MishaSound on! ⬇️
Thank you!
I remember being in shock when the lady finished my assessment and told me I have Autism with ADHD. It was not at all the outcome I expected. At the time, my only perception of ADHD was that one boy in my class who always got sent out for disruptive behaviour, had a TA or both. How could I have ADHD? I never behaved like that!
I was always the good quiet girl, even though I have to admit, that didn’t get me far and unfortunately it helped me remain unseen. It’s a common issue we are unravelling with neurodivergent girls and women. The research has always catered to boys and only now we are starting to understand that many of us have been struggling with neurodivergence without even knowing. Maybe we knew something was up but just didn’t know what it was.
So what is ADHD?
ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. This is a neurodevelopment condition (how your brain develops, functions and processes information) affecting activity levels and impulse control.
Here are the 3 main types:
- The Inattentive type – struggling to stay focused, remembering things and staying organised
- Hyperactive impulsive type – acting without thinking, constant restlessness including fidgeting
- Combined type – a mixture of both the Inattentive and Hyperactive impulsive types.
This affects A LOT of day to day tasks and right now we are going to discuss reading. As I stated before, I was still in denial, but I considered this an explanation as to why I had dozens of books in my room all of which I’d only read a few pages and moved on to the next impulse buy. I decided to go back to one of the books I’d unconsciously abandoned and started to read it.
Page 1, blah blah blah character blah blah blah scenario blah blah… I wonder if I did my laundry today, I need that top for tomorrow. I then would go and do my laundry but return to my book.
Let’s try that again. Page 1, okay let’s focus and take in the book. Blah blah blah character again I remember reading that, blah blah new part I didn’t see before blah blah and suddenly Homer Simpson’s monkey is clashing the symbols in my head.
After an hour I realised I had done a whole bunch of nothing. Maybe I’d made it to page 3 which speaks for itself. I mean I had every intention to read that book but it as is if every other voice in my head got even louder. I realised it actually could be true, I could actually have ADHD.
After having 101 realisations looking at my past and present behaviours, I had no choice but to accept I actually have a problem but guess what? Every problem has a solution!
I started doing research and discovered brown noise. I was confused because why am I listening to what I imagined air sounds like? Regardless I put it on in the background and tidied my room. To my surprise I had a profound sense of nothingness going on. It’s like the internal tea party in my head finally got kicked out. I went to read that book finally and you guessed it, I breezed through a chapter like I never struggled to begin with. I was in shock?
All I needed was some background noise to actually be able to read this whole time? I later on realised that I was always able to focus on trains, planes, long car rides and even when a fan or heater is on. Honestly everything that mimics the sound of brown noise pretty much shuts up my brain so I can focus on what I actually had to do.
So why does this work?
ADHD brains struggle with low or inconsistent dopamine levels. Dopamine is a chemical messenger aka neurotransmitter which is responsible for relaying information between nerves cells in your brain. It plays a massive role to how you think, feel, your motivation, focus and more.
These low levels means they are under stimulated so are always trying to find stimulants, which to perhaps to you and I, look like distractions and getting bored quickly. Brown noise acts like a steady stimulant, like calm block for distractions. It also helps to regulate the nervous system, as the deep frequencies activate the parasympathetic nervous system.
The method of pairing background noises with reading changed the game for me. I have experimented with other sounds like classical music, lofi and cinematic scores. My personal favourite is pairing brown and lofi sounds together, chefs kiss! If this isn’t the method that helps you read, here are some others you can give a go:
Start by reading something you actually like
I put unnecessary pressure on myself to read self development books and it’s no wonder they piled up. Get a book you’d actually enjoy, maybe fiction, romance or sport. You know what you gravitate towards, go and read about it! I fought the idea of romance books because I thought it was typical, turns out I love them and that’s okay!
Micro reading
Using a timer, read in 5-10 minute sessions using the Pomodoro method (25 minutes on with a 5 minute break, repeat). Give yourself mini rewards for each session.
Summarising as you go
This is a way to get your brain engaged. Make your own annotations/ summaries as you go. I never want to write on my books so I use sticky notes and add them at the end of each chapter. It makes it so much easier to go through little notes made as a recap before reading the next chapter.
Change settings of texts
These tweaks make it easier for the brain to follow. If you’re reading digitally of course, change to a dyslexic friendly font, add spacing and try dark mode.
Tracking as you read
Track where you’re reading. Use your finger, a highlighter or ruler (my favourite) to help you go line by line. You can also gamify your progress by using visual tracker on notion.
Alternatively you can try listening to books, the ADHD brain loves this.
Try switching between an audiobook (Audible) and ebooks . Experiment with AI tools such as Speechify, Voice dream reader or Notions AI reader mode.
Another method I have yet to try to be honest is joining a book club/reading group. They’re also available online, who knew? There is nothing like community and accountability to help you on your journey and if you’re serious about improving your reading skills, this is a great move.
I never thought I would say this but after going through the five stages of grief, I am so grateful that I did that assessment. I would have still been running around in circles wondering what I am doing and what is wrong with me. Especially as I noticed my issues more as an adult in comparison to my childhood.
I always had to try 10x harder to be average but all I needed was a literal distraction for my brain to take in information. I felt robbed! If I had any idea this is was a simple trick to help there are a lot of things that I could’ve and would’ve done differently. But one has to move on.
Neurodivergence has become the remote control to my brain and it has been key in helping me break cycles and actually move forward. Don’t get me wrong, I still have my days, but this being a new foundation of mine has helped me create a system I can always bounce back on.
There are so many other neurodivergental methods can help solve your problems and I hope this post helped you find one that works for you. Let me know which one helps your brain lock in!
Well done for making it to the end!
If this helped, share with a fellow ADHD reader.
Did the brown noise work on you?
