Forget about Forgetfulness… do we all make this ADHD mistake?

Is it just me or does everyone with ADHD lose their stuff? Is forgetfulness something we can all talk about?

This month it was my coveralls. Three pairs of them in fact.

But every day I can’t find something: my hat, my backpack, my shoes.

I think it get it from my mom, she can never find her phone or her keys. It’s like every day we all stop and find each others’ stuff.

Losing my Stuff… but not my mind

For kids with ADHD, you may be able to relate to my coverall debacle.

It started the first day of shop class. I showed up, ready to start a new year. One of my best classes.

And… I forgot my coveralls.  I need them if I want to work on cars and engines. So, like so many other times, I had to do boring paperwork instead.

After school, I forgot to look for them. So, before I knew it, I was back in class with… yup, no coveralls.  More paperwork.

That night I looked for them everywhere but I just couldn’t find them.  I begged my mom to take me to the store to buy a new pair. She understood. Thankfully she bought me a second pair.

But… off to school the next day and guess what I left at home? You guessed it.

So I did what every ADHD kid does when they forget something… I called my mom.

Any of this sound familiar?

My mom dropped them off and I ran back to shop class.  In my rush to buy coveralls, I had forgotten to check the size. They didn’t fit. More paperwork.

(I think that is why I forget things, I’m always in a hurry.)

Now it’s 2 weeks into school and I haven’t so much as got my hands dirty in shop class.

The coveralls go back in the bag and I take them home and when my mom goes to return them she can’t find the bag.  It’s like nowhere. In our house, lots of things end up “nowhere.”

Teacher losing patience

By the next class, the teacher was out of patience with me. I got that feeling of letting him down and we quickly started heading in that direction… an ADHD student knows all too well what it feels like to NOT be on the teacher’s good side.

So, to try and get by, today is the day I call my dad and plead with  him to bring me a pair of coveralls.  Now, my dad is a pretty busy and important guy at work. But he knows if I call and ask him for something, I really do need his help.

On his lunch, he stops by the local work wear store and buys me coveralls just in time for last block. Thanks, Dad.

It doesn’t end there. I wore those coveralls for about a week and next thing I know they have disappeared.  Now I’m angry, frustrated and embarrassed.  Why can’t I keep track of things?

Luckily for me, I found my original pair from last year in my old backpack in my room. I’m going to put a GPS on them so I don’t loose them again. 🙂

Forever Losing Things? Join the club.

My experience of having ADHD comes with forever losing things. In grade 7, my teacher was so angry that I forgot my pencil she would send me to the office. Eventually I was kicked out of her class… and eventually, I was even kicked out of that school.  I had been to the office 24 times in 3 months.

I’m not a bad kid for not remembering things. It’s something I need help with. Over time, it is getting better.

Hey, it helps to have someone on your side who “gets it.” And maybe a sense of humor about it, too.

What have you lost lately?

~ jeff