In my recent post Buddies for Adult ADD Tasks a couple of readers commented about FlyLady. One reader thought Flylady was a great resource. Another reader could not understand how Flylady could help anybody with ADD because she was overwhelmed with the amount of email from them.
I do agree that as a person with ADD the number of email sent out by Flylady can be a bit much. With that said I do think that there are parts of Flylady that can be helpful to people with ADD. For some people the email can be very helpful to get started. If they do become too much there’s no reason they can’t be turned off.
While I don’t think Flylady as a whole is very ADD Friendly I do think there are parts of it that can be helpful. Like many other organizational tools that are developed for non-ADD people Flylady can be tweaked so that parts of it can be used to help a person with ADD.
4 replies to "Is FlyLady ADD Friendly?"
I made this same comment on the original article, before I saw this, so I thought I’d have my say twice…
I love flyLady. The concepts are exactly what we need….and the techniques/strategies are perfect, because you work “15 minutes at a time”…I can flutter around the house and switch gears without the guilt about not sticking to one task till it’s done. I don’t have to work against who I am.
And she teaches routines, which ADD-ers so desparately need. I’m still bumping my butt on the ground, but I have some tools in my tool box from her that have let me see glimpses of what it is to be airborne!!
But as an ADD-er, I needed to make some “accomodations” so that the plethora of e-mails is not overwhelming….I have outlook, so I was able to decide what kind of e-mails I want to receive from her, what I wanted to trash, and of the ones I wanted to receive, what should be read “when i get around to it” for inspiration and/or strategies, or whatever, and if there were any I wanted to pop up right away. Bottom line? All “reminders” go in the trash. I keep “testimonials” “musings” and other various essays and motivational pieces. That’s it. And I read them when I can be doing “recreational” reading. NOting lands in my in box, but in its own folder according to the “rules” I set up in outlook.
If all you want is the strategies and ideas, you can go to her site and read…or buy the book, and skip the e-mails.
What I like the most about FlyLady is hearing that I’m not so different, and that others share my struggles. I love the encouragement and affirmation, and the constant reminder that housework (or any work) done imperfectly is a step in the right direction!
I think the reminders are most helpful to those SAHM who find they get glued to the computer (into hyperfocus) and need to be startled out of it and into doing what needs doing.
Me, I need the startle effect, but not at home…at work (witness this comment done while I’m at the office!)
So I set up “flylady-esque” reminders via my own yahoo group “flyingatwork” that force me to ‘fess up wo being on task or not, set my goals for the morning, afternoon, and review my day (on task/off task/goals met or not, why, why not, what to reinforce, what to change for the next day.
When the e-mails come,I have to answer the questions, and send it to a friend. We keep each other accountable.
Different things work for different ADD-ers.
I am a 26 year old woman with ADD and fly lady works for me after having my son who is a year old now I was concerned that I couldn’t keep up with everything and at first I didn’t jump all at once I would follow the website and sometime I wouldn’t but the fly program doesn’t make you feel guilty or make you feel like a failure and doesn’t compare its basically a work at your own pace kind of a program which helps me it has taking me almost a year to master some of the basics, but I mastered them so stick with give it a chance.
Katie (Baltimore MD)
There is an option to receive only the Daily Summary E-mail. Maybe that wasn’t an option in 2010, but it is now, so there’s no reason for ADDers not to try this out. Her methods are great for us. You can always simplify and streamline what she recommends, but if you follow her program, you’ll end up with routines built into your life! (Just the thing that seems impossible for us, but is desperately needed.)
It’s important to note that her whole philosophy is to not take on too much. It’s about baby steps. At the end of the emails she says not to feel “behind” and try to catch up, but to jump in where you are. Most ADDers really struggle with that. We constantly feel behind and overwhelmed. This program really combats that. I’ve tried over and over to set up my own organizational program, to no avail. This stuff works. (If it helps me, it can help anyone with a little motivation.)
Just found out Flylady is someone with ADD (it’s on her website).
I find that the book is easier to read rather than reading emails or on the website.
The way she speaks in the book is very ADD-like. For example, you may think about yourself as a slob, but reality is that you are a perfectionist and get sidetracked and overwhelmed. I found out that is true! I believe with her method, there is a way of learning to be focussed on 1 task a time. Also it gives me some grip when my before bed- routine and morning routine are written out so I dont forget stuff.
It is because it only takes 10-15 minutes (with timer) that I wont get sidetracked. Still there is the tendency to go over that time but sh3 is very strict with that! That way we will not be completely burned up. We kind of used same methods at my work, and I found out it works really well for me.
I started with 1 thing a day so it wouldn’t be overwhelming. It really works for me. My head is the same, still difficult to focus, but the house is getting more and more organized and with the house being more organized, my head is getting less full with loose stuff and i am less stressed.
I feel like I finally have a little bit more grip on life instead of it feeling overwhelming.