Why Some of Us Procrastinate

I’ve been helped by my patients to see patterns of brain functioning in people who have difficulty concentrating and focusing.  They seem to rely on stress and deadlines to help them focus.  They also seem to be able to focus if they are excited about something and find it novel and stimulating.  So, concentration and focusing are helped by stress and novel and exciting learning opportunities.  However, this type of concentration and focusing is short lived as it is kept in reserve to help cope with stress and to allow focusing in novel and exciting situations.  It is not meant to be used for routine focusing and routine learning.  This then presents a problem for people with ADD/ADHD as they require stress to be able to focus.  Thus their need for deadline pressure to complete projects and assignments.  This alone contributes to a lot of stress and conflict with others who do not understand why they procrastinate [do things at the last minute].  

However, and importantly, with treatment using so called stimulant type medications, concentration and focusing are improved so that it is no longer necessary to rely on deadline pressures to concentrate and focus. This does require that the medication is titrated so that focusing is supported during waking hours to allow the time necessary to complete tasks and to relate to family and friends.  It also is necessary for the individual who is taking medication to support their concentration, to tell their brain that they no longer need to depend on deadlines and stress to focus as the brain is used to this pattern and will maintain it unless repeatedly instructed to change it.  This last is very important.