Get Started and Cross the Finish Line with a Dopamine Menu
A creative way to keep your battery charged when you have ADHD!
You’re sitting there bleary eyed trying to muster the energy to get going. You are staring at the thing you’ve been putting off. You’re determined, you get up but find yourself bouncing from one thing to another, doing everything BUT the thing that needs doing. You realize that it’s not going to end well if you fail to complete it. You don’t really have a plan and aren’t sure where to start. Before you know it, the day is shot. Frustration and overwhelm kick in!
“It’s like pouring water into a bucket that has a hole in it.”
- Eric Tivers, LCSW
What would it be like to boost your mood, ramp up motivation and actually complete those difficult tasks? One creative way to get started and stay in action is to create an ADHD friendly dopamine menu.
What is a dopamine menu?
A dopamine menu is a list of healthy activities that are pleasurable. They provide an instant reward, boost mood and stimulate your brain when your battery runs out. This list is created ahead of time, and keeps you pacing with frequent short-term rewards.
Why is it effective?
An ADHD friendly dopamine menu, tailored to you, makes both starting a task and returning to it easier. It provides small rewards that you experience along the way, breaking the cycle of procrastination. Because it is pre-planned, it reduces the load of deciding what to do when you are already overwhelmed. It separates the planning from the choosing.
“It reduces the decision load when our brain has to solve two problems at the same time. What should I do and when do I start?“
- Jessica McCabe
How does a dopamine menu help people with ADHD?
ADHD brains have lower-than-average levels of dopamine, a brain chemical that regulates the body’s pleasure and reward system. A dopamine menu provides quick brain boosts that are pleasurable, giving us enough dopamine to keep us happy and motivated. It is an excellent way to give your brain the stimulation it needs, especially when doing boring tasks. We want to sidestep dopamine boosting behaviors that are less healthy, like scrolling, eating junk food, playing video games or overspending. We tend to get pulled into these mindless habits when our brains are understimulated.
A dopamine menu helps to ease executive functioning challenges that are so common with ADHD. You are predicting what to do, easing the steps involved, separating the choosing from the doing. As therapist and coach Eric Tivers’ says, “Don’t try to do all of your executive functions at the same time.”
“Unfortunately, the quick and easy sources of dopamine we turn to aren’t enough to satisfy the need, or we hit the pleasure button on the same activity so many times, it stops being fun.”
- Jessica McCabe, How to ADHD
How do you create a dopamine menu?
Brainstorm a list of activities that boost your mood and that you feel good about. Make sure that your list satisfies your brain’s need for stimulation.
Organize your activities by the time it takes to complete each one.
Divide your menu based on different types of activities, much like a restaurant menu. See the example below.
Appetizer: 1-10-minute fast boost. (Petting your dog, stepping outside, taking a walk to the mailbox, drinking coffee or practicing deep breathing.)
Entrée: 10-30 minutes. An entrée is a bit longer, but has a greater dopamine pay-off. It is something fulfilling that requires more engagement. (Exercising, cooking, engaging in a hobby or visiting a friend.)
Sides: Sides are something you do WHILE you are doing a less than fun task. (A playlist, fidgeting, chewing gum or listening to a podcast.)
Dessert: A dessert is a short reward that doesn’t pull you in. (A timed game on your phone)
Reminders
Set your menu up ahead of time, before you plan to tackle the task. It separates the planning from the choosing.
Create barriers or friction. In other words, if your phone is causing a distraction, make it harder to use (friction) by leaving it in another room.
Decrease the steps of a challenging task. Break it down, keep it short and use a timer.
Decide ahead of time what task you will do as well as having your dopamine menu ready to go. Both make it easier to start.
Make your menu fun (decorate it) and post it where you can see it.
Give your brain the stimulation it needs to stay happy, focused and motivated. A dopamine menu can help you get started and keep going, because it separates the choosing from the doing. Create a dopamine menu and discover the difference it makes. Get on top of your day in a brain-friendly way!
Schedule a FREE consultation for help building your dopamine menu!
Resources
How to Build a Dopamenu- www.additude.com
How to Make Your Own Dopamine and Why it May Help Increase Happiness- Elizabeth Shaw, RN, www.eatingwell.com
How to Give Your Brain the Stimulation it Needs- Youtube/2020, May 26 https:www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6WCkTw6xg
Using a Dopamine Menu to Stimulate your ADHD Brain- Melanie Wolkoff Wachsman, www.add.org
Eric Tivers- www.ADHDrewired.com
Jessica McCabe- How to ADHD (Youtube)