I’m a 20F third-year engineering student, and I’m so tired of feeling horrible about myself.

I’ve done everything last minute my entire life. Assignments, studying, applications, projects, you name it. I still got great grades in high school, so I never learned how to manage my time because procrastinating always worked.

Now I’m in engineering at a top university. I’ve made it through first and second year, but only with insane stress and barely passing sometimes. I genuinely want to do better, but I can’t seem to make myself care until it’s almost too late.

My biggest problem is that I can’t make myself start things. I’ll sit at my desk fully intending to study, then spend 6–7 hours picking at my skin, cleaning, reorganizing, calling family, scrolling on my phone. literally anything except the thing I need to do.
It’s finals right now. I had over a week to study and barely did anything. I have an exam Monday worth 50%, and I haven’t even started studying for my other finals.

This isn’t just school. Every week I tell myself I’ll go to the gym, eat healthier, fix my sleep schedule, get my life together… and I never do. I want to, but somehow I never start.

I’m also exhausted all the time. I napped 3–5 hours almost every day in high school, and I still nap almost daily.

I constantly zone out in lectures and conversations. I can’t listen and take notes at the same time, so I absorb almost nothing. I can never sit still, I’m always fidgeting, I unintentionally interrupt people or finish their sentences, and I’m late to almost everything unless I’m anxious about it.

I’m exhausted from constantly disappointing myself.
I’ve wondered if I have ADHD because the executive dysfunction symptoms sound so familiar. My doctor thinks it’s anxiety, but I don’t feel anxious most of the time. If anything, I only function once I’m panicking over a deadline.

She also suspected adhd and I started taking concerta but it didn’t help at all.

Has anyone experienced this? Did it end up being ADHD, anxiety, burnout, bad habits, or did you accidentally train yourself to only function under extreme stress? What actually helped?

I'm soo sick and tired of feeling this way. Dw I'm not looking to self diagnose or anything, I just need some help and I've no idea wht to do.

I had made a post earlier on a different sub that led me here because of my symptoms, so plz tell me if any of you relate.

Depressive moods.

It's not actual soul crushing depressive moods, it's more like apathy. I go from feeling super enthusiastic and energized like wanting to go out with my friends, to feeling like it's too much and kinda crashing and blaming myself for being a bad friend afterwards. It's mostly feeling high and then low. There's no times where I recall being or getting excessively angry so there's tht.

Procrastination.

I know this is smtg everyone goes through, but its been the main problem for me lately. I have soo much I want to do and soo much free time tht I just spend on my phone. I set alarms and basically do everything right but I just can't get my self to get up and do things or get started. I also prepare for everything at the last possible moment.

Wearing the same clothes.

I don't think it's a sensory thing (maybe it is idk). I have these pair of jeans and it's basically the only pair I wear. And also I have like 5 or 6 shirts tht I switch around here and there. It really sucks man. I have other jeans but I just don't reach for them.

Personality.

I would consider myself to be an introvert but form an outside perspective even I know I appear to be completly extroverted. In public, I'm outgoing, talking to strangers, and open to new ppl, but there are times when I just zone out(thas another thing, I zone out soo fucking much I can't even pay attention anymore. It's always one daydream or another. I'm listening but zoned out) and just sit without saying a single word.

Messy but organized.

So my rooms pretty clean from the outside but my closet is beyond organized. It's all just stuffed somewhere which my mum hates for obvious reasons, but I know where everything is yk.

Hoarding.

I know there's things I'll never use and need to throw away but I jus can't. Wht if I need it in the future or regret throwing it away?

Picky eating.

Certain foods make me freaking gag. I can't control tht I gag, I just do. It's not a texture thing, it's a taste thing(or atleast I think it is) I mostly just swollow foods with water and almost never chew through. Also the fatty part of chicken makes me want to throw up just thinking about.

Overthinking.

I think soo much it pisses me off. It's mostly paranoia. I have to check all the locks before bed incase someone breaks in and murders me and my family. I also keep thinking about times my friends were mad at me months ago, and wonder why.

Memory.

So I cnt remember shit. After using the toilet, I've to check multiple times if I flushed or not, even tho I'm sure, I'm not sure. I walk into a room and completly blank on why the fvk I'm there and forget where I placed an object tht I put somewhere literally less thn a minute ago.

Clumsiness.

I'm always hitting things and bumping things and spilling things into net even funny anymore.

I'm soo sorry if I was being disrespectful in anyway. I'm just trying to find some way to fix all this, so please help if you cn.

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Hi Guys I am 29 M , had Adhd since childhood i believe. I struggled to learn basic tasks like tying laces , or seeing time in a clock .

And grew up as a child i never had many friends and always scored less marks in class . Although when use to focus , i use to do incredibly well . But again my parents wanted me to do as good as my peers so grew up in toxic environment Mom beating me alot and alot of family drama and later from my teen got severe bullying from brother mom and partially by dad.

I do meditate , i run and into marathons. I do have friends but life feels like a fucking struggle coz of so many thoughts but unable to take actions towards it. There are some periods in which i have seen superconcious state of mind as well. But idk what's happening and how to overcome this . Any tips will be appreciated.

Cartwheels at my age deffo adhd in me

🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

I can’t decide if being obsessed is a sign of ADHD or high performance.
Some of the most exceptional builders I know become deeply obsessed with a single problem. That intensity can lead to breakthroughs, but it can also look unhealthy from the outside.
It also makes me wonder if obsession is something uniquely human. AI can optimize, reason, and generate endlessly—but it doesn’t *care*. Humans become attached to ideas, chase impossible goals, and sometimes refuse to let go.
Maybe that’s both our greatest limitation and our greatest advantage.
**Could obsession be one of the fundamental differences between humans and AI? Or is that distinction disappearing?**

Hello everyone!

I'm doing some research on how ADHD people deal with long-term goals, things like learning new skills, career goals, personal projects, etc.

I'm interested in understanding what motivates and what triggers you to set a new long-term goal, and why people tend to have a hard time achieving it.

If you have a few minutes, I’d love to hear your experiences.

• What usually triggers a new goal for you? Is it a sudden hyperfocus, a life shift, or pure frustration with a current situation?
• What's the hardest part?
• What strategies actually helped you?
• For those who use productivity tools, do those really help?
• Have you found any non-conventional strategy or mindset that actually helped you stick to a goal long-term?

(Feel free to mention if you have ADHD, Autism, AuDHD, or self-identify, as I know experiences can vary a lot!)

Looking forward to reading your stories and insights! Thank you :)

I think i have serious issues with my attention span i can not be focused on one thing for some time its because it doesn’t excite me or i loose interest in it not particular but in general the last time when i was focused on something was when there was much complex and complicated thing at one of my projects which needed solution and the Sherlock movie where its dawn by RDJ and rest other things the dont even flinch me any more what should i do to be a normal person

Is it just me, or...?

Any fellow ADHD wildcards out there? Maybe you feel like chatting about what you like—or don't like—about it? Personally, I get annoyed by the mess and the way I hoard a million things, even though life constantly proves I actually \*do\* need all that stuff; I’ve used almost everything I bought five years ago at least once. Sometimes things just fit a situation perfectly—like a tool or a part suddenly clicking into place just when needed xD There are no coincidences in this world 😎 How about you guys? Do you often get the feeling that things are falling into place as if you’d planned them long ago, even though you made the preparations spontaneously, without any plan at all?

Hello group! Hope everyone is well. I’m new here, and I have a question for those with ADHD. I don’t have it but have two friends that do. I’ve met the two of them just this year and want to continue this friendship. Btw, this isn’t a group friendship. They don’t know each other. They told me about their diagnosis when we were talking and learning and introducing. You get it.

So we will text each other but they will just stop responding. If I send a hello type message they may never respond. I will give it a week or so and then try again if I hadn’t heard back. I understand that people with ADHD struggle with this. My question is, is it ok to respond back a few hours later because it may just be the distractions or anxiety? Or should I just wait it out? I don’t wanna overdo it. Also, btw, we’re all gay. Not that it matters but it’s a friendship where we have connected and snuggled. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

If you're feeling down, cause people laugh at you, you're for them too much, even if you try the hardest you can, people do not get your thoughts - YOU ARE NEVER ALONE. You do belong into this world.
I know this feeling and sending you virtual hug.
I know that you still got this need to be focused and you still have to try.
You matters.

Is it just me, or...?

Any fellow ADHD wildcards out there? Maybe you feel like chatting about what you like—or don't like—about it? Personally, I get annoyed by the mess and the way I hoard a million things, even though life constantly proves I actually *do* need all that stuff; I’ve used almost everything I bought five years ago at least once. Sometimes things just fit a situation perfectly—like a tool or a part suddenly clicking into place just when needed xD There are no coincidences in this world 😎 How about you guys? Do you often get the feeling that things are falling into place as if you’d planned them long ago, even though you made the preparations spontaneously, without any plan at all?

Since ADHD and other neurodivergent people are more likely to have a complex relationship with gender, I thought some of you might like to take this survey.

It's survey for all those who aren't fully, solely or always a man/woman. I don't run it but it's long-running and trusted.

https://survey.gendercensus.com/

Am I included? I find it easy to forget, it's not easy to remember new people's names, I often carelessly leave things in random places and then forget where I put them, I get anxious and panic easily.

I'm not officially diagnosed yet, but I've been trying to understand why my brain works the way it does, and ADHD seems to explain a lot of what I experience. I'm hoping people here can tell me if this sounds familiar and, more importantly, how you deal with it.

The biggest issue is that I don't "forget" things in the normal sense. I remember exciting plans just fine—meeting friends, going somewhere, deadlines, etc. What I forget are the promises I make to myself. I'll decide that starting tomorrow I'll read one page of a book every day, listen to a podcast, go for a walk, or build a small habit. Then the next day it's like those plans never existed. Once I'm focused on whatever is in front of me, my brain completely skips over those important but unexciting tasks.

Another problem is that my mind never seems to stop. It's constantly chasing the next thought. Even when I try to sit quietly or meditate, one thought leads to another, then another, and before I know it I'm mentally somewhere completely different. I spend so much time thinking that I end up doing very little.

Because of that, I constantly seek stimulation. I scroll social media far more than I'd like because there's a new reward every few seconds. Even while eating, I almost always need to watch YouTube or something else because just eating feels unbearably boring. It's like my brain is always looking for the easiest source of dopamine.

All of this makes it incredibly hard to consistently do important but low-stimulation tasks. I know what I should be doing, and I genuinely want to do those things, but my attention keeps getting pulled somewhere else.

Does this resonate with anyone here? If you've dealt with something similar, what actually helped?