The "Orange Zone" Rule (ADHD Energy Hack)
Planning your day can help a lot with managing our capacity. I love using Sunsama for this. If you'd like to try it for free go to https://sunsama.com/a/jessicafromhowtoadhd
Managing our energy can be difficult. We can be at capacity and still try to do things, either because we don't want to let people down or because what we're doing is important to us. I did this recently... and I not only hurt myself doing it but I upset someone else, too. It sucked. So I want to share what I learned about it... and what I am trying now to better manage where I'm at energy-wise during the day.
Comments (9)
Ooooh I love the lanyard idea!!! Yeah….. my limit can be a very dramatic switch! 😱
So happy I found this page! 🥰
Ive been on both ends of interactions such as these, and I felt like crap in both of those instances. All we can do is learn from them and do our best going forward
Having gone so far into the red that I collapsed for over a year, you're not a jerk. Totally get your empathy and desire to meet everyone's needs, but your boundaries are so important. 💚
That is an absolutely amazing idea of the colors to acknowledge where I am and warn my daughter who does not pick up on social cues.
What your therapist said makes perfect sense. It's like driving cross country. If you plan it properly, you don't stop driving when you're already too tired to drive and falling asleep at the wheel. You stop driving when you know you'll be getting to that point soon. That way, you still have energy to find and check into a motel before you crash out. Stopping at orange works the same way. Stopping at orange still gives you the capacity to communicate that you're done to whomever needs to know, and you still have enough energy to stop what you're doing before you crash at red.
💜💜💜
What is the point of having the color coded lanyards if they still come up to you when you have the red one???
You are not a jerk. You were experiencing the fight/fight response. Behaviour is totally understandable. It’s great that you were aware of what happened. And that you reached out for help. Yes this person cried. When you go into your emotional mind it makes a situation feel worse. It was really great you were able to go into your wise mind. You were able to reach out for help. Well done Jessica.😋🎈☀️