Any Aspies Without "Routines"?

Post Reply New Topic

I wish I was more structured. It's easier when the kids are in school because then it segments my day, but summers are *very* hard for me.

I feel like if I have a 'routine', then something will go wrong and I won't be able to stick to it. I have trouble making menus because I might not feel like either making it or eating it. I need to do it though, at least for the kids' sake.

I agree with what people have said about the plan. My husband is ADD, and we have interesting discussions about doing things!

No take that back, I do but not usually inflexible, I don't make up little rituals. Someone said something about plans, I can relate to that and I don't usually just do things on a whim I prefer things to be planned. And also I need routine, I don't mean it as in I'd throw a wobbler if my little ritual has been broken, I mean I am disorganised and there's got to be a plan or routine for the day or else my life would be a state.

I use the image of an artist's pallet or whatever the word is, where he lays out all of his colors of paint, to illustrate how my routines work. It is like most of the things that I want to accomplish are in my mind at the same time, and I pick and choose as I go, and often do two or more tasks simultaneously. It can look very random and confusing to my wife. Also often my associative memory will bring to mind things that I might have forgotten when I started. I've also discovered that I tend to work backwards when I am deciding how I am going to accomplish a task. In my mind I will start at the point where I want to end up, and I lay my steps between there and where I am, from there and work backwards. But when something unusual occurs during my morning routine for instance, I really show my absent minded side. I will often end up at work with mismatched shoes, or black pants with a brown belt on, or a shirt whose color clashes badly with the pants I have on, or whatever. It can be really embarrassing when that happens.

I dont like having a schedule/routine of my life at least while Im unemployed, feels unnecessary and restricting on myself.

e.g. On food, I like to buy different flavours of food instead or always having the same flavour,

Yes me too but I find even if I don't plan a routine that I end up doing the same stuff everyday.
I basically have 2 hrs of my day that I don't have a routine.

Routines demystified topic

Some routines are macro: timed and ordered activities, planned around interests and obsessions originating from outside the person.

Some routines are micro: behaviours involving stimming, and repeating movements, zoning out on a regular basis, and these originate from inside the person.

Some routines may overlap the two categories, or occur together.

I think some aspies will need some routines at least some of the time. This is part of our difference.

No routines of my own per se, but if there is someone I like to talk to who has a very rigid schedule, I end up planning everything around that person's schedule. Very counter-productive, because it ends up eating up at things that I need to get done.

I used to have very strict routines...wake up at the same time, have the same thing for breakfast, watch TV at the same time each day, have the same thing for an after dinner snack etc. There were lots more but I can't remember them. Now I am quite flexible. I don't have a specific order that I do things in although I still prefer to do the same things each day but I'm not going to get terribly anxious if plans change like I used to.
It seems that the more worried I am about something, the more routines I have. When I previously had a lot of routines I had undiagnosed depression and was paranoid. When these things were treated I became more flexible.
I am now suffering from mild-moderate depression and just noticed that I am subconsciously creating daily routines again.