 100 of them. You see, we currently use plain plastic clothes hangers and my clothes are forever slipping off them. So, in true ADHD fashion, I got incredibly frustrated for the 100th time, jumped on Amazon and ordered 100 metal hangers with velvet around them to replace every single hanger in my household because if I'm doing something, I'm doing it 100 percent completely. I justified the purchase to my husband saying that we would no longer have clothes on the closet floor and we would be saving space because the new hangers were much less bulky.

Well, the hangers arrived and in my excitement, I ran upstairs and started switching my clothes over to the new hangers. To my dismay, the new hangers kind of suck. It's way harder to get clothes on the hanger. It's a real pain, which puts me in a bit of a pickle. Do I admit to my husband that I messed up (again!) or do I commit to the hangers and wait for him to complain to me and then sell them and go back to plastic ones? This pickle is not awesome and, if I'm honest, not unfamiliar. 🥴

One common ADHD trait is 'all-or-nothing' thinking and believe me when I tell you, this is a trait I know so very well. When I get caught up in the 'all-or-nothing-ness' and if I catch myself before I impulsively jump into something, I try to remember that there are ways to hit the brakes when it happens. So, if you ever find yourself in a similar pickle, here are some tips to manage it:

Challenge the extremes! When you hear that voice in your head making those all-or-nothing pronouncements, question it! Ask yourself if what you're thinking is accurate. Is there a way to reframe the thoughts running through your head. For instance, if you find yourself saying that all plastic hangers are bad, challenge it and see if there is a more moderate way to deal with the challenge rather than throwing out all your hangers in a blind rage.🤓

Focus on small, manageable goals rather than huge ones. Sometimes us ADHDers want perfection and flawless execution and if we can't have that, then we throw everything out. Instead of aiming for flawless results and perfection, celebrate small wins and progress. For example, buy ten velvet hangers instead of a hundred to see if they will work and order more if they do. 🤷‍♀️

Offer yourself a lot of self-compassion: How you talk to yourself matters! Acknowledging and accepting your negative thoughts and offering yourself compassion can help you manage that critical voice inside your head.

It seems I've been outing myself over the last couple of weeks. But, in an effort to be more transparent and share my very real ADHD journey with you and in hopes of helping you to feel not so alone, I'm sharing the real truth and what I'm learning along the way.

Does this all-or-nothing thinking happen to you, Reader? If so, how do you navigate it? Hit reply and share your experience. Oh, and if you have any tips for my clothes hanger quandry and my hubby, I'm all ears. I'm so lucky that he's so patient with me. 😮‍💨

Have a great rest of your week and thanks, as always, for being here.

Michelle xx