A guide for ADHD brains
Meet Dorothy Dopamine, the cute brain emoji, who will feature throughout, whenever the text relates to a dopamine boost or spike.
Dopamine affects us all, particularly us neurodivergent ones. It appears more in ADHD brains as a dysregulation of dopamine and plays a crucial role, influencing your mood, motivation, and focus as levels spike up or down. It seems there is very little wiggle room.
On a personal note, and after a lot of reflection, my levels of dopamine at times, if displayed as a figure, would be a huge minus, leaving me drained and spent, and at worst, feeling like I can’t be arsed to do anything. That’s why having a dopamine boost to-do list is so helpful, even if the view from the sofa seems like the only option. You could be pleasantly surprised after having managed to haul yourself off the sofa or out of bed to achieve the first activity and give yourself a little dopamine lift. Your brain and body will love you for it!
So while every other ADHD brain, dopamine, or lack of it, can have a huge impact on our day-to-day (if some of you are nodding in agreement, I empathize), together with awareness and a bit of work, we are able to create more dopamine to top up depleted levels and keep the spike notching upward instead of spiraling down. And it’s preferable that we avoid the quick-fix dopamine because those hits can deplete us faster than we can say dopamine deficiency. Here are five tips to boost dopamine just for starters!
Being fundamentally aware that ADHDers have an interest-based and driven nervous system, and to use as an example, it would be too easy to grab the mobile and spend a ridiculous amount of time scrolling, only resulting in a quick fix of dopamine, and once started, it’s highly likely you’ll be chasing this quick fix around throughout the day, resulting in a seemingly never-ending loop of quick hits that don’t amount to anything remotely satisfying. It can leave you feeling unfulfilled, shameful, and guilty that you’ve done everything but the job or task at hand, and this can lead to deprecating, negative self-talk. (That we know so well!)
I am also aware that the five listed activities to help boost dopamine are not the be-all and end-all solution to dopamine deficiency. There are many layers and tangents to discover to suit our individual needs. For example, meditation may not appeal to you, but a tailored version could be the difference between writing off the whole practice. Instead of the conventional way that meditation is performed, create your own personalized one. We have the ability to be inherently creative and out of the box thinking, so put our brains to work and get creative, using your own style and variation.
I have discovered through my own learned experience that what we do within the first half an hour after we awake can strongly determine how the rest of the day is likely to pan out.
I’d like to share with you my typical nonconformist day, where I can boost my dopamine and keep ahead of all the things I have planned to accomplish. Well, that’s the plan! And I think it may even, sometimes, begin in the middle of the night! Nothing is set in stone, and even if I don’t manage to complete all the tasks, at least I can say I’ve been able to manage my dopamine levels. A happy brain is a creative brain!
On a typical day, I awake with the sun, or just before the sun’s rays burst through the bathroom window, shedding a magical hue, bathing the bathroom with a soothing golden glow.
If, on the other hand, I have awoken during the course of the night, which occasionally happens, I don’t stay in bed, tossing and turning, but rather I get up, stretch, put the kettle on, and make myself a cup of sage tea. Usually the tea tends to have a soporific effect on me, guiding me gently back to slumber. I have noted that sage also symbolizes domestic virtue, health, and wisdom, so I can also focus on that positive description as I drift back to slumber.
During the course of my nocturnal meanderings, my three resident cats will undoubtedly join me in the kitchen, not all at the same time, I may add, which ends up with me going back to bed and getting up again several times over. As cunning as they are, it does cross my mind the possibility they are acting in cahoots on this matter, but realize they do this mainly because they can.
They are all individuals with their own unique cat personalities, and my services are required for two activities at this hour. To feed them and to let them out, and back in and out and sometimes back in again, (I recently locked the cat flap because of too many unwanted feline visitors), effectively promoting myself to ‘Chief Sustenance Giver and Official Door Opener’. Fortunately for me, they are adept at spontaneous entertainment, resulting in a tiny reward for me and what could be perceived in the dead of night as a bonus microdose of dopamine.
Not too bad, considering the day hasn’t officially begun.
If you find yourself wandering around in the middle of the night because you have woken up, I recommend that you steer clear of your electrical devices but rather grab a proper book, you know the kind, with paper pages and a binder. Using a Kindle or any other kind of electrical handheld device will only result in an adverse effect to what we would like to achieve.
With a book, it taps into more of our senses. You feel the book, the pages; you can smell the musty paper or the crisp, newly printed collection, and you can absorb and admire the book’s art on its cover if so desired.
By reading something wonderful and captivating, you will not only feel good but eventually your eyelids will become heavy and, before you know it, you’ll be back in slumber land, the home of your dreamscapes.
During the more clement weather, I’ll always pop outside to stargaze and make my secret wishes whenever a meteor hits and burns up in our atmosphere. (Or shooting stars, as I more fondly, and incorrectly, like to call them).
It’s almost impossible to gaze at all the trillions of stars in the dark night and not feel humbled, a mere speck standing on this blue planet gawping up at the impressive view, literally staring up at mind-blowing amounts of time gone by.When my official day begins and I’m not too depleted of energy because I’ve been awake half the night, catering to the cats and other activities, I focus on the next steps.
I like to keep things simple, if sometimes to a minimum, so boredom doesn’t annoyingly interject. Therefore, I make sure I incorporate movement, gratitude, and exercise into my daily routines, always noticing an uptick in my mood.
Not only do I live in a remote part of the countryside, that allows me also to see the clear starry nights, there is an abundance of natural beauty all around me, from the stunning views to the animal world. The gratitude I feel to be surrounded by the natural beauty and wonder boosts my dopamine just by stepping outside and inhaling the fresh air and ambience. It’s also the serendipity of taking a nature walk that can flood the brain with dopamine. No two walks are identical, so how could you ever get bored of the anticipatory element of surprise?! Don’t believe for one moment, just because you live in a town or city, there isn’t a green space available for you to enjoy. Seek and you shall find!
My chosen and favourite exercise is swimming. I love the freedom and buoyancy the natural element gives, and when you swim lengths, as I do, you get into the zone, naturally entering a kind of meditative state, killing two birds with one stone on the boosting dopamine score sheet!
It’s also gentle on the body, not being an impact sport, while still putting most of your muscles through a good work-out and this appeals to me the most
Routine can be a blessing that sometimes creeps into my unconventional world. It is really about embracing what works for you, rather than conforming with the dictatorial influence that seeps in from the rest of the world. We ADHDers have to stand tall and walk our why.
Someone who advocates ice-cold showers in the morning has my utmost respect, but on the flip side, maybe someone else’s misery. While we can all nod in agreement that it has been proven that ice baths and showers have numerous health benefits, improving alertness, reducing pain, decreasing inflammation, reducing muscle soreness, pain relief, and improving mood and dopamine,no amount of coaxing you into the chilly and icy depths is going to work if you naturally favour the warmer side of alternative practices that will produce the same results.
This is the wonder of the rich tapestry of the neurodivergent world and is to be promoted, celebrated, and rewarded. It’s empowerment I seek, a liberation from the overwhelming dogma, for all, not just a select few. So empower yourselves, make moves toward more sustained dopamine levels, and improve motivation!
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