Laundry- the ultimate ADHD challenge

 

Why is laundry such a challenge for people with ADHD?

Executive Functions

It’s certainly not the most exciting task for people with an interest-driven brain: It’s not exciting, challenging or new, and most people don’t enjoy doing it. So it certainly isn’t a ‘Want to’ task.

(One client described leaving their laundry so long they had run out of underwear – by which stage they had to search online to find out how the washing machine worked. They’d then hyper-focus on the laundry, but didn’t have the space to hang it all out and so got completely overwhelmed at this point.)

Laundry requires us to keep cycling around a series of tasks – often across more than one day. And these tasks require us to use a variety of executive functions:

  • How do we collect dirty laundry? (And where? Does it need separating into coloured/ whites?) – Self-monitoring / organisation / task initiation.
  • What triggers us to put a wash on? (Have we run out of clothes? Have we felt shamed into tackling it?) – Self monitoring/ task initiation / emotional regulation.
  • Do we have detergent? (And do we know which programme to run?) Planning & prioritisation / organisation.
  • How do we remember to take it out of the machine? (Before it gets smelly and needs washing again) Time management / working memory.
  • How do we remember to hang it up? (Where & how? Do we have enough space?) Organisation / task initiation / planning & prioritisation/ working memory.
  • How do we remember to take it down? Organisation / task initiation / planning & prioritisation/ working memory

And what about the final, most challenging step – putting the clean clothes away!

You may not have given much conscious thought before to how you do your laundry – but it’s one of the most challenging household tasks for people with ADHD. I quickly learned this from my ADHD clients when I first started working as a professional organiser.

I’ll often work together with clients to set up a more ADHD-friendly laundry process. Every home is different so you may need clever solutions to your own situation unless you have unlimited space (rarely the case in the UK).

Tackling the laundry mountain

Let’s talk though your laundry cycle.  If you live with others you may need to use curiosity and kindness as you talk this through with them over a few days, making sure you think about what works best for everyone.

Who is in charge?

If there’s one person working at/from home, this person is usually responsible for overseeing the laundry process. But we’re in the 21st Century now, so anyone (from 3 years upwards) can help in some way.  If you have a child with ADHD it is especially helpful to equip them with these skills. Initially you may need to provide more support/ scaffolding, gradually reducing this until they are ready to take responsibility.

Secondary school children can learn very quickly how to use the washing machine, hang clothes out and iron them. Dealing with laundry is a life skill – it’s an essential part of adulting. (In their long summer break after taking GCSEs I showed each child how to run the machine and they were responsible for their own laundry during the holidays).

Dirty laundry

Everyone can collect their own dirty underwear and shake their socks out- am I right?! How can you help make this easier? You could put a laundry bin (without a lid) in each room, or a single big basket close by. Do you have separate sorting baskets for coloureds, whites etc?  Are they close by, or by the washing machine? Ask yourself how the laundry will get there?

The client I mentioned earlier, came up with a genius solution during our coaching sessions. They bought two baskets for their bedroom – just the right size for a single washing load for whites/ coloureds. When the basket was full, this triggered them to put a wash on – this felt manageable and meant they never ran out of underwear!

Washing

Keep washing powder/ conditioner/ stain removers/ colour catchers all together near the machine. If other other household members don’t know how to use the machine, get their help to create and put up simple instructions by the washing machine  (Generally we’ll only use two/ three of the many programmes available …

Drying

Ideally, keep drying clothes to one room – this makes it easier to put away. Your options are:

  • Outdoors – on a washing line/ rotary dryer/ wall-mounted rack
  • Indoors – Use racks or ceiling airers and ventilate rooms well.
  • You might want to try a dehumidifier (great in small spaces – they can dry a whole load overnight).
  • A heated airer like these from Lakeland can be economical and fast
  • Tumble dryer – but beware, clothes can shrink

Hanging out

  • If you hang things out carefully you can avoid ironing (I hate ironing, so am a master at this!)
  • Shake well, hanging the heaviest part of the garment at the top (feet-end first for jeans).
  • You could also hang tops straight onto hangers – ready to go into wardrobes (vertical filing works great for ADHDers!)
  • Top tip: Shake T shirts from the armpits then hang the bottom two corners to accommodate any ‘twisting’.

Ironing (avoid if possible!)

  • Nowadays we are moving away from fabrics which need ironing, so a steamer might be all you need…
  • Where do you store things that need ironing? Could you use a basket/ bag?
  • If you must iron, I learned as a Brownie to iron the smallest bits of a garment first. E.g. shirt: Collars & cuffs→ Sleeves→ Front→Back → Hanger

Putting away clean laundry

  • How do things get folded, sorted and back to the correct place?
  • Do you have a table/ surface/ hooks you can use for this?
  • If you live with others, you could label some open shelves or wire baskets. This makes it easier to find their clothes.

 

I hope that the above tips help you get your laundry under control. And remember, NEVER rush to buy storage solutions until you have the laundry process working for you.

 

Please do share anything that helps you manage your laundry in the comments…