What is body doubling in adhd?

You might have heard about body doubling when you are frantic for ways to help yourself feel more focused and strategic about school work or your workload. Body doubling is a strategy that folks with ADHD and other neurodivergence use to help with their productivity. The presence of another person can help you feel more grounded and apt to focus a bit more on the tasks at hand.

Body doubling strategies

Alone but together.

One strategy for body doubling is to simply have a person with you. You are working on the tasks that you need to focus on, but you are doing the work on your own. The other person is typically working on something else and not attending to the productivity or focus of the neurodivergent person. It’s important to always keep this option available because some folks are overwhelmed with the presence of someone else if there are a lot of questions or distracting behaviors from the other person. This is not a time to chat or socially connect.

An example of alone but together body doubling is friends or siblings doing homework together. It also might be a parent sitting with their child while working on something separately during homework time. This is often why people are more productive in airports or coffee shops. They are typically with someone that is also working on some tasks to get them done in a limited amount of time.

Working together

Another strategy for body doubling is to work together with another person on the project. If you are tackling a big project at home, like cleaning or organizing, a neurodivergent person might benefit from doing that project with someone by their side. They are more likely to stay focused and on task instead of feeling overwhelmed and off-track.

Grocery shopping and other boring or overwhelming tasks are a great opportunity for working together body doubling. Someone goes to the store with you and you’re able to split the task and get as much done as possible with minimal distractions.

Social together

Another effective strategy for body doubling is to simply be social together. If there’s a task that the neurodivergent person is dreading, simply having a friend or partner going with them to do the tasks can be an immense help. This is when you are able to socially interact throughout the dreadful task and it makes it a little more livable along the way.

Great examples of this are the dreaded errands or tasks like the post office, making a return or shopping for a new dress for an event. If those seem dreadful but necessary, it might help to have someone come along the ride with you.

What’s next?

Body doubling is one of the many strategies that can be used to create better executive functioning and more productivity for neurodivergent folks. Give these a try to see if they might help you feel more attentive to those life tasks we all have to do.

If you are wondering if you might have ADHD or any other neurodivergence, reach out for a diagnostic evaluation and get clarity on what exactly is going on with your neurological experience.

If you are struggling with ADHD, poor productivity and lack of attention and focus, we suggest neurofeedback as a helpful way to support your needs. You can read more about neurofeedback and how our therapists can help you feel more empowered in your ADHD journey.