Opinions on doing the studying

As someone with AuDHD, I'm familiar with how challenging it can be to get our brains to function in periods of high stress, like exam and deadline season. 

Everyone is different, and different stuff works for different people - this blog is focusing on studying within your accommodation (i.e. without braving the scary outside world) and balancing this with looking after yourself.

Working in your bedroom

It is common advice to separate your workspace from your living space (especially where you sleep).

Some neurodivergent people struggle with transitions and executive function, which can make starting and stopping tasks really hard. I sometimes found it easier, short-term, to do work or revision in bed when I woke up, rather than treating it as something that needed a big routine shift. But realistically, that often made it harder to focus and definitely contributed to messing up my sleep schedule. 

Another option is to build studying into other parts of your existing routine. For example, I would sometimes bring my work to the kitchen and use meal prep or eating as part of my "getting ready to study" process. This made it feel like less of a big jump from one activity to the next, and made sure that I was eating meals at sensible times, which was a big win during exam periods.

That said, there were also days where working from bed was genuinely the only option and sometimes you just need to find a way of making it work in the moment.  Here are a few ways you can prepare your space in this situation:

• Sit on top of your bed rather than lie down in it. Facing a different direction can help as well. 
• Use different pillows if you have them.
• Open the curtains if you can. 
• Keep snacks and drinks nearby.

Making a small space work

Working in a small space (or, if I'm being honest, a cluttered one) can feel frustrating, but you don't have to completely mess-up your carefully balanced system of clutter to make it usable (reserve this for mid-exam season procrastination). While clutter can be distracting, sometimes the pressure to organise it perfectly can be worse.

Here are some things that can work for me to get my desk ready for work: 

• On a very low energy day, I'd just clear a laptop-sized spot and start from there.
• Setting a 5-minute timer to clear just one end of the desk sometimes can help.
• The best method in my opinion - chuck everything into a box to deal with later (never).

Sensory environment

Sometimes, I would get an hour into 'revision', wondering why I got through nothing, and then realise that the big light was on and it all made sense! Intentionally spending some time assessing my immediate environment according to my sensory needs helped me get stuff done.

Here is my checklist to give you an example:

• Wear my headphones or earplugs even if I don't notice its noisy, especially if the window is open. Brown/white noise can be good when I need something out loud.
• Something to fidget with - ideally textured. I'm counting a spinney chair here!
• Soft lighting - sometimes need to close curtains/blinds when sun is low.
• If hot/humid, turn on a fan or open/close windows for ventilation.
• Water!
• Make sure I'm comfortable - blankets or pillows for my chair etc.

Breaks and time off

Taking regular breaks and time off is so important. As someone who's prone to both hyperfocus (not always on the most useful thing) and getting stuck between tasks, I've found it helpful to have a planned system for breaks - that way I'm not relying on myself to just notice when either of those things is happening. I like using a visual timer to keep track, and I make sure to move around a bit during breaks to help 'un-stick' my brain. Even a quick stretch or pacing for a few minutes can make a big difference.

I also use my breaks as a chance to reassess my work set-up. Sometimes, just switching things up - like moving to the floor or standing to work for a bit - can help keep studying interesting enough to hold my attention for a little longer (emphasis on sometimes). 

There might also be days where your brain just doesn't brain, no matter how perfect your revision schedule looks or how many pastel highlighters you impulse bought. It can be really frustrating and super stressful, especially when deadlines or exams are creeping closer and closer. But sometimes, the most responsible thing you can do is not try to push through it, and instead give yourself some proper time away from your work. For me, the alternative usually means spending the whole day feeling guilty and exhausted from trying (and failing) to force productivity. When I actually listen to my brain being 'blugh' and take a break, I tend to feel more rested - and way closer to being functional - the next day.

Look after yourself and best of luck with exams and deadlines! You can find some more advice from Aditi's study tips.