Do you have this Executive Dysfunction issue?

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I asked a WP friend what the issue may be and she mention the above term. I have heard of it on WP but never applied it to my issues before. Lately my parents have gotten on my case about OMG! clean the house!! ! So today I broke down and I feel made it spotless. Counters wiped,swept,mopped,ALL laundry done, stuff picked up,dishes done EVERYTHING IMAGINABLE! But it was taxing on my brain! I'd have to mentally tell myself ok do clothes,mop go check clothes (since it's 30min+ for Washer than repeat for dryer) hanging towels (Living in Florida afternoon storms sometimes.) Then "Wait I left the mirror cleaner in the bathroom." Did I clean up everything etc.

I'm mentally exhausted!! !! ! Hopefully since I cleaned top to bottom today I can do minimal tomorrow and get into a video game. That's not taxing at all that's fun!

at all times of my life outside of when I was taking Strattera, I had to emphatically insist to my brain, that it do the right thing, more often than not.

I have difficulty cleaning as well. I find it utterly exhausting, but I will not live in a filthy environment. I find it helps to adopt a very rigid, specific routine about the whole thing. First, vacuuming, then bathroom and kitchen, then mop floors. It helps, but even then, it gets to me. It is definitely one of the hardest things I need to do.

I hate cleaning and organizing.

i'm a big slob-
a human blob.
i collect stuff.
it's never enough.
my place is a mess.
this i will confess.
i could be on the tube,
like those other poor boobs-
on TV shows about we hoarders,
all disorganized old molderers.
and all of us are so alone,
with nobody which to atone .
i'm only slightly blue,
but don't know what to do.
my sis will inherit my mess-
she will exclaim, oh god bless,
or maybe a few different words,
synonymous with fornicating turds.
lord please help me,
i pray to thee-
i can't fix it all myself,
i need providential help.
otherwise one day they'll find my skeleton
under piles like a heap of rotten gelatin,
and stinking to heavenly hell,
with my spirit in heaven to dwell,
but for ever and a day,
in my real divine home to stay.

I have always had problems in this area. At times I am more successful in dealing with it, but it never gets easy or goes away.

Lists help--anything you can do to think through what has to be done ahead of time will help. You can rely on those lists or instruction cards or checklists or notes while you are working so you don't have to think about it but just get through it.

I also find it helps if I can focus on certain things--usually spatial elements of the task at hand. Let's say I can conceptually segment the problem into four or five areas, then attack each one systematically with some kind of clear visual result.

I found a slide show on this that suggested taking a photo of areas you clean when they are in good order and check against those photos while you are cleaning. Another idea is to use maps as guides to where everything should go. You can also create visual labels for your drawers, closets and containers, so that you don't have to think much about where you need to put things.

Some of this may sound a bit drastic and you may think you don't need it, but then you may find that it makes life easier, so why not try? I was a bit embarrassed to try some of this because I am smart and known for my analytical skills and ability to create well designed systems at work. Why would such a brain have trouble organizing socks and undershirts. But without the lists and labels, it's an ordeal.

Good luck!

I'm starting to understand what this "Executive" stuff is.

It's essentially keeping things under control and organized.

Right?

If so I see another identifying factor in my own makeup.

Is this common among Aspies or is it just something you'll find in some?

yeah, like you wouldn't believe. If my routine changes for one day a literally cant figure out where in my day my shower is supposed to go and I end up skipping it for 2 days. In elementary school I never did my homework because I had already mentally blocked out time for other activities.Even when I do the dishes every plate is a separate activity.

by the way after that last sentence I got sidetracked and went looking for something.I walked around my (very small) basement only to discover that what I was looking for was right under my laptop.This post took 17 minutes to write.I have no idea how I function IRL.

@auntblabby: love the poem!

(I like to think of my space as "organized chaos", but I can definitely relate.)

to Conundrum-
to Zeldapsychology-
finally! somebody else who is not allergic to a bit o' dirt. however, I could be a lot better at the organized chaos bit.

I live in organized chaos and I wouldn't have it any other way. Everything has a place, but there is no reason for the place except that I stashed it there once and so I will put it back in the same place. I keep my house reasonably clean by doing 1 or 2 chores a day and leave everything else for another day. In that way I feel like I have accomplished something and can go back to staring at the walls. Having too much to do is stressful and I can only keep track of one thing at a time.

My father and I are both the same way with this, if we don't have a list or a map or a chart of how to do something like cleaning, shopping or getting out of the house, it's hilarious to watch. My mom always says "I won't panic when your father dies, because I'll know he forgot something and he'll be back in five seconds."

I have to have a strict routine for the days when I work so that I'm out of the house on time or I just sort of get lost somewhere between making coffee and getting dressed and don't know where the time went. I also get side-tracked and put things in strange places all the time, such as my tooth brush in the fridge.

I married a guy who doesn't mind cleaning.