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Websites
AADD-UK is a site for and by adults with ADHD. Aimed at raising awareness of ADHD in adulthood.
ADDA is a source for information and resources exclusively for and about adult ADHD. ADDA brings together scientific perspectives and the human experience.
This site aims to promote awareness of ADHD and provide information and practical advice to sufferers and families in the UK and around the world. The site contains a lot of information, downloadable resources and a comprehensive list of local support groups.
The National Attention Deficit Disorder Information and Support Service. This site offers information about ADHD, resources and special sections for parents, children, teenagers and professionals.
The ADHD Foundation provides services to ADHD sufferers and families in that area. Their website has a lot of information on ADHD.
Very Well Mind provides health and wellness information by health professionals. Whether you are looking for ways to better manage stress, understand a condition like ADHD, or learn more about guidance available.
Apps
Brain Focus Productivity Timer
An app that allows you to set the duration for your work sessions and breaks, letting the app guide you though improving your processes and avoiding distractions
Catch It
This is an app to help you learn how to manage feelings like anxiety and depression
Flora
An app that may help if you are experiencing difficulty avoiding games and social media. You can set a time goal during which a virtual tree will begin to grow.
RescueTime
An app that is all about making sure that you don't waste too much time on your phone or computer.
Sleep Cycle
An app that tracks sleep with a smart alarm clock, and offers detailed reports on sleep cycles.
Sleepio
This app includes a sleep improvement programme.
Todoist
A free app that helps you create lists and add tasks and keep track of those that you still need to complete.
Tools
Asana
A web and mobile work management platform designed to help people organise, track and manage work.
A welfare pack to help people with ADHD in the workplace.
Access to Work Information Booklet
A work booklet to support people with ADHD and other disabilities access work.
Guidance on how to manage an employee with ADHD
Practical tips and a free support plan to support a coworker with ADHD.
A tool to address the core symptoms of ADHD through individualised or group assistance and support.
Teaching and managing students with ADHD
A booklet for students that have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
A booklet on how ADHD can impact education and learning, the strengths that ADHD can bring to education and learning, and your rights in terms of additional support.
UK Student mental health charity.
Websites
Online Support Group and guidance on how ADHD can affect relationships and marriage.
Guidance on how to handle relationships when you have ADHD.
Up-to-date resources under "videos and podcasts" specifically around ADHD and marriage.
Guidance on Relationships Social Skills
Guidance on living with ADHD, focusing on relationships and social skills.
Guidance on Marriage and Partnerships
Guidance on living with ADHD, focusing on marriage and patnerships.
Recommended Books
Succeeding with Adult ADHD: Daily Strategies to Help You Achieve Your Goals and Manage Your Life, Abigail Levrini
Podcast
The ADHD Couple podcast
Video
Recommended Books
Podcast
Women and ADHD a podcast hosted by Dr. Blandine French
Video
Dr Steph Sarkis talks about the differences in ADHD in Women
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental difference that affects focus, impulse control, organisation, memory and emotional regulation. Executive Function (EF) refers to the brain’s self-management system — the set of mental processes that help us plan, prioritise, start tasks, stay on track and manage our emotions.
People with ADHD may find EF skills more difficult, not because of a lack of effort, but because their brains process information differently. These challenges can affect day to day life, including work, study, relationships and routines.
Key EF areas often impacted by ADHD include:
- Working memory (holding information in mind)
- Time management and time perception
- Planning and organisation
- Task initiation and follow-through
- Emotional regulation
- Impulse control
Understanding ADHD through the lens of Executive Function helps individuals and families recognise why certain tasks feel harder — and which tools, supports and adjustments can make a positive difference.
Understanding ADHD & Executive Function (EF)
Executive Function (or EF) is a term used to describe the mental skills we use every day to get things done, manage our feelings, and stay organised.
Everyone uses executive function, but people with ADHD often find these skills more difficult — not because they’re lazy or not trying, but because their brain works differently.
Think of EF as your brain’s “management system.”
It helps you:
✅ plan
✅ start tasks
✅ stay focused
✅ remember things
✅ control impulses
✅ manage emotions
✅ solve problems
✅ finish what you start
When you have ADHD, these skills can be harder, but they can be improved with the right support and strategies
Having ADHD comes with strengths, such as:
• Creativity
• Original thinking
• Enthusiasm
• Hyperfocus on things you love
• Problem-solving in unique ways
• High energy
Executive function challenges don’t take away from your abilities — they just mean you need different tools.
The 6 Main Areas of Executive Function
Attention & Focus
This includes your ability to stay with a task or conversation.
People with ADHD may:
• Find their mind is “busy” or always jumping around
• Get bored quickly
• Miss details or instructions
• Be easily distracted by noises, thoughts, or other people
This isn’t a choice — it’s part of how the ADHD brain processes information.
Working Memory
This is your brain’s “holding space.”
It helps you remember:
• What you’re doing next
• What someone just said
• What you need to bring with you
People with ADHD may:
• Forget appointments
• Lose items
• Walk into a room and forget why
• Struggle to hold the steps of a task in mind
Planning & Organising
This is about creating routines and managing tasks.
ADHD can make it hard to:
• Estimate how long things take
• Break tasks into steps
• Keep on top of paperwork
• Maintain routines at home
This isn’t a lack of motivation — it’s EF load.
Time Management
People with ADHD often experience:
• “Time blindness” — difficulty feeling the passing of time
• Being late even when trying hard
• Under or overestimating how long tasks will take
• Starting things too late
External timers, alarms, and calendars help because they act as external executive function tools.
Impulse Control
This is your brain’s “pause button.”
With ADHD, that pause button can be slow or unreliable.
This might look like:
• Speaking before thinking
• Buying things impulsively
• Interrupting
• Acting quickly in the moment
This is a neurological challenge, not a character flaw.
Emotional Regulation
People with ADHD often feel emotions more intensely and more suddenly.
You might:
• Go from calm to overwhelmed very quickly
• Find it hard to calm down once stressed
• Feel frustrated or angry more easily
• Feel anxious because of past mistakes or misunderstandings
This is hugely linked to executive functioning — managing emotions is an EF skill.
So What Does This Mean Day to Day?
You may notice things like:
• Losing track of conversations
• Forgetting appointments
• Feeling overwhelmed by decisions
• Starting lots of projects but finishing a few
• Struggling with clutter or routines
• Finding time management difficult
• Feeling emotions very strongly
• Needing reminders or prompts
These are all common ADHD experiences. They are NOT failures — they are areas where extra support helps.
What Helps? (Simple, realistic ideas)
These all connect directly to supporting EF:
Use alarms and reminders — let your phone do the remembering for you
Break tasks into small steps instead of trying to do everything at once
Use visual tools like to-do lists, colour coding, and calendars
Create routines (e.g., bag packed the night before)
Use fidget tools to help focus and manage impulsivity
Pause and breathe before reacting
Ask for help from people you trust
Use quiet spaces to concentrate
Prepare for tricky situations ahead of time
These strategies aren’t “cheating” — they’re accommodations that support how your brain works.
Many people with ADHD find organisation, routines and daily tasks more difficult than they might appear to others. This isn’t a lack of effort — it’s because ADHD affects how the brain manages time, remembers things, and handles everyday tasks.
Tasks like getting ready, keeping track of time, staying on top of paperwork or remembering appointments can take more energy for an ADHD brain. Distraction, time-blindness, impulsivity and working memory challenges can make routines feel overwhelming or hard to maintain. But with the right tools and supports, daily life can become far more manageable.
This guide introduces simple, practical strategies that help reduce mental load and create more structure — without expecting perfection. It focuses on approaches that work with the ADHD brain rather than against it.
Why Organisation Can Feel Hard
People with ADHD often experience:
• Forgetting appointments or losing track of time
• Feeling overwhelmed by “simple” tasks
• Losing things like keys or paperwork
• Difficulty keeping a routine going
• Starting too many things at once
• Struggling with home tasks like laundry, emails, meals, or bills
These are all linked to executive functioning, which is a set of skills the brain uses for planning, remembering, and staying organised.
You’re not failing — your brain just works differently.
What Helps: Simple, ADHD Friendly Strategies
Below are practical ideas taken directly from the resource pack — all recommended by people with ADHD and clinicians.
1. Using Calendars, Reminders & Alarms
These tools act like “external memory” so you don’t have to hold everything in your head.
Try:
• A wall calendar or phone calendar — check it every evening
• Alarms to remind you when to get ready or leave the house
• Ask a friend or family member to send a reminder
• Keeping one notebook for all lists instead of lots of scattered notes
• Setting alarms for daily routines (medication, lunch, start/stop work, bedtime)
2. Break Tasks Into Small Steps
Big tasks can feel overwhelming. Breaking them down makes them doable.
Try choosing:
1 important task for the day
2–3 smaller supporting steps
Celebrate finishing each step
This keeps things achievable instead of exhausting.
3. Keep Things in Set Places
This reduces last-minute chaos and saves mental energy.
Ideas:
• A key hook by the door
• A tray for your wallet/ID/headphones
• “Hot spots” — the same place for important things
• Clear plastic boxes so you can see what’s inside
• Use labels, colours, or dividers to make things easy to find
4. Build Simple Home Routines
Keeping on top of house tasks doesn’t have to be perfect — just predictable.
Food & meals
• Plan meals for the week and write them somewhere visible
• Do one big food shop each week
• Keep a simple emergency meal in the freezer
Laundry & clothes
• Use clear baskets for darks/lights
• Have one regular laundry day
• Use labelled drawers to make mornings easier
Bills & admin
• Switch to electronic bills
• Set up standing orders
• Use calendar reminders for money-related tasks
5. Use Routines to Reduce Stress
Routine helps your day run more smoothly — especially morning and bedtime routines.
Bedtime routine ideas:
• Set an alarm for “screens off”
• Use dim lighting before bed
• Don’t work in bed
• Write worries down so they don’t keep spinning in your mind
• Try relaxing activities (music, mindfulness, reading)
Good sleep supports focus and organisation the next day.
6. Use Visual Reminders & Cues
People with ADHD often respond better to things they can see.
Try:
• Sticky notes
• Colour-coded lists
• Putting reminders where you can’t miss them (e.g., in front of the door)
• Taking photos of appointment cards
• Using a whiteboard for weekly structure
7. Ask Others to Help You Stay On Track
Being honest about ADHD and asking for support.
This might mean:
• A family member reminding you about something important
• Sharing house chores
• A colleague helping you prioritise work tasks
• Telling friends you may need reminders
Asking for support is not a weakness — it’s a strategy.
8. Be Kind to Yourself
Please remember:
“Home doesn’t have to be spotless to work in.”
You don’t have to do everything at once.
ADHD brains are creative, energetic, enthusiastic, and full of ideas — routines aren’t meant to limit you, but to support you so your strengths can shine.
Many people with ADHD feel their emotions more quickly, more strongly, and more suddenly than others. This is completely normal for ADHD — it’s part of how the ADHD brain works, not a personal flaw.
The resource pack explains that adults with ADHD may experience “extreme and unpredictable emotions” and can move from one feeling to another much faster than people expect.
This guide helps you understand why that happens, how it affects you, and what can help.
1. What Is Emotional Regulation?
Emotional regulation is your brain’s ability to:
• Notice your feelings
• Pause before reacting
• Calm down when emotions rise
• Bounce back after something stressful
For many people with ADHD, these processes are more difficult because of differences in attention, impulse control, and how the brain handles emotions. This can lead to:
• Feeling overwhelmed quickly
• Strong reactions to small things
• Sudden mood shifts
• Difficulty calming down once upset
• Feeling anxious or low because of past mistakes or misunderstandings
2. What Emotional Dysregulation Looks Like in ADHD
The pack highlights several common experiences:
Quick emotional shifts
Going from calm → upset → OK again very fast.
“Being extremely happy one moment and extremely sad or angry the next.”
Feeling overwhelmed easily
Strong feelings can build rapidly and become hard to manage.
Frustration and anger
You may find yourself snapping, raising your voice, or feeling a rush of anger that surprises even you.
Anxiety linked to past experiences
People with ADHD often worry about:
• Saying the wrong thing
• Interrupting
• Being judged
• Making mistakes
These fears can build up over time and lead to anxiety.
Difficulty calming down
Once emotions start rising, the brain may struggle to switch off the “alarm system.”
These are very common in ADHD — you are not alone.
3. Why This Happens
ADHD affects the parts of the brain that help with:
• Impulse control
• Emotional control
• Stopping to think before reacting
• Switching gears from one feeling to another
This means emotions feel bigger, faster, and stickier.
The pack explains that many adults with ADHD can feel:
• Very anxious, especially after social misunderstandings
• Very low, after struggling with routines, memory, or expectations
• Intense swings between emotions
This is not your fault — it is neurological.
4. What Helps When Emotions Feel Big?
Here are the evidence-based strategies recommended in the resource pack:
A. Breathing to Calm the Body
The pack suggests:
• Breathe in slowly
• Breathe out even more slowly
• Continue for 2 minutes
Slow exhaling tells the brain: “You’re safe.”
B. The 5 4 3 2 1 Grounding Technique
To calm overwhelm or anxiety:
• 5: Notice 5 things you can see
• 4: 4 things you can touch
• 3: 3 things you can hear
• 2: 2 things you can smell
• 1: 1 thing you can taste
This brings your attention back into the present moment.
C. Take a Time Out When Overwhelmed
The pack recommends:
• Agreeing on a “code word” with loved ones so you can step away without conflict
• Walking away from arguments before they escalate
• Telling others “I need a minute”
D. Use “I feel…” statements
This helps express what’s going on without blame.
Example:
“I feel overwhelmed — I need some time to calm down.”
E. Move Your Body
Exercise — even a walk — can release tension and help reset the nervous system.
F. Talk to Someone You Trust
The pack emphasises reaching out to people who can help you feel grounded and supported.
G. Mindfulness & Relaxation
Mindfulness can help slow down racing thoughts and emotions.
The pack specifically recommends:
• Mindfulness
• Relaxation exercises
• Music
5. You Are Not “Too Emotional” — Your Brain Just Works Differently
The pack reminds readers that emotional difficulties are common and valid for people with ADHD. They are part of the condition’s impact on attention, impulse control, and information processing — not a character weakness.
The goal isn’t to suppress feelings.
The goal is to build tools that help you navigate emotions safely and kindly.
Many people with ADHD find sleep, routines, and everyday tasks harder than others. This isn’t your fault — ADHD affects energy levels, motivation, sleep patterns, and executive function (the brain’s planning and organising system).
The good news? Small changes can make a big difference. This section gives you ADHD-friendly strategies that are realistic and doable.
1. Why Sleep Can Be Difficult with ADHD
Adults with ADHD often struggle with:
• Getting to sleep
• Switching off thoughts
• Waking up on time
• Feeling alert during the day
ADHD can make it hard for your brain to “power down” at night or restart in the morning.
2. What Helps With Getting to Sleep
Build a calming bedtime routine
• Have a consistent bedtime
• Go through the same steps each night (wash, change, unwind)
• Give yourself time to relax before bed
Reduce screen and light exposure
• Set an alarm to remind you to turn screens off
• Use apps or settings that make screens yellow at night
• Dim the lights while winding down
Use relaxing activities
• Gentle music
• Mindfulness tracks
• Lavender oil
• Reading
Support your body
• Avoid caffeine in the evening
• Avoid heavy meals close to bedtime
3. Waking Up & Morning Routines
ADHD brains can struggle to switch on in the morning - if this affects you, try to
Use two alarms
• Put the second alarm far away so you must get up
Wake up with light
• Use a dawn simulation lamp
• Ask someone you live with to open the blinds at your wake-up time
Light helps your body know it’s time to get going.
4. Staying Alert During the Day
If you feel sleepy or foggy during the day, try:
• Take movement breaks instead of napping
• Go for a walk when tired
• Drink water regularly
• Avoid long periods of sitting still
Small bursts of movement can reset your focus and energy.
5. Lifestyle Routines That Make Daily Life Easier
Lifestyle structure helps support attention, memory, and energy — especially when ADHD makes these unpredictable.
Plan the day the night before
• Check your calendar
• Pack your bag
• Lay out clothes or essentials you need for the next day
Use visual reminders
• Sticky notes
• Lists on the fridge or door
• Colour-coded calendars
• A single notebook for everything
Create simple home routines
• One weekly food shop
• A weekly meal plan
• Regular laundry day
• Keep an “emergency meal” in the freezer
Reduce mental effort with systems
• Use standing orders for bills
• Switch to electronic bills
• Keep essentials (keys, phone, wallet) in the same place
These routines support your brain so you don’t have to rely on memory alone.
6. Movement & Activity to Support ADHD
Daily movement helps with:
• Focus
• Mood
• Sleep quality
• Restlessness
• Anxiety
You don’t need a full workout — walking, stretching, or dancing to a favourite song counts.
7. Calming Your Mind (Lifestyle Tools for Emotion & Sleep)
When anxiety or stress builds, the pack recommends:
Breathing exercises
• Breathe in slowly
• Breathe out even more slowly
• Repeat for 2 minutes
The 5 4 3 2 1 grounding technique
Noticing things you can see, touch, hear, smell, taste
Talk to someone you trust
Sharing your feelings can help bring emotions down.
8. Be Kind to Yourself
ADHD can make routines feel harder than they “should” be — but this doesn’t mean anything is wrong with you.
“Home doesn’t have to be spotless to work in.”
“You don’t have to do all tasks at once.”
Small changes and consistent habits build big results over time.
Delivered by ELFT, we have Recovery College's in all of our boroughs which offer free workshops and courses to provide mental health wellbeing and recovery through education and learning. The Recovery College is open to everyone living in these boroughs.
A resource guide for adults referred to ELFT for ADHD Support.
