ADHD forgetfulness: how to stop relying on your memory

Why things slip

Forgetfulness in daily activities appears in the standard description of inattention in ADHD.¹

Working memory is the likely reason. A meta-analysis of studies in adults found that those with ADHD performed worse on working memory tasks than those without.² Working memory is what holds "email Dana back" while you finish the sentence you are typing. If something else arrives, it is the first thing to go.

Remembering to do something later is harder still, because nothing prompts you. That is why Barkley advises putting the cue at the point of performance: in the place and at the moment you need it.^{3 4}

What it looks like

• A task remembered in the shower and gone by the time you sit down.
• Reminders dismissed and then forgotten a second time.
• Agreeing to something in a meeting and never writing it down.
• Finding the same note in four different places.

What helps

1. Capture within seconds.

   The moment you think it, write it. Anything that takes more than a few seconds or a change of screen will lose thoughts.

2. One place only.

   A single trusted list beats sticky notes, three apps and the back of an envelope.

3. Put the cue where the task happens.

   Medication by the kettle. The form on your keyboard. The task on the screen you work in.

4. Use reminders that come to you.

   A list you have to remember to open has the same problem as the task itself.

5. If it takes under two minutes, do it now.

   Storing it costs more than doing it.

6. Make a plan for it.

   Deciding when and where you will do something stops it from circling in your head.⁵

Advice that tends to backfire

• "I will remember." This is the one sentence to retire.
• Reminders you can swipe away. After the tenth one, your thumb dismisses them before you read them.
• Out of sight. For many people with ADHD, what cannot be seen does not exist until it becomes urgent.

How NoRush helps with forgetfulness

We make NoRush, so weigh this part with that in mind. The strategies above need nothing more than paper and a timer. This is how NoRush builds them in for forgetfulness:

• Alt+K on any page Type the thought, press Enter, and you are back where you were.
• Your task on every tab in a floating bubble, and on every new tab you open.
• Reminders that glow slowly on the bubble until you deal with them, without covering your work.
• Capture during meetings still works in Meeting Mode, for things said on a call.