Last year, when Jen and I were in the beginning stages of building a new home, one of the things we were adamant about was a real, wood-burning fireplace. Now that it's winter, we're putting it to good use, and it's really a lovely thing to have. The only problem is that Jen gets completely engrossed in the fire and won't stop poking at it.
Hyperfocus is common among ADDers. You know - they go into that trance-like state where they lose all track of time and keep insisting that they'll only be 5 more minutes. With Jen, it used to be the computer. Then it turned to cell phone video games. Now it's the fireplace. And the kicker is, we don't even have a set of fireplace tools yet. She tends the fire with a metal spatula.
ADDers are drawn to activities that are instantly gratifying, whether it's playing a video game or maintaining a fire. The lack of dopamine in the ADD brain makes it extra hard to shift gears and extra extra hard to do anything boring. By messing around with the fireplace, Jen is keeping her brain busy with something that gives her immediate results.
I've gotten used to it. On a cold winter's night, I can always find her parked in front of the fireplace, her conversational abilities limited to sporatic requests for something to burn. "Don't we have any old mail?"
No Mystery!! Like many (most?) ADDers, "settling down" is near impossible for me. My psych recommends meditation... right. Can't get there with the "usual" techniques.
Last fall, I found one of those 3-D animated screen savers: An alpine village in winter at dusk... calming piano /strings music in the background while you literally fly all over, around, and through the town and surrounding hills... Total computer-guided daydream immersion therapy. I have been known to lock in for over an hour...
Bottom line, many ADDers desperately need to find a way to escape the noise and frenzy of their own minds.
It's too noisy in here... I need a break!!!
Posted by: Chris 'CT' Thomas | February 17, 2007 at 11:07 AM