My experience studying online with ADHD

This article was written by Sustainable Fashion MA (Online) student Alanis. 

Hey, my name’s Alanis and I study Sustainable Fashion online with Falmouth.  

Last month I was diagnosed with ADHD after being referred for an assessment two years ago. From a young age I had struggled with anxiety and depression and was known to be a “worrier”. However, as I got older, I began to consider that perhaps what I was experiencing went deeper than this. Bouts of depression became fewer, and my anxiety began to ease, but it still felt like there was a separate entity influencing my everyday life, I just didn’t know what yet. I explained to my GP that I could tell when I was feeling anxious or depressed, but this other ‘feeling’ didn’t fit into either of those. This discussion then led to my ADHD referral. Two years and a two-hour long assessment later, it was confirmed.  

Since my diagnosis I have received such great support from my team of lecturers as well as the student advice and accessibility teams at Falmouth.

Honestly, this has been a strange thing for me to process, and I couldn’t help but wonder: “why am I only finding this out now?” However, this is the case for many people who are receiving an ADHD diagnosis later in life. When I told those close to me about my diagnosis, they said that it must come with relief, which to an extent was true. Yet, I also felt a deep sadness for my younger self who had questioned so much about herself and how she fit into the world.  

When I first started my MA, studying online took a while for me to get used to but I soon found methods that helped me get into the swing of things. So, here are some of the things that have helped me to not only adapt to online learning but to keep on top of my studies in general. These might not work for everyone, but I find they work for me personally; everyone learns and works differently so find what suits you. 

• Set reminders: I set reminders on my phone, in my calendar, on sticky notes and in a diary. This helps me keep on top of tasks and deadlines as well as general everyday stuff.  
• Checklists: I find that making checklists helps me break tasks down and I can steadily work through them throughout the day.  
• Music: For me, I need my headphones on to be able to focus. However, this can actually become an issue as I will start skipping songs and then end up on Instagram for twenty minutes. So, find albums, playlists or artists that you know you won’t skip.  
• Take breaks: It might feel counterproductive, but this is something I have learnt the hard way. If I felt like tasks were taking me longer, I would intentionally sit at my laptop for longer whilst not actually getting anything done for a good chunk of that time. It reached a point where I struggled to get away from my laptop because I felt like doing so was unproductive – if I just stayed for longer, I would get the thing done. But, by stepping away from my screen – whether it be to go for a walk, make a cup of tea or do some yoga – it allowed me to actually come back feeling refreshed. Now I try to set myself time limits which tend to vary depending on the task and my mood, but as soon as it hits the set time it’s time for me to step away.  
• Study environment: I realised pretty quickly that there are too many distractions for me when trying to study at home and I work much better either in the library or in a cafe where there are fewer things to distract me.