9 Weird AuDHD Life Hacks That Actually Make Everyday Life Easier

Some of the things that make my AuDHD life easier probably look a little ridiculous from the outside. I set two alarms just to leave the house. I buy multiples of the same clothes. I keep important things where I can physically see them, because otherwise my brain may decide they no longer exist. But these aren’t random quirks. They’re tiny systems I’ve built around the ways my autistic and ADHD brain actually works, and many of them make everyday life dramatically easier.

1. A fake deadline that’s earlier

This is a buffer for the time-blind mind. When I need to be somewhere at 17:15, I plan my departure so that I arrive at 17. With my brain making time disappear, last-minute impulsive decisions, and underestimating the time reserve, this usually gets me to the place I need to be exactly at 17:15. 

Actually, I have done this inadvertently recently. I had an appointment with my endocrinologist at 13:20, but somehow, on the day, I woke up absolutely convinced that it was at 13:00. So I planned accordingly. But I took an Uber, and thanks to an error in their app, the driver left me in a place that was a 15-minute walk from the doctor’s office. So I was running late. Or so I thought. I ran to the doctor’s office, out of breath, and profusely apologized for being late, only to discover I was exactly on time. That day, thankfully, my brain created a fake deadline without me knowing. 

2. Two alarms for leaving

This is somewhat related to the previous point. When I need to be somewhere on time, I absolutely need to set alarms. One is for the time I need to drop what I’m doing and start getting ready (with a small time reserve for transition factored in). This is the time when I prepare my backpack, double-check I have everything I need, and pick my clothes. The second alarm is for the time I need to get up, take my stuff, and leave the door. That is absolutely non-negotiable. It rings, I leave. 

One alarm is not enough because it doesn’t factor in time for preparation and transition. The first alarm allows me to start the transition, the second signals the time to end it. 

3. The same food for breakfast and dinner

I always eat the same safe food for breakfast. It’s oatmeal with ground flaxseed (for Omega-3 intake), sunflower seeds (for the satisfying crunch), and plain yogurt that I leave to steep overnight. I also eat the same food for dinner, at least for a period of time. When I get tired of that food, I switch to a new one. Lately I have cycled through cottage cheese with banana, hummus, and bread with cheese and Cherry tomatoes. It is different over time but the same over a shorter time period, which makes dinners predictable and easy to prepare. I just have a stash of the specific food item in my fridge or pantry, and that’s that. 

But while this satisfies my autistic side, my ADHD side calls for novelty. So, for my ADHD, I have something different for lunch every few days. But I make it easy on myself. I have a ChatGPT feed titled “1 pan or pot meals,” and every time I need to cook, I just ask it for a recipe suggestion. Then I order the ingredients through my online grocery shopping service and make the meal. I always make sure to prepare several portions, and some of them go to the freezer, so I can just defrost them when I have a low-spoon day. 

4. Specific music for work

If I need to do some intellectual work, like writing for my blog, I listen to Brain.fm. What makes it different from regular focus music is that the sound itself is designed to help your brain stay engaged. The tracks use subtle rhythmic patterns that are meant to support attention and make it easier to stay with what you’re doing. There’s some early research suggesting that it really can help with sustained focus, although, like most things involving brains, it won’t work equally well for everyone. You can try it out here.

When I’m doing more physical tasks, I listen to the playlist All-time bangers on Spotify.  If I need something to get me going cleaning my kitchen or hanging laundry (a hated task), there is nothing better than S&M by Rihanna. Generally, any energetic music or dance music will do it. The only risk is I’ll be dancing instead of cleaning.

5. Minimizing clothing options & maximizing sensory comfort 

So, I have read that Steve Jobs wore the exact same outfit every day, and I can relate. But while he was doing it to minimize the everyday decision load, I do it because of an entirely different reason. 

I simply can’t tolerate much of the clothes I can find. So when I find something I can stand to put on without throwing myself on the floor and tearing it off while screaming, I buy multiples. And, over time, I have found some “safe clothes”. 

It’s the same concept as safe food. I have specific pants that I buy over and over (fancy-looking dance pants with a loose waist), same T-shirts in different colors for the ADHD need for novelty, same hoodies, same socks that don’t bite into your calves, same underwear that doesn’t ride up (VERY important, and I actually have them custom-made). 

I have like 20 of every kind of item. I’m stocking up on them in case they stop being available. My basement is full of bags of clothes. This has a downside, though: sometimes I find an even better clothing option, and suddenly all of the previous items of that type I have bought are rendered obsolete. But it is a risk I’m willing to take if it means I always have clothes at hand that I feel comfortable in.

And, yes, the smaller daily mental load because I don’t have to make decisions about what to wear every day is nice, too. 

6. Keeping things in sight

Okay, so, like many ADHDers, I don’t have very good object permanence. Not like a newborn that forgets something exists when it doesn’t see it, but actually, it is very close. When I don’t see something, it disappears from my working memory. It may as well disappear from the face of the Earth. If I don’t see it, I won’t continue to work on it, plain and simple. 

For that reason, I leave ALL of the things I have started and want to continue working on out in the open. And yes, I always have my desk, my side table, and even my windowsill so covered by papers that they fall down when a breeze comes through. I dream of an office that would have desks all around the perimeter. A total ADHD office. 

But sometimes I run out of space. My solution is a sheet of paper where I have written all the things I need to remember in big, bold letters. 

If we want to keep remembering a thing exists, we need to make the thing visible in some fashion. Otherwise, it disappears into the abyss, to be unearthed only when we make our 74784th attempt at decluttering. 

7. A master list in Google Docs

A master list in Google Docs with links to all of my important stuff, divided into sections by category, was a total game-changer for me. I devoted a big part of it to this blog, but I also have a section for my short stories, for the book I’m trying to write, and personal stuff like the document with addresses of my pen pals.

I write the name of the document I’m saving, add the link to its Google Doc, and then I can be sure I will never lose it again. No more finding complete, finished short stories on my disk that I have totally forgotten about /even if it is a pleasant surprise). It is a bit ridiculous keeping a Google Doc with links to other Google Docs, but it works like a charm for me.

8. Keys and wallet always in the same small bag

I have a small handbag where my keys and wallet live, no exceptions. Every time I take them out, I return them immediately after use. The handbag always hangs on the wall next to the entrance door, and I always take it with me. This saves me the mental load and chaos of trying to remember where I put my keys this time or the inconvenience of finding out I’m without money and ID when I’m out in town. 

9. A foot in the door

Every time I am about to shut the entrance door from the outside, I first put my foot in it until I locate the keys, and I hold them in my hand. This prevents me from getting locked out. I live alone, and although my neighbor has a copy of my keys, it would be a hassle to chase her. 

So I have trained myself to ALWAYS put my foot in the door while I’m searching for the keys to lock it. As I have written in the previous point, I always have my keys in the same handbag I always take with me, but it’s an additional measure to double-check that I absolutely don’t forget my keys, no matter what. 

Conclusion

Living with AuDHD often means that the systems that work for other people simply don’t work quite the same way for us. The goal isn’t to force yourself into a perfectly organized, neurotypical routine. It’s to notice where time blindness, executive dysfunction, sensory needs, working-memory problems, or decision fatigue make life harder, and build small supports around them. Your own AuDHD life hacks may look unconventional from the outside, but if they make everyday life easier, reduce friction, and help you function with less stress, they’re doing exactly what they’re supposed to do.

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