Benefits of Meditation and ADHD (Shameless Promotion)

Since I just did a class at ADDCLASSES.COM about Adult ADD and Meditation, I thought I would give you a list of the benefits of Meditation for the ADHD adult:

1. Meditation can help build self confidence     A lot of ADHD adults have issues with self perception and self confidence. These things not only take a physical and mental toll, but usually also show up with how someone earns and manages money.

2. Meditation can increase serotonin production   This can help with sleeping issues and mood swings.

3. Meditation increases overall concentration   This it good whether you need to pay attention to your professor, your boss, or all of the other drivers on the road.

4. Meditation reduces stress and anxiety levels   ADD adults tend to have more issues with stress and anxiety that the rest of the population.

The class is now available at the ADD/ADHD Audio Library

Comments

[Angie Hartford]

Ummm...I don't know about the rest of you, buy my ADD makes it close to impossible for me to meditate! Daniel Amen talks about this in his books, too, so I don't feel that off-base. This time.

[Kim]

I understand that it's difficult to meditate for people with ADHD. I have it myself and I've had some success in meditation. I listen to online radio stations that have meditation music. I usually sit or lie down in a quiet room, and clear my mind of distractions. It is important to clear one's mind of all distractions, otherwise it won't work as well. Also, one thing that helped me calm down and reduce my stress was to eliminate the energy-sucking people out of my life. It was a very painful thing to do, but it helped reduce my stress tremendously. People can be very demanding, so I just learned how to say no and only help myself for now. I also learned how to be independent and self-sufficient so I wouldn't have to be concerned with other people offering help with strings attached (i.e. I learned how to build my own computer rather than paying somebody else to do it). I do help, but only what my energy levels allow (gee, I'm helping someone right now!) Keeping a detached mentality has also helped me as well. If you look around you and pay attention to what triggers emotional responses (stimulus/response) and get a further understanding of what triggers those responses, you can start to gain control of what and how you repond to those stimuli. I have a hard time with this one because I'm a constant worrywort and noises bother me. However, I have made great strides in handling issues such as worrying and being distracted. Right now, the only thing I'm worried about is how to find and maintain stable employment, which has been a continuous stressor in my life. I've compensated by living cheaply, but cheap is still not free. :-)

[Ali]

I was going to post the same as Angie. I haven't had a clear mind in 44 years. ;) As soon as I try to meditate, everything I've ever forgotten - and it's a lot - starts bobbing back up into my consciousness. Very distracting.

However, I will try. Thanks, Kim. Good luck with the employment.

PS - Yoga, while not true meditation, gives me a very similar feeling of clearheadedness and relaxation.