So my son has #ADHD. It can be exhausting for both of us because there are so many #behaviors and mental processes affected. Managing it is more like trying to keep up with it and only occasionally getting ahead of it. 😪
When I first designed his bedroom and bath five years ago, I thought bright colors, patterns, textures are all great for the young mind to keep it creative and upbeat. However, I have learned that overstimulating the ADHD brain is very easy to do, and it’s not good.
Picking up something, forgetting to put it in its proper place, having the desire to keep things looking nice, but not having the capacity to actually focus on each thing are challenging for him. The more things there are, the harder it will be.
That room ended up looking like a tornado came through, and he was never going to be able to maintain it properly because of executive functioning disorder, which controls planning, focus, remembering and multitasking. That brain just gets all jumbled up. Hard no on that.
Patience is something I’m still learning. But design is something I’m very familiar with, so I came up with an ADHD-friendly one for him. Less things, designated spaces, open space, muted colors (he begged for the LEDs for personality), literally a space for everything, storage galore (he collects little things, but we don’t want to see them every time) and just enough personality to make it feel like his own space.
Before, he didn’t spend much time in there. Now, he’s always in there, because he likes it, and he can think more clearly. There are no heavy distractions. Nothing pulling his attention in different directions. I think it’s a winner. It’s working….👌🏾
From the Mind of Tonya D Floyd