noxiousGnome

Subbin' for the challenge yo

Hey guys! So this challenge is just gonna be different than my usual ones. Last one was pretty floppy.. I did okay at first and then well... Dropped it all to hell. Not sure when that happened, but that doesn't matter! I am moving forward with life and such. If ya do not know, I am ADHD. Here are a small number of my symptoms... Symptoms? Quirks? Flaws?... Anyway! Distracted by EVERYTHING I can hear. I blurt out during conversations, regardless if I am fully aware of the full conversation I am nosy (yes this really is a symptom... It isn't to be rude it is related to the 1st one... Seriously) I cannot plan out huge projects. They are just too massive for me, and that isn't good for me. Things that are super important and require my full attention is not something I am usually able to handle. Once I find something that I find mentally stimulated I hyperfocus -- meaning it is nearly impossible to break me away from it. Now this is not always a good thing. I have a billion unfinished projects. I am stupidly forgetful. I mean really. I write lists/goals and most times I lose them, or they become overwhelming, or they become a distraction I fidget... A lot. (Well this might also be attributed to my Tourette's...) I am HORRIBLE with time management. I have my calendar, I have my to-do's... BUT,meh they are not helpful for me -- I find it overwhelming, constricting, and overall meaningless (Time does not really mean much to me). I... Procrastinate... Well, I am not sure if that really is the case, or I am just.. Distracted (okay... Yeah I procrastinate...) I take a LOT onto my plate, whether I need to or not. So this challenge is going to be a rather... different one. And here is why: I have a support group AT work. Like literally... I have 7... Yes, SEVEN people that are willing to help me kick my ADHD in it's ass and keep me productive, happy, and less stressed. (I love my SCRUM team... they are awesome). Now I am not sure how many of those 7 are aware of WHAT I have, I think 3 total... 2 I told out right, maybe all 3... 1 I am sure knows without being told... The others I am sure are aware I have it, or might be able to guess that I do. Our Quality Engineering Lead in our SCRUM team sits right next to me, seriously her desk is separated from mine by like... a half inch piece of plastic divider. The team's SCRUM master pointed me towards HR because I have been so distracted it is affecting my work. One of the things I need to handle soon enough. My Tech Lead and I have had a one-on-one in which we came up with a basic plan of action for me to follow each 2 week sprint: 1 to 2 items at a time, headphones or earplugs to remove the auditory distractions (which is funny because I am going deaf, tomorrow I have an appointment concerning surgery or hearing aids -- going with the hearing aids) I went with the Ear Plugs (btw) and they literally remove nearly ALL auditory distractions. Our QE and Scrum Master literally no problem with telling me to turn my ass around and get back to work. Our senior developer (not tech lead, but just below him) is good at doing the same thing. I have a schedule I try really hard to adhere to it. I find structure is important to keep myself grounded and running a good path, but it also leads to distractions so I am getting to the point where I need to set up rules and visual queues triggered on my monitor to tell me to do something like: check email, respond email, attend this meeting, go here, do that....etc. At home it is much harder for me. So here is what I need to start doing: Plan realistically and just DO IT! Simple right? Hahaha... See Point 13 up there. -points up- This effects more than just my health. It effects my work, my life, my health, my family, my daughter, my wife, my roommate, the neighbors, you guys here in the Rebellion.... Did I ever mention myself? Yeah that too. I am a software developer for the world's largest retailer. That comes with a HUGE level of responsibility and stress and... Well, Those 13 things take a huge impact on my productivity and personal well-being. We are shifting from waterfall methodology to AGILE (well I came in during this shift, so I am not quite in the waterfall for them). I want to start adopting the things I learn and do at work that help me do things in my personal life.. And visa versa. So this challenge is going to be all about handling my ADHD. Get it back under control. *NOTE: I will not take medicine... I know it is an option, but it doesn't appeal to me.

Lol let's call it a tie. But yes you got all the spit. Jesus that guy can walk wondering if his Fitbit goal says: fuck you there isn't a value type large enough to hold your steps.

Water has not hit the needed 128 oz a day yet... But I am making over 6k most days in steps so I guess progress? Work has been.. Crazy

Today was an... Eh day. I had an all day meeting so I wasn't able to get up as much as I wanted to and walk around. Tomorrow is another day though so -shrugs- I walked 5.8k steps 67.6 (2/4 bottles of water) if I drink more I will let update this. Tomorrow I gotta be up stupidly early, so it is gonna be really damn long day. But I should be better able to get ALL the water and steps

Hii!

I haven't but I will book mark it

-spits in 18ck's hand and shakes his other hand- Yer on!

I like the idea that it tracks the small things I otherwise can't such as sleep or the number of steps I take in a day. I use it as a tool to measure my water intake (something I don't do well on my own). The reminder to get up is great because it reminds me I need to get up and walk away from my work for a few minutes. Even if it is just to go to the bathroom. One of my pitfalls is if I get hyper focused on a task to actually get up and move around some.

Oh I know the Bose do, they are just outside of the price range I am willing to use.

I was actually looking at a set of those originally instead of the BOSE or the other brand that was brought up that were insanely expensive (Beats I think it was). They aren't badly priced but I went with the cheapest route around. Earplugs lol

I am much the same way 18ck, was during my last challenge too

thanks strickland now i am gona have they song in my head. lol

wow a whole week. Run down: I average 7k steps a day, a day ranges from 2.5k steps to 9+k steps I have only drank 1 gallon of water so far... UPDATE: 23:44 CST Friday before I left work I did my 1x1 with my tech lead at work. He noticed the same things I have been noticing more and more. Mostly that I am easily distracted. Now I know I do a bunch of multitasking, I also suffer from ADHD and Tourette's so I am not saying it is entirely multitasking, I am literally just easy to distract. I am working on things to improve that. I am going to go into our planning session with a plan, on Tuesday when we get back into the office I am going to start tackling things differently. I plan on getting some earplugs from my wife's work and using them at the office to eliminate/reduce the sound distractions. I got a 'Programmer at Work' sign that looks like a caution sign at my desk, I am going to start using that as well, gotta figure out HOW to get it at a place people can see and acknowledge it. I wouldn't say my desk itself is a mess, I bought a mount for my two monitors so they are suspended ABOVE the desk itself so that gives me more room to place my laptop and keyboard and mouse and use them, same goes with my notebook I use for taking notes and making reminders for work only. This notebook is an important tool for me. I date each page, number them, and then write down notes and things that need to be done. As I complete things I cross them off and move on, at the end of the day I mark the unfinished ones on the next free page, date and mark that page, fold over the previous page if both sides are used and move on. I have been working on keeping my cabinet drawers cleaned out, still need some work there but I am making SOME progress (Note: I am not filling them with junk) With the raised monitors I have been able to move my phone closer to my reach, I also was able to raise my chair to a position that is far more comfortable on my body as a whole. I will have a lot of work to accomplish on getting to the point where I am super productive and not distracted but I am taking it one step at a time. I plan to try and get 10 to 15 minute walk breaks M-F while working so I can just get away from my work and not think about it. Clear out my mind and keep moving. I think it helps with distractions and such.Plus hydration and sleep. Sleep is hard though. I got a new fitbit recently (It is the Alta) I enjoy the features it has and I rarely look at it, but it is there. It buzzes 10 minutes before the hour is over to get moving and take 250 steps. Friday I accomplished 14 hours (the max level of hours allowed) I felt good. I am still working on getting better nutrition too (it helps me from not feeling tired at middle of my shift.) Well I am off for now. Night guys

Thanks man. I will update things later

A wild 18ck sighting hii

no idea. lol I made some adjustments already. Here is what I found. That first day was tough, not easy to get all my portions in and certainly not easy to prep. So I am changing my challenge to the following: Water 4/4 a day (this part stays) Walk 6k+ steps a day (I work a very stationary job)

Koo that sounds about accurate for my apartment too >.>

Last challenge certainly solidified what I already knew. However that does not deter me from improving myself. So this challenge is going to be a continuation of a previous goal from last challenge and a new one (as they are related) To fuel one's better you need to eat and drink health... Well Healthier than one has been. My issue is I can never seem to eat correctly... I am bad with estimating things and I am not going to use a scale at work, just looks weird at work. So I am going to try a different tactic this time. My wife bought me the Perfect Portion set from work for fairly cheap and it seems to be effective minus a few small issues that don't exactly affect the purpose of the system. According to their guide thing I am suppose to eat the following numbers: Veggies - 7 servings Fruits - 6 servings Proteins - 5 servings Carbs - 1 Serving Healthy Fats - 1 Serving Seeds/Dressings - 5 Servings Tablespoons (Nut Butters and Oils) - 7 Servings Those numbers equal roughly what they conclude as my Daily Caloric Goal. So I am going to see how well it works. I was originally going to start today and I had prepped well, but I think this weekend will better allow me to prepare properly for the week ahead and so I will officially start on the 13th. And water. I have been drinking liquids, but lately no matter what liquid it is besides water I have been awfully thirsty... Water seems to be my only liquid now... But I have not been consistently consuming the gallon from last challenge... SO! Let's get that started again as well. This will be started up again tomorrow. I have 2 33.8 water bottles I fill up. I have to drink 4 of them a day. I average about 2.5 and 3.5. I already have a rough idea of how to break up the portioning to improve my chances. Fruits, Veggies, Proteins, the Healthy Fats, and Nut Butters/Oils to start the day (I can get 1 of each of those taken care of easily), I can easily double up on servings of Fruits, Veggies, and Proteins for lunch, and Dinner/Snacks can easily fill the rest out. This time I will be tracking! Per Day and also Over all Challenge. Templates: Week # Day # Veggies: #/7 Fruits: #/6 Proteins: #/5 Carbs: #/1 Healthy Fats: #/1 Seeds/Dressings: #/5 Tablespoons (Nut Butters and Oils): #/7 Water: #/4

So I have looked back at the state of my challenge and here is what I have completed: 1. I did this and it has stuck yay 2. Has not stuck... Working on this though 3. I got hit by a cold and water wasn't helping it, I did okay, but I switched to tea for the last week and a half or so... I will pick this up (started today) 4. I did this for week 1? Stopped after that... 5. Started... Never finished. So I am realizing I am still a 1 goal at a time person. Next challenge I will determine what I am going to do. Water will be an easy habit to pick up, so I won't do that... Maybe cleaning and maintaining the apartment...

This past week has been a flurry of busy-ness. I showered daily but never completed my water every day. It has been sad but I was still drinking quite a bit of water. Will keep this up.

Been quiet pretty much every other day... Recap time: I apparently misplaced my bank card since Wednesday... Which is NOT good for me >.< I need it real soon for bills and such and that's just not fun. Spent most of today cleaning our bedroom and looking for it, but no luck... I am trying to retrace my steps but so far no luck... I am almost thinkin' I left it at work >.< Water was good yesterday, Still got about a bottle and a half to finish for today though... Budgetting has been forgotten to write down, but I can update it later... I think? We shall see >.< I didn't shower or anything today yet, prolly won't either due to all the cleaning I want to/need to get done still

Yesterday I completed water, showered and brushed teeth twice. These are going self maintenance goals are going well. Cleaning still is sacrificed. Today wife and I are looking to requalify for our apartment with just us. Let's see what happens. Got a haircut today looks good feels good. Water is slow. Not quite a liter done yet.

Finished water last night... Totally forgot to brush my teeth before going to bed last night. Got up late today. Well later than normal. Showered and such... Forgot to take allergy meds. Ugh. Prepping water now.