Executive Function

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Welcome to Hacking Your ADHD, part of the ADHD Rewired
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Podcast Network. I'm your host, William Kerb, and I have ADHD.
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On this podcast, I dig into the tools, tactics, and
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best practices to help you work with your ADHD brain.
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Executive function is a hot topic around ADHD, and more specifically,
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how often we have a deficit in it. But one
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of the trickiest parts about executive function is is that
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there isn't a universally accepted model of executive function. I
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know that feels kind of surprising because it seems like
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something that is talked about a lot, and that we
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should have something that is just generally agreed upon. So
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for this episode, we're going to be focusing on the
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Russell Barkley self-regulation model, although I'll certainly be pulling from
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some other sources as well. I really like Dr. Barkley's
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model for self-regulation because, in many ways, we can actually
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look at ADHD as a disorder of self-regulation itself. And
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that's exactly what Dr. Barkley proposes. That executive function and
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self-regulation are the same thing, and that with ADHD, we
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have a deficit in our executive functions, and therefore a
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deficit in our self-regulations. As such, I'll be using executive
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function and self-regulation interchangeably throughout the episode to help emphasize
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that really they're the same thing. In this episode, I'm
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going to go into exactly what executive function and self-regulation is,
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how we use it, and how we can get back
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on track when we find ourselves missing some of that self-regulation.
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If you'd like to follow along on the show notes page,
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you can find that at hackingyouradhd.com slash executive function. Alright,
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keep on listening to find out how we can put
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the fun in executive function. Alright, well, let's start with
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what are executive functions? Simply put, executive functioning skills are
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how the brain plans and reacts to situations. It's how
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we manage ourselves inside and out, and it's what we
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rely on when we're not on autopilot. There are three
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main executive functions that we draw from. working memory, cognitive flexibility,
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and inhibitory control. I'm guessing from that list, you see
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two things that ADHD really struggles with and one that
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we're actually pretty decent at. Even so, let's do a
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quick rundown of what each of these things entail, because
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it's actually a bit more nuanced than that. Starting with
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working memory, what we're talking about here is our very
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short-term memory. This is basically information that we're working with
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right now. It's how we can store information in our
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brains while doing something else. Well, that's how it's supposed
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to work anyway. For many of us with ADHD, we
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can struggle with our working memory. This can make it
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difficult for us to follow multi-step directions. Just think about
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reading a recipe going, okay, I got this, then doing
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the first step, and realizing you have no idea what
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the next step after that is supposed to be. It
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should also be noted that some psychologists use the terms
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short-term memory and working memory interchangeably, while others view them
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as distinct processes. Next up, we've got cognitive flexibility, which
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can refer to creative thinking and thinking outside the box,
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but it also means our ability to adapt to new
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and unexpected situations. So while many of us with ADHD
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do excel at creative thinking, we can have a lot
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of issues dealing with the unexpected. Cognitive flexibility is about
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seeing what we're doing, and if it's not working, then
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implementing a new strategy. It's why we can struggle so
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much when our routines are thrown out of whack. Okay,
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and finally, we've got inhibitory control, which really just refers
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to resisting temptation and resisting acting impulsively. It's also about
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maintaining selective intention and cognitive inhibition, which is what lets
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us block out information that isn't really relevant to the
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task at hand. So ignoring the ticking of a clock
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while you're taking a test or maintaining focus on the
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conversation you're having right now instead of the one of
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the loud guy two tables over that you can't keep
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out of your head. So yeah, I think we've got
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that one covered on why ADHD has trouble with it.
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And as we can see, executive function deficits pose a
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serious problem in our ability to engage in self-regulation. This
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also means that time and thinking about the future are
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incredibly difficult for those of us with deficits in executive function.
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It makes it hard to anticipate and prepare for the future,
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and it makes it hard for us to maintain and
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hit our goals. I should also mention that having executive
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function deficits doesn't necessarily mean that you have ADHD. There
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are many conditions that can lead to executive function issues.
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And also on that note, executive dysfunction is actually not
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part of an ADHD diagnosis. Although, and this is very
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much my own thoughts here, I don't see how you
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could get a diagnosis without having at least some executive dysfunction.
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Because there's just so much overlap between ADHD symptoms and
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executive dysfunction. It really is a disorder of self-regulation. So
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while deficits in executive function are not part of the
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diagnostic criteria in the DSM-5, it is certainly part of ADHD.
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But I digress. It's just something that I think should
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be noted. Along with thinking of our executive function as self-regulation,
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we've also got to understand that this is a limited resource,
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although those limits are going to fluctuate throughout the day.
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We can think of using our executive functions as drawing
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from a pool of resources, and the more we engage
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in using our self-regulation, the more resources we're going to draw.
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Our well of willpower is not infinite, and so we
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can find ourselves severely lacking in self-regulation as the day
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goes by. This isn't to say that we don't have
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methods to restore some of those resources, though. As well,
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those levels are going to fluctuate throughout the day. There
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are going to be points in the day where our
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energy is peaking and it's easier to draw from these
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willpower resources, and times when we're at low energy and
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it's harder. So it can be useful to think of
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these things like a kind of tide. And I know
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it's a little confusing. It's a lot. It's like a tide,
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but we can also use it up and there are
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ways to replenish it. So yeah, pretty much. So let's
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start with using up those resources. Simply put, the more
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we need to rely on self-regulation, the more we're going
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to use it up. One of the clearest examples I
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often see comes from my kids. I know that the
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most likely time for them to have a meltdown is
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right after I pick them up from school. And it
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makes complete sense when you view it from the standpoint
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of self-regulation. There is a ton of self-regulation that's required
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throughout the school day. And once they get in the car,
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they can drop all of that and find they've got
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nothing left in the tank to help them self-regulate. The
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same thing happens to us as adults. We can spend
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the day doing things where we find ourselves needing to mask.
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needing to rely on our ability to self-regulate and then
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come home at the end of the day and find
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that we can't get ourselves to do anything that we
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want to do. We can find ourselves stuck on the
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couch trying to will ourselves to get up and do
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something else, but feeling like we're paralyzed. So really anything
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that uses self-regulation and any of those main executive functions
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I mentioned earlier are going to use up some of
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our capital of willpower. And that depletion can be exacerbated
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by things like stress, bad sleep, illness, and drug use,
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or even having low blood sugar. Can't get yourself to
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do anything? Maybe it's because you haven't eaten in a while. Now,
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of course, we can also work on restoring some of
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that resource pool because, hey, if those things can exacerbate
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the deficits, well then doing the opposite should help. And indeed,
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in most cases it does. Reducing stress and getting a
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good night's sleep are absolutely going to help with our
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levels of executive function. Making sure that we've eaten and
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keeping hydrated also helps. And then there are things like
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taking periodic breaks throughout the day, getting regular exercise, and
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doing things like meditation that can help restore our ability
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to self-regulate. But I also mentioned that this is kind
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of like a tide as well, and what I mean
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by that is that our natural levels of reserves are
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going to vary throughout the day. We've got two main
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cycles that our bodies go through every day. We've got
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the circadian cycle that dictates our sleep and wake cycle,
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and then we have our ultradian cycles, which are 90-minute
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cycles that our bodies go through going from high energy
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to lower levels of energy. During both of these cycles,
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we're going to see varying levels of willpower that we
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can manipulate. Additionally, there are times when we can more
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easily draw upon the well, such as during an emergency
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or when we need to meet a deadline. Our body
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can kick into higher gear and keep us focused and
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drawing on those executive functions when it really needs to.
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But we also need to understand that those reserves don't
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just magically appear. We're borrowing them from our future selves.
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And what this means is that we can have an
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even bigger crash once we meet that deadline or once
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that emergency passes. And drawing on these too often for
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too long is how we can reach burnout. Borrowing from
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the future until there's nothing left to borrow. I think
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one of the biggest takeaways that we can get from
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this episode... is that often those times we screw up
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aren't really our fault, or at least not our conscious fault.
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It more often than not has to do with our
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deficits in executive function, and therefore our deficits in self-regulation.
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I'm not saying this absolves us of responsibility of our actions,
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but it is an explanation for them. And the explanation
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is important because it gives us a method that we
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can think about for correcting the behavior in the future.
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One of the problems that often comes up from my
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self-talk is that it misidentifies my actions as moral failings,
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rather than, say, having lunch too late in the afternoon.
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And this self-talk is important because how we identify a
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problem is how we work on solving it. If I
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say I'm failing to finish my writing because I'm a
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bad person or I'm lazy, there isn't a lot I
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can do to try and solve it beyond buckling down
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and trying harder. But if I can admit that I'm
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having issues with my self-regulation, Well, that's something I can
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try to solve for. Maybe I do just need to
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get something to eat, or I need to take a break.
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Maybe I need to put away distractions so I'm not
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inadvertently using up my executive functions resisting the temptation to
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play with all those toys in my desk. And this
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means that we can really embrace thinking about our ADHD
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issues in terms of self-regulation. So say we're taking a
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break to help restore some of that pool of executive
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functions and we decide to work on a puzzle. This
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is something that I've actually been doing recently because I
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got this great thousand piece puzzle for my birthday. But
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the issue is that it's really easy to just do
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one more piece over and over again. So thinking about
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this in terms of how am I going to regulate this,
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I can work on strategies that will actually help to
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get me to stop. Initially, I might think of just
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setting alarm will work. After five minutes, my break is done.
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But if my issue is putting on just one more
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piece over and over again, then I'm probably going to
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do that once I hit my alarm as well. What
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could be far more effective in this situation is creating
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alarm and then leaving it all the way across the
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room so that I actually have to get up from
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what I'm doing. And once I get up, it's a
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lot easier for me to just move on to the
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next thing. And I know, it's just a puzzle. I
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should be able to just get up and go and
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do the other things I want to be doing. But
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that's kind of the point. This is a place where
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I feel like I should just be able to do
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what I need to do to stop. But nonetheless, this
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is also a place that I have found myself struggling
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with a few times over this last week. And that
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there is a great indicator of when we need to
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change something. It's where we can identify that we know
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we're going to have a problem in the future. Instead
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of relying on willpower, we need to think about where
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we might have issues and how we can mitigate our
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reliance on our own self-regulation. If I want to eat healthier,
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it's easier for me to just not have junk food
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in the house and instead of trying to resist eating
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those cookies every time I open the pantry. This is
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also why many people find it easier to work in
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a cafe instead of at home. Sure, there are ways
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that we can distract ourselves there, but by changing our environment,
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we've cut out a huge percentage of those distractions that
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we'd normally have to use our executive functions to ignore.
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Of course, there also has to be a balance struck
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between accepting that we're low with those executive function resources
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and still doing things when we might not want to.
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Because I know from personal experience, it's easy for me
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to go, oh, I'm not going to do that. My
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executive functions are low and it just wouldn't work anyway.
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This is not particularly helpful and it's just me rationalizing
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not doing something that I don't want to do. But
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it's also in the realm of truth. Because if I
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just try and force myself to do it, I'm also
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probably not going to get it done. Instead, what's more
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useful is to go, I'm not going to start now.
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My executive functions are low. So I'm going to go
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for a walk. or whatever tool you want to use
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to help replenish your self-regulation, which also admittedly is not
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the easiest thing to do when your self-regulation is low.
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Because hey, if I'm having trouble self-regulating, that means it's
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harder to make those good decisions. So as I said,
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we have to work on finding a balance, and one
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of the keys of dealing with low self-regulation is that
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we need to plan ahead. Earlier I mentioned that we
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can think of that resource pool as having a tide
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that goes in and out throughout the day. What this
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means is that we have a somewhat predictable time when
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it is going to be harder for us to draw
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on that self-regulation, which means those are great times to
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have some downtime. We all need breaks throughout the day,
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so why not put them at times that you're already
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going to need a break? Ultimately, while there are things
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we can do to work on improving our executive functions,
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our best strategies are going to be the ones that
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mitigate our own dysfunction by modifying our environment to better
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suit our needs and when we hit those low points
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in our ability to self-regulate. Thanks for sticking with me
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all the way to the end. Before you go though,
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let's do a quick rundown of today's top tips. One,
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we can think of executive function and self-regulation as the
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same thing. Two, our primary executive functions are working memory,
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cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control. Three, we have a limited
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resource pool for our executive functions, and we use some
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of it every time we engage in self-regulation. Fortunately, we
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can help restore some of these resources by doing things
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like taking breaks, having a snack, and getting some exercise. Four,
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one of the best ways to help with executive function
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is to modify our environment and so that we're reducing
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the amount of self-regulation we need to do. This means
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doing things like putting away distractions and making time more visible.
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That's it. Thanks for listening. I'd love to hear what
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you thought of this episode. You can leave me a
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message over at hackingyouradhd.com slash contact. You can also reach
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me on Twitter at Hacking Your ADHD, and I've also
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just launched a TikTok channel that you can find by
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searching for Hacking Your ADHD. If you'd like links or
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to read this episode's transcript, you can find those on
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the show notes page at HackingYourADHD.com. If you'd like to
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support the podcast, the best way is to share episodes
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Just click the share button on your podcast player and
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send your bestie the link with something like, Hey, I
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loved this episode of Hacking Your ADHD. I'd bet you'd
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get a lot out of it too. Or you can
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support the show through my Patreon at HackingYourADHD.com slash Patreon.
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Sign up for the $ 2, $ 5, $ 10, $ 25, or even
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slash Patreon. And be sure to check out all the
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other podcasts on the ADHD Rewired podcast network. For interviews
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00:16:15.179 --> 00:16:19.000
with fellow ADHDers and ADHD experts, check out Eric Tiver's show,
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00:16:19.220 --> 00:16:22.440
ADHD Rewired. For those of you with kids, be sure
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00:16:22.480 --> 00:16:25.480
to check out Brendan Mahan's show, ADHD Essentials. And even
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if you don't have kids, his show is still a
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great resource for ADHD management. If you're interested in exploring
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issues of race and diversity in ADHD, be sure to
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check out ADHD Diversified with MJ. I also do a
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live Q & A with all the hosts of the
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ADHD Rewired podcast network on the second Tuesday of the
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month at 1030 a.m. Pacific. If you'd like to sign up,
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just go to ADHDrewired.com slash events. And now for your
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00:16:51.190 --> 00:16:54.759
moment of dad. When your girlfriend comes home in a
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00:16:54.779 --> 00:16:57.429
white suit, covered in bee stings and smelling like honey,
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you know she's a keeper.