Why I Stopped Chasing Productivity—and Started Paying Attention to My Nervous System
For most of my life, I equated success with movement. If I was building, creating, optimizing, crossing things off, I was winning. I devoured productivity books. I lived by streaks, systems, apps, and hacks. I figured if I could just find the perfect routine, I’d finally feel at peace.
But instead, I burned out.
Not once. Not twice. Over and over again.
Every time I “got my life together,” it would fall apart again within weeks. I’d hit the wall. I’d lose interest. I’d spiral. And in the aftermath, I’d shame myself for not keeping up with my own ambition.
It took me years to realize: I didn’t have a productivity problem. I had a nervous system problem.
🧠 The ADHD Trap: Hustle Without Regulation
If you’ve got ADHD—or even just a brain wired for intensity—you know the cycle:
You get excited about something. Hyperfocus kicks in.
You build momentum, stay up late, feel unstoppable.
Your body starts breaking down, but your brain says “keep going.”
Eventually, you crash—and crash hard.
This used to be my entire existence.
I lived in a loop of dopamine surges followed by shutdowns, all while chasing systems that were never designed for a nervous system like mine. Systems that rewarded consistency without understanding what it costs people like us to be “on” all the time.
The problem wasn’t my ambition. It was that I ignored my biology.
💥 The Shift: From Tracking My Time to Tracking My State
The turning point came when I started asking a different question—not “What did I get done today?” but:
“How did I feel while doing it?”
That question cracked everything open.
I started noticing that some days, even when I was productive, I felt anxious, tight in my chest, buzzed in a bad way. I was in fight-or-flight, pushing through. That kind of productivity wasn’t healthy. It wasn’t sustainable. And it wasn’t leading to the life I actually wanted.
So I stopped trying to win the day by output.
And I started trying to win the day by regulation.
🧘♂️ What Paying Attention to My Nervous System Looks Like Now
This doesn’t mean I don’t work hard anymore. It just means I listen to my body before I plan my goals.
Here’s what I’ve swapped out:
OLD Approach NEW Approach Calendar stacked from 7 AM to 9 PM “Buffer blocks” and flexible windows Measuring success by hours worked Measuring success by energy + recovery Morning “grind” routines Morning nervous system check-ins Pushing through emotional waves Pausing to regulate before reengaging Only valuing output Valuing internal steadiness just as much
Now, my first task of the day isn’t to “crush it.” It’s to get regulated—to come into my body, notice my emotional state, and act from a place of clarity instead of chaos.
🌡 Tools That Help Me Tune In (Not Hustle Harder)
These aren’t productivity tools. These are presence tools—ways I check in with myself before I charge ahead.
1. The Morning Feel Check
Before coffee, emails, or calls, I ask:
“What does my nervous system need this morning?”
Sometimes it’s movement. Sometimes it’s silence. Sometimes it’s a Qik or a breathwork track.
2. Body-First Planning
If my chest is tight or my mind is racing, I don’t override it. I pause. I regulate first. Then I decide what’s actually realistic for the day.
3. Midday Reset Alarms
At noon, I stop. No matter what. Even if it’s just 3 minutes, I shift from output to inward. I breathe, walk, close my eyes. It keeps my energy curve stable.
4. Progress = Capacity
If I don’t crash at 3 PM, that’s progress. If I get through the week without emotional volatility, that’s a win. I track capacity, not just completed tasks.
🧠 The Science Behind It (And Why It Works)
Your nervous system is the foundation of everything. When it’s dysregulated:
Your executive function drops (you can’t plan or prioritize well)
Your emotional regulation collapses (you react instead of respond)
Your dopamine system gets flooded or depleted (leading to motivation crashes)
When your nervous system is regulated:
You think clearly
You act intentionally
You move from your values, not your panic
This isn’t woo. This is neuroscience. And it’s especially critical for ADHD brains, which live in constant tension between urgency and depletion.
🛑 Why I Stopped Romanticizing the Grind
There’s this myth—especially in entrepreneurial and neurodivergent spaces—that the grind proves your worth. That if you can just “push through” like everyone else, you’ll earn your peace later.
But peace doesn’t come later.
Peace is the path.
And pushing through what your body is begging you to listen to is a slow form of self-abandonment.
I’ve had to teach myself—again and again—that I’m not lazy for resting. I’m not falling behind if I’m healing. And I’m not weak for needing to move slower some days.
❤️ What I’ve Gained by Slowing Down
I make fewer impulsive decisions
I recover from emotional spirals faster
I can hold more without crashing
I actually enjoy the life I’m building—not just perform it
When I stopped chasing the next peak and started protecting my baseline, I became more powerful, not less.
Because now, when I move… it’s with clarity. It’s with steadiness. It’s from wholeness.
🧩 Final Thought
If you’re always burning out, it doesn’t mean you’re not built for big things.
It might just mean you were never taught to work with your body instead of against it.
Track how you feel. Not just what you finish.
That’s where your actual power lives.
Let me know if you want this repurposed into a Medium article, carousel for Instagram, or converted into a Pinterest pin + blog post. I can also write the next in the series: “How I Track My Energy Instead of My Output.”
