Last week was my birthday (woo woo). I love birthdays, as long as I don’t think too much about how old I’m getting.
Every year I have a flashback of the day I turned 7 years old. May 23. It was the one day I felt very very special. I remember getting dressed for school, eating breakfast, and waiting…waiting waiting waiting…for my mother to wish me Happy Birthday. I choked down my Cocoa Krispies, then headed for the door to leave. Still waiting. Walking slowly.
As I opened the door to leave, I couldn’t contain myself. Turning to my mother, I burst out in tears and wailed:
YOU FORGOT MY BIRTHDAY!!
My mother felt terrible and apologized left and right, reassuring me that even though it slipped her mind, she still loved me.
As adults with ADHD, even very important things can slip our minds. Anniversaries. Calling people we care about. Thank- you notes. Buying milk at the market when that’s why we went there in the first place. And we get angry with ourselves. We silently call ourselves horrible names. Stupid. Careless. Idiot. I’m sure my mother was thinking of words along those lines that May 23 many years ago.
It’s not bad enough that many of us hear or sense negative comments from others; we have to continually blast ourselves with even worse words.
I think it’s time to stop that. We certainly don’t forget the milk on purpose. Or wishing someone Happy Birthday. We don’t choose to hurt people.
Are you ready to tuck that negative self- talk away? If not, why not? How is it serving you?
I’d love to read your thoughts on this. Just post them via the Comment section below.
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