"June suns, you cannot store them.". – A.E. Housman.
Today’s Tuesday Tidbit focuses on the difficulties of capturing time. ADHD can wreak havoc on time. Hyper-focus sucks you into the black hole, “What! Five hours went by!” Maybe a lack of motivation stalls you out, “How is it already 3 pm? I haven’t even started on that project due tomorrow.” A new urgency rises. The brain may react in one of two ways. Dopamine floods the brain, giving you a burst to get going. Or the amygdala hijacks your brain, and you freeze, unable to get started.
In June, I am digging deeper into how we become and stay aware of time, knowing this is often a genuine struggle for ADHDer’s and neurotypicals alike. I hear time and time again (no pun intended), “I just do not have enough time.” I know how hard this is; I experience it too. There seems never to be enough time in our day and age of high expectations, fast lifestyles, and more stimuli coming at us. Each day we are allotted a certain amount of time to use. Before we expect ourselves to do better, let us first understand what is happening in our brain. You can better what you first understand.
People with dopamine deficits, such as ADHD, often have trouble keeping track of time. Time awareness originates in the brain. ADHD is a brain difference. Wikipedia states individuals with ADHD have difficulties in discrimination activities and time estimation. It seems to ADHDers’ that time is passing by without them being able to complete tasks accurately. (Wikipedia Contributors, 2021).
Here are some highlights worthy of keeping at the forefront.
Time and space go hand in hand within the brain.
Time Perception supports motor control.
Dopamine affects time realization.
The realization of time is linked to experiences.
In an article by Neuroscience Today, Mouser says, “Today, we have a fairly good understanding of the way our brains process space whereas our knowledge of time is less coherent. Space in the brain is relatively easy to investigate. It consists of specialized cell types that are dedicated to specific functions. Together they constitute the nuts and bolts of the system.” (FeaturedNeuroscience·August 29 & 2018, 2018) In certain situations, split seconds matter. Imagine a gymnast performing on a balance beam. Timing and space must be in unison to succeed. These two areas of the brain are intricately linked. (How our brain perceives time | Genetic Literacy Project, 2017)
Chemicals play a part, too, including dopamine. According to recent research, we feel like time is passing faster when we’re engaged in pleasurable, rewarding activities which increase dopamine activity in the brain. (Ivana Isadora Devcic, 2017) In the article Dopamine Cells Influence Our Perception of Time, Singer states, “the findings might also have implications for how we think about dopamine-linked disorders. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, for example, is linked to too little dopamine and is treated with dopamine drugs. People with the disorder also tend to be impulsive.” The concept of time begins in the brain. Understanding your links to your struggles will help you to form strategies that can help. “One dimension of impulsivity is the tendency or inability to promote delayed gratification,” Paton says. “If your dopamine levels are different and you sense time more slowly, it might be harder to wait for delayed gratification.” (Dopamine Cells Influence Our Perception of Time, 2017) Time is not just the hands on a clock moving; time correlates to brain chemistry.
Buonomano, a professor of neuroscience at UCLA, lays out the latest, best theories about how we understand time, illuminating a fundamental aspect of being human. “The human brain, he writes, is a time machine that allows us to mentally travel backward and forward, to plan for the future and agonizingly regret that past like no other animal. And, he argues, our brains are time machines like clocks are time machines: constantly tracking the passage of time, whether it’s circadian rhythms that tell us when to go to sleep, or microsecond calculations that allow us to hear the difference between “They gave her cat-food” and “They gave her cat food.” (MacMillan, 2017)
Humans have externalized time using clocks and calendars to synchronize themselves with others. There are two systems at play within the brain, the neural clock and the external processes of circadian rhythms affected by sunlight.
Time is realized through experiences. Tsao states, “Your brain does not perceive the duration in time with the standardized units of minutes and hours on your wristwatch.” (FeaturedNeuroscience·August 29 & 2018, 2018) Through evolution our biological clocks have moved us through our days.
How you move forward is your growth opportunity. Right here and now. I believe it all stems back to a brain thing. Analyzing what is going on in your brain will help you strategize towards your goals. Choose to nurture your brain in your everyday living, and your abilities will shine. Time is tricky. It is perceived but utterly necessary to have a handle on time to be successful.
How can you use time to your advantage?
Try playing around with these techniques to see if they can help you.
Always Arriving Late | Set a timer for when you must leave to arrive 5 minutes early. Reduce your workload and habits required to leave the house. Plan the night before. Could you make the coffee the night before, prep for breakfast, set out your clothes, put all of your necessary items in one spot to launch from? |
Stuck with No Start or Lost in Time | Take back control of your intentions in the task at hand. Whether you really love the task or seriously hate what you must do, try a Pomodoro Session. Hyper-focused sessions can be chunked in setting a Pomodoro Session. 30-5-20-5= 1 Hour of work towards something important. Set an intentional work task. Work 30 minutes take a 5-minute break. Work another 20 minutes take a 5-minute break. You’ve just completed 50 minutes of dedicated time towards a required task. Reassess what needs to happen next. You can adjust the time as it suits you. Use a timer. |
Waiting until the last minute | The feeling of urgency and time pressure releases dopamine. This is a learned and practiced habit. How can you create urgency in completing something days before its due date? Are you one to say, I have more time thinking you will get other things done first. Are you the type that throws your suitcase together the morning of a trip forgetting your most important essentials, or do you layout your bag with excitement the weekend before throwing last-minute necessary items in as you get closer to departure? How can you apply packing a suitcase a week ahead to your looming due dates? Try chunking a project instead of cramming the night before. |
Time Oblivion | If you have absolutely no sense of time, try placing clocks in your plain sight. Use analog clocks to see the hands moving on the clock. This gives the brain a clearer sense of movement. My favorite is a clock that chimes like the old grandfather clock. There are singing clocks of all types available https://apps.apple.com/us/app/chime-time-check-your-way/id1369098015 or you can download an app on your mobile device to audibly alert you of the time.https://apps.apple.com/us/app/chime-time-check-your-way/id1369098015 |
Powerful Question: How can you make the most of the sun, knowing you cannot store them?
I view information as just the beginning. Go forward. What you do with what you know is what you will do. I hope you feel empowered to make more of your time. ~ Coach Cindy
Resources:
Ivana Isadora Devcic. (2017, June). How to Fix Your Broken Perception of Time. Zapier.com; Zapier. https://zapier.com/blog/fix-time-perception/
Wikipedia Contributors. (2021, June 4). Time perception. Wikipedia; Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_perception#cite_note-:1-123
Norwegian University of Science and Technology(2018, August 29). How the Brain Experiences Time. NeuroscienceNews. Retrieved August 29, 2018, from https://neurosciencenews.com/time-perception-9771/
Dopamine Cells Influence Our Perception of Time. (2017, January 20). Simons Foundation. https://www.simonsfoundation.org/2017/01/20/dopamine-cells-influence-our-perception-of- time/?utm_source=zapier.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=zapier
MacMillan, T. (2017, April 25). The Human Brain Is a Time Machine. The Cut; The Cut. https://www.thecut.com/2017/04/the-human-brain-is-a-time-machine.html
Cindy North is a Certified ADHD Life Coach with specific training in ADHD neurobiology through the iACTcenter and is moving towards continued coach certification with the International Coach Federation. Her passion is guiding the ADHD community to success by empowering others to shine with their abilities.