On the non-medical options front, I will note that my lifelong hyperactive and neurotic tendencies dramatically improve with a 3-4 day a week distance running training regimen. I enjoy running enough, even though it is very difficult, that I've kept up with it for several years. I'm not as consistent about this, but I also found yoga classes to be a way to make mindfulness fun and easier.
That's not to say I'm not on the medication train (despite moaning about medications a lot). I do personally avoid taking any controlled substances. This is easy because I hate how stimulants make me feel, but in general I worry about the effects of having a direct reward signal from taking a pill.
Jumping on this conversation a bit: I was recently diagnosed and am still very much in the "what helps?" and "what parts of my personality/habits are connected to this and which aren't?" stage. Do either of you by any chance know a healthy online space to discuss this with others?
I would recommend avoiding any subreddit related to ADHD.
I honestly would try to stick to materials written by mental health professionals and possibly talking to a therapist (your company might have an EAP that can help with this) over interacting with any online community I'm aware of on this matter.
I find online mental health communities tend to be "if I have a hammer, everything is a nail," and aren't open to other explanations for any traits or struggles. They also tend to suck in the people who aren't doing better with treatment, while the people who found systems that work for them leave for greener pastures. On the opposite side there are communities that are anti-psychiatry and refuse to consider medical treatments. In general these spaces tend to be very black and white.
I do like the Astral Codex Ten open threads as a space that's relatively neutral on the topic, though they lean very biohacker in a way that gets ahead of the science.
I found Finally Focused by James Greenblatt to be quite helpful. He makes sure key minerals and vitamins are in a good range before prescribing stimulants.
This sometimes solves the problem by itself, or it reduces the levels of stimulants needed.
I wish I could run. I recognize that exercise is a foundational facet of health all the way around. I'm "blessed" with enough comorbidities that make that a challenge but I am going to get a personal trainer to help me work through that.
Good idea. Feel free to try different options until you find something that you genuinely want to stick with. Running is just what I like, but my understanding of the current research is that it's more important to do something you actually want to do consistently for years than to do the ideal workout for 6 months and then quit exercising entirely.
That's not to say I'm not on the medication train (despite moaning about medications a lot). I do personally avoid taking any controlled substances. This is easy because I hate how stimulants make me feel, but in general I worry about the effects of having a direct reward signal from taking a pill.