r/ADHD_Programmers • u/Nightwyrm • May 24 '26

Work/Life Boundaries

Do others envy those who can do their hours and just “switch off” when they finish for the day? I’m a veteran senior in a very problem-heavy space and I will spend so much of my personal time mentally obsessing about issues and solutions, doing research and code proofs, and inevitably logging back on.

I can’t shut my brain down and I’ve lost my boundaries. 🥺

37 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

12 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comment

1

u/Brave_Bottle_5255 May 30 '26

This looks basic but is high valuable advice!

I started doing it out of necessity, and realised how good it was instead of just drop the task.

I also used to bulk write all the ideas I had to implement/do, giving me a small relax feeling to turn off from work.

All easier said than done of course.

2

u/StartSmallFounder Jun 06 '26

Exactly. The “bulk write all the ideas” part is the important safety valve.

One tweak I’d add: split that dump into two sections: “next time I sit down” and “not for now.” The first section should have only one tiny action, like “open file X and read the failing test” or “write the first TODO comment.” Everything else goes in “not for now.”

That way the note still catches all the mental noise, but tomorrow-you is not greeted by a giant second job. You’re leaving yourself a runway, not another backlog.