There is a very specific brand of chaos that comes from having a neurodivergent brain and adult responsibilities. It’s not just forgetting things or struggling with focus—those are the greatest hits, sure—but the real madness lives in the whiplash. In the way I can go from “I have so much to do” to “Let me reorganize my bookshelves by color” in the time it takes my coffee to cool.
Case in point: It’s Monday morning. I am sitting in my office, fully aware that I have a long list of very real, very urgent tasks that need my attention. Emails to answer. Projects to move forward. Actual, scheduled obligations that grown-up me signed up for. But instead of doing any of that, I’m staring at a roll of wallpaper I bought on a whim like it holds the secret to unlocking my executive function.
And my brain—my darling, lying little chaos machine—has the audacity to whisper, “If you just wallpaper your office right now, you’ll be more focused this afternoon.”