WHAT TIME IS IT?!

How many times have you spent two minutes watching TikTok videos and then suddenly realized that two hours had passed? Or studying for what seems like three hours, and discovering it has only been 20 minutes? How often do you show up late for appointments because you misjudged the time it takes to get somewhere? Many people with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have poor time awareness, sometimes called “time blindness”, which makes it hard to estimate how long something will take. That’s because the ADHD brain processes time differently than a neurotypical brain.

People who don't have ADHD (friends, teammates, professors, coaches, parents) don’t always understand this ADHD trait. They may get angry, or think you don’t care, or think you’re being lazy, inconsiderate, or unreliable. Regularly turning up late for appointments, work, or classes, for example, may bring about negative consequences. For employers who appreciate reliability, it may cost you a raise, a promotion, or a job. Even friends may get fed up and start excluding you from certain activities.

This post covers the basics of time blindness and provides strategies to help you successfully navigate time struggles.

Time Blindness and ADHD

In ADHD brains, the ability to measure and estimate time is almost always compromised due to less activity in the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that handles “executive functions” including time management. Time management includes knowing what time it is now, how much time is left, and how quickly time is passing.

People with ADHD aren’t always aware of time passing, so they often struggle to use time effectively. Anxiety, depression, sleep deprivation, drinking, drugs, and other things that impact how someone with ADHD processes the world, can increase time blindness. This can affect:

• the ability to be on time
• the ability to estimate how long tasks will take
• the time horizon and planning for the future

So, let’s talk about strategies for overcoming these barriers!

Being on Time

If you are not aware of time, you will never be on time! An easy strategy is to use clocks to visualize time passing. Wear a watch so you can always check the time. It can be a plain watch, a smart watch, an exercise tracker, or whatever type of time checker works best for you. If possible, make it an analog watch – the consistently moving hands give you a true sense of how time works, and increase your sensitivity to the passage of minutes, hours, and days. Put an analog clock in rooms where you spend your time. If it audibly ticks or chimes on the hour, you will be more aware of time passing.

If your watch, clock, or phone has timers, use them! Set them 15 minutes before you need to do something or go somewhere. When the alarm goes off, stop what you are doing and get prepared for the next task

Estimating Time

Hyper-focusing on a task makes time seem to go much faster. When you are bored or uninterested in a task, time seems to crawl. This adds to the time estimation barrier, since you can’t accurately judge how long things take. When you misjudge how long it takes to get to class, how long it takes to study for a quiz, or how long you will need to write a paper, it can have dire consequences. If you overestimate the time needed, you can feel overwhelmed and never get started. If you underestimate the time needed, you can get frustrated and experience self-blame when you can’t meet deadlines.

One strategy for dealing with time estimation is to plan for the worst-case scenario. If it usually takes 25 minutes to drive to campus, for example, make sure you plan for things that could go wrong – getting stuck in traffic, not finding a parking spot, having to walk to the building furthest away, forgetting your backpack/phone/assignment and going back to get it, etc. If you plan for extra time and something happens, you should be covered. If nothing happens, you will be early enough to relax and get to class stress-free and on-time. Some people estimate how long a task will take, then double it to build in a buffer just in case.

Another strategy is to create a time log. Read one page in a textbook and time how long it takes. If you need to read 50 pages, multiply the time it took for one page by 50, and that’s how many minutes you should need.

These strategies can help you manage your time which leads to less worry, frustration, and anxiety, and helps you get more accomplished.

Time Horizons

People with ADHD have a shortened “time horizon” - how close in time an event must be for someone to “see” it and feel motivated to take action. While neurotypical people can usually plan two or three months into the future, people with ADHD may only be able to “see” time a week or two in the future, and some only a few days. This makes it hard to meet deadlines and plan for the future. A neurotypical student may start a term project at the beginning of a semester and steadily work towards completing it. A student with ADHD might not “feel” the deadline approaching until it is it is too late to do a good job, and some may miss the deadline completely.

A strategy to overcome this barrier is to make sure the due date gets put in your planner/calendar. Split the project into manageable chunks and give each chunk its own due date (some professors do this for you – check the syllabus). If you need help, talk to your professor or visit your school’s academic services office. Chunking big projects into shorter pieces helps you stay on track, do your best work, and be less stressed at the due date.

It’s TIME to Manage Your Time!

The ADHD brain processes time differently. When you don’t perceive time passing, it can be hard to show up on time, estimate how long things take, and plan for the future. By employing the strategies noted above, you can overcome your time management struggles and become more productive and less stressed. The result? More academic success.

Take control of your time and start planning your future!

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Specific questions and topic suggestions can be emailed to questions@ADHDinCollege.com.

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