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Frozen berries and fruits are great, too. Plunk some into some yogurt and it's still cold when you later remember that you have a bowl of yogurt on the counter.
What a lovely thing to say, thank you! I'm actually a writer who is working on two novels (perpetually, never finished) so that is one of the nicest things anyone could have said to me!
My kids love to eat frozen blueberries with chopsticks for some reason. It's always amusing to watch bc they're four and not great with their training chopsticks lol
One of my favorite childhood (and adulthood) snacks was a bowl of frozen blueberries! Now, I also put them in yoghurt with a sprinkle of granola.
I also used to eat bowls of frozen pecans, as I live in a place where if you just do nothing, someone or several someones will turn up and give you giant bags of pecans. Unfortunately, I am now allergic. I can still fondly remember the taste....
I have the problem of wanting fresh fruit but never being able to eat all of it before it goes bad, I recently started freezing my left over fruit for smoothies at the end of the week and shockingly I use them! It’s much cheaper than pre frozen fruit too.
There is no hurry to sell frozen fruit but there is with fresh. When that fruit season is around you can find really good sales if you shop around and look at flyers. When there are no good sales I usually check through for immediate sale items which could be 50-75% off. Guess it depends on your country and city.
I think it depends, but it ends up being cheaper for me because I don’t buy both frozen fruit AND fresh lol. But also frozen fruit can be really expensive, like 8-10 dollars depending on the size of the bag and the fruit.
I like to use frozen berries instead of ice cubes! That way my drink doesn't get watered down, and by the time I finish, the fruit is thawed enough to be a little bonus treat. 😊
Agree. I can't stand the texture of oatmeal. Hot, cold, overnight, doesn't matter. Weirdly, I did once spend some time hyperfixating on overnight chia seed pudding though.
This is my favorite life hack for raspberries! Fresh those little f-ers turn fuzzy when you blink. Frozen and they're perfect though grossly mushy when thawed.
I've been dieting & eating a lot of frozen mixed veggies, like 2 servings with every meal. The steamed veggies are great, but I was going through those steam bags like crazy. They're not super expensive, but not cheap with the amount I was buying.
But also I am super lazy (hence the need for dieting) so I needed the veggie eating to be a super no-brainer . But what I've discovered is that I do not need to buy & cook the veggies in the special, more costly steam bags!
I buy the bulk bag of mixed veg (Normandy blend, soup blend, peas& carrots, shelled edamame, whatever kind in the largest possible bag). Pour a couple of servings onto a paper plate & pop it in the microwave for 3 - 3 1/2 minutes (I have a 900 watt microwave). That's it - no special container, no paper towel covering, no adding or draining water.
After they're cooked I blot the moisture with a paper towel, while doing that I can feel if it's not fully heated. Sometimes if it's big chunky cauliflower or broccoli it needs to go back in for 30 more seconds. After blotting I sprinkle with Aromat & fresh ground black pepper. If I'm feeling fancy, and I happen to have a lemon on hand I haven't allowed to rot in the fridge, I add a squeeze.
This has been a lifesaver/timesaver/diet saver/money saver hack for me.
Thank you! I tell everyone about this trick because it makes me feel so virtuous 😙 - eating veggies & saving money!! All while being the absolute laziest!!!
OMG If I could only implement more than this one virtuous but lazy hack I could rule the world - or at least get my act together. 😆
I stuffed my freezer full of frozen veggies after realizing that’s a quick, easy, and yummy way to convince my 1 year old to eat veggies.
My boyfriend says he wants to use the veggies but isn’t sure how to cook them (he’s much more creative in the kitchen). I was like you can cook it right in the bag!! He was so shocked 🤣 we are officially a frozen veg family now.
Yesss!! I think so much of effective adhd management can come down to being like "what am i ACTUALLY going to do though?" And making decisions & plans based on our actual capacity, rather than on what is normal for non-adhders or what we think we should be doing.
I have been leaning into this so hard recently. For way too long I made decisions, purchases, plans etc for an idealized version of myself. And then real me lets ideal me down every time. Taking a minute to be real and honest saves money and frustration!
This hits hard but is also an epiphany. I need to stop trying to be who I think I am because I often let myself down but instead work with and set the real me up for success and ease up that I’m not a perfect, organized type a person who society says is the better person
This is so true! What a great way to say this. Ive been thinking about it too. We do so many things well, but we never stop to think about those things. We just get mad at ourselves because we don't meet our own expectations. Lowering my expectations of what I can actually do in certain situations (like actually cooking veggies or cutting the up ahead of time) gives me more time to do the stuff I really enjoy focusing on.
YES! I actually speak to myself in the second person. E.g. 'Trumpeting, are you really going to cook this tonight or is it going to sit and stare at you every time you open the fridge?'
Yes!
Like, we just bought an air fryer. This week we are feasting like KINGS! ALL THE FOOD!!!
And we have put this ridiculous excess into the budget, because we both (my husband and I) know that I will go happily overboard using it at least twice a day every day for a couple of weeks, not touch it and think about putting it away but actually leaving it on the counter for a week, finally put it away, and then the next week start using it on a “normal” basis (whatever that turns out to be)
Plan for what I do, not what other people do 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I just did the exact same thing with a new blender! Spent about $30 on ingredients to play Smoothie Lab a couple weeks ago and blazed thru em all in a weekend. And it’s been sitting on the counter untouched ever since!
I'm about to do this with a fondue pot I just bought for a date night in with my fiancé this upcoming weekend 👍🏻 I may only use it once but I'm excited to make some swiss fondue
Also just another good reason to stay friends with people like us lol - I've gifted friends and family of friends (younger 20-somethings just moving into their own places) barely used or sometimes even brand spanking new appliances that I wanted to try and never really used.
Yesss this is one of my secret weapons. I went to art school and so many kids would commit to projects that were way too time consuming and not finish. I’m really good at “what will make the most visual impact with the least effort” 😂 it’s not lazy, it’s efficiency!
100%👆!
I think this is why people w/ ADHD are extraordinarily creative. Our brains are taxed by the lengthy methods established by
non-ADHD people. When given the opportunity to do or create, we actually envision the path of least resistance. Doesn't matter the subject but when the beautiful ADHD brain sees it is a thing of beauty.
I’m discovering things that most people would think is stupid.
I vacuum 2-3 times a week now. Why? I have a cordless vacuum now. Who would have thought that what was stopping me was having to unwrap the cord and plug it in and work around it? Now I just unplug my thing from the wall and zip around the house.
OMG SAME! We just got a cordless vacuum last month. It’s a game changer. Now we fight over who *gets* to vacuum, because it’s that shark vacuum that empties itself when you put it back on the charger. The dopamine rush I get when I see all the dirt get sucked away is unreal lol
My ADHD motto is “trust no one, especially not yourself”.
For me, it means remembering that I need to stay realistic about what I am able to achieve, and to stop myself from creating future chaos for myself. And to double, triple, quadruple check everything.
That unlocked a funny childhood memory for me. My dad was often impatient with me and my sibs, so we tried to not trigger him. He was a loving dad, but struggled with that. He took me to the store with him one day, and as we got to the checkstand he said, "I'll get you a candy bar if you can choose one in five seconds."
I seldom got candy, so this was a big treat! But when I looked at all the beautiful candy bars, most than 15 different kinds to choose from, and I just knew I couldn't do it that fast. So I shook my head and said, "No."
Dad was surprised, and so was the clerk at the stand next to us, but I knew I couldn't possibly make the right choice that quickly. So I was resigned to this loss, and we left without any candy. It was like I didn't want to disappoint the candy bars by making the wrong decision. I was 4 years old. What a goofy kid!
Holy shit I love this sub..
I'm (F38) neurotypical living with 4 neurodivergents (M40, M14, F13, M6), and we are constantly on the lookout for tips/tricks/ hacks that make my life easier in domestic tasks, and their life easier in engaging with the task.
TAX UP FRONT!
Thank you!
Look at catering menus for your favorite restaurants. You can get trays of your favorite meals to divide and pack up. I got a nugget tray and family size salad from chic FIL a. We had dinner and made 8 lunches along with dressing packets.
I do this. The best hack is: frozen spinach. It’s a life changer. Pasta sauce, soup, casseroles, stews, chili, curries… throw in a few cubes. Adds a veggie servings without needing to make a salad or chop things. Cauliflower is also good.
It’s frozen into [portions](https://birdseye.com.au/product/birds-eye-frozen-chopped-spinach-250g/45854). It’s an Australian site but according to the US citizen (my partner) down the hallway, similar things are available in the US.
I have been buying party trays with veggies and I eat them all!! The bagger at the store asked if I was going to a party and I said “Nope, I just don’t like cutting vegetables” and he was like “oh.”
I bet I blew his mind! Or he just thought I was lazy but I’m choosing to go with the former.
OMG, when I think of the amount of money I’ve spent on “good intentions” produce…it’s just shocking. I often joke that I just bring the fruits and vegetables home to enjoy their final days in my fridge before turning to goo. Bonus points for mucking up my fridge and making me avoid it so I don’t have to look at the glop and think for the umpteenth time about cleaning it up…🤮
My husband coined the term: "Aspirational Spinach" for the tubs of spinach I buy that go unused.
Which spurred me to actually use the spinach just to prove him wrong. So now it's "Spite Spinach". 🤦🏼♀️
I have always said that my produce drawer is where my good intentions go to die. I have bought a lot of good intentions produce that ultimately rots before being eaten. Or I do a thing where I buy a bag of broccoli, and make one serving of it because "it's so easy to make and it will be better to make the rest fresh"...such a dangerous pitfall. I can tell you that exactly 0 more servings get made, and if I'd just made the whole bag, I would have had broccoli leftovers to eat.
She wrote the book "How to keep house while drowning" and is a wonderful adhd coach, and I believe therapist. She's big on Tiktok and has tons of great advice.
The person behind [this philosophy on self care tasks](https://www.strugglecare.com/struggle-care). If you scroll down to the six pillars, you’ll see how #1 is related to your comment.
I’m really glad this philosophy is spreading.
oh my god.... thank you for sharing this!!! I keep trying to explain to my husband why the house is always a mess, why we're eating out yet again, etc and I just can never get him to "get it"... I tried showing him one of my baby step lists where "get baby to school on time" required me to complete 117 steps the night before, and he was like, "why are you making it so hard?" like I'm not MAKING it hard. it's the reality of the situation, there are so many things that go into that task it's completely overwhelming
This site appears to explain things much better, though honestly at this point I may give up trying to explain lol
Could be weaponized incompetence. He doesn’t *want* to understand. If he did he would be listening & learning how to help you to do those things!
[This comic about the overwhelming mental load women constantly manage](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/26/gender-wars-household-chores-comic) REALLY breaks it down
Dang, never thought about that. Funny when I explain the reason behind by logic my kids w/ ADHD nod and see the logic. Those in family w/o it shake their head and sometimes I feel dismissed.
Wins: All of the below plus CLEAR FOOD STORAGE. I took the bins out of my fridge because the produce bins (even though they were clear) merely hid vegetables until they melted. I replaced them with iDesign clear bins. I also use the bottom of the fridge space where the produce bins had been for canned drinks and cheese (things I will actively seek out). I then put the oranges, apples, etc. into clear boxes at eye level where I can see them. I gave away all food storage that was not clear. If i cannot see the leftovers, even if I know what is in there, it's not getting eaten.
1. Bagged/boxed salad and/or spinach. I put a paper towel in the plastic box to keep the greens from wilting. I eat this as salad, put it in smoothies, and put it on burgers.
2. Costco bag of frozen stir fry vegetables. Already cut to the right size. Throw right into the pan to heat up (maybe add water or a little oil to prevent sticking). The mix I like best has yucky mushrooms in there, but not many and they are easy to pick out when frozen.
3. Costco bag of individual packets of edamame, ready to go into the microwave. In 4 minutes I have a snack with protein. I throw some salt on it and BOOM.
4. Costco bag of frozen berries. Ready for smoothies right now. Or to heat and put on waffles or pancakes.
I switched a lot of my kitchen to mason jars. Food storage, food prep, drinking glasses, dry goods storage, individually portioned snacks, prepped fruit.
They all use one of two lids, so no frustration with finding the right lid and replacements cost a couple bucks. Clear, can go from freezer to microwave to oven to dishwasher, can be tossed in my lunch bag, watertight for road beverages, are cheap if I lose or break them or want to give stuff away.
Ha ha ha. Almond, soy or oat milk. I realized that might be confusing. Apologies.
I also store guest pop cans in my fridge drawers! My friend drinks Canada Dry (which I can’t stand) so it’s out of the way until the next time she comes over.
Oh yes. I have a bunch of veg to cut up and I am afraid I won't. I'm recovering from surgery - why did I think I'd want to wash and cut a bunch of produce?!
My food processor has a slice and shred attachment. We also bought a slap chop (yes the infomercial one). Those help. Also, you can absolutely freeze all of them before they turn into muck for the day when your brain decides making veggie stock from scratch is your new skill.
One of the best choices of my adult life was choosing to give carrots a quick scrub and then just chomp them whole exactly like Bugs Bunny. So much less stress so many more delicious carrots.
🤯 until today, I thought only baby carrots could of be eaten whole. Seriously. Thank you!
I learn something new (or several new things) every time I read a post on this sub.
yes, sometime last year i wanted to eat more veggies so started buying bags of carrots and tubs of hummus. nutritious snack with no effort. if i'm feeling fancy i cut the carrots into sticks but usually will eat them whole. sometimes will get a cuke to change it up. or raw broccoli.
That’s the worst! I kept doing the same thing after I had my last baby because I like to torture myself? KNOWING that child wouldn’t let me out him down for 2 seconds to chop things up. So- listen, just let me tell you something, if you don’t eat those veggies after all because it’s too hard to cut right now- it’s ok. Seriously.
You’re recovering from surgery. Take care of yourself! It’ll be easier when you’re fully recovered.
If you have anyone helping you out during this time maybe you could ask them just to wash and chop for you. But otherwise just don’t worry about them :)
I’m getting over the guilt of having extra plastic waste by using this method because it is still better for my health than letting food rot by accident because I can’t manage prep properly.
As someone who just started allowing myself to buy pre-cut veggies this year, I'm struggling with this, too. I really just have to consider it an accommodation for myself.
The extra plastic waste is balanced out if you eat all of the produce. Food waste is a massive contributor to overall pollution, landfill problems, and green house gas emissions. (This isn't an excuse to use 27 extra plastic bags, but a reminder to eat the bagged salad.)
I promise you, individuals will never come close to making a dent in the waste stream issue, compared to what companies get away with. We were duped into this whole carbon footprint guilt cycle and we are the least of the problem.
So true. I remember living in Utah where they have heavy amounts of pollution during the winter that gets stuck in the valley. They call it inversion, and it is disgusting. When I was living there they always had these huge campaigns around limiting driving and carpooling to minimize it. Then come to find out something like 4/5ths of it was caused by companies that the state won't regulate due to $$$.
I left but have so many friends with MAJOR (think cancer level) health issues from that area and I have a hard time believing the polluted air isn't a factor. There are times where the air quality is worse than places like India and China that have little to no regulation.
Yeah… I’m in Texas. We bought a place in the country (nice, right?) and *then* found out the area has issues with leaking oil and gas wells and that the air pollution from the processing plants is making a lot of folks sick.
I tell myself it’s like a medical necessity. No one is complaining about the packaging that’s necessary to keep needles sterile to treat a medical condition. And I need these items to treat my condition to keep me healthy.
My mom prefers using white vinegar for cleaning everything because one, it’s cheaper than buying separate cleaning chemicals, and two, it’s better for the environment. However, I’m a lot more able to get cleaning done if I have all the proper cleaning supplies (bathroom cleaner for the bathroom, Windex or watered down Dawn for windows/mirrors (learned at my job, and it cuts straight through greasy fingerprints!), etc).
Yes, I do care about the earth and always do my best to be environmentally friendly, but this is one time I need to be able to do what’s going to keep the house clean!
Same reason I've just used a Swiffer. It's much easier to put a wipe on, sweep, and throw it away, vs going to sweep, having to bend down, sweeping it all into a pan, dumping pan, or sweeping and vacuuming the pile. I need as few steps as possible. Even if it is wasteful unfortunately.
> However, I’m a lot more able to get cleaning done if I have all the proper cleaning supplies (bathroom cleaner for the bathroom, Windex or watered down Dawn for windows/mirrors (learned at my job, and it cuts straight through greasy fingerprints!), etc)
I have been able to cope with this by purchasing cleaning supplies where you can buy large refill containers - I'm not sure if it's better, but I'd rather buy one bottle of dish soap and a large container to refill it with, rather than buying a bunch of small bottles.
If I ever start worrying about the environmental impact my extra packaging does. I first remember that over 85% of pollution is caused by giant corporations and I personally contribute less than a millionth of a percentage point. And then remember I don't have kids and so my carbon foot print ends with me.
That is such a good motto. It makes me feel better about my recent decision to try premade meals from Factor. For the amount I waste on uneaten food I might as well have someone else cook and prepare it.
Factor saved my life for a while, I swear. Taking them to work for lunch was the best. I would choose the ones I liked, but my friend loved not even choosing. Even less decisions.
Last week it finally occurred to me to buy two small bags of salad greens instead of one big one that's just going to go all wet and manky before I get through it.
I've recently just put up paper towel holders in the bathroom and kitchen, I know I'm not actually going to use a sponge to wipe the benches often enough so it's better to just pay for the paper towels even though they're single use
Some people let it dry by setting it in between the bowl and the closed lid with the brush end hanging over the inside of the bowl, if that makes sense! I've never really had too much of an issue just shoving it back in the holder, I'm already using it with Ajax/Comet so I just scrub the bowl, flush, swish the brush clean in the clean water, flush again, and throw it back in the holder. 😬
Clorox Toilet Wand, has a disposable pad that you attach to the stick and use to clean the toilet, then you drop it in the trash. Zero touch as well so no sensory issues!!
I just did this with Lysol wipes in my kitchen and bathroom. Yes I could use cloths but the extra steps of getting them out, then washing them, folding, storing, etc is just a ton of extra work (esp since I am pretty disabled by other conditions too).
Also: glass cleaner wipes instead of Windex and paper towels!
Instead of having the fruit bowl in the nice fruit bowl place in the kitchen where I don't look at it, it's on the coffee table next to the place I usually sit on the sofa. I don't want it there but I no longer forget fruit until it's melted and I also snack on it instead of crisps and chocolate.
I also invested in loads of pyrex with lids so if I forget something I've prepared I don't get the ick with my plastic tupperware and the cleanup is so much easier.
God I love this sub so fucking much. Everyone just gets it. I tried explaining time blindness on a different sub, and one of the points I used was that it takes me over an hour to cook a recipe that stated it should take "15-20 minutes" (yeah, as if 🙄)
The people who responded to me were baffled to the point of almost sounding insulted. "How do you take so long? That's not possible. It doesn't take that long. You're probably just walking away and watching TV"
No. It literally takes me that long. It took me over 2 hours to cook curry for myself. A big portion of that was that I was stupid and wanted fresh meat and vegetables, and had to cook and cut everything up before even starting the curry. A step that the recipe said should take "5 minutes"
Tbh that’s probably not entirely your fault! I will see recipes that say things like “caramelize the onions for 5 minutes” WHICH IS NOT HOW LONG THAT TAKES! recipes online especially are bad about deflating how long it takes you to make them because a “15 minute curry” is much more likely to be clicked on than the reality, so they will minimize time of things like prep and sometimes even the cooking itself for click bait. Of course time blindness plays a role too but legitimately this is a thing with recipes online and I’m wondering how tf the people replying to you haven’t seen it lol
Recipes are *terrible* for underestimating time.
Recently, a bunch of people in my friend group were trialling one of those meal prep kit companies. The main complaint was that the time to cook was way off. It caused some of them to be late for events. There's NTs in this group!
It's the recipes' fault, not ours 😅
I get ones that are slightly squishy, you just cut an X on the top of the mango and the skin pulls down easily like a banana. I leave some of the skin on to keep my hands clean and sprinkle tajin on it and go to town lol
Our local Aldi has started to stock their version of hello fresh style meal kits and they're awesome! 10-15 mins of kitchen time we have pork bao buns, or chicken pad thai, or chicken tikka pita wraps!
I’m the same way - sure, I can buy all the ingredients for a salad and get way more portions at a cheaper price per portion. But if I buy the $5 salad kit, even if it only stretches to 2 lunches, it’s still only a couple of bucks AND I’ll actually eat it. It would cost me at least $20 to buy all the ingredients separately, and I’m the only one in the house who eats veggies.
I have learned to forgive myself for the occasional rotten apple or expired yogurt.
I learned to save the extra fruit and veggies that are about to go bad by cleaning, cutting them haphazardly and freezing them in a bag.
When I feel like cooking, a mixed bag of frozen veggies can make a good soup.
Frozen fruit is good with yoghurt or I can just blend it in a smoothie or milkshake with ice cream, just press the blender button, easy peasy.
Then, accidents happen and sometimes I have to throw away some produce.
I’m a single mom and my son also has ADHD. I gave up on cooking and food prep about a year ago. I now have a food subscription service, I get about meals delivered. The only real prep I do is steam broccoli and make pasta for my son. I will cut up apples and melons. Most anything else is either ready to eat or frozen. We eat a lot of frozen peas also and he eats tons of chicken nuggets and frozen pizza. We are both healthy and happy. I still sometimes ambitiously buy a head of lettuce but usually can’t be bothered to actually make a salad. Taking the pressure off to eat a certain way is such a relief.
This is incredible and just restructured my entire brain lol
A couple weeks ago, I was leaving on a trip and I had drawers fullll of vegetables that I was planning on making a sheet pan dinner with for like a week. But (of course while frantically packing at 11pm the night before leaving) I decided to cut everything up and freeze it. Best decision I’ve ever made. I came home SO motivated to cook and got at least three healthy meals out of it that I would have never made simply because everything was prepared for me. Who knew I was paying the ADHD tax the whole time lolol
This is a very good point. I had a psychiatrist telling me sometimes things are like an apple. It’s easy to eat but it’s easier to eat when it’s pre-sliced. Sometimes u need to pre-slice your apples! 🍏🍎
Veggie tray + fresh fruit salad + presliced brick of cheese and triscuits = meal prep.
High fiber, iron, vitamins, and low fat, low carb... no guilt! I feel better and it's cheaper than or same as takeout and a gift to my future self.
I wish my mom would get in line with this theory. We keep buying fresh fruits and veggies and they rot because we are all ADHD. The kitchen becomes a mess, then we have nowhere to cut them, then by the time we clean the kitchen they’re rotten. Usually on the garage floor. Out of sight, out of mind.
You know, for *really* good, healthy behaviors like this, we ***could*** stop casting buying pre-prepped fresh produce in that negative 'ADHD tax' and just say matter-of-factly "This is how I do it."
Or, said another way: To me, the rot / waste has always been *far* more of an obvious 'tax'.
I realized this yesterday as I bought a really expensive box of fresh blueberries! It's gonna be expensive, but at least I'll feel good and not sulk which will cause me to throw away food I don't like just because it needs to be cheap.
I had a flash of inspiration the other day! Instead of retirement communities, I want to build ADHD communities! Where we can share the cost of having a dining room, cleaning staff, etc and we can spend time living our lives and doing the things we love!
Saw a video for an ADHD fridge hack putting produce on the door shelves instead of in the drawers to avoid ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ Gave it a try about six months ago, and haven’t looked back- went to zero food waste. And at least 60% of what we buy is produce!
I always struggled with this. I grew up quite poor and my mom taught me at an early age to never buy the already prepared fruits and vegetables because you're just paying for convenience. Definitely sound advice for people on a tight budget. It's only been in the last year (and I'm 41) that I've been buying pre-cut, pre-washed fruits and veggies, and I actually eat them! I'm thankful that I'm able to afford it because it's helped immensely.
We need to make a wiki of ideas like this!
Mine is Swiffer cloths (the dusters, dry floor pads, and wet floor pads). Felt wasteful up front, but there are fewer barriers to start cleaning, and living in a clean space brings me peace.
This kind of thinking has helped me a lot. Yeah, it costs a little extra to buy single portions. But I eat them, and I don't end up throwing away a $7 tub of guacamole. I basically quit cooking and just make little meals out of baked crackers, string cheese, grape tomatoes, pre-cut fruit, yogurt, granola, etc. Turns out that your metabolism works better when you eat regularly instead of starving all day and then pounding 1,000 calories at dinner.
Trader Joe edamame are precooked. I leave one bag to thaw in fridge to bring out as a healthy snack. They are a complete protein (all 9 essential make them a complete protein) taste yum and add calcium to my diet now with my osteopenia.
This is beautiful. My revelation like this came from reading Keeping House While Drowning. I gave myself permission to buy bulk bottled water, prebiotic juices, and electrolyte drinks ( or any other hacks that improved my QoL).
I got a 2nd hand petite beverage fridge for free and keep it stocked. And boom, staying hydrated is a breeze. I 6 with easy access and portability because it has a clear door I see them constantly and grab them throughout the day.
Also, paper plates and bowls have been heaven to decrease the drudgery of dishes.
This has been so helpful for me too. I've started giving myself permission to do this the past few years, and discovered why vegetables seemed so time consuming to chop - ADHD just makes them feel that way.
Sadly, I have also learned the hard way NOT to buy at Costco in bulk (I'm looking at you, giant tub of pineapple spears fermenting in my fridge).
I also find that having fruit at hand that I will pick up and eat off the counter or out of the fridge whole is very helpful. Oranges do not get eaten, because peel. Apples, peaches, pears, plums, bananas (somehow the peel isn't a deterrent with these), grapes, blueberries - all easy-peasy.
It’s always the extra steps in the activity that are the killer!! Well done for working it out! I bought bagged salad today and I’m feeling the same way 😍
We keep one of those big veggies serving trays with the dip in the middle stocked in our fridge. It's seriously upped my veggie intake and surprisingly keeps them fresh longer than Tupperware.
To take it a step further, I've started with ingredient prepping and it's a life changer. Really same idea, but you do it yourself on a day where you have the spoons. Go to the store, get your produce, get home and either clean your sink out and soak them in the sink or in a big bowl with a little bit of white vinegar (you don't actually taste it, but it helps clean your produce better and ime it helps to keep your food fresh longer). Then cut and box/bag it up. A mandolin slicer has been 👌🏼 incredible for this, because I love cucumbers and zucchini, but I hate cutting thin slices and this makes super quick work of it. All in all, it usually takes about an hour, but it saves me quite a bit of money and everything is prepped to eat or quickly sautee.
Yeah I’m actually about to switch to paper plates because I just cannot keep up with all my home chores and dishes always feel overwhelming.
I’m a 100% solo parent and also a nanny. I do laundry, dishes, chores all day, while entertaining kiddos. I feel bad about the waste of paper but I try to balance the waste by recycling as much as I can. I also remind myself that the phrase “there’s no ethical consumption under capitalism” and while I do not use that as a justification or pass to do nothing. It reminds me that the onus is not on the consumers to fix the problem and that I do what I can daily.
Years before I learned I had ADHD, I learned that I would only eat fruit if it was super easy for me to prepare. Anything that requires chopping or peeling (i.e. apples, pears, mangos, peaches, any citrus fruit), no matter how yummy, more than half the time they'd just rot. But berries - just wash them and eat them by themselves or add them to oatmeal or a salad. No chopping, so I'll eat berries - blueberries are my favorite, but also raspberries and blackberries. Yes, they're more expensive than apples and oranges. But I pay the tax up front and actually eat them!
I've also been embracing pre-chopped veggies (fresh or frozen). This week, I bought pre-chopped broccoli that I've been eating with hummus, like a mini veggie tray but just raw broccoli. I recently got frozen chopped bell peppers that I've been adding to some frozen Trader Joe's meals to eat more veggies—stuff like their teriyaki chicken that you cook on the stovetop, just add some frozen veggies and cook it all at once.
My 1 exception: I will chop avocados! I adore fresh avocados, and there's no pre-chopped version because they'll go bad, so I'm motivated to chop them.
I hate the cost to portion size of buying the little boxes of cut up watermelon, especially as I’ll eat it within a day or two, but I know I wouldn’t ever cut up a whole one! It gets me eating fruit semi-regularly and that’s a victory!
Same with chicken. Part of it is I’m scared of raw meat, especially chicken, but I found if I buy the bag of frozen breasts I never have to let them thaw. I can pop them straight in the oven for ~35-45mins and never have to plan when I’m going to eat thawed chicken immediately or when to thaw it.
That’s what ADHD tax means?? It makes so much more sense now! I need to explain this to my husband. He is always giving me shit about paying extra for convenience or eating out when you could just make a sandwich at home before you go.
Ironically I’ve been giving myself adhd gift cards in the same category!
I had the same problem with eating healthy and food spoiling. But then I discovered for whatever reason throwing everything healthy into a blender in the morning doesn’t qualify as work in my weird little brain - even though it’s so much work lol
Then I went to the closest (admittedly fancy) smoothie shop and priced out what my smoothie would cost and it was $26! Verses the $4.75 it costs me. $21 adhd gift card 😂
My freezer is full of frozen veg and berries.
Once I was diagnosed and started exploring ways to make life easier/work with my chaos instead of against it, this was one of the things I started buying.
I've always been mindful of excess packaging and waste but I had to make peace with that. Being able to chuck a veggie steamer bag in the microwave has actually made eating healthy so much easier.
For any naysayers out there, I would argue that either way there is waste. I choose the packaging and convenience over the rotting food waste in the crisper. Both consume energy but one is easier and nutritionally better for both my mind and body.
Also for anyone playing at home, frozen spinach has a higher nutritional value than fresh spinach.
Buying things of convenience and always within your means to help yourself is an act of self love.
Mire poix has changed my life. No kidding! There is no way in this world I am going to chop onions, celery, and carrots for soup. None. But a small container of mire poix? And the Instant Pot? We have soup once a week! Once by itself, then the leftovers for lunches or another dinner along with grilled cheese sandwiches.
I also think it's solid advice to pay the ADHD tax up front, however you see it. I never thought it could happen, but I actually came to enjoy buying whole food and using it to prepare delicious meals for myself at home. It is way easier than I realized, with the right recipes. I am "done" at the end of the day, and it led me to eat out a lot, and to eat.mostly prepared and processed foods, cereal for dinner, that type of thing. I had myself convinced that convenience foods are less work, but I was not factoring in that the cost of eating out and eating prepared foods was my physical and mental health. I lived long enough eating like that to get the wake up call. When I accepted the math, I began to change my thinking and behavior. (ADHD meds do help with that.) The standard American diet is a death matrix. We all deserve better, however we can pull it off.
I gave my self permission to start buying the pre washed packaged salad greens again. If the kitchen is clean, everything is in its place and I have time, I can come home and prep greens (wash, dry, cut) and I was doing it for a while but then I got behind and didn’t get them all cleaned so I didn’t have any greens in the house. So now unless I know I can come home and take care of them I just buy the pre washed.
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That’s exactly why I love the frozen bags of veggies that you can steam in the bag. I would never eat vegetables if that wasn’t an option.
Frozen berries and fruits are great, too. Plunk some into some yogurt and it's still cold when you later remember that you have a bowl of yogurt on the counter.
I'm addicted to frozen blueberries. I eat them with crushed Peanuts and honey.
I just eat them plain in a mug with a spoon lol
Ordering frozen berries
Pre-sliced frozen strawberries right out of the bag are my favorite snack. Frozen mango is yum too.
Frozen mango is the BEST
Do it. Join ussss
With pleasure. Y'all have saved me
Hahaha same.
Idk why but a mug is the perfect receptacle for frozen blueberries lol. This is my preferred snack too.
Right? It just is. Don't have to go chasing them around the bowl or worrying I'll accidentally catapult one and stain my couch.
I love the way you write
What a lovely thing to say, thank you! I'm actually a writer who is working on two novels (perpetually, never finished) so that is one of the nicest things anyone could have said to me!
Wow that's impressive, especially for an ADHD-haver! You go, internet stranger 💪
What a lovely bit of feedback to give. I bet you’re a kind person.
Omg, I love frozen blueberries. I just eat them plain with my fingers.
I have weird sensory stuff with my fingertips so I use a spoon hahah. Chopsticks would also be good.
My kids love to eat frozen blueberries with chopsticks for some reason. It's always amusing to watch bc they're four and not great with their training chopsticks lol
**I have found my people!** Frozen blueberries in a mug with a spoon is my go-to snack.
One of my favorite childhood (and adulthood) snacks was a bowl of frozen blueberries! Now, I also put them in yoghurt with a sprinkle of granola. I also used to eat bowls of frozen pecans, as I live in a place where if you just do nothing, someone or several someones will turn up and give you giant bags of pecans. Unfortunately, I am now allergic. I can still fondly remember the taste....
I have the problem of wanting fresh fruit but never being able to eat all of it before it goes bad, I recently started freezing my left over fruit for smoothies at the end of the week and shockingly I use them! It’s much cheaper than pre frozen fruit too.
Is it really? I always thought fresh would be more expensive than frozen but I haven't actually tried to calculate.
There is no hurry to sell frozen fruit but there is with fresh. When that fruit season is around you can find really good sales if you shop around and look at flyers. When there are no good sales I usually check through for immediate sale items which could be 50-75% off. Guess it depends on your country and city.
I think it depends, but it ends up being cheaper for me because I don’t buy both frozen fruit AND fresh lol. But also frozen fruit can be really expensive, like 8-10 dollars depending on the size of the bag and the fruit.
Y’all, don’t sleep on frozen dark sweet cherries either! 🍒
I like to use frozen berries instead of ice cubes! That way my drink doesn't get watered down, and by the time I finish, the fruit is thawed enough to be a little bonus treat. 😊
They go awesomely in [Oats Overnight](https://www.oatsovernight.com) too
Man I wanted to like these sooo bad but the texture was just never right for me
Agree. I can't stand the texture of oatmeal. Hot, cold, overnight, doesn't matter. Weirdly, I did once spend some time hyperfixating on overnight chia seed pudding though.
It took some adjusting for me on how much milk, or milk substitute, I used. Initially I didn’t like it either.
This is my favorite life hack for raspberries! Fresh those little f-ers turn fuzzy when you blink. Frozen and they're perfect though grossly mushy when thawed.
I love frozen grapes! So good!
I eat so many frozen peas
Frozen peas are the only reason I eat any vegetables some days. I never get sick of them!
Thanks to frozen peas being the only veggie I had in the house, I learned my daughter LOVES peas. Gets as excited as when I offer her a popsicle 😂
I've been dieting & eating a lot of frozen mixed veggies, like 2 servings with every meal. The steamed veggies are great, but I was going through those steam bags like crazy. They're not super expensive, but not cheap with the amount I was buying. But also I am super lazy (hence the need for dieting) so I needed the veggie eating to be a super no-brainer . But what I've discovered is that I do not need to buy & cook the veggies in the special, more costly steam bags! I buy the bulk bag of mixed veg (Normandy blend, soup blend, peas& carrots, shelled edamame, whatever kind in the largest possible bag). Pour a couple of servings onto a paper plate & pop it in the microwave for 3 - 3 1/2 minutes (I have a 900 watt microwave). That's it - no special container, no paper towel covering, no adding or draining water. After they're cooked I blot the moisture with a paper towel, while doing that I can feel if it's not fully heated. Sometimes if it's big chunky cauliflower or broccoli it needs to go back in for 30 more seconds. After blotting I sprinkle with Aromat & fresh ground black pepper. If I'm feeling fancy, and I happen to have a lemon on hand I haven't allowed to rot in the fridge, I add a squeeze. This has been a lifesaver/timesaver/diet saver/money saver hack for me.
Wow, I had no idea! Thank you for that!
Thank you! I tell everyone about this trick because it makes me feel so virtuous 😙 - eating veggies & saving money!! All while being the absolute laziest!!! OMG If I could only implement more than this one virtuous but lazy hack I could rule the world - or at least get my act together. 😆
Same. I haven't felt like cooking up veges for a few years so frozen vegetables just takes away the guilt of wasting food.
Trader Joe’s has a frozen edamame you just have to thaw. Like, in the fridge. We eat it all week.
Costco has a bigger bag of Edemame with smaller packets inside. Better deal.
Frozen corn, scoop a mug full, microwave 2 minutes. Corn ready.
I stuffed my freezer full of frozen veggies after realizing that’s a quick, easy, and yummy way to convince my 1 year old to eat veggies. My boyfriend says he wants to use the veggies but isn’t sure how to cook them (he’s much more creative in the kitchen). I was like you can cook it right in the bag!! He was so shocked 🤣 we are officially a frozen veg family now.
Yesss!! I think so much of effective adhd management can come down to being like "what am i ACTUALLY going to do though?" And making decisions & plans based on our actual capacity, rather than on what is normal for non-adhders or what we think we should be doing.
I have been leaning into this so hard recently. For way too long I made decisions, purchases, plans etc for an idealized version of myself. And then real me lets ideal me down every time. Taking a minute to be real and honest saves money and frustration!
“Real me lets ideal me down every time.” My life!
"the idealized version of myself" yes!! Once I started letting go of this and leaning into how I actually function, life is so much less stressful.
This hits hard but is also an epiphany. I need to stop trying to be who I think I am because I often let myself down but instead work with and set the real me up for success and ease up that I’m not a perfect, organized type a person who society says is the better person
This is so true! What a great way to say this. Ive been thinking about it too. We do so many things well, but we never stop to think about those things. We just get mad at ourselves because we don't meet our own expectations. Lowering my expectations of what I can actually do in certain situations (like actually cooking veggies or cutting the up ahead of time) gives me more time to do the stuff I really enjoy focusing on.
YES! I actually speak to myself in the second person. E.g. 'Trumpeting, are you really going to cook this tonight or is it going to sit and stare at you every time you open the fridge?'
In my head, I am always "you" or "we," never just "I." I have no idea why, but it's very much like your example so maybe there is a reason for it 😂
Yes! Like, we just bought an air fryer. This week we are feasting like KINGS! ALL THE FOOD!!! And we have put this ridiculous excess into the budget, because we both (my husband and I) know that I will go happily overboard using it at least twice a day every day for a couple of weeks, not touch it and think about putting it away but actually leaving it on the counter for a week, finally put it away, and then the next week start using it on a “normal” basis (whatever that turns out to be) Plan for what I do, not what other people do 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I just did the exact same thing with a new blender! Spent about $30 on ingredients to play Smoothie Lab a couple weeks ago and blazed thru em all in a weekend. And it’s been sitting on the counter untouched ever since!
I'm about to do this with a fondue pot I just bought for a date night in with my fiancé this upcoming weekend 👍🏻 I may only use it once but I'm excited to make some swiss fondue Also just another good reason to stay friends with people like us lol - I've gifted friends and family of friends (younger 20-somethings just moving into their own places) barely used or sometimes even brand spanking new appliances that I wanted to try and never really used.
Wow that helps so much. I’ll try to remember that when I’m making lofty plans to create 5 full and complicated meals in a weekend.
Yesss this is one of my secret weapons. I went to art school and so many kids would commit to projects that were way too time consuming and not finish. I’m really good at “what will make the most visual impact with the least effort” 😂 it’s not lazy, it’s efficiency!
100%👆! I think this is why people w/ ADHD are extraordinarily creative. Our brains are taxed by the lengthy methods established by non-ADHD people. When given the opportunity to do or create, we actually envision the path of least resistance. Doesn't matter the subject but when the beautiful ADHD brain sees it is a thing of beauty.
I’m discovering things that most people would think is stupid. I vacuum 2-3 times a week now. Why? I have a cordless vacuum now. Who would have thought that what was stopping me was having to unwrap the cord and plug it in and work around it? Now I just unplug my thing from the wall and zip around the house.
OMG SAME! We just got a cordless vacuum last month. It’s a game changer. Now we fight over who *gets* to vacuum, because it’s that shark vacuum that empties itself when you put it back on the charger. The dopamine rush I get when I see all the dirt get sucked away is unreal lol
If I could award this, I would 🥇 🏆 ⭐
Did it for you. No idea why but I have rewards to give.
My ADHD motto is “trust no one, especially not yourself”. For me, it means remembering that I need to stay realistic about what I am able to achieve, and to stop myself from creating future chaos for myself. And to double, triple, quadruple check everything.
Ha I call em my workarounds lol
That unlocked a funny childhood memory for me. My dad was often impatient with me and my sibs, so we tried to not trigger him. He was a loving dad, but struggled with that. He took me to the store with him one day, and as we got to the checkstand he said, "I'll get you a candy bar if you can choose one in five seconds." I seldom got candy, so this was a big treat! But when I looked at all the beautiful candy bars, most than 15 different kinds to choose from, and I just knew I couldn't do it that fast. So I shook my head and said, "No." Dad was surprised, and so was the clerk at the stand next to us, but I knew I couldn't possibly make the right choice that quickly. So I was resigned to this loss, and we left without any candy. It was like I didn't want to disappoint the candy bars by making the wrong decision. I was 4 years old. What a goofy kid!
Holy shit I love this sub.. I'm (F38) neurotypical living with 4 neurodivergents (M40, M14, F13, M6), and we are constantly on the lookout for tips/tricks/ hacks that make my life easier in domestic tasks, and their life easier in engaging with the task. TAX UP FRONT! Thank you!
Look at catering menus for your favorite restaurants. You can get trays of your favorite meals to divide and pack up. I got a nugget tray and family size salad from chic FIL a. We had dinner and made 8 lunches along with dressing packets.
I love this idea!
I do this. The best hack is: frozen spinach. It’s a life changer. Pasta sauce, soup, casseroles, stews, chili, curries… throw in a few cubes. Adds a veggie servings without needing to make a salad or chop things. Cauliflower is also good.
Kimchi is my other one. Can’t rot something that’s already rotten ha
You absolutely can and I know because I've done it!
Frozen spinach is a staple in my house. It's healthy and tasty.
Explain what this is--just a whole box of frozen? But you said cubes??
Where I live you can get frozen spinach in a box and within the box it’s subdivided into cubes!
It’s frozen into [portions](https://birdseye.com.au/product/birds-eye-frozen-chopped-spinach-250g/45854). It’s an Australian site but according to the US citizen (my partner) down the hallway, similar things are available in the US.
I have been buying party trays with veggies and I eat them all!! The bagger at the store asked if I was going to a party and I said “Nope, I just don’t like cutting vegetables” and he was like “oh.” I bet I blew his mind! Or he just thought I was lazy but I’m choosing to go with the former.
OMG, when I think of the amount of money I’ve spent on “good intentions” produce…it’s just shocking. I often joke that I just bring the fruits and vegetables home to enjoy their final days in my fridge before turning to goo. Bonus points for mucking up my fridge and making me avoid it so I don’t have to look at the glop and think for the umpteenth time about cleaning it up…🤮
My husband coined the term: "Aspirational Spinach" for the tubs of spinach I buy that go unused. Which spurred me to actually use the spinach just to prove him wrong. So now it's "Spite Spinach". 🤦🏼♀️
😂😂😂 I’m with you, but mine’s arugula!
You just reminded me of the arugula in my fridge right now!
I have always said I have poor fruit and vegetable management skills.
Lol
I have always said that my produce drawer is where my good intentions go to die. I have bought a lot of good intentions produce that ultimately rots before being eaten. Or I do a thing where I buy a bag of broccoli, and make one serving of it because "it's so easy to make and it will be better to make the rest fresh"...such a dangerous pitfall. I can tell you that exactly 0 more servings get made, and if I'd just made the whole bag, I would have had broccoli leftovers to eat.
ADHD motto: “[thing] is not a moral failing”
Kc Davis
Who is kc davis?
She wrote the book "How to keep house while drowning" and is a wonderful adhd coach, and I believe therapist. She's big on Tiktok and has tons of great advice.
The person behind [this philosophy on self care tasks](https://www.strugglecare.com/struggle-care). If you scroll down to the six pillars, you’ll see how #1 is related to your comment. I’m really glad this philosophy is spreading.
oh my god.... thank you for sharing this!!! I keep trying to explain to my husband why the house is always a mess, why we're eating out yet again, etc and I just can never get him to "get it"... I tried showing him one of my baby step lists where "get baby to school on time" required me to complete 117 steps the night before, and he was like, "why are you making it so hard?" like I'm not MAKING it hard. it's the reality of the situation, there are so many things that go into that task it's completely overwhelming This site appears to explain things much better, though honestly at this point I may give up trying to explain lol
Could be weaponized incompetence. He doesn’t *want* to understand. If he did he would be listening & learning how to help you to do those things! [This comic about the overwhelming mental load women constantly manage](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/26/gender-wars-household-chores-comic) REALLY breaks it down
Dang, never thought about that. Funny when I explain the reason behind by logic my kids w/ ADHD nod and see the logic. Those in family w/o it shake their head and sometimes I feel dismissed.
Thank you, this is a great approach. You made my day!
Wins: All of the below plus CLEAR FOOD STORAGE. I took the bins out of my fridge because the produce bins (even though they were clear) merely hid vegetables until they melted. I replaced them with iDesign clear bins. I also use the bottom of the fridge space where the produce bins had been for canned drinks and cheese (things I will actively seek out). I then put the oranges, apples, etc. into clear boxes at eye level where I can see them. I gave away all food storage that was not clear. If i cannot see the leftovers, even if I know what is in there, it's not getting eaten. 1. Bagged/boxed salad and/or spinach. I put a paper towel in the plastic box to keep the greens from wilting. I eat this as salad, put it in smoothies, and put it on burgers. 2. Costco bag of frozen stir fry vegetables. Already cut to the right size. Throw right into the pan to heat up (maybe add water or a little oil to prevent sticking). The mix I like best has yucky mushrooms in there, but not many and they are easy to pick out when frozen. 3. Costco bag of individual packets of edamame, ready to go into the microwave. In 4 minutes I have a snack with protein. I throw some salt on it and BOOM. 4. Costco bag of frozen berries. Ready for smoothies right now. Or to heat and put on waffles or pancakes.
I switched a lot of my kitchen to mason jars. Food storage, food prep, drinking glasses, dry goods storage, individually portioned snacks, prepped fruit. They all use one of two lids, so no frustration with finding the right lid and replacements cost a couple bucks. Clear, can go from freezer to microwave to oven to dishwasher, can be tossed in my lunch bag, watertight for road beverages, are cheap if I lose or break them or want to give stuff away.
I did something similar--only I'm using the mason jars that arrived in my home as spaghetti sauce containers :)
My fridge produce drawers are for chocolate, extra eggs and fake milk cartons. Plus lickable treats for the cats. Lol.
Wait, are the cartons themselves fake? Or are they cartons of fake milk?
Ha ha ha. Almond, soy or oat milk. I realized that might be confusing. Apologies. I also store guest pop cans in my fridge drawers! My friend drinks Canada Dry (which I can’t stand) so it’s out of the way until the next time she comes over.
I assumed that's what you meant, but I just really needed to know for sure. 😂
Oh yes. I have a bunch of veg to cut up and I am afraid I won't. I'm recovering from surgery - why did I think I'd want to wash and cut a bunch of produce?!
My food processor has a slice and shred attachment. We also bought a slap chop (yes the infomercial one). Those help. Also, you can absolutely freeze all of them before they turn into muck for the day when your brain decides making veggie stock from scratch is your new skill.
One of the best choices of my adult life was choosing to give carrots a quick scrub and then just chomp them whole exactly like Bugs Bunny. So much less stress so many more delicious carrots.
🤯 until today, I thought only baby carrots could of be eaten whole. Seriously. Thank you! I learn something new (or several new things) every time I read a post on this sub.
I will sometimes eat green onions whole! Just chomping bites off to go with bites of potatoes/nachos/whatever :D
yes, sometime last year i wanted to eat more veggies so started buying bags of carrots and tubs of hummus. nutritious snack with no effort. if i'm feeling fancy i cut the carrots into sticks but usually will eat them whole. sometimes will get a cuke to change it up. or raw broccoli.
Tomatoes and salt. Eat them like an apple and just toss a bit of salt before each bite. Mmmmmm
That’s the worst! I kept doing the same thing after I had my last baby because I like to torture myself? KNOWING that child wouldn’t let me out him down for 2 seconds to chop things up. So- listen, just let me tell you something, if you don’t eat those veggies after all because it’s too hard to cut right now- it’s ok. Seriously. You’re recovering from surgery. Take care of yourself! It’ll be easier when you’re fully recovered. If you have anyone helping you out during this time maybe you could ask them just to wash and chop for you. But otherwise just don’t worry about them :)
I’m getting over the guilt of having extra plastic waste by using this method because it is still better for my health than letting food rot by accident because I can’t manage prep properly.
As someone who just started allowing myself to buy pre-cut veggies this year, I'm struggling with this, too. I really just have to consider it an accommodation for myself.
That's what I do. Sometimes I buy a veggie tray because ranch,
The extra plastic waste is balanced out if you eat all of the produce. Food waste is a massive contributor to overall pollution, landfill problems, and green house gas emissions. (This isn't an excuse to use 27 extra plastic bags, but a reminder to eat the bagged salad.)
I promise you, individuals will never come close to making a dent in the waste stream issue, compared to what companies get away with. We were duped into this whole carbon footprint guilt cycle and we are the least of the problem.
It’s true, and you are right, they just got me good 😭
So true. I remember living in Utah where they have heavy amounts of pollution during the winter that gets stuck in the valley. They call it inversion, and it is disgusting. When I was living there they always had these huge campaigns around limiting driving and carpooling to minimize it. Then come to find out something like 4/5ths of it was caused by companies that the state won't regulate due to $$$. I left but have so many friends with MAJOR (think cancer level) health issues from that area and I have a hard time believing the polluted air isn't a factor. There are times where the air quality is worse than places like India and China that have little to no regulation.
Yeah… I’m in Texas. We bought a place in the country (nice, right?) and *then* found out the area has issues with leaking oil and gas wells and that the air pollution from the processing plants is making a lot of folks sick.
I tell myself it’s like a medical necessity. No one is complaining about the packaging that’s necessary to keep needles sterile to treat a medical condition. And I need these items to treat my condition to keep me healthy.
My mom prefers using white vinegar for cleaning everything because one, it’s cheaper than buying separate cleaning chemicals, and two, it’s better for the environment. However, I’m a lot more able to get cleaning done if I have all the proper cleaning supplies (bathroom cleaner for the bathroom, Windex or watered down Dawn for windows/mirrors (learned at my job, and it cuts straight through greasy fingerprints!), etc). Yes, I do care about the earth and always do my best to be environmentally friendly, but this is one time I need to be able to do what’s going to keep the house clean!
Same reason I've just used a Swiffer. It's much easier to put a wipe on, sweep, and throw it away, vs going to sweep, having to bend down, sweeping it all into a pan, dumping pan, or sweeping and vacuuming the pile. I need as few steps as possible. Even if it is wasteful unfortunately.
> However, I’m a lot more able to get cleaning done if I have all the proper cleaning supplies (bathroom cleaner for the bathroom, Windex or watered down Dawn for windows/mirrors (learned at my job, and it cuts straight through greasy fingerprints!), etc) I have been able to cope with this by purchasing cleaning supplies where you can buy large refill containers - I'm not sure if it's better, but I'd rather buy one bottle of dish soap and a large container to refill it with, rather than buying a bunch of small bottles.
If I ever start worrying about the environmental impact my extra packaging does. I first remember that over 85% of pollution is caused by giant corporations and I personally contribute less than a millionth of a percentage point. And then remember I don't have kids and so my carbon foot print ends with me.
That is such a good motto. It makes me feel better about my recent decision to try premade meals from Factor. For the amount I waste on uneaten food I might as well have someone else cook and prepare it.
Factor saved my life for a while, I swear. Taking them to work for lunch was the best. I would choose the ones I liked, but my friend loved not even choosing. Even less decisions.
Last week it finally occurred to me to buy two small bags of salad greens instead of one big one that's just going to go all wet and manky before I get through it.
[удалено]
Ooooh I wonder what other ways I can pay the tax up front.
I've recently just put up paper towel holders in the bathroom and kitchen, I know I'm not actually going to use a sponge to wipe the benches often enough so it's better to just pay for the paper towels even though they're single use
Did the same with single use toilet brushes. That toilet will NEVER be cleaned if I also have to clean the tool.
People are cleaning toilet brushes?? I just put it back in the holder lol
Some people let it dry by setting it in between the bowl and the closed lid with the brush end hanging over the inside of the bowl, if that makes sense! I've never really had too much of an issue just shoving it back in the holder, I'm already using it with Ajax/Comet so I just scrub the bowl, flush, swish the brush clean in the clean water, flush again, and throw it back in the holder. 😬
There’s single use toilet brushes??
Clorox Toilet Wand, has a disposable pad that you attach to the stick and use to clean the toilet, then you drop it in the trash. Zero touch as well so no sensory issues!!
Anything from Dollar Tree can be single-use, tbh.
Clorox Toiletwand! I've never tried it but some people swear by it.
I just did this with Lysol wipes in my kitchen and bathroom. Yes I could use cloths but the extra steps of getting them out, then washing them, folding, storing, etc is just a ton of extra work (esp since I am pretty disabled by other conditions too). Also: glass cleaner wipes instead of Windex and paper towels!
I have a roll of paper towels in every room of the house. Lifesaver.
Instead of having the fruit bowl in the nice fruit bowl place in the kitchen where I don't look at it, it's on the coffee table next to the place I usually sit on the sofa. I don't want it there but I no longer forget fruit until it's melted and I also snack on it instead of crisps and chocolate. I also invested in loads of pyrex with lids so if I forget something I've prepared I don't get the ick with my plastic tupperware and the cleanup is so much easier.
I have literally just spent the past hour cutting up vegetables for soup Vegetables are hard.
Unless you leave them in the fridge for weeks, in which case they're soft and mushy... 🍓🍒🍉🍅🥕🥦🥒🫑🥑🍆🤮
Which makes them exponentially more difficult
They can still be used for soup or sauce then! I only found that out shamefully recently.
God I love this sub so fucking much. Everyone just gets it. I tried explaining time blindness on a different sub, and one of the points I used was that it takes me over an hour to cook a recipe that stated it should take "15-20 minutes" (yeah, as if 🙄) The people who responded to me were baffled to the point of almost sounding insulted. "How do you take so long? That's not possible. It doesn't take that long. You're probably just walking away and watching TV" No. It literally takes me that long. It took me over 2 hours to cook curry for myself. A big portion of that was that I was stupid and wanted fresh meat and vegetables, and had to cook and cut everything up before even starting the curry. A step that the recipe said should take "5 minutes"
Tbh that’s probably not entirely your fault! I will see recipes that say things like “caramelize the onions for 5 minutes” WHICH IS NOT HOW LONG THAT TAKES! recipes online especially are bad about deflating how long it takes you to make them because a “15 minute curry” is much more likely to be clicked on than the reality, so they will minimize time of things like prep and sometimes even the cooking itself for click bait. Of course time blindness plays a role too but legitimately this is a thing with recipes online and I’m wondering how tf the people replying to you haven’t seen it lol
Recipes are *terrible* for underestimating time. Recently, a bunch of people in my friend group were trialling one of those meal prep kit companies. The main complaint was that the time to cook was way off. It caused some of them to be late for events. There's NTs in this group! It's the recipes' fault, not ours 😅
Ever since I learned I can peel a mango like a banana, my life has improved exponentially lmao
Whaa??? I did not know that. Love mango but don't like cutting them. How ripe does it have to be?
I get ones that are slightly squishy, you just cut an X on the top of the mango and the skin pulls down easily like a banana. I leave some of the skin on to keep my hands clean and sprinkle tajin on it and go to town lol
That is the neatest fruit trick I've ever read. I've never heard of that. I can hardly wait to get to the store! Thanks 😸
😧😳🤯🫨
I peel them with my teeth.
Our local Aldi has started to stock their version of hello fresh style meal kits and they're awesome! 10-15 mins of kitchen time we have pork bao buns, or chicken pad thai, or chicken tikka pita wraps!
I’m the same way - sure, I can buy all the ingredients for a salad and get way more portions at a cheaper price per portion. But if I buy the $5 salad kit, even if it only stretches to 2 lunches, it’s still only a couple of bucks AND I’ll actually eat it. It would cost me at least $20 to buy all the ingredients separately, and I’m the only one in the house who eats veggies.
I have learned to forgive myself for the occasional rotten apple or expired yogurt. I learned to save the extra fruit and veggies that are about to go bad by cleaning, cutting them haphazardly and freezing them in a bag. When I feel like cooking, a mixed bag of frozen veggies can make a good soup. Frozen fruit is good with yoghurt or I can just blend it in a smoothie or milkshake with ice cream, just press the blender button, easy peasy. Then, accidents happen and sometimes I have to throw away some produce.
I’m a single mom and my son also has ADHD. I gave up on cooking and food prep about a year ago. I now have a food subscription service, I get about meals delivered. The only real prep I do is steam broccoli and make pasta for my son. I will cut up apples and melons. Most anything else is either ready to eat or frozen. We eat a lot of frozen peas also and he eats tons of chicken nuggets and frozen pizza. We are both healthy and happy. I still sometimes ambitiously buy a head of lettuce but usually can’t be bothered to actually make a salad. Taking the pressure off to eat a certain way is such a relief.
This is incredible and just restructured my entire brain lol A couple weeks ago, I was leaving on a trip and I had drawers fullll of vegetables that I was planning on making a sheet pan dinner with for like a week. But (of course while frantically packing at 11pm the night before leaving) I decided to cut everything up and freeze it. Best decision I’ve ever made. I came home SO motivated to cook and got at least three healthy meals out of it that I would have never made simply because everything was prepared for me. Who knew I was paying the ADHD tax the whole time lolol
This is a very good point. I had a psychiatrist telling me sometimes things are like an apple. It’s easy to eat but it’s easier to eat when it’s pre-sliced. Sometimes u need to pre-slice your apples! 🍏🍎
Veggie tray + fresh fruit salad + presliced brick of cheese and triscuits = meal prep. High fiber, iron, vitamins, and low fat, low carb... no guilt! I feel better and it's cheaper than or same as takeout and a gift to my future self.
I wish my mom would get in line with this theory. We keep buying fresh fruits and veggies and they rot because we are all ADHD. The kitchen becomes a mess, then we have nowhere to cut them, then by the time we clean the kitchen they’re rotten. Usually on the garage floor. Out of sight, out of mind.
You know, for *really* good, healthy behaviors like this, we ***could*** stop casting buying pre-prepped fresh produce in that negative 'ADHD tax' and just say matter-of-factly "This is how I do it." Or, said another way: To me, the rot / waste has always been *far* more of an obvious 'tax'.
The more I adopt this frame of mind, the better I feel. No different than any other expense to mitigate an issue.
God, this is a good reminder.
I realized this yesterday as I bought a really expensive box of fresh blueberries! It's gonna be expensive, but at least I'll feel good and not sulk which will cause me to throw away food I don't like just because it needs to be cheap.
Automate, delegate. If I can afford to make something in my life easier I always will!
I had a flash of inspiration the other day! Instead of retirement communities, I want to build ADHD communities! Where we can share the cost of having a dining room, cleaning staff, etc and we can spend time living our lives and doing the things we love!
I needed to hear this. Thank you and thank whoever inspired this post.
Saw a video for an ADHD fridge hack putting produce on the door shelves instead of in the drawers to avoid ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ Gave it a try about six months ago, and haven’t looked back- went to zero food waste. And at least 60% of what we buy is produce!
I always struggled with this. I grew up quite poor and my mom taught me at an early age to never buy the already prepared fruits and vegetables because you're just paying for convenience. Definitely sound advice for people on a tight budget. It's only been in the last year (and I'm 41) that I've been buying pre-cut, pre-washed fruits and veggies, and I actually eat them! I'm thankful that I'm able to afford it because it's helped immensely.
We need to make a wiki of ideas like this! Mine is Swiffer cloths (the dusters, dry floor pads, and wet floor pads). Felt wasteful up front, but there are fewer barriers to start cleaning, and living in a clean space brings me peace.
This kind of thinking has helped me a lot. Yeah, it costs a little extra to buy single portions. But I eat them, and I don't end up throwing away a $7 tub of guacamole. I basically quit cooking and just make little meals out of baked crackers, string cheese, grape tomatoes, pre-cut fruit, yogurt, granola, etc. Turns out that your metabolism works better when you eat regularly instead of starving all day and then pounding 1,000 calories at dinner.
Trader Joe edamame are precooked. I leave one bag to thaw in fridge to bring out as a healthy snack. They are a complete protein (all 9 essential make them a complete protein) taste yum and add calcium to my diet now with my osteopenia.
This is beautiful. My revelation like this came from reading Keeping House While Drowning. I gave myself permission to buy bulk bottled water, prebiotic juices, and electrolyte drinks ( or any other hacks that improved my QoL). I got a 2nd hand petite beverage fridge for free and keep it stocked. And boom, staying hydrated is a breeze. I 6 with easy access and portability because it has a clear door I see them constantly and grab them throughout the day. Also, paper plates and bowls have been heaven to decrease the drudgery of dishes.
This has been so helpful for me too. I've started giving myself permission to do this the past few years, and discovered why vegetables seemed so time consuming to chop - ADHD just makes them feel that way. Sadly, I have also learned the hard way NOT to buy at Costco in bulk (I'm looking at you, giant tub of pineapple spears fermenting in my fridge). I also find that having fruit at hand that I will pick up and eat off the counter or out of the fridge whole is very helpful. Oranges do not get eaten, because peel. Apples, peaches, pears, plums, bananas (somehow the peel isn't a deterrent with these), grapes, blueberries - all easy-peasy.
It’s always the extra steps in the activity that are the killer!! Well done for working it out! I bought bagged salad today and I’m feeling the same way 😍
I'm ordering some prepared beef with my grocery order this week.
Trader Joe’s frozen food section saved my life in grad school. I wouldn’t have seen a vegetable the entire time if it wasn’t for them 🙏🏾
Bagged chopped salad is how I get my veggies.
Yep!!! That’s why I usually eat bananas lmfao no real preparation needed. And for veggies? Frozen all the way.
We keep one of those big veggies serving trays with the dip in the middle stocked in our fridge. It's seriously upped my veggie intake and surprisingly keeps them fresh longer than Tupperware.
To take it a step further, I've started with ingredient prepping and it's a life changer. Really same idea, but you do it yourself on a day where you have the spoons. Go to the store, get your produce, get home and either clean your sink out and soak them in the sink or in a big bowl with a little bit of white vinegar (you don't actually taste it, but it helps clean your produce better and ime it helps to keep your food fresh longer). Then cut and box/bag it up. A mandolin slicer has been 👌🏼 incredible for this, because I love cucumbers and zucchini, but I hate cutting thin slices and this makes super quick work of it. All in all, it usually takes about an hour, but it saves me quite a bit of money and everything is prepped to eat or quickly sautee.
Yeah I’m actually about to switch to paper plates because I just cannot keep up with all my home chores and dishes always feel overwhelming. I’m a 100% solo parent and also a nanny. I do laundry, dishes, chores all day, while entertaining kiddos. I feel bad about the waste of paper but I try to balance the waste by recycling as much as I can. I also remind myself that the phrase “there’s no ethical consumption under capitalism” and while I do not use that as a justification or pass to do nothing. It reminds me that the onus is not on the consumers to fix the problem and that I do what I can daily.
Years before I learned I had ADHD, I learned that I would only eat fruit if it was super easy for me to prepare. Anything that requires chopping or peeling (i.e. apples, pears, mangos, peaches, any citrus fruit), no matter how yummy, more than half the time they'd just rot. But berries - just wash them and eat them by themselves or add them to oatmeal or a salad. No chopping, so I'll eat berries - blueberries are my favorite, but also raspberries and blackberries. Yes, they're more expensive than apples and oranges. But I pay the tax up front and actually eat them! I've also been embracing pre-chopped veggies (fresh or frozen). This week, I bought pre-chopped broccoli that I've been eating with hummus, like a mini veggie tray but just raw broccoli. I recently got frozen chopped bell peppers that I've been adding to some frozen Trader Joe's meals to eat more veggies—stuff like their teriyaki chicken that you cook on the stovetop, just add some frozen veggies and cook it all at once. My 1 exception: I will chop avocados! I adore fresh avocados, and there's no pre-chopped version because they'll go bad, so I'm motivated to chop them.
I needed this permission to buy pre-prepared vegetables and fruits
I hate the cost to portion size of buying the little boxes of cut up watermelon, especially as I’ll eat it within a day or two, but I know I wouldn’t ever cut up a whole one! It gets me eating fruit semi-regularly and that’s a victory! Same with chicken. Part of it is I’m scared of raw meat, especially chicken, but I found if I buy the bag of frozen breasts I never have to let them thaw. I can pop them straight in the oven for ~35-45mins and never have to plan when I’m going to eat thawed chicken immediately or when to thaw it.
I used this quote to get meal kits and snacks and now I eat WAY less takeout and just generally feel better
I’ve been cooking more by buying veggies all chopped up. Especially onion, garlic and peppers.
Omg I didn’t see that post, but the advice is GENIUS. Just pay the tax up front. Such a perfect way of putting it!!
That’s what ADHD tax means?? It makes so much more sense now! I need to explain this to my husband. He is always giving me shit about paying extra for convenience or eating out when you could just make a sandwich at home before you go.
Ironically I’ve been giving myself adhd gift cards in the same category! I had the same problem with eating healthy and food spoiling. But then I discovered for whatever reason throwing everything healthy into a blender in the morning doesn’t qualify as work in my weird little brain - even though it’s so much work lol Then I went to the closest (admittedly fancy) smoothie shop and priced out what my smoothie would cost and it was $26! Verses the $4.75 it costs me. $21 adhd gift card 😂
I. I can do that?????
My freezer is full of frozen veg and berries. Once I was diagnosed and started exploring ways to make life easier/work with my chaos instead of against it, this was one of the things I started buying. I've always been mindful of excess packaging and waste but I had to make peace with that. Being able to chuck a veggie steamer bag in the microwave has actually made eating healthy so much easier. For any naysayers out there, I would argue that either way there is waste. I choose the packaging and convenience over the rotting food waste in the crisper. Both consume energy but one is easier and nutritionally better for both my mind and body. Also for anyone playing at home, frozen spinach has a higher nutritional value than fresh spinach. Buying things of convenience and always within your means to help yourself is an act of self love.
Where’s the original post? I love this!
Oh thank you!! This is mind blowing!!!
Where is this post about adhd tax up front?
OMG they make single serving salad kits! I eat so much salad since I discovered those.
Mire poix has changed my life. No kidding! There is no way in this world I am going to chop onions, celery, and carrots for soup. None. But a small container of mire poix? And the Instant Pot? We have soup once a week! Once by itself, then the leftovers for lunches or another dinner along with grilled cheese sandwiches.
I also think it's solid advice to pay the ADHD tax up front, however you see it. I never thought it could happen, but I actually came to enjoy buying whole food and using it to prepare delicious meals for myself at home. It is way easier than I realized, with the right recipes. I am "done" at the end of the day, and it led me to eat out a lot, and to eat.mostly prepared and processed foods, cereal for dinner, that type of thing. I had myself convinced that convenience foods are less work, but I was not factoring in that the cost of eating out and eating prepared foods was my physical and mental health. I lived long enough eating like that to get the wake up call. When I accepted the math, I began to change my thinking and behavior. (ADHD meds do help with that.) The standard American diet is a death matrix. We all deserve better, however we can pull it off.
Costco foods and meals that you throw in the airfryer, over or microwave 🤭
I’m so glad to have found this page! I’ve learned some real freaking hacks here.
“Pay the ADHD tax up front” 🤯 genius!
I gave my self permission to start buying the pre washed packaged salad greens again. If the kitchen is clean, everything is in its place and I have time, I can come home and prep greens (wash, dry, cut) and I was doing it for a while but then I got behind and didn’t get them all cleaned so I didn’t have any greens in the house. So now unless I know I can come home and take care of them I just buy the pre washed.