Anyone with ADHD/ADD in nursing school? Help

[BrittSmith]

Hello everyone,

I have ADD-Inattentive sub-type, and I'm concerned with the lack of time to read my textbooks for all of my classes. I'm spending all day, every day studying. I don't have time to even cook, clean, or do errands anymore (luckily I have some help from my partner!).

I was wondering how do/did you manage? What works/worked best for you?

Thank you!!

[shells31]

I don't know how they manage, I have adhd and I am starting my nursing program in the fall. Very scared/ worried/ excited.

[eLeVatioN]

Planned every minute of every day. Filled a blank white page, landscape orientation, with a handwritten chart of time blocks of each day of the week. Established a routine. If I didn't wake up at the correct time, I would have to sacrifice something on down the line like a home cooked breakfast. If I took too long to shower, it came out of study time. That sort of thing. Studied 6-8 hours a day, worked 8 hours a day, slept 5-6 hours a day. Everything else was transition activities like driving, showering, eating/cooking. Lots of help from sig other on the daily activities like cooking and laundry. No social life except occasional studying with classmates. I never told others about my ADHD (inattentive subtype). They asked me how I made things look so effortless. It was simple: Plan to sacrifice and don't complain, even to yourself.

That was LVN school. I did a hybrid online program where we met in person 1-2 days a week and self-paced the material. I am starting a transition to BSN program in August. This time around, I have a family to answer to. I hope the kids don't take it too hard, but they aren't going to be seeing a lot of me for the next couple years.

As far as study habits, I have to do everything backwards. I read the chapter summary at the end of each chapter before tackling the chapter review questions. Then as I answer those, I am exposed to the chapter content. That way, as I read the chapter from front to back, my brain has recognition milestones that keep me engaged and cut down on re-reading time.

It is basically impossible for me to read a chapter of a textbook any other way. If there are no study guide questions, I memorize keyword definitions for the section, and those become my a-ha checkpoints.

It may help you to set phone alarms. The iPhone lets you label each alarm so you can be reminded of what you should be doing in order to meet your goals for the day. It helps me tons, and I have about 20 saved that repeat on different days.