Moving Tips for Adults with ADHD

Moving to a new home can seem quite overwhelming for adults with ADHD. Not only is there a lot to do, but there’s usually a fixed deadline that can’t be missed. With the difficulties in organization that come with ADHD, there may be little rhyme or reason to where different items are or even if items of the same type are kept in the same location or a number of different places in the home.

Instead of seeing a major move like this as simply a mountain of challenges to overcome, try seeing it as an opportunity to make progress in dealing and living with ADHD. A move from one location to another is a chance to set up systems that can be carried forward to help get and stay organized in the new home.

Planning and preparation are the basis for a smooth move said Certified Professional Organizer and Productivity Consultant Holly Hitchcock Graff. “With an easy plan, you can organize and prepare for the move,” Graff says. “Ask yourself:

• Where are you moving to?
• When are you moving?
• How will you move?
• What do you need to do?”

She also recommends starting on tasks for the move and setting deadlines at least one month before the day(s) of the move. Graff’s company, Clutter Control Angels, offers ideas and suggestions on organizing strategies. She also says finding online resources – such as moving.com – that provide free information and articles can help with a move.

If you’re using a professional moving company, that make this decision early in the process. Once this is done, and a moving date is set, work backwards from that date to set up a timeline with due dates for various tasks that need to be accomplished. Steps include:

• Finding and booking a moving service if needed.
• Deciding what will be packed for the move and what can be disposed of.
• Organizing spaces for the move.
• Determining a structure for the new home.

Moving.com has an article that gives some basic questions to ask moving companies. Find out if the company can give a binding quote, if items will remain on one vehicle or be transferred, and if there is an insurance policy in place for broken or lost items.

Use the packing process as a time to weed out things to keep and things to get rid of. Think about it – a move is actually the only time you really MUST touch everything you own, right? Why not use this as a chance to keep the good stuff, throw out the bad stuff, and give away (or sell?) the good stuff you no longer use, need or want?

It’s not uncommon for those with ADHD to have a number of extra items; impulse purchases and duplicate items for example. Now is the time to discard those extra and unnecessary items and lighten the load for packing. You might even think of having a yard sale to raise some extra money to help defray moving costs.

Organizing space for a move is really no different from organizing space in general. What We Know #12: A guide to Organizing the Home and Office has a number of suggestions that can be implemented to organize the home. Having everything neatly set-up, with each room containing the items that will be used in that room and like items stored together will make packing quicker and easier, and will also make setting up the new home simpler.

Determining a structure for the new home in advance will help also. This will enable items to be unpacked in the room they will belong in, and will allow for an organized home from the get-go.

Most people think moving is a hassle, and it’s definitely time consuming. But it’s really a golden opportunity to purge and start in a new home with a clean slate. Following some simple guidelines and putting the work in ahead of time can go a long way towards reducing the stress of the move itself and to establishing a more organized environment to live in. So don’t get too bogged down thinking about the difficulties of moving – relish the opportunities it brings.

As seen on http://www.help4adhd.org/