Many ADDers I coach complain about their impulsivity in social, work and financial arenas. In social situations, impulsivity can take the form of overtalkativeness, disrupting conversations, blurting out inappropriate statements and realizing it all afterwards. One client reported to me that she became afraid to offer opinions socially or at work, because she would come across poorly. As a result she has stifled her creativity and spontaneity and says nothing, She has become very anxious in these situations. What should she do? Of course, she should take the time to think before offering comments. But since that’s not likely, I think she needs to look at the ratio of her useful comments to her comments that bomb, and continue to risk making a few inappropriate remarks if, and only if, her positive contributions far outweigh the latter.
Another issue involves “urges”, such as impulsive buying. In that area, I’ve learned that if you are an impulsive ADDer and frequently buy items that are outside your budget and you don’t care for them later, resist the “urge”, because, believe it or not, an urge passes, if you wait it out. So then wait 24 hours and make the decision to buy at a later time.
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