Self-Care for ADHD and Autistic Adults and Parents

Energy, overwhelm, sleep and the basics. Practical self-care strategies for ADHD and autistic adults, including parents running on empty.

Task Initiation Hack: You know what you need to do but can't make yourself start
Time Blindness Toolkit: You consistently misjudge how long things take and run late
Externalise Your Working Memory: You forget tasks, appointments, and important details constantly
Sensory Self-Care Routine: You're overwhelmed by noise, touch, or sensory input but keep pushing through
Social Battery Management: For when school runs, playdates, and social obligations drain you completely
Parent Sensory Toolkit: For when noise, mess, and chaos at home push you to sensory overload
Body Doubling for Adults: You can't focus or start tasks when you're alone
Routine Anchoring: Your days feel chaotic and unstructured, making everything harder
Understanding Your Own Stimming: You stim (fidget, rock, tap, pace, pick at skin) and feel self-conscious about it, or you're suppressing natural regulation behaviours
Post-Masking Crash Recovery: You perform neurotypical behaviour all day and completely crash when you get home, unable to function or engage with anyone
Neurodivergent Sleep Protocol: Your brain won't switch off at night: racing thoughts, doom-scrolling, and a sleep schedule that shifts later and later
Neurodivergent Relationship Communication: Your partner or close relationships are strained because of communication differences
Movement for Neurodivergent Brains: You know exercise helps but can't maintain a routine because of boredom, executive dysfunction, or sensory issues
Low-Demand Mode for PDA Days: For when even tiny tasks feel like a wall when your nervous system is in demand-avoidance mode, and pushing through makes it worse
Basic Needs Body Check: You suddenly realise you're starving, busting for the loo, freezing, or running on fumes because you didn't notice the earlier signals
After a Shutdown: Quiet Recovery: For when after a shutdown you feel hollow, slow, and unable to function, and pushing yourself back to normal makes it last longer
Minimum Viable Self-Care: For when on bad days, showering, brushing teeth, or changing clothes feels impossible, and the gap between 'good days' and 'bad days' makes you feel worse
Autistic Burnout Recovery (Months, Not Days): You've lost skills you used to have, can't mask anymore, sensory tolerance has collapsed, and 'rest' the normal way isn't working
ND Brain Across the Menstrual Cycle: Your ADHD or autistic traits intensify dramatically at certain points in your cycle, and you keep being blindsided by it
Building Your Sensory Diet: You know certain inputs help or hurt but it's all reactive, and you keep getting overwhelmed before you intervene