From the FOCO blog

ADHD and ADD are the same condition – just different names from different decades. “ADD” was the official term from 1980-1987. In 1987 the DSM renamed it to “ADHD” and added subtypes. What used to be called “ADD” is now ADHD predominantly inattentive presentation (F90.0). If you were diagnosed with “ADD” decades ago, you have […]

ADHD signs include chronic task initiation difficulty, time blindness, emotional dysregulation, and working memory impairments – not just hyperactivity or distraction. Diagnosis requires 5 of 9 DSM-5 criteria persisting for 6+ months across multiple settings, causing measurable functional impairment. Key Takeaways Adult ADHD affects 4.4% of the US population, with most cases undiagnosed until after […]

Russell Barkley is one of the most-cited ADHD researchers of the past 30 years. His executive function model – first published in 1997 – reframed ADHD from “an attention disorder” to “a self-regulation disorder.” Knowing his framework helps you understand why ADHD looks the way it does, and why “just try harder” was never going […]

Adult ADHD doesn’t look like the childhood version most people picture. Hyperactivity moves inward – racing thoughts instead of climbing furniture. Inattention shows up as drift through emails, missed deadlines, and unfinished projects rather than not paying attention in class. Emotional dysregulation becomes a major feature most childhood descriptions miss entirely. By adulthood, decades of […]

Task breakdown – sometimes called task decomposition or chunking – is the process of splitting a complex task into smaller, concrete steps that are easier to start. It’s one of the most-recommended productivity strategies, but most people do it wrong: they break tasks into logical sub-tasks, when what brains actually need is actionable sub-tasks. The […]

Hyperfocus is the opposite of what most people think ADHD looks like – intense, immersive concentration on one thing, often for hours, with reduced awareness of time, hunger, and surroundings. It’s powered by the same dopamine system that fails task initiation. The trick isn’t to lose hyperfocus – it’s to channel it into protected blocks […]

ADHD imposter syndrome is the persistent feeling that your diagnosis isn’t real, your struggles aren’t legitimate, or your accomplishments are flukes – even when objective evidence says otherwise. It’s not a separate condition; it’s a predictable consequence of growing up with a neurodevelopmental difference that produces inconsistent performance, harsh self-judgment, and rejection sensitive dysphoria. This […]

A 25-minute timer is the classic Pomodoro block – Francesco Cirillo’s original interval for sustained focus. For ADHD adults, it’s the standard for deep work when attention is on your side, but it’s not always the right tool. This guide explains when 25 minutes works for the ADHD brain, when it doesn’t, and how to […]

A 5-minute timer is the smallest commitment that still produces real progress – bigger than the 2-minute rule, smaller than the 10-minute initiation block. It’s the right tool for days when even 10 minutes feels impossible. Five minutes is enough to send one email, do one round of dishes, write one paragraph, or break the […]

A 10-minute timer is the most reliable task-initiation tool for the ADHD brain because it’s short enough to bypass the “this will take forever” wall and long enough to produce real progress. It works by making invisible time visible, lowering the activation cost of starting, and creating a small dopamine reward at the end. Use […]