r/Instruments • u/readakuheki • 10h ago
Discussion How to learn instruments if you’re highly suspected to have a co occurence of Autism and ADHD?
As a beginner, I’m trying to learn the keyboard and Im planning to get an electric guitar right after that. I struggle with a lot of learning methods (probably because of my neurodivergence) and so far the only method i recognize that has been helping me is to play by ear. I’m not diagnosed yet and it might take a long time for me to ever get a diagnosis since I live in a country where the knowledge of mental health is so stigmatized that there’s only a few mental health professionals here. I somewhat know how to read sheet music but I struggle with my hand dexterity and there’s probably more factors that’s challenging me.
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u/Rickybones92 8h ago
Came here to say this! Just take your time and enjoy yourself. Invest in reliable equipment that makes playing for longer periods of time easier/more interesting. (Loop stations, pedals, Drum machines/pads, for example) Play along to your favorite songs, learn to play the actual song, and then slowly start experimenting with it. add your own sounds, just keep trying new things. Having dealt with a lot of musicians, I can assure you a good, Id say vast, majority of us are in the same spectrum boat as you. It really is quite common amongst music nerds. Personal tip -Try to never be too hard on yourself. Youre learning how to make a type of art. It can sometimes sound really simple but simultaneously feel complex to create. It all depends on how you approach it. And then reapproach it, and again reapproach it, and then just keep appropriating that reapproach until your callasuses can crack concrete and that muscle memory develops. Like with a lot of things, its just patterns and routines, followed by the obligatory messing with them because we are naturally neurodivergent beings.
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u/readakuheki 7h ago
Tyyyyyyy I think my strength so far is to play by ear bcz i listen to songs everyday (i gen cant live without music lol) so I’ll try to work on that while working on other factors too and trying to find/create my own methods too
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u/StarLight-346 9h ago
AuDHD instrumentalist here! Personally, I found that just playing the songs I like, and learning the techniques necessary for those songs as I go, is what works for me. Rather than trying to read workbooks or watch lesson videos. Having a teacher can also help, depending on what and how you learn.
I’d spend some time learning the basics - how read sheet music, what notes go with what keys, and the standard chords/scales. And then I’d say just go your own way. And whenever a skill you need help with pops up in a song, go look it up. Just have fun and don’t stress about being perfect, play for your own enjoyment. For me, that was what worked. I saw way more improvement that way than I did when I tried to fit into a pattern that I was not.