Here’s What My Days Actually Look Like

As a mom with ADHD no longer on the burnout roller coaster.

I bit the bullet and recorded one of those fancy day in the life type Instagram reels yesterday. I completely see the value in showing people what my life looks like as I seek to empower and encourage women to design lives that work for them but I also find these videos hard.

I’ll be honest, they are kind of annoying to film and I really don’t love the idea of my whole life being content for public consumption. I try to have clear boundaries around my work so I don’t love when my work creeps in to all hours of my day.

But even more than that, I also struggle with projecting any sense that my days are perfectly the same because they aren’t and learning to navigate both high and low energy days is without a doubt one of the most helpful things that I’ve learned to do as a mom with ADHD. I don’t want to perpetuate this idea that once you learn to be consistent each day, that you’ll unlock the next level of life because I’ve found that to be a really unrealistic goal as a women with ADHD.

So as I share this, please keep in mind that every day in my life is not the same. I have gotten much more consistent but that only came because I gave myself time to adjust to new routines. I do a lot of things to care for our my home and family and my mental health but integrating these habits took time.

For example, I get up at 5:00 AM most mornings but it took me a long time to make that a normal thing. In this current season, it’s easier than ever because my oldest also gets up at 5:00 AM to get ready for school. Getting up at 5:00 AM was much harder when it was just me getting up to go workout at the gym by myself. Even now, I set my alarm for 5:00 AM every day but there is a little upward creep each and every week.

It’s also important to note that this is my current rhythm. I adjust my rhythm every few months so that I don’t get bored. I regularly switch up when I go on walks, when I go to the gym and what time that I get up. Giving myself flexibility helps me to not get bored.

The Activation Zone

And lastly, I want to preface sharing my routine with the understanding that the activation zone concept is central to how I do life. In my book, I talk about the three zones: the boredom zone, the depletion zone and the activation zone.