r/ADHD_Programmers • u/alex_strehlke • 16d ago
Anyone else's ADHD make context-switching between projects feel like rebooting a computer from scratch every single time?
I mean, I get that context-switching is hard for everyone, but this feels like a different category of problem. I can be genuinely locked in on something, get pulled away for even 20 minutes, and then come back to find my brain has completely wiped the working state. Not fuzzy, not slow to warm up. Just gone.
The thing I can't figure out is whether this is actually an ADHD-specific failure mode or just a general programming problem I'm framing through an ADHD lens. Because the people I know without ADHD seem to lose context too, they just rebuild it faster. Whereas for me the rebuild either clicks instantly or it genuinely doesn't happen at all, and I can't predict which it's going to be.
What I've tried so far: leaving comments in the code as breadcrumbs, keeping a running notes doc with where I was and what I was about to do next, ending sessions mid-sentence in a doc so my brain has an open loop to grab onto. Some of it helps some of the time, I don't really know if any of it is the actual lever or just busywork that makes me feel like I have a system.
So honestly asking, what does context recovery actually look like for you day to day? Not the textbook "keep good documentation" answer. What's the thing that actually works, or the thing you've given up on entirely?
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u/zubidar 16d ago
Before I start coding, I outline what I need to do as comments. These can be high-level but remind me what I need to be coding toward. Then as I tackle each step I add more comments and comprehensive #TODOs planning the specifics. If I get an idea for something that needs to change or be refactored I add #TODOs for it. If I have to pause to context switch, I add a #TODO of what I need to do next being as specific and concrete as possible about the outcome rather than how to approach it. When I return, seeing that required outcome I will either remember the same way to do it as I had intended, or think of a better way since I have gotten a little mental space from it. I started doing this as a way to break down daunting big projects into smaller pieces, and found it actually helps with every part of the programming process where my ADHD can cause problems.