“I’m just not cut out for routines and habits. I can’t keep them up, because my life is total chaos and every day looks different.”
Sound familiar? Me too. That’s what I used to say about myself – until I noticed that every morning I drink coffee, brush my teeth, and scroll Instagram (oops!).
I don’t have to control it, it’s automatic. That’s exactly what a habit is: something that takes the load off your brain’s energy and just… happens. When we start looking at habits as something meant to make life easier, not harder, everything becomes simpler.
Recently I was forced to take a close look at my own habits.
I’d spent a year bouncing between doctors until I finally found a nutritionist who actually listened. I got a plan to calm my gut and support my body: a pile of supplements, a food list, guidelines for movement and sleep – all packed into a hefty PDF.
I laughed out loud: “No way, I can’t manage all of this”
She looks at me, knowing what I’ve been struggling with for months, and asks: “Okay, so what’s your alternative?”
Ouch. Because I didn’t have one. My goal was clear: I wanted my body to finally feel better. I wanted to have energy again, not feel like a zombie from morning on.
So I had to figure it out. What made it stick?
- I paired the new habit with what I already did: one pill before coffee, one with a meal, one after a workout 💊
- I kept all supplements in sight (sticky notes everywhere)
- I made the start easier: supplement drink ready by the coffee maker
- I rewarded myself along the way and tracked progress.
Trust me, at first all of this sounded “impossible” with ADHD. In practice, it was manageable, but I needed to adapt my environment, notice what I already do, and use that to build a new routine.
After all, habits are meant to serve us, not the other way around.
And if you fall out of rhythm, it doesn’t mean you’re hopeless and there’s no help for you. Sometimes priorities shift, energy goes elsewhere.
So how can you make it easier for yourself today to build a habit that matters to you?
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