Multi-tasking

It seems that whenever the topic of "multi-tasking" comes up, almost
invariably, those folks on here and others who have been dx'd with ADD say
it's something that they do naturally - indeed that it is something they
can't HELP doing.

I have long lamented that I cannot relate to that AT ALL. I have a HUGE
amount of difficulty dealing with more than one thing at a time. In fact, if
you wanna see me shoot venom, try and make me handle several simultaneous
tasks.

My problem is that I cannot prioritize or make decisions. And, I cannot
screen out that which isn't immediately important. So, even if I am so lucky
as to decide - 'okay, "A" needs my immediate attention', I cannot deal with
it as long as B and C are poking at me (literally or figuratively).

For example, I withdrew from college (temporarily) in part because I could
never decide what I should be doing at any given time. Should I do the
outline FIRST, or look for sources. Do I start big and narrow the topic, or
choose a small one and build on it if I need to? How to I find out something
if I don't know that I don't know? How do I prioritize when I don't even
realize I need to.

This sense of not knowing where or how to start was both in the small sense
and the large. If I was working on a report for one class, I felt like I
should be studying for the upcoming exam in another. If I was studying for
that test, I couldn't concentrate because, among other things, I was worried
about reading for another class, or doing that report, or God knows what
else.

This stuff has followed me everywhere - and of course to my current job
(which I've had for the past fourteen months). I work at a child development
center as a toddler teacher/caregiver. My partner and I are responsible for
up to fourteen of them. Yep - fourteen children who go from screaming
"NOOOOO!!!" and "MINE!" to writing on the walls with crayon, to jumping off
of tables, to playing in the toilet, to deciding to find out what (non-toxic)
paint tastes like!

Now, I KNOW how to take care of toddlers, but sometimes (well, maybe a
little more often than sometimes), I find myself so absorbed in reading a
story to Johny or changing a *VERY* messy diaper (ewwwww! clothes pin
anyone?), or seeing just how long I can make Susie giggle, that I don't
always see Jimmy getting ready to whack another child with a push toy or
practice sky-diving from the highest point he can get to. AND, sometimes I
just get so overwhelmed I lose the ability to judge - to reason what is most
important in the present.

I don't mean to make it sound like their environment is constantly
chaotic and dangerous. It isn't. But I just feel so often that I'm teetering
on the edge of complete breakdown (of the room, and of my sanity).

Usually, at the end of a given day, I reflect and maybe it wasn't quite as
bad (or nearly as bad) as it felt at the moment. The children and I survived
the crises, and there were enough warm fuzzies and hugs and "you're *FUNNY*
'tanley!" - to help drag me out of bed the next morning.

I just don't know who I can turn to who can relate to EXACTLY the kind of
incapacitating indecision and inability to "multi-task". I can't do it. Is
there anyone here who feels similarly?? Thanks for letting me vent. Later.

-stan

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I can't multi-task. The TV or radio might be on while I'm on the computer, but
they're just there for "background noise."

I find multi-tasking very stressful. I have more than I can handle with one
task at a time..

I have to tell you know know someone who thinks she's good at "multi-tasking"
-- but the end result isn't usable.

Stan,

I am NOT ADD, yet I worked in a three year old room for seven months when I
couldn't find a teaching job in my new location. I was every bit as challenged
and often overwhelmed as you seem to be. It is just insane to expect that two
people can adequeately care for, nurture and provide for that many kids at once
(especially at nap time).
So I don't think your ADD has too much to do with how you feel at any given
moment or at the end of the day. (Of course, the rewarding hugs are nice!)
Laurie Wagner
Vice President, Educational Development
Reading and Language Arts Centers
http://www.rlac.com
in...@rlac.com

I suck at switching back and forth between reasonably complex things -
I totally lose track of what I was doing.

I find for simple tasks I'll end up switching back & forth alot (that
also means that I can't pay attention to a simple task long enough to
finish it before going on to the next).

BUT If I'm really concentrating on something and the phone rings I'm
dead in the water.

> .... If I was studying for

That sounds like anxiety more than indecisiveness.

I found an excellent way to choose between two equally (un)important
things - flip a coin. "Heads, I do my math first, tails I work on the
essay." Of course I don't do that with things that can be judged more
easily (I'll do the assignment due Monday before I do the assignment
due in two weeks). I find it relieves alot of pressure that
semi-irrelevant decisions can cause and lets me get on with the work.

...Of course, after I graduated I discovered that the professors don't
expect you to be able to get all of the work done by yourself....and I
just about KILLED myself trying!

I get that way sometimes too - I find that taking a dose of Ritalin
(or extra-strong coffee) right then helps me put my head on straight
again. It's such a weird feeling when I have two pressing problems
competing for my attention and I feel like I'm on the outside looking
in, just watching.

(But at other times I just react instinstinctivly - go figure)

Ritalin has really helped me with this.

Anita

If it helps, I think that I fit solidly into both categories... let me
see if I can explain a bit of what I've found.

I have great difficulty dealing with more than one thing at a time...
if I *have* to deal with more than one thing at a time. If the
circumstances aren't forced, I usually don't run into as many problems
with it.

If there are multiple things that just *have* to be responded to or
dealt with, I'm in big trouble, and I get pretty frustrated. Sound is
a big one for me... if there is more than one source of sound, I'm
likely to have problems. Someone talking while a TV or radio is
going, or multiple people talking... forget about it.

But, on the other hand, I find that there are situations where I'll
end up juggling lots of things at the same time, without trying or
even really wanting to... it's just a natural phase I'll fall into.

One of the things that I believe, is that my subconscious is sometimes
picking up on the fact that I'm in a "fast switching" mode, where my
attention is flitting between multiple things. When that happens, I
find that I'll often "surround" myself with multiple things to do...
I'm thinking that this is almost a defensive mechanism, where I'm
subconsciously trying to increase the odds that when I switch away
from something, I'll land on something *else* useful... rather than
landing on something useless.

With lots of "useful" things to do, it's more likely that the next
distraction will be one of them, rather than something that I won't
get credit for... In effect, I'm increasing the odds that I'll be
working on *something* useful, even if I don't know what it will be
from moment to moment.

But if some of those things are "forced" (have to be done right away),
then multi-tasking becomes much harder. What was previously a
positive becomes a negative now... having more things around
*reduces* the odds that this one important one will get done right
away.

So far, this is the only explanation I've come up with that reconciles
why I'm attracted to (while also overwhelmed on occassion by) piles of
things and multiple projects.

Hope this helps.

Barry Kearns
bke...@den.wantweb.net

Multitasking is a coping behavior. :) We do two or three things at
once to keep any one of those things from being boring. :)

--
"We are now re-imagining our collective dream, and this time, we all are
heroes victorious."

Laura Goodwin

Anyhow, I grew up in south Louisiana, where most people usually carry on several
different conversations at once (in two languages, even) and to this day I can
keep up with about 3 or 4, moniter the kids, and maybe even the TV or radio. I
could also keep an eye on dinner, listen to the news, while skimming throuh a
magazine( I have always "skimmed" while reading-am a voracious reader-especially
of sci-fi :"-)

I thought that being able to keep track of multiple things meant I was Not
attention deficit-maybe I ought to re-think this, now.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm

Buny

SusanS29 wrote:

>snipped<...my ranting over not being able to multi-task

You're absolutely right, Barry. I hadn't bothered to post that
distinction. If I am *FORCED* to multi-task, I'm in pretty deep - note my
aforementioned toddler adventures. But, at my leisure - I'm pretty
comfortable - I can choose when to do several things at once - it's in MY
control. Take cooking for example. I can have pasta cooking, be pre-heating
the oven for whatever bread-n-cheese concoction I'm making, and saute' my
vegetables at the same time. If things get ahead of me - I can either turn
down the burner, or say screw it - let one thing be ready before the others.
That's what a micro-wave is for. BUT - I rarely have to use it. Experience
has taught me how to sequence this stuff so that it works out. Now -if the
smoke alarm goes off while water starts to boil over - and I find that a
plate of raw veggies has been knocked to the floor - you can bet that my b.p.
will be skyrocketing...

Anyway - yes - when *I'M* the boss of what gets done when, multi-tasking
doesn't stress me out. Thanks for pointing that out. Later.

-stan

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> I have to tell you know know someone who thinks she's good at "multi-tasking"

Huh? Could you explain? Email me if that's more appropriate. Later.

-stan

:: Hey, folks. Been awhile since I've posted (in fact, there are many names I

:: I just don't know who I can turn to who can relate to EXACTLY the kind of

::
Hey Stan, good to hear from you again.

I can multi task if required, but too easily slip into HYPER hyper
focus. You know...the house is burning down and I just have to finish
this chapter. What is most frustrating is when I know I HAVE to get
something done or attend another job, I can't let go of what I have
hyper focussed on. Makes my wife crazy :)

James
-
-
Remove the ! for my email address

stan....@mailexcite.com wrote in article
<77per4$s8q$1...@nnrp1.dejanews.com>...

Would you believe I can see both sides of this? It depends on what tasks
I'm trying to do all at once. Sometimes, it's pretty obvious what the
priorities are, three of the tasks will be rather non-demanding, and so,
poof, there I am multi-tasking. (For eg., cooking supper [which usu.
involves browning something or boiling something ;-)], talking to one of
the kids, sweeping the floor, and saying good-bye to my dh.) But where I
run into problems, it seems, is when the tasks all involve words-- like
trying to do my newsgroup thingie, when one of my kids comes in and asks me
a question; or talking to my dh, w/ the TV on, and the kids chattering five
feet away. In those instances, I, like you, have been known to shoot
venom. (FWIW, it's been a lot better since the Wellbutrin.)

Later,
Pam

Also, I do am very familar with "just getting so overwhelmed".

Most people with ADHD do multi-task, and even prefer it, with varying degrees
of success. I think it depends on your other innate strengths and weaknesses.

Me, if I put a pot on the stove to heat and return to the computer, I have to
hold a stirring spoon in my hand so I won't forget, burn dinner and ruin
a(nother) pot.

EVERYTHING got quite garbled, all the time.

I think some people (as others have mentioned) multi-task because they're
bored. That's different than multi-tasking because you're good at it. ;)

That's me.

I've always been like that. In grade school when I was doing long division,
heaven help me if something interrupted me halfway through a problem -- I'd
have to start over.

I had good math skills. It wasn't a problem with math. It was a problem with
ALL THOSE STEPS.

And that is the key--control. Some people are just better at multitasking
as some are good at single tasking; however in the case of ADHD, it is seems
more an inability to be in control over the stimulus input (easily
distracted, unable to focus) and output (blurting out answers, interrupting
others, impulsivity). Of course at the other extreme they shut out all
input, i.e., hyperfocus. The distinction is that ADHD have difficulty
controlling the multitasking or hyperfocus mode.

For normal people, stimulus is constantly being process through various
senses but much remains subconscious as there is a finite processing
capability in the conscious. Stimulus are thus processed based on
thresholds such that when some stimulus reaches a certain threshold (inline
with other thresholds of stimulus being processed at the time) it is brought
into the conscience for action (reaction?). This processing of thresholds
seems to be difficult for ADHDers. In the hyperfocus mode, the house
burning down should be of a sufficient threshold to interrupt the
hyperfocus, but doesn't. In multi-tasking mode, they are not only
processing Jim, John and Jane conversation, but also that car driving down
the street, that slight drop in temperature, that nagging wrinkle in their
sock, that nasty buzzing fly in the kitchen .... hence these other
unimportant stimulus (i.e low threshold) creates distractions such that the
buzzing fly may draw the focus away from the conversation.

It may be true that ADHDers are very good at multi processing, but this may
be more of a case of "having to" to compensate for a faulty filtering
machinations (trained or a coping strategy?); however, there is a point
where they overload (the classroom?).

For me it seems to be a right brain/left brain thing. I can handle, even
need, more than one activity at a time as long as one is a verbal(left
brain) task and the other a non-verbal (right brain) task. If I need to
listen to a lecture, etc., I need to also have a task going (I woodcarve,
this is a good one) to keep my hands occupied, then I can concentrate on
what is being said. If I don't have something to do I will doodle and if
that isn't possible my mind will start to wander.
On the flip, if I am trying to carve or do some other task I need
background noise like TV. In these cases, I think the background noise
mostly keeps me from getting distracted by something else. Without this I
get"bored" with the activity and keep stopping to do something else.

This also is a problem for me. If I am in a conversation with someone,
other sounds are very distracting. I can even lose track of what I was
saying because my mind went off after some other conversation. It takes
effort to avoid this.
Speaking of, lost my train of thought so thanks for reading.

dlewisto wrote:

Wow! If I want to get anything done at all, I've got to do two or three things
at the same time. I can't claim that they're all WELL done, but hey! they're
done. When I worked in TV production, I'd estimate that at least 6 out of every
10 of my fellow workers had to juggle several tasks at one. It was easy to spot
us ADD'ers--we liked it.
Best, kate