When ADHD and Depression attack.

I can always tell when my ADHD kicks in.  How long has it been since I wrote anything on my blog?  Yeah, that’s the ADHD talking.  The doctor that I would talk to about it said that with ADHD it is hard to start something and finish it.  It really sucks when you want to do something and then just put it on the back burner and “pick it back up later.”  So this is me trying to kick that habit and knuckle forward with this.  Plus, if I want to write and don’t it just puts me in a down mood.  That’s when I start to spiral out of control with the depression.  It truly sucks when it happens because then my family suffers for it too.

Having ADHD is bad enough but when you throw depression in the mix, that is just a nice, large, smoothie of chaos.  When things seem to be going south, they REALLY go south with this lethal combination.  Feelings of being unwanted, jealousy, and suicide run so wild that they seem to take over.  You lose yourself to them and in some cases, it goes to the extreme and you follow through with those thoughts.  For those of you who have felt your lose, know that there are those who have felt the same pain, there are those that are willing to listen, and there are those that can help.  To those who are going through these dangerous combinations, I urge you to get the help that you need and get those feelings out by talking to someone about them.

I have said it once before, ADHD can be a blessing if you let it.  The other side of the coin is that it can destroy not only your life but those around you.  Take the meds if necessary, turn to meditation if you can, find those things that help calm you but don’t destroy your body or mind in the process.  Keep your thoughts on positive things and/or those things that help calm your mind.  For me it is reading a book, listening to music, writing, taking pictures, talking to my wife, or just going for a nice drive to some place scenic.

If you let ADHD take over, especially when you are depressed, your thoughts will beat down on your depression door.  If your ADHD kicks in the door during that time, your thoughts will go to those that bring you down more and more.  When that happens, you find things to try and take your mind off of it.  If you are not careful, those things can destroy your life instead of help it.  Things that are addictive like drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and even pornography.  These things have ways of destroying your mind, body, and spirit.  It will destroy your family as well and that will bring you to your lowest point in life.

I say it will destroy your family because if you have the wrong kind of crutch or addiction, it hurts your family members.  Drug use, alcohol abuse, and the use of pornography hurts your family ties and drives you further away from them.  Snicker and comment all you want, but it’s true.  We have all seen it one way or another.  All of this is just the opinion of one man.  I am no expert on this, I have just learned what I have through experience and want to share what I have learned with those that need help.  I hope that all of this makes sense and that you can take something from it.

Fight back against depression, learn the warning signs, and help those that need it.  Most important of all, help yourself and get help if you need it.

Tags: ADHD, alcohol abuse, depression, drug abuse, meditation and ADHD, pornography abuse

For love of the game…. football that is.

Now that the Super Bowl is over, and Tom Brady goes another year without a new ring, I get to talk about my favorite team and the changes that they need to make.  I am in no way a football czar but after being a fan of the Cleveland Browns for twenty seven years and the closest they have come to a Super Bowl was a good run to the AFC Championship game, which was thwarted by the Come Back Kid, John Elway.  You would think after twenty seven years of watching this team go from good to bad and worst would shake me out of the tree.  It actually makes me dig in to the tree more and hold on tighter.  All I ask is that this team finds a cure for what plagues them.  They have only two decent guys on the O-line, Joe Thomas and Alex Mac.  The WR corp is not the best.  Peyton Hillis is a beast of a RB but without a good line all a round, he won’t amount to much.  Colt McCoy needs to get better on the deep ball.  The defense has a ton of work to do to get to where they need to be.  One good CB, Joe Haden, is not enough to stop any passing game.

If I could have a genie grant me three wishes, one would be that the Browns start playing on a professional level, not a college level.  How can they screw up with draft picks?  Mike Holmgren should know football, he has been a big part of it for a long time.  Granted it is Pat Shurmur’s first time as head coach but you have to do better in NFL Town your second year as coach or else they send you packing.  A guy like Randy Lerner should know what he is doing when it comes to who to hire.  He grew up around the business side of it.  Get your stuff together guys!  You have a lot of fans that are counting on you guys to make the right moves and make the right decisions.  We are counting on you to get a great team together and win a Super Bowl.  As die hard fans, we need that win so that our faith in you can be solidified, we need that win so that our faith in the team and prove to the rest of the NFL Nation that we haven’t cheered the team on in vain.

Some of the moves that they have made are very confusing, like letting Rob Ryan go to Dallas.  What was that?  We finally get a decent DC and you guys screwed that up by letting him walk away!  That makes me wonder if you guys in the front office really know what you are doing.  I know it all comes down to numbers but granted to make better numbers you need to put a ring on some fingers and a smile on your fans’ faces.  Put the waivers to use and look closely at FAs.  Make the right call come the draft.  Scout your butts off and get us a team that we, as fans, deserve!  We have stuck with it when the team was moved to Baltimore.  We were all excited when the team came back. The only thing that you have given to us since the team has returned is two years with winning records.  Not much for us fans to get excited about.  I dare say that the team is probably never going to get better because out of all the talent that is there for the taking, the front office picks the no-names that no one has really heard of, or they pick the big names that wind-up being busts, like Brady Quinn.  Talk about wasting draft picks!

From a fan to the front office, get your heads in the game guys!  Give us fans something to look forward to!  We, of all people, deserve it the most!  Give us a reason to put our faith back into the team.  Give us fans the team that doesn’t back down, that won’t stop pushing until the whistle blows and give us a winning team.  Give us a QB like Bernie Kosar to lead the team again.  Give us something!  Anything!  We want to believe but when it is another 4-12 season, faith tends to go right out the window.

This is just my opinion.  I vent this because I love football and hate having to cheer for other teams in the playoffs and Super Bowl, but when it is Tom Brady and the Patriots in it, I don’t find it so hard to cheer for the other team.  I love football.  I wish I could still play the game.  I wish I could be on the side lines screaming for the win.  I am a fan of a team that has nothing left to give, it seems.  But I will still cheer, for love of the game.

Tags: Bernie Kosar, Brady Quinn, Cleveland Browns, draft pick, frustrated fan, John Elway, Peyton Hillis

Couponing, does it really work?

Okay, so there are a lot of people that watch the show Extreme Couponing and think that it is unreal that those people go in and buy that much and save that much.  Depending on the area, yes, yes it is unreal.  Here in Utah, the only store that really helps couponers out is Albertson’s.  Of course, I am just speaking for the southern part of the state.  There may be better places in the north end of the state.  But, don’t be intimidated by the show.  Savings are possible without the double or triple match coupon things that some stores do.

My wife started couponing last year and the first thing that made it worth while was when she got a Swiffer Sweeper for free.  She had a ten dollar off coupon and Wal-mart had it on sale for nine dollars and ninety eight cents.  The savings that have come from couponing in our house are amazing.  We can save anywhere from forty percent up to ninety percent on our grocery bill.

  Plus it never hurts to stock pile some items and save more money in the long run that way.  I think I have a lifetime supply of body wash and deodorant.  I am thinking that we have enough that even my two sons will have to help me use some when they get old enough.  It is amazing to see what deals my wife can find and how much she can save while doing it.

Some of the sights that she uses are: www.stockpilingmoms.com, www.centsablemomma.com, www.freebies2deal.com, and a few others.  She signs up for their emails and they send her the good deals that you might find and we plan accordingly.  These sights can help you build up food storage or just simply save money by buying at the good times.  It would be smart to check these sights out to find out how you might get these good deals because it always pays off when you can have all the cereal, or bar-b-que sauce, or water flavorings, you want in your house. 

It is hard to find all the good deals since the fact that couponing is catching like wildfire.  There will be some deals that you won’t be able to hit because the shelves are cleared.  Don’t dismay.  It happens and the deals will be back again before you know it.  The thing is just get the things you need for know and then you can start your stockpiling later.  Couponing is a skill that takes time to learn but if you can get involved with a friend, it’s even better.  Coupon with someone you know and you can look out for their things and they will look out for yours.  It’s a good way to save money and get those things that you need stockpiled and ready for the big savings in the long run.

I am the husband of a couponer and I wouldn’t have it any other way.  My wife does a great job in the saving department and pretty soon, we will be able to save one dollar per gallon of gas.  One more big stockpile trip and we are there!

Good luck to those of you who are going to start and to those that are already doing it, keep up the good work!

Tags: couponer's husband, Couponing, Extreme Couponing, savings, stockpiling

Hmmmm…. A nice find on the internet.

This post is going to reflect back on this post that I made earlier this month:  ADHD and the Power of Creativity.

This just actually backs up what I had posted before about ADHD.  To see more about it click here.  So for those of you who have kids and worry about them, don’t.  Don’t let anybody else worry about them either.  I have already told a friend of mine that what parents need to do first is find something that their kid likes.  Make sure it is something that helps them focus.  I don’t mean video games either.  Limit their time with video games, movies, and t.v.  I am talking art, reading, sports, writing, singing, dancing, etc.  These are things that get those kids with ADHD involved in something that helps them focus and could one day evolve into something more for them, maybe even a great career.

In society ADHD has been given such a bad rap that parents and even leaders have tried to “contain” ADHD with prescription drugs.  In truth, that should be a last resort.  Parents, teachers, principals, employers, and everyone should be taught what good things can come from ADHD.  Parents need to be taught what some signs are that an ADHD episode is coming on fully padded and ready to tackle their kid.  Employers need to know how to adjust for those of us with ADHD and how to use the creativity or smarts to their advantage.

Nothing is wrong with anyone who has ADHD.  The only thing that is wrong is no having the understanding of it in society.  Believe you me, ADHD is more of a blessing than it is a curse.  Of course I have my struggles but everybody does.  This is just a different kind of struggle but still as rewarding when I make it through one of the fits that ADHD brings.  I urge everyone to check out the website that I found and just read it.  It is small so if there are those out there that hate to read, it takes less than a minute to read.  It might hit you harder than you realize or you may not even be impressed at all.  For others, it gives answers and will make sense.

Tags: ADHD, adult ADHD, creativity, public knowledge

On the trail of being a couponer’s husband.

So, my wife has really gotten into couponing.  When she first tried it out, her biggest score was getting a Swiffer Sweeper for free.  That’s right, I said free.  It was a coupon for ten dollars off and good old Wal-mart had them for nine dollars and ninety eight cents.  What a steal!  It has gotten to where we can can actually go for a little while without buying any deodorant or body wash.  This is just the tip of the iceberg though.  Coupons are a life saver when it comes to saving money.  Plus, if you know the right websites, you can pile coupons on top of sale prices at different stores.  I know that was a given but hey, it bears repeating.

It has gotten to the point now where I actually get excited to see what kind of savings that she has gotten from her grocery store quests.  The bigger the saving the more I am in shock and awe.  I will write more about this in the future as I plan on getting pictures of our stock piled items and the receipts that she has from doing all of this.  It is very quite impressive.  So please, stay tuned and keep the couponing alive.

Tags: coupons, free stuff, husband

This is a short story that I wrote about a year and a half ago. It got good reviews from my class mates at the time.

http://authspot.com/thoughts/life-lessons-8/

It is a bit dark.  I just started writing and out it came.  When it comes to writing, you have to let the story guide you.  At least that is what Stephen King suggests in his book On Writing.

Tags: death, domestic violence, family, lessons, life, rape, revenge

ADHD and the power of creativity, at least I think it helps.

Being diagnosed with Adult ADHD has been a wake up call to me and my wife.  We have dealt with the mood swings, the depression, and other wacky things that is seems to conjure up from time to time.  The one that I wish I could take more advantage of is the creativity that seems to come with it at points.

I know what you are thinking, ADHD doesn’t have anything to do with creativity.  Are you sure?  Have you really been able to peek into the mind of someone with ADHD?  Do you know how many thoughts tend to fly through that kind of mind?  Yes, there are days when I really should use meditation just to shut my mind up cause I get stressed out or depressed, but then there are those days that I really should embrace the ADHD and let the mind reel with ideas.  I just need to be able to write down the ideas fast enough to keep up.

Having ADHD also gives me inspiration for my photography.  In an Intro to Photography class that I took at Southern Utah University, taught by Kyle Petersen, the best professor I have ever had, we got to do our final projects based on any inspiration we had.  There was a couple of photographers that Kyle introduced us to that semester that really inspired my final, Lee Friedlander and some his work he called Stems and one other photographer, I can’t remember his name for the life of me but he uses toys to depict scenes, if anyone knows his name let me know so I can post it here.

I did my final based off of these two photographers and here is a couple of shots from that:

             

My mind was racing as I researched for my final project.  Then I saw Lee Friedlander’s photos and it hit me.  Of course, my photos need improvement but I thought they were pretty good for my first project.  I will be revisiting this project and making it better later.

Another way that ADHD has helped me is by giving me ideas for short stories and books.  Albeit, some of the ideas I have may already be in books from various other authors.  That is just my luck if they are but I am always thinking of a better story and a new spin on ones that I have already started.

Like I said before though, there are times that my ADHD doesn’t help in creativity.  It gives me stress when I think about somethings (like finances) and depression when I think to long on some of those thoughts (again, finances).  One way that really helps me fight of those feelings of stress and depression is to practice meditation.  I was introduced to this through one of my college classes and met my meditation instructor Todd Prince.  Todd talked to us about Vipassana Meditation and how we can calm our “monkey minds” by using it to help focus on one thing at a time.  Doing Vipassana Meditation has helped me to take control of my mind and ideas.  It helps to focus on one idea that comes barreling into my mind and to latch onto it until I am able to get the idea down on paper or into the lens of the camera.

Here is another example of one of my photo assignments, we were to take something small and make it look big:

Without practicing Vipassana I would not have been able to come up with that photo, or any other photos that people in my class liked.

ADHD can be a blessing and a curse.  We just have to be able to know what we are wanting out of it, learn to control it, know the signs of when it is hitting the hardest, and know what to do when it hits.  ADHD isn’t a problem if you know how to control it, it is one of the biggest blessings you could ever have.

 

Tags: ADHD, inspiration, photography